The Tumornator: Tom's updates

First off, the good news...Tom completed his first round of chemo on Saturday and we opted to get an extra bag of fluids to help keep him well hydrated and hopefully minimize any symptoms.  Luckily at this point (Tuesday evening) Tom has only had minimal side effects from the chemo.  The ONLY symptom they could guarantee he'll get is cold sensitivity--both to the outside/skin effects along with food/drinks the week following chemo.  He's had a little bit of an upset stomach, but nothing major so far.  When we met with the Oncology Navigator last week, Tom's case was discussed at the "Tumor board" rounds.  She said there's roughly 16 doctors including surgeons, radiation oncology, oncologists, etc.  Locally they usually do 6 months of chemo before considering surgery.  According to the nurse, they wouldn't be discussing his case if they didn't feel like he'd be a surgical candidate as long as his body responds to chemo like anticipated.    ...

We survived our first 6 hours of chemo on site at John Stoddard!  While I don't recommend cancer for anyone--they do try really hard to make it tolerable for anyone having to be there for extended periods of time.  Tom got his heated/vibrating recliner, a TV screen/small table, warm blankets upon request, and some snacks/drinks available.  Those of who know me can also anticipate I took a small cooler with a drinks and all the snacks 😆 The nursing staff was great, answered all our questions, and helped chat about potential side effects.  We also got to meet our Oncology Navigator Anne, who spent about an hour talking about pancreatic cancer in general, answering questions, and talking about some specifics related to Tom. I was certainly aware of pancreatic cancer and how bad it is...however obviously until directly affected, I hadn't done a ton of reading about it or concerned myself with the detailed anatomy of the abdomen and how everything connects (although cert...

It's been a busy week already around here!  Earlier this week Tom and I got to attend chemo education and he had a PET scan for baseline, so 4ish hours of fun.  Today he got a port placed on his right chest for a total of 3ish hours.  Luckily the procedure went well and he's not having much pain right now.     The finale of the week--he starts his first round of chemo tomorrow for 6 hours on site 😁plus gets to bring some home for an additional 42 hours into the weekend.  The plan is to continue the 48 hour dose of chemo every 2 weeks (every other Thursday) ongoing for now.  We have not heard back from Mayo, but made sure to have the PET scan sent there along with calling the med records department today making sure they received our request to send the paper records.   Fingers crossed chemo goes well tomorrow and then we meet with the dietician next week to work on nutrition dense-high calorie foods he can tolerate to fatten him up a bi...

As some of you are already aware, Tom has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, at least stage 3, as of 5/14/2025. We had his first oncology visit on Thursday 5/15.  The hope is they can do surgery to resect or remove the mass(es). This gives him the best chance of a full recovery. We are waiting for the surgical teams to review his case.  He is scheduled to have a port placed on Wednesday 5/21 for his chemo to be administered. He will receive chemo whether surgery is an option or not. So far we like our local oncology team, but have also reached out to the oncology team at Mayo to request a consult. They are ranked 3rd in the nation for treatment of pancreatic cancer. We have requested his imaging/records to be sent for review and determination regarding which provider can see him and when we can get an appointment.  We will try to update at least weekly on this site to make sure everyone has access to updates. Thank you for any ongoing support, prayers, good thoughts, ...