This morning, Amy had an appointment with the radiation oncologist. They were very thorough and spent a lot of time making sure that our questions were answered. We were encouraged when they pointed out that her prognosis is better than most because she is young and healthy and her tumor is positive for the IHD1 mutation, which have all been shown to improve the prognosis. However, they couldn't answer definitively the question we all want to know, "How much would radiation extend Amy's life?" No one can predict, of course. Radiation could make things worse. It could help. They, of course, recommend that she get radiation treatment, since that is the standard of care for glioblastoma, but they weren't dogmatic about it. (When all you have is a hammer, the whole world looks like a nail.)
Next Wednesday, she has an appointment with the neuro-oncologist. We will see what chemotherapy they recommend and make a decision from there. Unfortunately, neither treatment (radiation or chemotherapy) is very effective, and both tend to make one feel bad and there is risk of more brain damage.
We have been in a similar situation before, in 2004, when Amy had a tumor recurrence after being treated with radiation and chemotherapy. At that time, we knew that God had called us to Peru, and we did not think He was calling us to something different, so we went back and God graciously gave us 11 cancer-free years there! Please pray for us as we make tough decisions.
