My Brain Tumor Journey, The Story So Far... » Brain Tumor Experiences

Another clean scan

Administrator — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:12:18 +0000

A week after my latest MRI the results are in. I’m updating this from the “Patient & Family Education Computer” at the Pencer Brain Tumour Clinic. Once again the scan shows no change. I wonder if I’ll be offered an 18 month follow up again this time. For those who are interested, here is the Chart Review Print

Between MRI and clinic appointment

Administrator — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 14:15:55 +0000

It’s that time of year again. I had my annual MRI in one of the spiffy new MRI machines at PMH last Tuesday evening. My clinic appointment is this coming Wednesday (August 11th.) This coming Tuesday is the second Tuesday of the month, and that means it’s Brain Tumour Support Group night at the Pencer Clinic. Be there or be square.

Canada AM segment on brain tumours

Administrator — Tue, 11 May 2010 13:02:45 +0000

The week of May 10th-13th, 2010, CTV’s Canada AM is featuring a segment on brain tumours. It airs at approximately 07:45 each morning, but is also available on the web here.

Well I guess it’s an annual update!

Administrator — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 02:10:40 +0000

It’s been a while since I’ve been able to update the website. For anyone who is still interested, I’m still around and surviving quite well. Life on the farm suits me…I just wish I could be there more often, as work means I have to stay in this apartment in Toronto most of the time, only going home about every two weeks. Here is a link to the farm website.

Moving farther away (or not)

Administrator — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 02:53:46 +0000

At the end of June we moved away from Bowmanville, Ontario (where my brain tumour story started) to a hobby farm about 125 km farther east. Simultaneously I rented an apartment in Toronto so that I could eliminate the lengthy commute. So now I live Monday-Friday in Toronto and weekends at the farm. There’s lots of work to be done on the farm and renovations to make to the farm house. I have started a pictorial blog showing our progress which can be found here

A new diagnosis

Administrator — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 02:43:29 +0000

Some time ago I posted about the search for a differential diagnosis after I experienced symptoms that might have been TIA/stroke, seizure or perhaps classical migraine with neurological symptoms. Recently I went to see a neurologist for a consult at the suggestion of my family doctor. My medical specialists now seem to have agreed that the most likely explanation for my symptoms (which have not recurred in the last six months) is migraine.

An interesting thing came out when I visited the neurologist…my neuro-oncologist had sent him a report on my case in which he described my tumour as an anaplastic oligodendroglioma. Since I’d not heard that from Dr Mason directly, I now had some questions for my next clinic appointment. That clinic appointment was last week. So I asked Dr. Mason, if this diagnosis made any difference after eleven years of survival. He replied in typical fashion, (paraphrasing) “well you’re still here aren’t you?” The clear implication being that if I’d really had a gbm then I wouldn’t have survived this long. Now that’s something I have long suspected, but that’s the first time I heard it from my neuro-onc.

By the way, when I asked if the diagnosis made a difference, I wanted to know if it made any difference to my treatment options if the tumour came back. Dr Mason said it would make little difference.

11 Years Tonight

Administrator — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 03:54:38 +0000

Who would have believed it? I still can’t. Today I have survived for 11 years since the first presentation of my brain tumor. This is the first day of the rest of my life.

Scheduled MRI

Administrator — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 01:38:00 +0000

My regular clinic appointment is not until next August, as a result of my little scare over the summer. However my November MRI scan was not canceled. I had the MRI last Thursday at 5:45 pm. I haven’t bothered to pick up the CD-ROM yet. There’s no appointment to go with this scan, so unless on review there turns out to be a problem, I’ll sit on this one until next year.

Meanwhile, I had a Doppler-ultrasound of the carotid arteries done on Sunday morning. And today I took my first cholesterol medication.

Feeling numb

Administrator — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 02:30:38 +0000

Lately I’ve been having episodes similar to what I described in this post. I never really got a satisfactory explanation of what happened back in November ’03. This time the same thing has happened 4-5 times in the last six weeks (although not at all in the last two weeks.) Oddly four times the problem has been on my right side, and once on my left. Each episode has lasted about 30 minutes. I have not had headaches. It hasn’t been severe enough to send me to the emergency dept., but I did get an appointment with my family doctor. He recommended I get an early appointment with Dr. Mason at the Pencer Centre, which I have done. Basically my regular November visit is being brought forward to August.

One disturbing possibility that has been mentioned this time around is focal seizures. It that’s the consensus, then I might have my driving license pulled for a year, which would not be conducive to me working in Toronto and living out here in the ‘burbs. Oh well, an MRI and an EEG might give a clue as to what’s going on. I’ll update this after the latest round of medical appointments.

Update: August 29th, 2007
I had an MRI last evening and I saw Dr Mason this morning. The scan once again showed no change. Dr Mason’s opinion, from my description of the numbness episodes, is that this is unlikely to be seizure related. I will now make another appointment with my family doctor and look for other reasons for what I have recently experienced.

Can it be 10 years?

Administrator — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 16:10:21 +0000

Yikes, those 10 years really went by fast. To recap, first presentation Feb 14th, 1997. Diagnosed gbm and given 9-18 month prognosis. Biopsy only, followed by radiation and chemo (CCNU.) Watch and wait for the last several years, but no recurrence as yet. I suspect I might really have had a chemo-sensitive Oligodendroglioma and not the advertised gbm, but nobody can say for sure. Still working, living normally. I’m sure I’ve changed as a result of all this, but you’d have to ask my family and friends as I’m not qualified because I don’t see me from their point of view.