Update

Although I left a note this morning stating what I expected to happen next, I received a call from Dr. Reznick's office and they want to see me on Wednesday at 1pm. I will leave a post tomorrow night with the info.

Scan Results

On Monday afternoon I heard back from my Urologist, Dr. Sarram. He had just finished reviewing the CT scans and x-ray and he confirmed that the cancer had spread to the lymph nodes (I believe in my abdomen). He also mentioned that the x-ray showed a spot on my left lung and they want to do a CT scan of my lungs. Since he is the Urologist, he referred me to Dr. Reznick, an Oncologist. I called Reznick's office and they are in the process of getting my records and getting insurance approval for the CT Scan and a Bone Scan. They anticipate it will take at least a week for me to get the insurance approval, have the opportunity to schedule the scans and take them. After they get the completed scans and my medical history, I will have a consultation with Reznick and discuss the diagnosis and treatment options. Unfortunately, I do not have any answers to most of the questions I am being asked and anticipate the initial appointment with Reznick will fill in many of the gaps.

Dr. Sarram told me, after the initial surgery, there was the potential of a hernia if I physically overdid it. Although I felt I took it easy, once the swelling went down, there was a very painful, hard area just under the incision and the only literature I could find was consistent with the signs of a hernia. I asked the Dr. yesterday and he said it was not a hernia, it is the Healing Ridge. According to the Dr, this is where he made the incision and since it's in such a hard area to heal, where he added extra stitches for protection. He said it will be firm for a few weeks and then it will soften and go away. Although I am glad it's not as bad as I though, it would have been nice if the Dr., prior to or just after the surgery, would have told me what to expect over the next few weeks. If he has to answer these same questions with everyone that has that procedure, maybe creating a little handout or sending an email the day after surgery would help his patients and alleviate the need for him to have this conversation again. In the future, I think I might ask some more questions and was a little unprepared for this one as it came on so quickly. With the exception of the Healing Ridge, I feel better than I have in a while.

I am scheduled to fly to Las Vegas on Friday to meet up with Chris, Brian, Vince, Dennis and Jeremy. Someone said it's been over 10 years since the last time we got together and I am looking forward to it. Heather and David will also be in Vegas on Sunday as David has a conference next week and we are going to have dinner on Sunday night. Mike and Cindy are flying into Vegas on Sunday night and I will try to see them, if possible. I asked the Dr. if this trip is okay in terms of timing and any problems and he said it was okay to go.

So, now I wait to schedule the CT scan and Bone scan and everything will happen after that. I will update as soon as I know more.

Sam

New shoes for Addison

Earlier this week, GG (My mom-Stands for Grandma Gayle) came over with a new pair of shoes for Addison. As you can see in the photo, they are adorable shoes for a little girl and Addy took to them right away. We just can't thank GG enough as they have quickly become Addy's favorite pair of shoes and I am sure that Cousin Evan's parents also love his pair. I have included a video below and maybe you will understand why her school asked that she not wear them again.....

All you grandparents, if you need to know where to get these because you want to get back at your children, contact Gayle as I'm sure she will be glad to help.

Although I know this has nothing to do with my current healt, I wanted to share with everyone as it does not all need to be bad news.

Sam

Video

The video is a little dark and I am sure, if you have the sound up, you will quickly understand why these shoes are so much fun for Addison. At the bottom of the page is a poll, let me know what you think.

Sam

On Thursday morning, I was required to drink 2-15oz bottles of Barium Sulfate Suspension before I went for the Scans. Although it had a scent of citrus, it didn't taste like it. When I got the the office, they told me I would also have an IV for "Contrast". The Scans might have taken 10 minutes and it went pretty smooth. The interesting thing is when they release the contrast into the IV as you feel like you've walking into a giant oven but only for a minute or so. The tech told me the Dr. would have instant access to the scan (and chest x-rays) and I should expect to hear back within 24-48 hours. I did call the Dr's office (2 times) to see if they had reviewed the scans and have yet to hearback. I have a follow up appointment on Wednesday afternoon and we hope to hear back before that visit.

Attached are a few photos of the girls:

• Briley's First Day of 7th grade
• Photo of Briley and Addison after we returned from the CU football game
• Addison goofing around

CT Scans

I was finally able to schedule the scans and I go in today at 8:30am for the following:

CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis
With and without Contrast
Full Chest X-ray

The best part is the 2 bottles of “prep” that I am required to drink before I get there. I appreciate the catchy name they use and know it’s going to taste awful as it looks like wallpaper paste.

I want to thank everyone that has either left a message, emailed or called us. It’s really incredible to see how great people are when something like this is going on. Thank you.

October 9, 2007

On Friday September 28th, I went to the Dr. and they diagnosed me with testicular cancer. Unfortunately, the only way to be sure is to perform a procedure known as radical inguinal orchiectomy (I have added a link at the bottom where you can read more) and they scheduled this for Wednesday October 3rd. The procedure went well and I heard back from the Dr. on Friday the 5th and he said that I did have testicular cancer and it was classified as Stage 3, T3. At this point, we are waiting to hear back on a time for a CT scan as that will show the Dr. where and if the cancer has spread. I believe we will then discuss the different types of treatment which could include another surgery, chemo or radiation.
Our goal with this blog is to keep everyone informed. We will update as frequently as there is something new to share.
Sam

Testicular Cancer

TC-Cancer