Ready to Roll....

At the end of a long week, the treatment plan has been determined. Four specialists held a neuroscience conference today to study my Dad's case and develop the treatment plan. He will start with radiation to the tumor in his skull and the surgery to remove the kidney will follow the radiation. Prior to the radiation treatment starting, he needs to have another CT scan, an MRI and to be fitted for a body and head mold that will be made to hold him firmly in place while the radiation is performed. These procedures are scheduled for next Wednesday, and from there it will take about 10 working days for the molds to be made. So, we estimate that it will be approximately 3 weeks from now for everything to be in place for the actual radiation treatment to start. There will be a total of 5 treatments, which will occur twice a week. The type of radiation(called Sterotactic Radiosurgery or Synergy S for anyone who is interested in the technical stuff) that is best suited to shrink the kind of tumor my dad has is only available at 8 Radiosurgery Centers in the country and the Radiosurgery Center in Willliamsburg, VA happens to be one of the 8! He should have minimal side effects from the radiation; some fatigue is all that is really expected.
My mom and dad believe they are getting the best care possible & feel blessed that everything that needs to be done can take place right there in Williamsburg. They are very confident in the team of specialists that have been assembled to care for my dad and are ready to press forward. Everyone they encountered during the various appointments this week was caring, informative, professional and efficient. We are very thankful for that.
My parents asked me to include this on their behalf - "We are so incredibly grateful for the outpouring of love, prayers and concern and feel honored to know so many wonderful people. There are not only people all over the U.S. praying, but in other countries too like Canada, Brazil and Germany & we thank all of you. We are mindful that there are many good friends and family who are also battling serious illnesses and we want you to know that we are praying for you too."
We are keeping our fingers crossed that everything goes according to plan and that there might even be a chance before the radiation starts for my mom and dad to slip in a trip up to Canada to see my daughter, Megan, graduate from High School. Of course that’s a secondary thing, but would be so awesome if they could make it. We will keep you posted on how everything is going!

Quick Update

This morning, appointments with an Oncologist, Urologist and a follow-up visit to the Neurosurgeon all occurred. My Dad felt comfortable with all of these Doctors and there are several options currently on the table. A key visit though, to the Radiologist Oncologist, doesn’t occur until this Friday. Once he meets with this Doctor they will have a more complete picture on how to proceed. They heard good news today in that he is a candidate for laparoscopic surgery to the kidney, which will make the recovery process much smoother. The swelling to my dad’s left eye has been bothersome, and that seems to be the main area of discomfort. Thanks for your continued concern and support for my dad -- we appreciate it more than you'll ever know!

Thank You

I have a feeling that we will be saying this over and over - but, we want to thank everyone for the incredible response to my Dad. The words of love and support and the prayers being offered on his behalf by his family and friends, and friends of your friends and your churches and the list just goes on....have certainly encouraged and sustained all of us through this tough time. He joked that someone once told him when he was on the fast track in the corporate world, "be nice to people on your way up, you will need them on your way down"! While there certainly have been some down days, he is strengthened by all of your support and ready to beat this cancer. Your responses to him are a tribute to how many people he has positively affected through out his life. Thank you for reaching out to him.

For his fellow golf enthusiasts ----Yesterday he had fun being out on the course on a beautiful day with good friends. He put together two pretty good nines, 40/42 for a 18 hole score of 82, which is about average, but under the circumstances he was thrilled to have it! He hasn't lost any distance off the tee, but had some difficulty focusing from long distance to short distances because of the swelling around his left eye. He has a busy week ahead meeting with the various specialists, but hopes to get another round in before surgery is done on his kidney!

We will provide an update after his treatment plan is determined. My Dad's prayer is for good medical advice, clear headed surgeons, and God to take care of the rest of it.
With much love and gratitude -- The Daniel Family

Renal Cell Carcinoma

Today, it was confirmed that the primary site of cancer is in Jack's kidney. The scan he had this morning indicates that he has a 4-5 cm sized mass in his left kidney. Thankfully, all other organs are clear.
On Tuesday he will meet with the oncologist to develop a plan of action. At this point we do not know if they will remove his entire kidney or if they will be able to do a partial removal. He will also have an appointment with a radiation oncologist in the next few days, as treatment to the tumor in the skull will be simultaneous to whatever course of action is determined for the kidney.
We will be learning more than we ever wanted to know about kidney cancer in the upcoming days, but my family stands ready to fight this. For now, he is feeling ok and is going to try and be out there on the golf course this Saturday!
We are devoted to my beloved Dad and we thank you for the notes of encouragement and prayers being offered on his behalf. We have all felt the outpouring of love for our family and its been amazing.

Diagnosis

The tumor has been diagnosed as malignant. Tomorrow my Dad will undergo a complete battery of test to determine where else the cancer may be. These tests will start at 9:00 am at their local hospital in Williamsburg. From those results a course of action will be determined and we will press on. On behalf of my family, thank you all for your prayers, love and concern. As my Uncle reminded me tonight people all over, including some that we don't even know, but who care because you care, are praying for my dad. We are comforted by that.

NO NEWS

The Doctor's office did not receive the Pathologist's report today. Arrrggghhh - another night of waiting. Can you tell that patience isn't one of my fortes??

My Dad had a good day of hanging out with grandson Kyle and his new set of golf clubs. Other than the blurry vision being annoying, he is feeling ok. His incision site from the biopsy is healing nicely. And so we wait...

Thanks for all the notes of encouragement and love during this anxious time.

Thanks Tami

Thanks so much, Tami, for setting up this blog for Dad. For everyone/anyone who reads this, I want you to know how comforting it has been to both Jack and me this week while our daughters were in town. It has certainly been a tough week, but our spirits are good this weekend, and we will press on, just as Paul did in the New Testament as he pressed forward to complete his race.
Karen/Mom

Stealing an idea...

We have appreciated other family member's blogs (Trudy and Lindsey's) and have found them to be such a great way to stay informed, so while we may appear to be unoriginal, we've decided to create a blog for my dad as well. Hopefully this will be the best means to pass along information to so many of you who love, respect and care so much for him.
We decided to call this blog Jack's Journey because it truly is a new leg/phase of life that we find ourselves in, albeit not one that any of us wanted to embark on.
As many of you know, on Monday, May 12,2008, my dad went to the Dr. to have some blurry vision checked out. We think the only way he agreed to go to the Doctor is that this blurry vision was messing with his golf game!! Initially, the thought by his Doctors was that the blurriness was related to the diabetes that he was diagnosed with this fall. However, a CT scan showed that he had a 2-3 centimeter sized tumor behind his left eye. This tumor is not on the brain, but according to the radiologist report is outside of the brian on either the skull, bone or even possibly muscle. Original thoughts are that the tumor is malignant because some bone erosion has occurred. Yesterday, a biopsy was performed to determine if in fact the tumor is malignant. The preliminary read of the biopsy was inconclusive, and at this point it will be Monday before we know anything conclusive.
If the tumor is malignant, the first thing that will be done before any chemo or radiation is started will be to determine if there is cancer somewhere else in his body, e.g. some place like the lungs or colon. Without any other symptoms to date, we will be very surprised if this is the case. However, if the tumor is benign, its possible that he can have surgery to remove it.
Thank you so much for the prayers and concern that have been expressed by so many. My mom and dad are very touched by this. As soon as we know the verdict we will update this blog and let you know what the specific prayer requests and concerns are. Thanks for caring about my Dad.