We have now indeed received some news from Dr. Shimada and Dr. Parum from Los Angeles. These two men are the foremost experts in the fields of Neuroblastoma and Sarcoma, respectively. Although the reports feel like good news, they still do not give us a definitive answer. I had reported that Undifferentiated Neuroblastoma was the leading suspect, but Dr. Shimada has decided that he does not think that Amos is suffering from a Neuroblastoma. Also, Dr. Parum does not suspect Sarcoma. So this does not give us a diagnosis, but it does seem to tell us that those are not the paths to be taken. To Christine and I this feels like positive news because Neuroblastoma was our least desirable diagnosis as far as cancers go. Now we can concentrate on focusing more on really rare forms of Leukemia and Lymphoma, plus the very outside chance that he has a non-malignant situation. Although, pathology here feels pretty confident that his tumors do show malignancy, just the type and form continue to evade diagnosis.
^On the brighter side, Amos is still progressing on eating, and the doctors are keeping his liver function under control with steroid treatments of what I finally can pronounce as, Dexamethasone. This steroid is keeping his bilirubin count down around 3, which is still above normal. However, a count of 3 is within the parameters of controllable and still buys us time to continue the exhaustive search of the most rare forms of cancer that are known. We had always hoped that our boy would grow up to be different and significant, but we really don't want to have a brand new form of cancer named after him.
^I'd also like to add that the nursing staff here has been particularly kind and diligent in helping us maintain Amos' comfort and keeping a close eye on his condition throughout our stay. These people have a thankless job that I can only imagine weighs on their minds as they are privy to witnessing horrible situations on a day to day basis. So although we still have not arrived at a diagnosis even going back and forth from leading suspects, Christine and I still maintain the upmost confidence in this staff. Now we are moving forward with not so much a path to treatment just yet, but in knowing which paths we do not want to take in Neuroblastoma or Sarcoma. The saga continues.
