The Results Are In...

James got his CT scan results today - great news to report, friends. (But you're not that surprised after the blood count thing, are you?)

The doctor came in and got right to the results - markedly better than James's first scan at their office. The tumors are shrinking AND his right middle lobe (which has been collapsed since at least July) is starting to reinflate.  (Did you know your lungs could do that?!)  The tumors have shrunk significantly enough to require the radiation team to reduce the treatment field. (Think of it as a finer beam to hone in on a smaller object.)

Needless to say, we are thrilled, elated, excited, joyful. 

We are so thankful to know that chemo is working - and not just on James's hair follicles and white blood cells. Perhaps a little-known fact about cancer treatment is that treatment protocols are standardized which means that doctors "cannot" change course mid-stream.  That is, if doctors felt strongly that the chemo & radiation treatment were not working, there would be nothing to do but see it to the bitter end, wait 2 months, and then start over with a different regimen. Ouch. Nothing quite like how it must feel to "flunk" chemo.  

SO - thankfully this is not the case for James. We are blessed to see early results and wait to see what else God will do. 

Please continue to pray for his general health, complete healing (without surgery would be spectacular, as long as you're asking what we want), and perseverance to see this to the end. James is beginning to tire easily and his throat/swallowing is becoming increasingly painful due to daily radiation-to-the-trachea treatments. =)  (Another little-known fact about cancer...it is quite common for people to drop out before their scheduled treatments are over. Though we have no plans of being radiation drop-outs, I share that to say that apparently enduring to the finish can be challenging.) 

James has 11 more radiation treatments and 6 more days of chemo. He should be done with this intense treatment phase November 17th. 

Thanks for continuing to stand with us! Your love and support continue to be so encouraging. We don't always have the time mental energy to respond to all the emails and blog-comments, so please know that you all mean so much. Thank you.