Alex's Roller Coaster Ride

Alex standing next to his winning piece of art, March 2008.

Welcome to Alex's Web Page. It has been provided to help keep friends and family updated about Alex's journey on the road to recovery. It's kind of like a roller coaster ride, with all the hills, curves, and surprises (some good, some bad) along the way.

Alex's diagnosis: Brain tumor type "Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma" (JPA) located in the optic chiasm and hypothalamic region, with some spread into the midbrain, right temporal lobe, and right frontal lobe.

Our first journal entry gives a background of Alex's story. Click on the "Look at past journal entries" link and scroll down to the bottom to read it.

Special thanks to all the people who have provided prayers, cards, flowers, gifts, meals, and mowing service for our family. We deeply appreciate this generosity and Christian spirit!

Please take a few minutes to sign and leave a message in the guestbook. It is a great source of encouragement for our family.

"When you are sorrowful, look again in your heart, and you shall see that, in truth, you are weeping for that which has been your delight."

- Kahlil Gibran

"The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time."

- Abraham Lincoln

Journal

Tuesday, November 4, 2008 3:01 PM CST

Apparently, we're just not done with this roller coaster ride yet. The news we got after Alex's MRI was not what we wanted to hear. Alex will have to have another MRI in 3 months. From 1 year back to 3 months. Very frustrating. It appears the tumor is trying to make a comeback. It was very bright (enhanced) on the scan and noticeably larger. Quite easy for even a novice MRI viewer to pick out. This is quite a change from a year ago. The problem is nobody knows if this happened gradually over the past year (the better option) or more rapidly over the past couple of months (not a good option.) The next scan will enable the doctors to determine the rate of growth and then we'll decide what we're doing. So far Alex shows no symptoms (knock on wood.) If he were to start showing symptoms (seizures, vision loss, etc.) they will scan again immediately.

Anyway...

We're going to try not to worry too much and enjoy all the upcoming holidays. Alex is looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas, as is Marissa. Chris and I are also looking forward to the holiday season, but not to the cold and snowy weather that comes with it. Yuck!

Thanks for sticking with us through the last 6 years. I can't believe how long the journal archives are! We appreciate all the comments and posts to the site.

Read Journal History

Hospital Information:

Patient Room: Not currently inpatient; done with chemo -

Riley Children's Hospital
702 Barnhill Drive
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317-962-2000 or 800-248-1199

Links:

E-mail Author: acurbanek@yahoo.com