Dot Haddock

Hi,
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.  Here is what has been going on...


Mimi started to have some yellowing in her eyes and skin over Thanksgiving so after a very fun holiday surrounded by family we brought her to the internist who requested an ultrasound that showed a large mass in her abdomen. The next day, November 28th, she was quickly admitted to Methodist Hospital where they preformed additional lab work and a CT scan that showed a very large mass coming from her pancreas.  They preformed an endoscopic (ERCP) biopsy by sticking tubes down her throat to get a sample of the tumor and inserted a stent to open her bile duct to help it work correctly. Initial reports suggested we might be dealing with a very rare tumor that was encapsulated (contained within the walls of the tumor) which might have a very good outcome.  However, in order to be certain, we need the pathologist to complete their analysis of  the tumor cells from the biopsy. After several days (and one very long weekend) we found out the biopsy contained too few living cells to make a definitive diagnosis. Thankfully the stent has continued to keep the bile duct open and her bilirubin has decreased to a more normal level and she is no longer jaundiced.  Another biopsy was performed using a larger needle inserted into the abdomen under anesthesia,  and pathologists confirmed they have a sufficient number of cells to make a diagnosis, and we are still anxiously waiting for results which we hope to have by mid-week. Unfortunately, while she was in the hospital last week, she developed a bacterial infection of her intestines, decreased her appetite, and required antibiotics. Nutritional drinks were started and these do not taste very good. Throughout her roughly 2 week hospitalization, we decided she would be more comfortable at her home, where she could rest and visit with friends, while we encourage her to eat and build her strength. 


On Friday, she was discharged from the hospital. At her home, she had 2 nights of good sleep but her appetite did not recover. She struggled to drink even 1 nutritional drink a day (ideally she would have 3-4 a day). Although she continues to improve from the infection her appetite remained poor so after a long talk with Bill, Ellen and Tom, she was admitted to MD Anderson today.  


So here we are, resting comfortably in the emergency department at MD Anderson waiting to be admitted. For the first time in almost a week, she ate 2 whole banana (yay!) and her vitals are stable. We continue to wait for the reports from pathology to figure out what we are dealing with .