Desmond’s Story

Site created on July 2, 2019

For his nearly 8 years of adulthood, Desmond had managed his life with aplomb. A punctual and loyal employee, he worked hard and paid his bills. Over the last few months, there was an abrubt change. He unceremoniously quit his job. He stopped paying his bills. He withdrew from his family and friends. He became extremely self depricating. He got evicted. His family and friends were at a loss for an explantion, as was he. Offers of love and help were thrust upon him. He would fight it, eventually acquiesce, seemingly level out, and then fall backwards again. Drugs were ruled out. Mental illness was the only explanation. He agreed to get help by way of in-patient treatment. Before being taken in, they require a clean bill of health to rule out physical causes. This, to all of us, was merely a matter of course. The ER has a standard "mental crisis" protocol. Blood work, CT scan, etc. The shock of being presented a CT scan showing a large, abnormality in his left, frontal lobe was profound. This occured around 8:30 pm on a tuesday night. By 4:30 in the morning Wednesday, Desmond was at Sanford Medical in Fargo getting an MRI. The news was not good. A large, cancerous tumor in his left frontal lobe. The doctors posited it had likely been growing for years, possibly five. Part of it in the center was now a mass of dead cells. "Liquified" was the descriptor used by one neurologist. The doctors recognized the tale of Desmond's months long "mental crisis" as standard, predictable symptoms of such a tumor.
It was made very clear to us that remission is not an applicable word to his situation. It will continue to grow, that growth will cause damage. His life will be shortened, considearbly. What we don't know is the type of tumor and the corresponding "grade". The expectancy at this time is broad and not worth speculating on. That is a good problem to have, however. The next step is surgery. On July 12th they will resect the tumor. Everyone is impressed with and confident in the Sanford Medical team. Soon after, we will have answers to many questions; What type of tumor? What grade? Will he need radiation or chemoherapy? Both or neither? To what degree will there be cognitive set backs, permanent and temporary, from surgery?
Nobody wanted this prognosis, but it is what we have been dealt. Desmond has been taking it in stride, with his usual sense of humor, laid back style and inquisitive nature. He has a strong family support sytem. All love, prayers, thoughts and well-wishes are appreciated. We'll update CaringBridge sometime soon after Friday. Thank you for visiting.

Love,
The Family of Desmond Macho

Newest Update

Journal entry by Eric Macho

Hello everyone. I hope this finds everyone well. Myself, nor anyone in my house, hasn't spent any in-person time with Desmond in at least a month, which majorly stinks. We all miss him. Aside from the standard reasons to quarantine, the chemo and steriods were/are suppresing Desmond's immune system, so staying away is really the only call. He's been laying low and staying healthy at home under the watchful eye of his mother. Jessie posted a nice update on her Facebook page regarding Friday's MRI and gave me permission to just copy & paste it here: 
~~"Two months ago, Desmond had an MRI of his brain after doing six months of oral chemo.  It showed growth, although not much. It was/is not clear if it is growth of the tumor or damage from the radiation. 
Six months of this form of chemo is the max they would like to give; more could cause toxicity. 
This week, Desmond had another MRI. The results are stable. There is no additional growth. “Stable” is great news. 
He will continue MRIs every other month. “When” they find new growth (which could be years or a lot sooner....we hope for years from now), the treatment plan will be determined on the variables at that time. 
So for now, Desmond’s Anaplastic Astrocytoma Grade III is stable. His current goal is to wean off of the steroid treatment he has been on. He is doing well and excited to be finally enjoying some warmer weather (at home).  
Please continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers, especially during this month of May: 
Brain Cancer Awareness Month ❤️"~~

Thank you for taking the time to read this and for caring.  We appreciate everyone's thoughts.   Hopefully I have no reason to update you on anything for quite a while. Stay healthy, -Eric
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