Seth's Info

It’s Friday night and I am anxious to get down to Fox Chase for my next appointment. I am meeting with Dr von Mehren this coming Monday morning (the 17th) to discuss my chemotherapy options. Jenny and I have been busy getting our records together for the visit, and trying to get all the necessary pathology slides and reports in our hands. We were reviewing the just-completed pathology report from Sloan today and noticed that after review of all available tissue, the pathologist’s preferred diagnosis was “malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor” (another sub-type of soft tissue sarcoma), not leiomyosarcoma. Unfortunately, there seems to be less data available on-line regarding MPNST that on LMS, but I have learned that differentiating between the two can be difficult. My impression is that pathology can be a little bit science and a little bit fortune telling. Regardless, the “standard of care” treatment for either is the same, and I don’t expect the overall treatment regimen to vary. We did find a clinical trial at Fox Chase for MPNST that we will be asking about, in addition the main-line AIM treatment. I must admit to being frustrated with having to fight such a mysterious enemy, but I will fight the enemy just the same.

We will be heading down to my parents on Sunday after celebrating Easter here. I expect the Easter bunny will visit both places, though. It has been a busy week overall. We were very happy to see my Grandparents and Aunt Claudia and Margaret for a short visit on Thursday--they stopped by on their way back to Ohio. I also managed to get out for lunch with some co-workers and catch up on all the exciting things I am missing at work. The big news is that I have a new Lazy-boy recliner which is quite heavenly. It doesn’t have a beer fridge or anything that fancy, but it would be hard to beat for my afternoon nap. My sincere gratitude goes out to “you know who”, thanks a million. The included picture shows Nathan trying out the chair in his preferred mode of dress.

Take care, and a Happy Easter and Passover to all.

Seth