A great appointment!

Hi everyone!  Today is a wonderful day!  On our way to Roswell, we saw the most beautiful rainbow.  We took it as a good omen, and boy were we right!

I knew it was important to wait and discuss the scan with Dr. Pili!  He has been working with us since May, and is very knowledgable in Chris's medical history.  Although the radiologist says Chris's tumor grew three millimeters, Dr. Pili disagrees.  He feels the last three scans show that Chris's disease is stable!!!!  I felt it in my gut.  I just knew this is what Dr. Pili would say.

With that said, we discussed treatment options.  We would like to be proactive and see if we can get this stable disease to shrink, or better yet, disappear!  There is a new drug, in the clinical trial stage, called PD1 antibody.  Supposedly kidney cancer sends signals to the immune system telling it, "there is nothing here, so go about your business." This allows the cancer to grow.  The PD1 antibody triggers the immune system to "wake up" and attack the cancer.  It is showing a lot of promise and Dr. Pili believes it will be FDA approved within the next couple of years.  I have found one trial that Dr. Pili is going to look into over the next week.  He needs to find out if it is an open study, and if Chris would be a candidate.

If the trial is not available, we will do another round of IL 2 in February.  It is the same treatment we had this summer.

We go back to Roswell on Monday to discuss the options.  We are so very happy that the cancer has remained stable.  Over the last week, I've prayed for God to help guide us down the right path to fight this disease.  I truly feel he has answered my prayers.  We will let you know Monday which treatment we will go with.

I really cannot express how much your love, prayers, and constant encouragement have helped Chris and I.  Not all days are easy, but we've been so fortunate to have so many shoulders to lean on.  The loving, meaningful comments written on this blog, as well as the constant text messages, conversations, and cards, mean more to us than you could ever know.  You are helping us keep the strength to fight this battle!

With much love,
Teresa xoxo