dad update: latest pet scan results

i had been dreading this week for a while...my dad was having another pet scan and meeting with his oncologist to go over the results. these always makes me anxious, but this time especially so.  you probably remember last time he had a scan things weren't looking so great and the doctor told my dad we don't have a lot of "good" treatment options left. my dad decided to stay with the same treatment because he was at least feeling decent. he actually had a hunch that maybe the tumor growth from last time happened during the extra weeks where he was not receiving treatment while exploring joining a clinical trial. he has continued to feel pretty good for the last two months. but even so, i mentally prepared for bad news.

...my dad called me excitedly with his report after his appointment: his back tumors shrunk (which are the ones that give him the most discomfort), his lung tumor looked to be the same size, but the doctor told him the tumor appears to be "inflamed", which apparently is a sign that the cancer drug is not only keeping the tumor from growing, but also working to destroy it! my favorite thing my dad said was "in 2 years of scan results, my doctor has never talked about the drugs 'destroying' my tumor." destroy just might be my new favorite word! the activity level of his lung tumor went from a 12 last time to a 3 this time. i almost broke down crying while driving. it's amazing the effect little victories can have on this often seemingly hopeless situation. 

so, what does this all mean? first of all, an increase in morale for everyone. could we find out in a couple months that the treatment isn't working anymore? sure, but for now it is and we are clinging to that hope. the plan is that he will continue with this treatment and and he and my mom can go down to florida until christmas (he'll get chemo down there) and then they'll do another pet scan around christmas time and re-evaluate then. i'm so thankful for every day i'm getting with him. he's not going down without a fight, that's for sure! 

and as always, thanks for your thoughts and prayers. we really appreciate them!