Trying to make sense of a stack of medical reports.

I’ve acquired so much paperwork since July of last year that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to see the forest for the trees. Perhaps the most relevant material are the imaging studies, but these studies have been conducted by different institutions, using different equipment and test protocols, with the results interpreted by various radiologists that employ inconsistent nomenclature. In summary, it is difficult to compile these data into a single cohesive document that accurately reflects tumor status. But I have tried . . .

The following chart depicts tumor growth from last summer to the present. Most, but not all, of the observed tumors are documented (the others have not been adequately characterized by the reviewing radiologists). Multiple dimensions (D1, D2, D3) are presented for some of the lesions. The vertical blue lines indicate when immunotherapy infusions were given, and the vertical red lines depict the timing of the five sessions of the chemotherapy that have been delivered to date.
You may draw your own conclusions from the graph, but here are my impressions so far:

1. Some tumors grew between the summer and fall of 2008;
2. Some degree of stabilization occurred during immunotherapy treatment;
3. Some of the tumors began to grow again after termination of the immunotherapy and during the early stages of the chemotherapy;
4. All tumors have stabilized (or retreated slightly) during the most recent imaging interval.

I’m presently recovering from the fifth chemo infusion and feeling pretty good, all things considered. It will be interesting to see what the next imaging study shows (scheduled for May 21). Based on the results of that study, we will have a decision to make . . . but more on that later. I think I need to rest now.