During my afternoon appointment with the consultant at Addenbrooke’s Hospital later today, I am expecting the results of my biopsis, with a prognosis. By chance a package arrived at home yesterday with a CD of the last MRI scan prior to the biopsy. I had requested this (£10 only, thanks NHS), as I knew that the new scan offered higher spatial resolution than the earlier one at Rivers hospital, and might also give some indication of tumour progression.
To my surprise the CD of “interesting” images came with a radiological report, the last line of which stated: “Progression of two enhancing lesions in the left frontal lobe, most likely multifocal glioblastoma”. So, remember that this is before the biopsy results, but it now seems that Senator McCain and I might have something in common, (not a lot!). It also suggests that rumours of a third tumour site were exaggerated.
So what do we know about my new running mate(s)? Well it would suggest they are both parts of a single linked but distributed tumour, i.e. they are both part of the same growth. The good news is that this cancer is usually confined to the brain, so if confirmed, I should not expect to have the rest of my body invaded by the “body snatchers”!
Now keeping in mind my lifetime mantra that “no-one gets out of here alive”, what might be the prognosis for my life expectancy?
“The most common length of survival following diagnosis is 12 to 15 months, with fewer than 3% to 5% of people surviving longer than five years. Without treatment, survival is typically three months. It is the most common cancer that begins within the brain and the second most common brain tumor, after meningioma. About 3 per 100,000 people develop the disease a year. It most often begins around 64 years of age and occurs more commonly in males than females” – Wikipedia
Other information: “Primary glioblastoma tends to occur in older adults (> 50 years) and appear quite suddenly (less than 3 months from initial symptoms to diagnosis)”. “Patients treated with this standard therapy tend to survive for approximately 12 months. Without treatment, survival is about 3 months.”
So now I’m looking forward to the actual biopsy result, plus a treatment plan going forward. Life is still rich, and increasingly precious.