Started off our day at Charlotte Medical Center Union where we met with Dr. Trautmam and his staff. After the usual round of paperwork, we met with the Dr. who set up Tom's treatment schedule. We have a tenative date set up to start his radiation treatments on Wednesday 3/5/08. There seems to be a problem securing the chemo drug, Temodar that he has to take daily when he starts his radiation. I called Dr. Brick, Tom's oncologist and she advised that she would call Caremark (Tom's Perscription Drug Plan) and see what the problem is. Assuming that they can get us the Temodar by 3/5/08, that is our target day for him to begin his treatments. He will have radiation treatments Monday through Friday and take the Temodar every day. This round of treatments will last for 6 weeks. He will receive 30 radiation treatments. After he has received the 6 weeks of treatments, they will wait around 4 weeks and do another MRI. It is our hope that the treatments will stop or retard the growth of the tumor. Please continue your prayers!
Next we drove to Charlotte and met with Dr. Asher's Physician Assistant, Lauren who took out the staples and told us the his incision looked real good. (We didn't have a 2.5 hour wait this time, just an hour) Once Tom has completed his treatments and another MRI is done, we will meet again with Dr. Asher again to determine our next steps. We have an appointment to meet with him on May12th.
Tom held up well considering it was a lot for one day. He did seem to tired some and did sit down for about an hour once we got home. There is no holding him down though. As I type this he is unloading the dishwasher for me!! He is the most stoic person that I have ever met. At this time he is not in any pain, and we continue to pray that this will continue to be the case. His wonderful sense of humor is as evident as it ever was. We seem to find humor in the smallest things.
We want to thank you all of your prayers, meals, sweets and offers to help in so many ways. It is all of this that gives Tom, Mike, Sean,Tina, Anna and I strenght to face whatever may be ahead.
Love you all!
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Big Day Tomorrow
Dr. Asher's office called and cancelled Tom's appointment for today and made another one for tomorrow. First thing in the morning we meet with the Radiologist, Dr. Troutman to set up Tom's schedule of treatments. Later in the morning we go to Dr. Asher's office to have the staples removed from his incision where they did the biopsy. I am sure that he will be pretty tired tomorrow after all of this.
For the most part he is doing really well. His spirits are good and he is eating and sleeping well. I went back to work on Monday and I must confess, I was a little more than apprehensive about leaving him alone. He has however done very well. I can see where he tires out very easily and is slightly confused but for the most part he is holding up rather well considering.
Again, thank you all for your prayers. I can not tell you all what it means to us. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we truly believe that it is all of your prayers that is helping us get through each day.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
For the most part he is doing really well. His spirits are good and he is eating and sleeping well. I went back to work on Monday and I must confess, I was a little more than apprehensive about leaving him alone. He has however done very well. I can see where he tires out very easily and is slightly confused but for the most part he is holding up rather well considering.
Again, thank you all for your prayers. I can not tell you all what it means to us. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we truly believe that it is all of your prayers that is helping us get through each day.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Friday, February 22, 2008
Just Tom and I
Just wanted to give you the latest update. All of our wonderful family has gone back home and Tom and I can not tell you how very grateful we were to have them with us during his surgery. He is doing well and is in no pain at all. We have an appointment next Wednesday with Dr. Asher the nerosurgeon, to remove his staples and check his incision. We also have an appointment on Thursday with Dr. Troutman who will set up his radiations treatments. For now we are just enjoying a quiet and peaceful time and thanking God for every day that we have together. We ask that you please continue your prayers as I believe with all my heart that the Doctors decision not to do the craniotomy was the direct result of all the prayers that you were all saying for us.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Dad is home!
It's Mike again. Dad's home! He's doing fine, in good spirits, and glad to be out of the hospital. (And we're glad to have him home!!) He's got lots of energy, despite having not slept too well last night in the hospital. (More than most of us, in fact!)
We spoke with a lot of docs and nurses this morning, and we now know the treatment plan. Starting in a week or two (after the small biopsy incision in his head has had time to heal), Dad will begin undergoing radiation treatments five days a week (Monday through Friday), same time each day (they'll be calling to set up the recurring appointment tomorrow), for six weeks, at Union Hospital, 10 minutes from his and Mom's home. For the same six-week period, he'll be taking a relatively recently-developed, low-impact chemotherapy pill once daily. The side effects from these treatments are expected to be fairly minor - possibly some nausea (but they're prescribing another med to prevent that) and some localized hair loss around the specific sites where the radiation will be aimed. The drug can also reduce white blood-cell counts, so they'll be testing him along the way to keep an eye on that.
After the six-week program of treatments, they'll give him a break of at least a month, and follow up with an MRI to gauge the effectiveness of the therapy. Then, we take it from there, moving forward based on test results and the advice of the docs.
We're very, very thankful to have Dad home and completely himself, without any of the potential loss of language, memory, etc. that we were very afraid might have resulted from the originally-planned surgery. (The steroid medications Dad's been on for the past two weeks have been effective in counteracting most of the minor symptoms that originally alerted Mom and Dad to the problem. They're going to be weaning him off the steroids as the radiation and chemo treatments take their place in combatting the tumor.)
We're also very thankful for all of you, and your support, love, and prayers. Thank you all so much for loving us through the beginning of this battle, and in advance for continuing to love us as we dig in for the long haul.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
We spoke with a lot of docs and nurses this morning, and we now know the treatment plan. Starting in a week or two (after the small biopsy incision in his head has had time to heal), Dad will begin undergoing radiation treatments five days a week (Monday through Friday), same time each day (they'll be calling to set up the recurring appointment tomorrow), for six weeks, at Union Hospital, 10 minutes from his and Mom's home. For the same six-week period, he'll be taking a relatively recently-developed, low-impact chemotherapy pill once daily. The side effects from these treatments are expected to be fairly minor - possibly some nausea (but they're prescribing another med to prevent that) and some localized hair loss around the specific sites where the radiation will be aimed. The drug can also reduce white blood-cell counts, so they'll be testing him along the way to keep an eye on that.
After the six-week program of treatments, they'll give him a break of at least a month, and follow up with an MRI to gauge the effectiveness of the therapy. Then, we take it from there, moving forward based on test results and the advice of the docs.
We're very, very thankful to have Dad home and completely himself, without any of the potential loss of language, memory, etc. that we were very afraid might have resulted from the originally-planned surgery. (The steroid medications Dad's been on for the past two weeks have been effective in counteracting most of the minor symptoms that originally alerted Mom and Dad to the problem. They're going to be weaning him off the steroids as the radiation and chemo treatments take their place in combatting the tumor.)
We're also very thankful for all of you, and your support, love, and prayers. Thank you all so much for loving us through the beginning of this battle, and in advance for continuing to love us as we dig in for the long haul.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
End of a long day - Dad's doing well
Dear friends and family,
Mike here. Most important stuff first: when we left the hospital, Dad was awake, alert, cracking wise (like usual), not at all in pain, eating well, and trying to make up his mind how quickly he wanted to call a nurse to help him get up out of bed for the first time after surgery (that'll probably be tomorrow morning). He has a very small incision in his forehead. Chances are he'll come home tomorrow, or Thursday at the latest.
We got back home about an hour ago after a long day at the hospital. Dad's surgery, which was originally scheduled for 2:15pm, then moved back to 12:15pm, then back to 10:15am (which meant we all got to the hospital before 8am) was then moved back to 12:15 and actually ended up taking place at about 2:15...as originally scheduled. (But if they hadn't moved it up in the schedule, I'm pretty sure it would have happened very, very late in the day - or not at all today. So thank God for medical professionals who understand how these things work and pulled strings for us.)
The bigger change, as I previously emailed from my phone to this blog, was that the surgery was not, as originally planned, a craniotomy (i.e., an attempt to remove as much of the tumor as possible, with associated risks to Dad's brain functioning), but a relatively simple and quick biopsy, which is required to move forward with the new plan: attacking the tumor with a program of radiation and (possibly) chemotherapy. The neurosurgeon, Dr. Asher, told us after the surgery that he was headed straight down to talk to the oncologist whom he wants to take over Dad's case, to ask him to come talk to us tomorrow about the treatment plan, while Dad's still in the hospital. We don't know for sure if that's going to happen, but Mom, Sean, and I (at least) are planning to get there by 8am tomorrow, hoping to be there when the oncologist arrives. So hopefully we'll know more tomorrow about the plan going forward.
We're grateful to everyone for all your prayers today. Please stay tuned for more info when we have it.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Mike here. Most important stuff first: when we left the hospital, Dad was awake, alert, cracking wise (like usual), not at all in pain, eating well, and trying to make up his mind how quickly he wanted to call a nurse to help him get up out of bed for the first time after surgery (that'll probably be tomorrow morning). He has a very small incision in his forehead. Chances are he'll come home tomorrow, or Thursday at the latest.
We got back home about an hour ago after a long day at the hospital. Dad's surgery, which was originally scheduled for 2:15pm, then moved back to 12:15pm, then back to 10:15am (which meant we all got to the hospital before 8am) was then moved back to 12:15 and actually ended up taking place at about 2:15...as originally scheduled. (But if they hadn't moved it up in the schedule, I'm pretty sure it would have happened very, very late in the day - or not at all today. So thank God for medical professionals who understand how these things work and pulled strings for us.)
The bigger change, as I previously emailed from my phone to this blog, was that the surgery was not, as originally planned, a craniotomy (i.e., an attempt to remove as much of the tumor as possible, with associated risks to Dad's brain functioning), but a relatively simple and quick biopsy, which is required to move forward with the new plan: attacking the tumor with a program of radiation and (possibly) chemotherapy. The neurosurgeon, Dr. Asher, told us after the surgery that he was headed straight down to talk to the oncologist whom he wants to take over Dad's case, to ask him to come talk to us tomorrow about the treatment plan, while Dad's still in the hospital. We don't know for sure if that's going to happen, but Mom, Sean, and I (at least) are planning to get there by 8am tomorrow, hoping to be there when the oncologist arrives. So hopefully we'll know more tomorrow about the plan going forward.
We're grateful to everyone for all your prayers today. Please stay tuned for more info when we have it.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Update
This is Mike from my phone - change of plans - no craniotomy today -
instead, biopsy today, followed by radiation and chemo therapy later.
In other words, today's procedure has turned into something *very*
low-risk, and Dad should be home tomorrow with no additional symptoms.
Thank God, and thank you all for your prayers and support. More info
when we have it.
instead, biopsy today, followed by radiation and chemo therapy later.
In other words, today's procedure has turned into something *very*
low-risk, and Dad should be home tomorrow with no additional symptoms.
Thank God, and thank you all for your prayers and support. More info
when we have it.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Monday, February 18, 2008
And again! New surgery time: 10:15am
Mike again - Dad's surgery time just got moved forward again. Now we've got to be at the hospital by 8:15am for a 10:15am OR time. This is good news!
Grateful for your continued prayers, love, and support as we get ready for an early morning and a long day.
Love,
The Croghans
Grateful for your continued prayers, love, and support as we get ready for an early morning and a long day.
Love,
The Croghans
Good news! Dad's surgery time has been moved up
Hi family and friends,
This is Mike - we just got a small but encouraging piece of good news. The Neurosurgeon (Dr. Asher)'s assistant, Teri, just called to say that she had successfully rescheduled Dad's surgery for a bit earlier in the day tomorrow (Tuesday). On the original schedule, we were supposed to arrive at the hospital at noon for a 2:30 OR time. Now, Teri's asked us to arrive at 9am, so we're concluding that the new surgery time will be around 11:30am. We wanted to let you know so you could pray for us, but also to share the news, since it's potentially a good thing. Teri had told us that she wanted to try to move the time earlier in the day, both to minimize the chances of the surgery being delayed due to schedule issues, and to make sure that Dr. Asher and his team were fresh and at the top of their game. We're glad she managed to do it, and that we have caring, competent folks like Teri working on our behalf.
Grateful for your love and prayers,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
This is Mike - we just got a small but encouraging piece of good news. The Neurosurgeon (Dr. Asher)'s assistant, Teri, just called to say that she had successfully rescheduled Dad's surgery for a bit earlier in the day tomorrow (Tuesday). On the original schedule, we were supposed to arrive at the hospital at noon for a 2:30 OR time. Now, Teri's asked us to arrive at 9am, so we're concluding that the new surgery time will be around 11:30am. We wanted to let you know so you could pray for us, but also to share the news, since it's potentially a good thing. Teri had told us that she wanted to try to move the time earlier in the day, both to minimize the chances of the surgery being delayed due to schedule issues, and to make sure that Dr. Asher and his team were fresh and at the top of their game. We're glad she managed to do it, and that we have caring, competent folks like Teri working on our behalf.
Grateful for your love and prayers,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Saturday
Hi,
Just wanted to let everyone know that we are still on tract for surgery on Tueday, 2/19/08 @ 2:30 in the afternoon. Tom went through all the pre-op testing yesterday morning and had another MRI in the afternoon. This MRI is evidently a more in depth one that Dr. Asher will use during surgery.
Aunt Joan flew in yesterday. (finally reaching Greensboro @ 5 PM last evening, when she was suppose to be there @ 10 AM.) Long day for her. Sean and Anna picked her up and they arrived in Monroe around 7:45.
Mike and Tina got here late this afternoon and Uncle Edd and Aunt Linda are due to land in Charlotte tomorrow afternoon.
Just want to thank you all for all the prayers, food and offers to open up your homes to acccomodate all of the Croghan Clan! You are all awesome! For those of you who would have loved to be with us but for a variety of reasons could not, we totally understand. Just keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Due to the time of surgery on Tuesday and the anticipated amount of time that the surgery will take, we probably will not be updating the blog until Wednesday morning. But we will update on Wednesday as soon as possible so that you all have the latest update.
Love to all,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Just wanted to let everyone know that we are still on tract for surgery on Tueday, 2/19/08 @ 2:30 in the afternoon. Tom went through all the pre-op testing yesterday morning and had another MRI in the afternoon. This MRI is evidently a more in depth one that Dr. Asher will use during surgery.
Aunt Joan flew in yesterday. (finally reaching Greensboro @ 5 PM last evening, when she was suppose to be there @ 10 AM.) Long day for her. Sean and Anna picked her up and they arrived in Monroe around 7:45.
Mike and Tina got here late this afternoon and Uncle Edd and Aunt Linda are due to land in Charlotte tomorrow afternoon.
Just want to thank you all for all the prayers, food and offers to open up your homes to acccomodate all of the Croghan Clan! You are all awesome! For those of you who would have loved to be with us but for a variety of reasons could not, we totally understand. Just keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Due to the time of surgery on Tuesday and the anticipated amount of time that the surgery will take, we probably will not be updating the blog until Wednesday morning. But we will update on Wednesday as soon as possible so that you all have the latest update.
Love to all,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
A Good Day!
Hi All,
No new medical news to report today. Tom and I went to Combraco (where Tom works) and cleared out his "stuff" this morning. It was hard on him to do this and once again he showed me the unbelievable strengh that he possesses. He is truly my hero! I have never met anyone as strong and with so much determination as Tom. It is this strength, determination and the love and prayers of all of you that is going to get us through this! Tom and I are both so very thankful for the wonderful family and friends that we have. We are especially blessed to have Mike, Tina, Sean and Anna with us every step of the way!
Please continue to keep all of us in your prayers.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
No new medical news to report today. Tom and I went to Combraco (where Tom works) and cleared out his "stuff" this morning. It was hard on him to do this and once again he showed me the unbelievable strengh that he possesses. He is truly my hero! I have never met anyone as strong and with so much determination as Tom. It is this strength, determination and the love and prayers of all of you that is going to get us through this! Tom and I are both so very thankful for the wonderful family and friends that we have. We are especially blessed to have Mike, Tina, Sean and Anna with us every step of the way!
Please continue to keep all of us in your prayers.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Monday, February 11, 2008
Results of neurologist visit
Dear family and friends,
This is Mike; please forgive me if this post is pretty much "just the facts" - not sure I can do much more in this format right now.
We finally got to see the neurologist after about a 2.5-hour wait, and he was very no-nonsense and forthright. He showed us the MRI slides from last Wednesday, and was quite certain of the nature of the tumor. It is a new lesion, unrelated to the acoustic neuroma they removed from Dad's ear several years ago. It is almost certainly an aggressive, malignant tumor called a glioma. It can co-exist with healthy tissue (and is doing so), but grows aggressively.
The neurosurgeon has scheduled Dad for surgery to try to remove as much of the tumor as possible next Tuesday, February 19th, currently for 2:30 pm (but they might try to move up the time). There's a good chance that Dad will need time in the hospital for rehabilitation after surgery.
This is hard news for all of us, but we're glad to be together and to have each other's love and support, as well as that of you all. Your prayers are very much needed and very much appreciated by all of us right now.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
This is Mike; please forgive me if this post is pretty much "just the facts" - not sure I can do much more in this format right now.
We finally got to see the neurologist after about a 2.5-hour wait, and he was very no-nonsense and forthright. He showed us the MRI slides from last Wednesday, and was quite certain of the nature of the tumor. It is a new lesion, unrelated to the acoustic neuroma they removed from Dad's ear several years ago. It is almost certainly an aggressive, malignant tumor called a glioma. It can co-exist with healthy tissue (and is doing so), but grows aggressively.
The neurosurgeon has scheduled Dad for surgery to try to remove as much of the tumor as possible next Tuesday, February 19th, currently for 2:30 pm (but they might try to move up the time). There's a good chance that Dad will need time in the hospital for rehabilitation after surgery.
This is hard news for all of us, but we're glad to be together and to have each other's love and support, as well as that of you all. Your prayers are very much needed and very much appreciated by all of us right now.
Love,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Sunday, February 10, 2008
First Post
Hi All,
Thanks to Mike setting up this blog page for us, we have decided that would be the easiest way to keep you all informed on Tom's progress. We will be seeing the Neurosurgeon tomorrow @ 12:15 PM. Once we have more information, I will add to keep you all up to date. Until then, just keep us all in your prayers!!
Love to you all,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
Thanks to Mike setting up this blog page for us, we have decided that would be the easiest way to keep you all informed on Tom's progress. We will be seeing the Neurosurgeon tomorrow @ 12:15 PM. Once we have more information, I will add to keep you all up to date. Until then, just keep us all in your prayers!!
Love to you all,
Tom & Lynne
Mike & Tina
Sean & Anna
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