SassyLady
10-27-2011, 03:40 AM
As many of you know, I have a younger sister who has been battling cancer for 8 years. Last summer she had congestive heart failure and complete renal failure and all of your thoughts, prayers and positive energy helped pull her through that one. After a week in the hospital and a month up here recuperating with me she was able to go home and participate in a new clinical trial.
However, the new chemo didn't work....the cancer came back with a vengeance. This summer they found two tumors in her lungs and one on her ovaries. Her doctor told her to prepare her bucket list and we completed a couple of them in September. Then they decided she qualified to have a new type of radiation therapy for the tumors in the lungs called:
The CyberKnife® Robotic Radiosurgery System is a non-invasive alternative to surgery for the treatment of both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors anywhere in the body, including the prostate, lung, brain, spine, liver, pancreas and kidney. The treatment – which delivers high doses of radiation to tumors with extreme accuracy – offers new hope to patients who have inoperable or surgically complex tumors, or who may be looking for a non-surgical option. To date, more than 100,000 patients have been treated and 240 systems are installed worldwide.
http://www.cyberknife.com/CyberknifeTreat.aspx
In order to use this machine they had to do some minor surgery and implant some magnets in her lungs. After she got past that, then the treatments were 45 min on three different days. Sure beats the old radiation therapy of seven weeks. We don't know when/what they will do about the ovarian tumor; I'll keep you posted.
She's very weak and tired and it would be nice to have your positive thoughts and prayers once again.
However, the new chemo didn't work....the cancer came back with a vengeance. This summer they found two tumors in her lungs and one on her ovaries. Her doctor told her to prepare her bucket list and we completed a couple of them in September. Then they decided she qualified to have a new type of radiation therapy for the tumors in the lungs called:
The CyberKnife® Robotic Radiosurgery System is a non-invasive alternative to surgery for the treatment of both cancerous and non-cancerous tumors anywhere in the body, including the prostate, lung, brain, spine, liver, pancreas and kidney. The treatment – which delivers high doses of radiation to tumors with extreme accuracy – offers new hope to patients who have inoperable or surgically complex tumors, or who may be looking for a non-surgical option. To date, more than 100,000 patients have been treated and 240 systems are installed worldwide.
http://www.cyberknife.com/CyberknifeTreat.aspx
In order to use this machine they had to do some minor surgery and implant some magnets in her lungs. After she got past that, then the treatments were 45 min on three different days. Sure beats the old radiation therapy of seven weeks. We don't know when/what they will do about the ovarian tumor; I'll keep you posted.
She's very weak and tired and it would be nice to have your positive thoughts and prayers once again.