Really bad news

Hi All -
Rick had a biopsy on Monday evening and Dr. Daniel found that the meso has spread along the incision lines and is also invading Rick's spine. I guess we aren't destined to be the long term survisors of this ugly disease. We will visit with the radiologist and the cancer docs next week to see what intervention might be reasonable to make Rick more comfortable and slow the progress of the disease. We all are scheduled to go sailing in the British Virgin Islands for the first week in February and Rick wants to do what is needed to be well enough to go. A small course of radiation should slow the growth of the lesions in his spine and since he tolerated chemo fairly well, we might decide to go through a few rounds of chemo to slow the spread. As you know, all decisions will be a compromise between extending life and maintaining the best lifestyle possible in this horrific nightmare.

The good news is that Rick comes home from the hospital today. All the kids will be here through the New Years weekend(including Kimi Schafer), so we will have a good time. For the next two weeks, Rick will still be receiving IV antibiotics for the infections in his lung and lasix to keep the fluid from building up.

As always, we are grateful for your love, prayers and support.