update
it was a long and crazy weekend. the stress isn't over yet, though.
during the initial testing, the doctors found out that there wasn't one tumor, there were two. the two were on the pituitary gland, sitting on the optic nerve. on friday they did some minor sugery to try to buy some time and to alleviate some of the present symptoms. basically they went into his head and drained one of the two tumors. they also put in two holes to make it easier to drain them in the future.
the weekend was basically a waiting game. different doctors had to come in and do different tests. obviously they had to bring in a neurologists because it's in the brain. then they had to bring in an endocrineologist because it's on the gland (they study glands and hormones). lastly they had to bring in an optomologist because it's on the optic nerve. all of those doctors are supposed to be meeting and then they are going to talk with the parents about the options and what their effects would be. beyond that, i haven't heard anything else. as far as it goes, no news is good news. although no one has really said anything about it (because you don't want to talk this way in this kind of situation) i get the feeling that the tumor is NOT leathal. obviously it's dangerous doing surgery in the brain, but no one has said that he could die from it.
so, right now, he's in a good/bad situation. the good part is that he should live, the bad part is the quality of life. from what i gather, here are the options that are being presented to the parents:
1. do nothing right now. he will go blind, with very little chance of ever recovering his eyesight. and yes, they would have to do something later about the tumors.
2. go in and remove part of the tumors, then use radiation to get the rest. obviously radiation has it's own risks and long-term effects.
3. go in and remove all of the tumors, his pituitary gland, as well as some brain matter.
i'm not sure which option has the following consequences, but i have an idea. i think the negative for #2 is that he could lose some IQ points (5-10), and develop 'water diabetes' aka diabetes insipitus. however, i'm pretty sure the consequence for #3 is that it will completely change his personality. he will become lethargic, wanthing only to sit around and watch tv. he will eat nonstop, because no matter how much he eats, it doesn't fill him up. because of these two things, he will become grossly overweight and basically become a vegetable. they will also have to use hormones to induce puberty, since he will no longer have a pituitary gland.
again, i may be off on the results, but that is what i remember. obviously none of the options are super. however, granted i don't know all the effects of radiation, i think #2 sounds like the best option. then again, i don't have all the facts for all the options.
as soon as i find out what they are going to do, and the possible results from it, i will let you all know. we appreciate your thoughts and prayers. thank you all.
during the initial testing, the doctors found out that there wasn't one tumor, there were two. the two were on the pituitary gland, sitting on the optic nerve. on friday they did some minor sugery to try to buy some time and to alleviate some of the present symptoms. basically they went into his head and drained one of the two tumors. they also put in two holes to make it easier to drain them in the future.
the weekend was basically a waiting game. different doctors had to come in and do different tests. obviously they had to bring in a neurologists because it's in the brain. then they had to bring in an endocrineologist because it's on the gland (they study glands and hormones). lastly they had to bring in an optomologist because it's on the optic nerve. all of those doctors are supposed to be meeting and then they are going to talk with the parents about the options and what their effects would be. beyond that, i haven't heard anything else. as far as it goes, no news is good news. although no one has really said anything about it (because you don't want to talk this way in this kind of situation) i get the feeling that the tumor is NOT leathal. obviously it's dangerous doing surgery in the brain, but no one has said that he could die from it.
so, right now, he's in a good/bad situation. the good part is that he should live, the bad part is the quality of life. from what i gather, here are the options that are being presented to the parents:
1. do nothing right now. he will go blind, with very little chance of ever recovering his eyesight. and yes, they would have to do something later about the tumors.
2. go in and remove part of the tumors, then use radiation to get the rest. obviously radiation has it's own risks and long-term effects.
3. go in and remove all of the tumors, his pituitary gland, as well as some brain matter.
i'm not sure which option has the following consequences, but i have an idea. i think the negative for #2 is that he could lose some IQ points (5-10), and develop 'water diabetes' aka diabetes insipitus. however, i'm pretty sure the consequence for #3 is that it will completely change his personality. he will become lethargic, wanthing only to sit around and watch tv. he will eat nonstop, because no matter how much he eats, it doesn't fill him up. because of these two things, he will become grossly overweight and basically become a vegetable. they will also have to use hormones to induce puberty, since he will no longer have a pituitary gland.
again, i may be off on the results, but that is what i remember. obviously none of the options are super. however, granted i don't know all the effects of radiation, i think #2 sounds like the best option. then again, i don't have all the facts for all the options.
as soon as i find out what they are going to do, and the possible results from it, i will let you all know. we appreciate your thoughts and prayers. thank you all.