The report is sitting on my desk when I arrive this morning.
It is from the Cancer Center: it is official, Len has cancer. He has metastatic
cancer with unknown primary site – Stage IV.
The cancer has been found in his iliac wing (his hip bone)
as well as in his spine.
For most types of
cancer there are four stages, with Stage 1 being an early cancer and Stage 4 an
advanced cancer; with cancer of unknown primary, the doctor doesn't know where
the original cancer started.
None of this is
good news.
When the primary
site is unknown, treatment is difficult to plan. None of the tests done to date
point to a primary site. The plan at this point is to treat the cancer with
radiation therapy – not in an effort to cure it, but to lessen the pain.
Testing will continue… when he qualifies for Medicaid. In the meantime, he has
started treatment.
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