After noticing a rapid decline in the vision of my right eye for many months, I finally saw an eye doctor and lesions that are typical of cancer were found in both eyes. I underwent extensive testing and tumors were found in both of my eyes—a large one in my right eye and a small one in my left eye. A very small tumor was also found in the lining of my brain. I began a new treatment plan to address these new issues.
October 17, 2014
Subject: update
Hi Dr. Palma[doctor from Angeles Oncology in Tijuana],
My situation has been thoroughly evaluated. I had an MRI of my brain and my eyes, as well as a CT scan of my brain and saw a renowned eye specialist. Here is what was found:
I have a large tumor in the right eye and a very tiny one in the left eye. Metastasis of breast cancer to the eye is not common, but not as rare as you have been led to believe. The positive news is that metastasized breast cancer in the eye is very responsive to treatment. In the vast majority of cases, the tumors can be permanently eradicated with radiation. There is always some risk, but the probabilities of success far outweighs the probability of failure, and if I do nothing I will likely go blind with time. Treatment will take four weeks—Mon–Fri with breaks on the weekend. The condition in my eyes is NOT new. I have been complaining about loss of vision in my right eye since the diagnosis of metastatic cancer. I brought my concerns twice to Dr. Halle [my naturopath oncologist], who checked my eyes and dismissed my concerns. Finally I took action on my own.
They also found a small tumor in the lining of my brain. At first they thought it was benign, but upon greater scrutiny by many professionals, it was determined that this tumor was related to the breast cancer but not related to my eye tumors. This tiny tumor in the lining of my brain will also be treated at some point with radiation, requiring 1 to 4 treatments. I cannot say if this small tumor is a new growth or has been there for a long while.
Complicating things further: It is a risk to stay on Xeloda while receiving radiation treatment. [Xeloda is oral chemotherapy that I had been on for several months with positive results.] Xeloda increases the effectiveness of the radiation and can make the radiation “too effective,” causing permanent damage to the healthy part of my eye. So I can stay on the Xeloda and risk damaging my eyes, or I can go off the Xeloda for a month and risk all my other tumors growing. This situation is very complex and very sad.
It will be a while before I can consider returning to Mexico. I feel a little overwhelmed, but I will take this one step at a time. My biggest motivator is my desire to launch my website, which is a huge, comprehensive project that brings me great joy and pleasure. However, I need a decent quality of life to complete this task. Again, it is in God’s hands. I have given this my best shot and will continue to do so until/unless the suffering reaches a point that makes life no longer worthwhile.
Blessings to you,
Sincerely,
Laura
[While the news in this letter was of course devastating, this actually turned out to be a turning point in my healing. As I successfully knocked out my eye tumors and the tumor in the lining of my brain, things began to shift for the positive. Instead of nothing but bad news, positive news started to roll in and a new momentum was created.]
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