Today I received more good news. I had an appointment today with Dr. Jim, who had originally discovered the tumor at the base of my tongue and diagnosed my cancer. He placed a scope through my nose so he could get a good view of the base of my tongue. He could find no tumor where there was a tumor 6 months ago.

Good news – no more tumor!

This is not definitive proof that the cancer is gone, but it’s a great start! In November I will have a CT Scan that will provide a better reading on the status of the cancer cells.

I am grateful for the good news today!

Thanks, Dick

I have been eating much better lately! This is because the sores on my tongue have finally healed, and the other sores in my mouth are not as painful. Swallowing is a bit painful at times, but not nearly has painful as it had been. This has allowed me to eat “regular” food like the rest of the people in our family.

Today, I had an appointment with Dr. Barbara, my oncologist. She is very pleased with way the sores in my mouth are healing. I told her that I’ve been cutting back on the time I’ve been using the feeding tube from 11 hours to 8 hours to just over 5 hours. I told her that I’d like to stop using the feeding tube all together, and she agreed. The only caveat is that I need to maintain my weight for the next two weeks. Okay, I can live with that.

So I’m off the feeding tube as of today! Yeah 😉

Thanks, Dick

This afternoon I had my weekly follow-up appointment with my oncologist. My mouth sores have increased and are very painful. Also, I’ve lost 7 pounds in the past week because it has been difficult to eat with the painful mouth sores.

So the doctor admitted me to Vanderbilt University Hospital to deal with the pain and the lost weight.