Switzerland, Colorado, and Another Checkup

I'm finally getting back to updating my public on what has been happening livin' la vida glioma. Our family trip to Switzerland was amazing. The best part was seeing friends who are essentially extended family. The country is beautiful, the weather was perfect, and the culture is pretty laid back. We had many days and nights with family, food, and fun outside in the yard. It was so reminiscent of my early teen years, when these friends lived next door to us. It was a party outside every night! It reinforces my desire to remodel my backyard to accommodate outside fun with family and friends. We stayed a few days in the Alps and drove to see the Rhine River and the Rhine Falls, the largest plain waterfall in Europe. My sweet boy met a girl, who he hung out with for a lot of the trip. He's been mum on whether they are still talking on Instagram. Let's keep this just between us, I'm not sure if he wants anyone to know.

There are a few things I learned about Switzerland that makes it different from some other European countries I've visited. First, there weren't as many English speakers as in other countries I've frequented. Of course, we were also not in the most touristy areas so that could be a reason. Even when we were in the Alps we stayed in an area where Swiss people tend to go for vacation. Second, the Alps are as beautiful as people say. Jason and I were trying to figure out why they seem so much more spectacular than say, The Rocky Mountains, given that the difference between the altitude of the Alps and Colorado Rockies at the highest points is approximately 1300 feet. We realized that the prominence (height from base to summit) of Pike's Peak, for example is approximately 5500 feet. The Swiss Alps where we were are at least twice as high from base to summit. Hence, because the base in Colorado is a higher altitude than is Switzerland, the actual mountains are much bigger and more spectacular. The second thing learned is that Switzerland is the home of all things pork. I was glad that I had incorporated pork into my diet in the last few months but I now know that Pancake could never go there, even for a visit. Aidan had a little more trouble finding things to eat and spaghetti bolognese became his fallback. We pride ourselves on being high maintenance in this family!

Upon our return to Houston, I stayed an extra week to visit my doctors at MDA. Jason and Aidan went back to Lubbock so that they could do a few things at home and Jason could get back to work. My doc appointments didn't go as well as we'd hoped but we won't know anything conclusive until the last week of June. Basically there is some "minimal" change (according to the report). The oncologist said that in reading the report, he was encouraged by the radiologist's use of the words "minimal" and "slight" to describe the differences. It could be swelling, it could be inflammation of cells damaged by treatment, it could be swelling due to intracranial pressure from flying 14 hours, it could be (although the doctor said less likely) measurement error. I'll be honest that it could also be tumor progression, but the doctors don't know and cannot tell at present. Therefore, since this scan was a lower resolution scan than the comparison scan that was taken 8 weeks prior, I am being scheduled for a high resolution scan at the end of June.  

I was very happy that Kim was with me, we were both pretty stressed about the ambiguity of the check up at first. Now I'm feeling better about it. After all, no matter what it is, I can't do anything about it until I get the results from the next scan and even then we will have to weigh all the options the doctor lays out for us. Let's all just assume that all will be fine. I'm still in ketosis, exercising regularly, and feeling pretty good. I'm a little tired from all of the travel (upon my return from Houston, we immediately met friends in Colorado) but other than that, I'm working, making plans, and continuing to do everything I need to do to take care of myself. Plus I've talked to a handful of people who say they've had "slight changes" that turned out to be necrosis or swelling. In fact, the oncologist said he had seen a patient that morning who was 4 years out with some swelling associated with treatment damaged cells. Therefore, I'm hanging on to that. Call it denial, call it coping strategy, call it what you want, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it!