Good Evening All.

Well… Mom had her follow-up scan yesterday regarding the lung tumors growing. Since last month Mom has been on high dosages of the Tarceva to try to inundate her system with the medication. Yesterday’s CT scan indicated that the tumors were not greatly affected by the Tarceva, and there has been about 2mm of growth in some of the tumors. The doctor said that most likely the tumors have built a resistance to the Tarceva. In this case, what that means is not only are the tumors no longer receptive to the medication, but as part of the resistance, the tumors have possibly mutated a secondary defect. This means that the Tarceva, which was targeting the EGFR mutation will no longer work if the tumors have mutations beyond EGFR. The doctor ordered a wet lung biopsy, which is a new type of blood test that can hopefully indicated if the tumors did in fact mutate without the need to insert a needle directly into the tumor tissue. The test is new, so it could be inconclusive, in which case she’ll need another bronchoscopy to determine the type of tumor mutation. Since the test is so new, first, the kits need to be ordered, and then once they collect the blood, it’ll be approximately one and a half weeks until we hear the results. After the results are in, the doctor will decide which type of treatment is appropriate. There are still some oral targeted therapies that he could prescribe, depending on the mutation, IV immunotherapy, and of course, IV chemotherapy. So, this means we have about three weeks to pray pray pray. Pray that the blood test will be conclusive. And pray that when the results come, there is a viable option for treatment that will combat the tumors as good, or better, as the Tarceva once did. As you know, this was not the news we were hoping for. However, as you also know, mom is taking this all in amazing stride. She has a tremendous attitude, and is looking to God, and his perfect timing, will lead her and the doctors to the right treatment at the right time. I’ll be keeping you updated as soon as we know more from the tests. As always, prayers are welcomed and appreciated, I know He hears them and already knows the best treatment plan and outcome.