I feel like I'm at the beginning of the end...

My doctor in Dallas says he's almost out of things to throw at this cancer so he agreed it would be prudent to book an appointment at the only adrenal cancer center in the US which is at U of Michigan. I'm to see Dr. Hammer on Jan 16th and while I don't expect a miracle, I'm hoping he has something that will give me more time. 

The immunotherapy did absolutely nothing. My scan this week was awful - all the lung tumors are larger plus there are some new ones. And as a holiday bonus, one of them is blocking my middle right lung lobe so it's collapsed. No wonder I have pain when I breath and why I can't walk very far without losing all my breath.  I've been referred back to interventional pulmonology to see if it's prudent to intervene and try and re-inflate the lobe. Another tumor is pushing against my esophagus, causing difficulty swallowing. 

The only good news is that my endocrinologist has been on top of my hormone levels and is doing a great job controlling my symptoms with medications. I'm on an androgen blocker, another medication to help regulate excess cortisol, and blood pressure medication. The tumors pump out vast quantities of various hormones and they wreak absolute havoc when left unchecked. My blood pressure is usually almost too low but now that my tumor mass is so big, I'm getting too much of all the cortical hormones. 

I just have the feeling things are all downhill from here and I will never be any better than I am right now. For the moment I'm still functional so we're going to have a good cozy Christmas and do our best to enjoy each other.