diagnosis

Anaplastic Large Cell (T-Cell) Lymphoma

Ansley has cancer. In particular, she has a Stage III lymphoma, which means that she has cancer above and below her diaphragm - in her chest and in her abdomen. The specific type is anaplastic large cell (T-cell) lymphoma. [Of note, don't google this. It is very different in adults than in kids and any research over about 3-4 years old is outdated.] The entire team here has been great from doctors to nurses to patient care techs - from the ER to ICU to OR to PET scanner to 7B! We are so thankful for everyone that God has placed in our path.
We came in at 2AM on Wed morning with Ansley having severe constipation/obstipation. At 4AM we first saw the left-sided pleural effusion, which is typically a bad deal, but can be for a variety of causes. Later that morning Ansley had a CT scan of her neck/chest/abdomen/pelvis that showed extensive disease in the lymph nodes. We were admitted and the work-up began. In 60 hours she had a CT scan, thoracentesis, surgical removal of lymph nodes, port placed (permanent catheter for chemo), chest tube placed, and a PET scan and we were given the diagnosis of anaplastic large cell lymphoma. Needless to say, we are spinning and drained. But, it is obvious how the Body of Christ has been praying, as Amy and I have had supernatural strength and patience in all of this.
We met with our oncologists tonight. They are both amazing. We have had many small meetings over the past 2 days, but they spent over an hour with us tonight going over things. One just happens to be a national leader in this particular type of non-Hodgkins lymphoma! They told us that there is about a 75% cure rate with this type of cancer. So, it should be highly responsive to chemo and the results may be very good. Amy and I are so excited about this news, but somewhat guarded. It is a long road to get there. Ansley was started tonight on chemo - another huge blessing - 60 hours from initial concern to beginning treatment! The chemo should quickly shrink the tumor size and relieve some of her symptoms. But, the total first course is 12 months. There is a 42-day 'induction' period where the tumor is really aggressively attacked with chemo. We will likely be in the hospital for another 7-10 days and then have some daily meds, some weekly meds, and weekly placements of chemo into the fluid around her spine.