Initial visit with the Oncologist Dr. Holoye.
Had a general exam and review of my health status pertaining to the current liver issues.
Key outcomes:
Currently the liver function is still good.
Dr. Holoye did not require a biopsy to reach a liver cancer diagnosis primarily based on the AFP marker, now 1480 and the image data. This was the same opinion as Dr. Goss and is good news as the biopsy introduces some risk of spreading the invasion.
AFP went from 1210 to 1480 in 5 days. Don't know what this means in terms of danger yet. Trending in the wrong direction. See post 7/15.
I have lost about 4 lbs since the whole episode began but then I have some to spare. It's great because I am being directed to eat three meals a day, lot's of protein and I am still losing weight. I do not however recommend Liver cancer as a weight loss program.
We talked about the transplant criteria again. He introduced another constraint in that they really don't like any one leision > 3 cm. I have two in the 4 cm range. He says this doesn't automatically exclude me from a transplant but may not net the grade A prime liver.
He prescribed Nexavar, a pill form of chemotherapy, to help arrest the progress of the cancer. This in conjunction with a direct attack on the lesions is supposed to keep the cancer under control until a fix is executed. I am not looking forward to the promised side effects of Nexavar. I will spare you the details for now.
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