Adam’s Stage III BRAIN CANCER

In June I had a few MRI's done after visiting my primary care physician and then a neurologist at Essential Health in Fargo.  Something just felt off.  I had a hard time speaking at times,  moments where I couldn't move my hands or arms, and the left side of my body would go numb every now and then.   Anyway,  the MRI showed a small lesion in the center of my brain in an area called the corpus callosum.  The corpus callosum is the area of the brain that connects both hemispheres.  It is basically the part of the brain that allows the left and right to communicate with eachother, it's often referred to as the brains super highway.   After the initial MRI I had a spinal tap/lumbar puncture done to rule out various diseases or infections.   Everything came back negative.  The next step was a visit with a neuro-surgeon in Fargo.  That visit ended with a referral to Mayo in Rochester, MN.  After my first appointment at Mayo on Oct. 12th it was suggested that I have another MRI done.  From the time of my first MRI in June to the middle of October, that lesion had grown and it was quite clear that there was a big problem.  A very big problem.  By the way, lesion is a nice way of saying neoplasm... which is a nice way of saying tumor.   Which ended up being a nice way of saying.  "Hey, you have brain cancer!" After visiting with several other Doctors at Mayo we decided to move forward with a biopsy.   On October 20th I went under the knife and had a stereotactic biopsy of the lesion on the left side of my brain.  The surgery went well and I had no complications other than throwing up all of the cranberry juice I drank when I came to.   Should have had toast first I guess...   The problem is that this cannot be removed, which is why we could only biopsy the tumor instead of resecting the whole thing.  Tough spot for a tumor to be.  The pathology is in.  It's not a common type of cancer from what the doctors are telling me.  Not what I was expecting to hear at Mayo! What they have been able to tell me is that I have a WHO III Anaplastic Astrocytoma with an IDH WildType gene.   Guess that makes this a little more agressive.  These typically behabe like GBM's and have a poorer prognosis.   I start radiation on Wednesday, November 8th.  Because this has grown so much in a short amount of time we are trying to get ahead of this and shrink it down as best we can.  Looks like I'll be living in Rochester for the next 8 to 10 weeks.  Radiation every day Monday though Friday.  No Chemo yet, which is a plus, but that starts in January and is going to go to the end of 2018 from what the Doctors have said so far...  A year of Chemo? Wow!  

Living so far away the travel and hotels are getting pretty expensive along with the bills from the hospital.  I don't expect anyone to chip in on this but every little bit helps.  If you can, please do.  

 << If you go to Dakota Medical Foundation.org (DakMed.org)  -click on Initiatives -then Lend a Hand -then View Campaigns.   From there you will be able to scroll down and find my fundraiser!  This has been a great option as Lend A Hand and the Dakota Medical Foundation are matching a portion of the funds donated!  This fundraiser closes Dec 31st!!  >>

Also, a good friend of mine, Cory Grosche set up an account at Bank of the West in Fargo-  it's titled "Benefit of Adam Henry" for those of us who don't like doing things online.  You can stop by any Bank of the West location or mail a check in if you prefer.  If you can't please say a prayer for my family and I as we go though this.   A few family members, friends, and co-workers have already given gift cards for gas and food which has been incredibly helpful.   

Thank you all so much! 

 I'll keep this as updated as I can.  I'll also try to post pictures of my treatment and scans for those who want to see.   

Love you all!

Adam Henry