A trip to Aptos

We just had a very nice visit from our gal and her guy. Alison is 2 weeks out from brain surgery (as of today) and looks pretty dang good. While sometimes her energy can be low, there are now days (like Saturday) when she can go the whole day without a nap (!). As opposed to her first surgery, she and Kirk know what to expect in terms of high dose steroids, energy levels after surgery, and of course pain management. I am happy to report that she seems to be managing the headache issues really well - she is still on some regular pain meds and using some meds for "breakthrough pain", but needing less of those every day - and her physical strength and mobility seems to be really good at this point. She wants to keep up with her walking and strengthening exercises, and is committed to keeping active.

She thinks she is still recovering in terms of that right-sided visual loss, which may be a bit more pronounced than pre-surgery, and it may be the reason that it is hard for her to read and track sentences. But her mood seems positive, her spirits are strong, and between us we can remember most of the words to our favorite songs (and she is singing!).

She has a slew of appointments tomorrow at UCSF (neuro-oncologist to talk about the clinical trial, neurosurgeon, and the plastic surgeons to start taking the stitch-work out of her head - which does look excellent, btw) and I hope to have some specifics to share about the clinical trial. At this point, what we know is that it is a small trial looking at an oral medication that targets the tumor on a whole new metabolic pathway, the "sonic hedgehog pathway" as it has been dubbed. Now that your curiosity is peaked, I'll fill you in when we know more.

For today, Alison and Kirk are taking advantage of beautiful, appointment-free day to go to the Monterey Bay Aquarium with Dani, where Alison will commune with her beloved sea turtles, as well as otters, jellyfish, and seahorses. What a great place to be on Day 15 post op, literally and progress-wise!

Deborah