We just returned to the office after our scan follow up with Dr. Pippas. As soon as he walked in and gave us that look, I knew it was on. I have another “lesion” to deal with, this time on the left adrenal gland, near the site of my total left nephrectomy in June of 2009. It is likely a metastasis from the original renal cell carcinoma and it has doubled in size over the last year and is a 3.9 cm mass.

Dr. Pippas has reiterated on a number of occasions, including today, that this (not in general, but the one I have) cancer is a fairly indolent disease. Jill and I decided today that we’re going to schedule a trip to Houston to M. D. Anderson for a consult to determine what is the next best option. Based on our discussions today with Dr. Pippas, we could have surgery to remove the left adrenal gland or maybe radiation to kill the tumor.

We have scheduled an appointment with Dr. Mac Molnar (he’s already been body spelunking inside of me twice) if a surgery is what we choose. Thankfully, we have some great local general surgeons here in the Columbus area.

Honestly, I am caught off guard with the adrenal gland issue. I have spent a great deal of time researching bone mets and the possibility of a recurrence in my lungs, so I’ve “read up” on those. Looks like I’ve got some work to do to understand the issues with a metastasis in the adrenal gland. I’m up for it.

This post is short because I’m gathering documents and making the calls I need to make to family to let them know what is going on. I will be at the drum circle on Friday night beating my drum like there’s no tomorrow. If you want to stop by, there will be plenty of stuff to beat, shake or otherwise get you into the groove. Please continue thinking of us in your prayers, as well as all the others who are dealing with this damn disease.