We have celebrated holidays, birthdays, New Year's, all within a month & a few days and it has been a celebration with a heaviness that hangs over us. Happiness and sadness both at the same time. Joy for the memories of these occasions with Robert, joy for the gift of experiencing the celebrations through the eyes of the children, and joy for the gifts that we receive in being surrounded by so many people who care.
I hope that everyone finds peace and happiness in all of their experiences- always.
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My Condition - Glioblastoma Multiforme (or GBM)
I was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM). This condition has four different grades (I - IV). My tumor is a grade IV GBM. This is the most aggressive GBM tumor. I have included a little section of The Essential Guide to BRAIN TUMORS below to describe the condition more completely.
Astrocytoma
An astrocytoma develops from star-shaped glial cells (astrocytes) that support nerve cells. These tumors can be located anywhere in the brain, but the most common location is in the frontal lobe. Astrocytomas are the most common primary CNS tumor.
The physician, usually the neurosurgeon or neurooncologist, will discuss the type and location of an astrocytoma. The pathologist will assign it a grade. Astrocytomas are generally classified as low or high grade. Low-grade astrocytomas (grades I and II) are slow growing. High-grade astrocytomas (grades III and IV) grow more quickly. The main tumor type is listed for each grade. There are additional tumor types in each of these grades.
The WHO classification divides astrocytomas into four grades:
- Grade I Pilocytic Astrocytoma
- Grade II Low-Grade Astrocytoma
- Grade III Anaplastic Astrocytoma
- Grade IV Glioblastoma Multiforme (or GBM)
Characteristics
The characteristics of an astrocytoma vary depending on the tumor’s grade and location. Most people are functioning normally when diagnosed with a low-grade astrocytoma. Symptoms tend to be subtle and may take one to two years to diagnose. This is because the brain can often adapt to a slow-growing tumor for a period of time. Highgrade tumors may present with changes that are sudden and dramatic.
Symptoms
- Headaches
- Seizures or convulsions
- Difficulty thinking or speaking
- Behavioral or cognitive changes (related to thinking, reasoning, and memory)
- Weakness or paralysis in one part or one side of the body
- Loss of balance
- Vision changes
- Nausea or vomiting
4 comments:
Tammy as always, your words are perfectly written and perfectly understood. Wishing you all, all the best this year, and missing Robert right along with you.
The McCarthys
Tammy,So glad you have come back to your blog. Happy New Year to you and the boys.
Tammy -- It may be a new year, but what happened in cruel 2009 has not been forgotten. Feel free to use this as a forum to help communicate your feelings and thoughts. We're listening.
Hi Tammy,
I think about you and Robert so often and you and the boys are always in my prayers. I feel like Robert (like Ricky) doesn't need our prayers anymore - their race is finished - they have reached the victory circle. We are left here to carry on. Thanks for posting on Ricky's site - it was nice to hear from me and reminded me to come here. All your words could have been written by me - I so recall and still have that lack of energy - the struggle to move and the disbelief. I don't think I even faced the shock of the diagnosis until after Ricky was gone. Some one told me it is like Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome - you relive it all only this time without the focus on survival and hope, you experience the true horror of all you went through. I know it has been that way for me. Thank God for the children - they definitely are a motivator and have a way of keeping us looking ahead even when we don't feel like moving that way. Sorry for the long comment - just felt like I needed to share some thoughts and a sympathetic "ear". More than anything I wish for you (and me) peace and a lifting of the veil of sorrow.
Rose (Ricky's mom)
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