Better few days

Troy has been much more lively over the last few days. He has color back in his cheeks and he has been eating and maintaining his weight. He has had no hair loss, but his ears are still bothering him. His mood has shifted and we aren't walking on eggshells as much as we were when I last wrote. He wanted to do some yard work this past weekend but his mother and I wouldn't let him. He needs to take it easy so he doesn't get so worn out. He is still a little fatigued, but doing really, really well from what I expected him to be. We went to Dr. Goldsweig's today for a follow up visit and he was really optimistic about Troy's prognosis. I hate to name percentages, but he said that he had an 85% or better chance at curing his cancer. He met with other doctors to review Troy's case at the hospital and they have definitely confirmed his diagnosis as oropharyngeal squamois cell carcinoma stage 4A. He just reiterated how much better this diagnosis is than the prior nasopharyngeal stage 2 because of the prognosis. He stated that the former prognosis was at 46%. This really uplifted Troy today. He has been working hard at eating and hydrating himself and it really shows. We don't have another appointment until Tuesday. Dr. G's office will just be taking blood samples before his 2nd round of chemo which is on 10/9. We'll let you know how things are going again soon. It may not be until next week before you hear from me again.