Robert Lowery

Colleagues and Friends:

This afternoon Marilyn and I met with a specialist associated with Memorial Hospital in Springfield, Illinois. Dr. Fullerton clarified my situation. He explained that the octreotide scan that I had in late December did indeed reveal that the tumor was not a carcinoid malignant one. We were told that the doctors had me undergo the scan because they believed that the scan would show that the growth was indeed malignant. They were pleased with the results. However . . .

We experienced a major set-back this afternoon when he said that cancer of other forms has not been ruled out. Indeed, we found out that we were meeting with him at the request of another specialist because that specialist believes that the growth should be considered cancerous until it is determined otherwise. Dr. Fullerton plans on meeting with several radiologists in the next day or two to determine if I should undergo a laparoscopic biopsy or a major surgical biopsy. Other kinds of scans may be ordered as well to see if the tumor is growing or not. The doctor desires to do the former but is not certain if he can do so due to the location and size of the tumor. In any case, the growth must be identified so that we know what to do in the days ahead.

He informed us that in 75% of the cases like mine, malignancy is present. If the biopsy does indeed show there is a malignancy, then the options of treatment will need to be weighed. Surgery is not an option for removing the tumor due to its location, size, and involvement with other organs. If it is malignant, a combination of medicines plus chemotherapy would be, at best, a stop-gap treatment only to slow the growth.

As I took in this information, a verse from Psalm 46 kept coming to my mind: “Be still and know that I am God.” If one of my memories from third year Hebrew class is accurate, the Hebrew word in v. 10 means “let your hands drop . . . drop to your knees” and trust God.

Of course, we are stunned by this. Tears have been shed. In the last few hours, my mind has gone a thousand different directions. We continue to pray that God will be honored in all of this. We continue to appreciate your friendship and your prayers as we continue this journey. We ask you to pray that God will place me in the 25%. Above all, we pray that God will find us faithful and trusting in the days ahead.

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