Saturday, January 05, 2008

the limits of medicine

Thanks so much for the words of acknowledgement and support. Although, to my knowledge, Hugh doesn't have a spiritual faith, he is appreciative of all goodwill towards him including prayers. Yesterday was a heart-aching day after Hugh saw the specialist, accompanied by some family members, and was told of the limited treatment available that may give only brief respite from the advance of the lymphoma. The treatment offered is called temozolomide, in case any of you have an interest in these specifics. The specialist gave Hugh the following article:
Reni, M et al (2007) Temozolomide as salvage treatment for primary brain lymphomas. British Journal of Cancer, 96, 864-867. (www.bjcancer.com)
The next step is for Hugh to have an MRI scan as part of the assessment to see if he is a suitable candidate for this drug. It's an oral regime which I gather means he won't need to be hospitalised for the treatment. Hugh, his wife and ball-of-energy daughter are living at my dear parents' place - we all live in the same city and relatively close-by each other.
Keep sending your thoughts and also if you have any great cake recipes, send those also!
Catherine

8 Comments:

Blogger Linda said...

Hey Hugh, Good luck with the new drug, hope they give it to you. I'm so glad you are back in NZ with your family. They are probably relieved that you are home and not thousands of miles away anymore. Whatever happens in the future, know that there are a lot of us thinking of you and wishing you peace and comfort in the embrace of your family.
Yours,
Linda
deansrus@tpg.com.au

3:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Hugh and Catherine, just wanted to wish you all the best during this very difficult time. Reading Hughs books during my difficult teenage years helped me a lot, especially and I wanted to thank Hugh so much for writing them.

7:48 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good luck with the Temozolomide treatment.

11:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am so pleased to have found this site and more about an author i have admired for half my life, and saddened to learn that you are sick, hugh. I must say you are a bloody legend for sharing your experiences with cancer. your directness and raw creativity has always drawn me to your books, which i will continue to explore with glee. i feel like i know you! anyway i hope this reaches you in peace and positivity mate. sincerely thankyou and best wishes. you're an inspiration. shenshendrax@gmail.com

11:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hugh,

My thoughts are with you and your family. You have inspired me in so many ways. I still remember how happy I was when I recieved your reply to my letter way back in 1996, and when you sent me a signed copy of 'The Shift'. Wishing you all the best,

James Woodbridge

7:02 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How is Hugh?

9:35 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Here's wishing that everything possible goes right and that the three of you, and your extended family in NZ, get lots more time together.

I've been following the blog for the last year and a half and have hugely enjoyed your adventures with Cornucopia, mirroring as they do my own adventures with my 3 year old son (though without the Chinese refugees, bugs to battle, enormous spiders, daring daycare journeys and so on - the poor lad is missing out).

It often feels that your blog entries have gone out the other end of sanity - many times such sober subjects that the only way to deal with them is with a good heft of amusement. Thanks for all the outsanity, it's a trick more of us need to learn.

6:23 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is Bjorn here. I just wanted to write and express my support. Your books gave me so much enjoyment over the years. When you mentioned me in your blog a few years back, that was quite a thrill, too!

I think I'll read some of your work again tonight and wish the best for your family.

9:20 AM  

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