Left arm MRI - inconclusive findings

Dr. Wakelee examined Gohan's left arm

Gohan has been feeling soreness (he does not like to use the word 'pain' ever since he fought cancer) in his left arm since November. It started in his lower arm but travels up to the upper arm intermittently. We have brought it up to our oncologist but she thought it was muscle strains. Advil reduces the pain from 4 to 2 in the scale of 10.  As time passes, the soreness persists and sometiems wakes him up at night. I have learned that pain that doesn't go away is suspicious of something bad. So I requested for a MRI of his left arm. Dr. Wakelee wanted to do a Radiograph instead because she thought the soreness was a result of stroke and she didn't want to make Gohan go through the MRI, a safe but stressful procedure. Unfortunately she called me on the day of X-ray result and said we need to do a MRI because there are abnormalities. I went online to read the report, the radiologist noted that the abnormalities suggested metastasis. I was depressed and had a good cry, because only a few days ago I happily told my friends Gohan's health seems to have stabilized and I felt I finally could breathe for the first time in six months. 

As I felt distress, I remembered Pastor Huang I-Chen's wife, Irene, recently has been urging me to practice praying in tongues. So I did that day. Surprisingly, I felt relieved and edified as the Bible said we would when we pray in tongues. 

"The one who speaks in a tongue builds up himself"  1 Corinthians 14:4.

"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." Romans 8:26

I practiced it a few more times the following day. I felt regaining my strength and was ready to fight again. 

Gohan has done MRI scans countless of times, he knew what to expect and what to do. However, his experiences does not make the procedure more pleasant. The loud bangs of the MRI machine are deafening, he said, as he lay in the MRI chamber for one to two hours.  It would have been easier if he could sleep, but he has to stay awake the entire time otherwise he may unknowingly move his body making the images blurry. 

The MRI scan of his left arm took 1.5 hour, longer than expected because he had moved his arm despite ever so slightly, therefore the technician had to retake some slides. I knew he was tired because it had been a long day. 2 hours of dental work in the morning and MRI scan in the afternoon. Getting to the clinic took 45 minutes. He had only 30 minutes of nap instead of 1 to 2 hours as he usually needs.  We ate packed lunch in the waiting room of radiology department. The day was rushed and stressful, but he did not complain. He still thanked me and our caregiver for helping him. Every time he thanks me, I would let him know that I thank him too for being a wonderful husband to me and a great model for all of us. 

The MRI report was inconclusive. The 7 cm 'lesion' that was noted in the X-ray of his upper arm was 'nonspecific of cancer' despite that there is 'a tiny spot that is suspicious of early metastatic focus'. So Dr. Wakelee said she would ask an orthopedic oncologist at Stanford to look at the image and get back to us. She advised to monitor his soreness and do another scan in a couple of months to compare. She still thinks Gohan is doing better clinically than before. 

A few days later, we got a call to go in for a MRI of his forearm. Evidently the last scan was only done for his upper arm. I got an appointment for mid April. 

Although the problems are not solved yet, I let out of a sigh of relief. We still have time.