Treating the Patient,Not Just the DiseaseIn researching treatment options, Lori Top met withmedical personnel at other facilities that seemeddetached and uninterested in the traumatic impactJohn’s condition was having on their lives. She says shewas pleasantly surprised by John’s first visit with Dr. Foltz.“He asked John about his life. He made it clear,” she says,“that he wanted to treat John the person and not just thetumor.” John told him about his work as an architect, abouthis and Lori’s daughter, Isabelle, who was 6, and about hisdaughter, Katie, who was 12 and lived with the couplepart of the year. He told Dr. Foltz he wasn’t ready to leavethem behind.After assessing John’s condition, Dr. Foltz recommendedan operation to take out as much of the mass as possible.Because the tumor was in the brain’s right frontal lobe,which controls function on the left side of the body, Dr.Foltz believed John would retain most of his abilities sincehe was right-handed. Removing the tumor, however, wouldamount to taking almost a quarter of John’s brain and withthat came such risks as a change in personality. There wasno way to know for sure. Dr. Foltz encouraged the couple toget a second opinion.Their visit to another facility for that purpose, says Lori,began with a three-hour wait to see a doctor and endedwith her “leaving the exam room in tears.” The secondopinionphysician told the couple that John would soon bedead “regardless of what we did.” The next visit to Dr. Foltz,however, renewed their commitment to fight. They gavehim the go-ahead to develop a plan for surgery and followuptreatment.On Jan. 25, 2006, Dr. Foltz performed a craniotomyon John that removed the tumor and allowed for a morecomplete diagnosis of the disease and its prognosis. Lori’sfears about a personality change in John were abated whenshe realized as he recovered that his “dry sense of humorcame through unscathed.”The subsequent pathology report specified John’s tumoras an “oligodendroglioma,” grade three. It was both goodnews and bad. John could expect to live two or more yearscompared to three to six months with other types of braincancers. But while subsequent assessments have foundJohn to be “cancer free for the moment,” the disease is stillexpected to return and take his life.“Today, I live with the fact that I have a terminal illness,”says John, who has continued to work throughout hisordeal of the past year. “I actually feel blessed,” he sayswith a small laugh. “I don’t sit around now. I get out and dothings. If Lori and Isabelle want to go for a walk, we go fora walk. We appreciate the time we have together, no matterwhat we’re doing.”John calls Lori his hero. “She’s cried with me and she’salso told me to pull it together and keep going.”Lori, also an architect, recently went back to work as astore designer to help meet the family’s growing expenses.For his part, John took sick leave and vacation time for histreatments that came to only a little over 100 hours.“I got brain cancer,” he says, “I didn’t win the lottery. Lifegoes on and it’s a good life. I’m grateful for all that we have.”Dr. Foltz says the recent establishment of the brain tumortissue bank is one thing that keeps him positive as he worksevery day with patients like John who face terminal illness.“It gives me a lot of hope as a doctor,” he says, “and that’swhy I can do the work I do. Because I have hope.”F O R U M8W I N T E R 2 0 0 7
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