Tumor appears to be "sleeping"

     Yesterday was a big day for us. We visited with Dr. Yee at Hershey Cancer Institute to learn the status of the cancerous mass on my pancreas. I had my CTscan and blood labs done on Wednesday. The pictures show the tumor is "stable" and has not grown any and there is no apparent metastasis. Hoooray! It does, however, remain encircled around the big main artery and vein connected to the intestines. So, it is still not resectable (can not be surgically removed). Bummer. (We were never given much hope it could be.)
     My pancreatic cancer blood marker was dramatically lower, which was also good news. It went from 1100+ in January to 100+ this week.
     My radiation therapy is finished, but more chemo is an option. The doc said I could hold off any more treatments and take CTscans every 90 days and then start chemo treatment when the cancer starts showing signs of advancing, or, I can start another round of chemo now as a maintenance treatment to hopefully keep the tumor in check.
     We opted to start another chemo regimen with the same drug, Gemzar, one intravenous infusion per week for three weeks and then one week off. This will continue for three cycles (12 weeks) if my side effects aren't too severe. If I get too sick I have the option of another drug, taken orally, that may have fewer side effects. Treatment starts next Friday. We will take a week off chemo for Adam and Annie's June 2 wedding.
     Having made about 40 trips to Hershey I decided it was time to visit the Hershey Chocolate Attractions. Barb and I went to Chocolate World and rode on cars pulled by a huge roller chain through a simulated factory. It was hard to understand the commentary over the loud singing cows (you need milk to make chocolate bars) and other "wow" simulated factory sounds. It was disappointing, but I enjoyed shopping in the gift shop and sampling some new candies. 
     We then took a shuttle over to Hershey Story - the new museum built in 2009. It cost us $9 each admission with our senior citizen discount but was well worth it. I watched a few films there that told me way more about chocolate making and history of Hershey the town and Milton Hershey the entrepreneur who helped make chocolate bars available to the masses. It was far more informative than the ground tram circling-panorama at Chocolate World which is designed to entertain more than educate. I highly recommend the museum to anyone visiting here.
     After the full day at Hershey we picked up some friends and enjoyed a meal at a Thai restaurant in Lancaster City. From there we went to fantastic jazz program at the Ware Center. The concert was the conclusion of a day-long Single Reed Symposium at Millersville University. Outstanding performances by Russell Peterson and entourage, including the Millersville Jazz Ensemble. Very tight group and a great acoustic hall. Barb and I had never been there and found this to be a wonderful introduction to the Ware Center which has something going on almost every day or night!!! And of course we needed to stop for ice cream after the program. It was a very full day. I think I was holding in my anxiety about the cancer "verdict" and Barb was more open about it. Both ways, with such a big day and good news we came home totally exhausted. I don't remember my head hitting the pillow.
     Thank you all for your continuing prayers, concerns, and words of encouragement. While I am not feeling 100% all the time, your intercession has helped deal with the real and right now the real isn't as bad as it could be.