An Inconvenient Tumor

We had diligently written down all of our symptoms (get used to my reference of Bryan's condition as "our" condition, because that's how we roll) and were ready to share exactly what self-diagnosis WedMD had bestowed upon us.

Neurologist #1: A lovely Eastern European fellow with a heavy accent listened carefully to Bryan explain his symptoms, taking notes all the way. Little did we know our life was about to be turned upside down and that this would be the first of many "initial screenings" by various neurologists, neuro oncologists, radiation oncologists, etc. Basically, doctors with titles I never knew existed. They all must memorize the same script, because the first three questions are without fail, "How old are you?" "Are you right- or left-handed?" and "How long have you been experiencing symptoms?" But I digress. Neurologist #1 asked Bryan to perfom various physical tests, ranging from no-brainer eye movements to walking heel-toe-heel-toe. It was when Bryan fell over on the second step of "heel-toe-heel-toe" that I knew we really had a problem. The doctor seemed to be one step ahead of us at every moment, knowing exactly where Bryan was numb versus tingly versus normal. At the end of the appointment, he said Bryan had all the characteristics of Multiple Sclerosis, but that we wouldn't know for sure until he could get an MRI of Bryan's brain and cervical spine (here's my reaction: what the hell is a cervical spine?) to check for brain lesions. When I asked Neurologist #1 what else it could be, he said, "Nothing. I am 99% sure he has MS."

Biology lesson: To the best of my knowledge, Multiple Sclerosis (MS) occurs when people have lesions on various parts of their brain and/or spinal cord that eat away the protective coating (myelin) of the nerves. This interrupts the flow of communication from the brain to various parts of the body. Imagine your brain stem and spinal cord are wires, but the plastic coating around various parts of the wires is eroding. The wires short-out before the energy is able to get from point A (the brain) to point B (anywhere else in your body). It causes loss of balance, disorientation, dizziness, weakness, numbness, etc. Everything that Bryan was experiencing.

We thought we had an answer: MS. It was devastating but we knew from WedMD (our personal internet physician) that the disease's progression could be slowed with pills, physical therapy, etc. However, we wouldn't know for sure until he had the MRI, which couldn't be scheduled until the following Monday. In shock and denial, we did anyone else in crisis mode would do: we skipped town and went to Vegas.

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