Another bad turn...
Please don't quote...
You know my FFIL has been sick a while. If you remember I said I thought FH and I would have an 08 wedding but in Sept of 07 FFIL got headaches that turned out to be lung cancer and worse.. the rare and scary Limbic encephalitis.
For those who don't know what it is...
The pathogens responsible for encephalitis attack primarily the limbic system (a collection of structures at the base of the brain responsible for emotions and many other basic functions), often causing memory deficits similar to those observed in Alzheimer's disease or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (although limbic encephalitis does not cause the same cognitive deficits as these diseases. 60% of the time, limbic encephalitis is paraneoplastic in origin, meaning it is a particularly severe form of limbic encephalitis caused by neoplasms most commonly associated with small cell lung carcinoma. Whereas the majority of encephalitides are viral in nature, PLE is often associated with cancer. In fact, it is thought that up to 1 in 100 people with cancer have paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis which is commonly misdiagnosed as neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's.
Anyhow FFIL went from perfectly normal to looking and sounding like an 85 year old with Alzheimers in a matter of days (he was only 59 at the time). They have tried experimental treatments in the past and they have helped. But he recently had another transfusion (to fight his white blood cells that are still attacking his brain). Last time he did that he was better for a while. This time he was better for a day. This week he wandered out of the brain trauma center after signing himself in. He also woke up in the middle of the night and started turning lights on, throwing a fit and insisting he was at a hotel, not his home.
FMIL hasn't even gotten a dress yet because she hasn't had time, she can't leave him alone and when she can get someone to watch him she does her important errands like groceries. We have no idea if FFIL will be able to make it to the wedding, how he will be able to stay in a hotel overnight and what he will be like if he is there.
Poor FH! This is so hard on him.
You know my FFIL has been sick a while. If you remember I said I thought FH and I would have an 08 wedding but in Sept of 07 FFIL got headaches that turned out to be lung cancer and worse.. the rare and scary Limbic encephalitis.
For those who don't know what it is...
The pathogens responsible for encephalitis attack primarily the limbic system (a collection of structures at the base of the brain responsible for emotions and many other basic functions), often causing memory deficits similar to those observed in Alzheimer's disease or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (although limbic encephalitis does not cause the same cognitive deficits as these diseases. 60% of the time, limbic encephalitis is paraneoplastic in origin, meaning it is a particularly severe form of limbic encephalitis caused by neoplasms most commonly associated with small cell lung carcinoma. Whereas the majority of encephalitides are viral in nature, PLE is often associated with cancer. In fact, it is thought that up to 1 in 100 people with cancer have paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis which is commonly misdiagnosed as neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's.
Anyhow FFIL went from perfectly normal to looking and sounding like an 85 year old with Alzheimers in a matter of days (he was only 59 at the time). They have tried experimental treatments in the past and they have helped. But he recently had another transfusion (to fight his white blood cells that are still attacking his brain). Last time he did that he was better for a while. This time he was better for a day. This week he wandered out of the brain trauma center after signing himself in. He also woke up in the middle of the night and started turning lights on, throwing a fit and insisting he was at a hotel, not his home.
FMIL hasn't even gotten a dress yet because she hasn't had time, she can't leave him alone and when she can get someone to watch him she does her important errands like groceries. We have no idea if FFIL will be able to make it to the wedding, how he will be able to stay in a hotel overnight and what he will be like if he is there.
Poor FH! This is so hard on him.
