Update

I apologize for the delay in posting. The last couple of weeks have been full of non-stop action so I'll do my best to get you caught up on everything.

Patty's grandmother is out of the hospital and doing better. Due to much prayer and the Lord's blessing she was spared an operation to clear the bowel obstruction she had. She is still very weak which one would expect after lying in the hospital for 5 days and getting nothing to eat. The obstruction evidently cleared on its own with the inactivity of eating. Bessie turns 90 in December.

Saturday before last, I headed out with Katie and 19 other 4-6 graders to Student Life for Kids camp at Ridgecrest Conference Center in Black Mountain, NC. This was my first experience at a "summer camp" so I was as green as the kids who had never been before as well. It was truly a great time where the kids got time to do their quiet time in the mornings, attend great Worship & Celebration events which included great skits, videos, and praise & worship times. They also got to participate in water games and other great games such as dodgeball. Unfortunately, the group leaders such as myself got to play against the camp staff. We didn't win but we held our own. I was the last guy out on our team so I didn't embarrass myself, lol...

As soon as I returned from camp on Tuesday my cousin Chuck and his wife Beth came in from Nashville to stay with us through the holiday and our Aunt's wedding on Saturday. We enjoy it anytime they come and stay. We always have a lot of fun and stay up late catching up on all of our lives. This time they brought a new game to us that is and oldie but goodie that we had never played. Dominoes! More specifically the "Mexican Train". We stayed up their last night here until 3 a.m. playing. It is a lot of fun and I sense it is going to soon be showing up at our camping events.

Saturday, my aunt Billie who is my dad's sister got married after being widowed for over 14 years. They asked Grant to be the ringbearer. You've never felt any pressure until your 4 year old son is standing in front of the whole wedding just itching to cause some kind of disaster. For that reason, that had to be the longest wedding I've ever been to. Luckily, all he managed to do was find some stick pins on the steps, pull up his jacket, swing the ring pillow round and round and then put it on his head, lay down on the steps, almost tip a plant over, crawl up the steps, make smirks and ugly faces at my attempts to get him to interpret my cleverly discreet sign language during the wedding to turn around, stand up, and be still, lol.... We still had a great time seeing extended family and friends we hadn't seen in a long time.

As life ever so swiftly progresses, these are the times that I cherish. Over the last few years there are a few things that I've observed that bring me joy. Quiet time with God, a great cup of coffee, a fresh newspaper, and extended time with family. IMHO, if a man experiences much joy from these few simple things he has been blessed. Of course, some would argue the coffee and newspaper but hey, a man needs a couple simple vices.

Now, let get to the most important thing you've been wanting to read, an update on Patty. As you'll remember her white counts had been running low. In further tests the doc discovered that her B12 level was low as well. So he decided to start her on some B12 injections and her counts last week rose to normal levels! Praise God! It also detected that her thyroid levels were extremely low which should cause her to have hyperthyroidism. She hasn't experienced many of the symptoms of this but he wants her to see a endocrinologist for review. The only symptom she has felt is fatigue and heat intolerance. According to the doc, the low thyroid levels is unrelated to her originally diagnosis or her treatments. So the new prayer request is for her thyroid levels to return to normal.

Relay for Life Update

The Relay for Life was last Friday night and Saturday morning. I'm still a little tired from staying up ALL night until it was over at 7 a.m. It has been along time since I've stayed up all night and then I was a lot younger (and had different motivations as well :). Thanks to many of you the girls raised $350! Each of you who donated extended a tremendous amount of generosity and for that we give you a wholehearted THANKS! The girls were so excited and would ask me how much they had raised even up to the day of the event.

The total event as of Saturday morning had raised over $55,000. The girls came after they completed their Vacation Bible School and got to do some EuroBungy Jumping (pictures forthcoming!) After that, they played in the water fountains and then finished up with some good ol' face painting (more pictures forthcoming). And this is not your average face painting. Wait until you see the pictures.

On a less than positive note, Patty got a call from her grandmother early Saturday morning wanting me to take her to the hospital. Of course, I was at the Relay so Patty called her sister to see if she could take her. Patty should have called me anyway and I would have left but I'll have to cut her some slack because she was sound a sleep when her grandmother called. Her grandmother is 89 by the way and still drives, cleans house, etc. It turns out she has a small bowel obstruction and most likely is going to have to have surgery. Please pray for her that this will resolve on its own without surgery and while you're at it please include Patty's blood counts to continue to rise.

Patty Update and The Relay is Today!

I thought I would give everyone a current update on Patty. She has been feeling generally well recently. Her latest bloodwork has showed that her white blood cell count has dropped. The norm is between 4-11. For the last two weeks hers has been 2.8 and 3.1 this week. When its this low it makes you much more susceptible for infection. The physician doesn't really have an explanation for it dropping except that she may have had a small infection that caused it to fluctuate. He is going to continue to monitor it. That being said I would like to ask each of you that are still reading to pray for her white blood cell count to return to normal levels.

The Relay for Life is tonight and we will be attending. The girls have raised $280 due to the generosity of the reader's here. Patty and I and the girls can not thank you enough for your kindness. If there is anybody on the fence about contributing the girls just need $20 to reach $300!

Many Thanks!

Many thanks to those to you who have donated! Believe it or not, combined with what the girls raised selling paper dolls and cookies and what you have so graciously donated the girls have raised over $250! The girls are ranked 8th out of 23 Teams! Keep those contributions coming!

Patty is doing well so far with her new medications. Keep praying that she will not have side effects from this medicine that she will have to take for 5 years. She has her weekly infusion tomorrow and then we're off on another camping trip, whoooohooooo! We'll be back on Tuesday but we're not going far, just to Townsend to do a little tubing, fishing, and of course the kids favorite, bike riding!

Its so nice to be doing some things that feel normal again and not related to cancer. Let's pray that this continues into our old age.

One more thing. Patty heard for the first time last night the new song out by Craig Morgan called "Tough." She loved it. It speaks about a young mother who fights breast cancer and prevails. In case you haven't heard it yet its a great song. Click HERE to see the video and hear the song. Enjoy.

Asking for Your Help

As you saw in one of my previous posts, Katie and Kendall took it on themselves to raise money to "help Mommy feel better." We decided that we would donate that money to the American Cancer Society's annual fundraiser "Relay for Life." So, we have created the "Katie & Kendall Team" to help raise funds for research and support the ACS gives to patients such as transportation money, support groups, and many other things.

We want to invite you help them support in the ongoing fight against cancer. Would you please consider visiting the link below to make a donation to support their efforts? The minimal amount you can donate online is $10. Their goal is to raise at least $100 or more so what ever amount you could give would be awesome. If you can't, we understand. You can easily donate by credit or debit card and do it in honor or memory of someone you know. You will make a real difference in the lives of people facing cancer – and in the lives of the people who love them.

Click HERE to donate and see their page.

Thanks a Bunch!

Kendall's Graduation & Patty Tx Update

Kendall graduated from Kindergarten last night. It was a great event. A funny story was they wrote down what they wanted to be when they grow up and held it up at the end of a song they sang. Pics below.

Patty is doing ok. She starts the Tamoxifen today or tomorrow. Hello hot flash. Hopefully she'll be able to cope with it over the next five years. It is a daily pill that helps prevent a breast cancer recurrence. Symptoms are similar to menopause. When you look at all of the possible side effects it sounds kind of scary. Her axilla continues to heal. Hair continues to grow. And we continue to attempt to get back to some point of normalcy. Is that possible? I don't think so. We're going on a camping trip this Friday. Our last camping trip is when Patty discovered the lump. I hope it doesn't bring back in flashbacks.

Patty Update

Patty's hair continues to grow back quickly. The problem she is not used to trying to style what appears to be an extremely short haircut. However she does it she manages to make it look good! I believe the recipe includes a lot of gel and hairspray.

Her skin under her arm is still a bit raw but it has improved greatly. She says there is a little tender spot which is interesting because she can't feel anything under her arm. Her main complaint is muscle tightness in raising her arm. I've told her she needs to exercise this to stretch those muscles.

We've got a camping trip planned for June 1st. Kendall graduates from kindergarten on March 29th. Brett is starting to talk up a storm. He has the biggest grin of any of our kids. He has become my mood elevator. Whenever I'm stressed, looking at that smile that encompasses his whole face rather than just his mouth, I can't help but feel a sense of joy.

Patty's Radiation Treatment Complete

I apologize for the lack of posts over the last couple of weeks. I've been out of town for work (mostly) or play 8 out of the last 9 days.

Patty finished her radiation treatments on Monday. She has done well except for one area under her arm that the skin has broke down. It doesn't look good but she is being a trooper. Luckily, she still can't fill under her arm so it is not as painful as it looks.

We celebrated her finishing by her and the kids coming up to Cincinnati with me on a business trip this week. We went up a day early and went to the Cincinnati Zoo which was really nice. It took us six hours to "do the zoo". Brett was amazing as he walked the whole zoo all day without riding in the stroller. This boy is going to have some stamina. I wish I could say the same for Grant and Kendall. We had a great time though as a family. It almost got canceled but we persevered.

The next day the Patty and the kids hung out at the indoor pool of the hotel we stayed while I was gone to do a presentation on Cancer Services strategy. Sounds like fun doesn't it!

It looks like reconstruction is the next hurdle. So we'll be making some decisions towards that soon. Also, the big Relay for Life fundraiser is coming up of which I'm going to post a link here soon to help me in fundraising to support cancer research.

Treatment Update

Patty is down to her last five treatments. She finishes her radiation treatments next Monday. After that she will continue the weekly Herceptin infusions through December. She will also soon start on a medication called Tamoxifen that she will take for five years. In simple terms, Tamoxifen is a drug that helps prevent the cancer from recurring.

The radiation treatments have gone well. One area under her arm has become real red and sore but nothing extraordinary. Her issues with the breathing and the dizziness seemed to have faded. Part of it might have been we discovered was the fact that she had starting taking my Prilosec thinking it was one of her medicines. Good grief!

Her hair continues to grow back fast and furious. She's got a ponytail already, ....just kidding. Actually its long enough where she has for the most part ditched the wig and is sporting a spiked number that looks good. She's got her some new "celebrity" sunglasses that match it well.

There are still some big decisions out there to be made. Patty seems to be pretty adamant about having reconstruction done. Truthfully, I was a little surprised at this. It is a big surgery and one that may have to be done out of state which brings up all kinds of logistical issues.

The 91st Psalm

Patty says the dizziness and breathing issues seemed to be better. We haven't heard any of the results from the scans which is usually a good thing. She will return for her Herceptin infusion on Thursday of which they will probably communicate the results then.

Yesterday in my quiet time I just wanted to read a Psalm. Not any one in particular, but the number 91 just jumped into my head. After reading it I realized it wasn't just a coincidence. It was the Holy Spirit guiding me to be in the Lord's shadow. Read for yourself.

Psalm 91

(Contemporary English Version)

The LORD Is My Fortress

1 Live under the protection of God Most High and stay in the shadow of God All-Powerful.

2 Then you will say to the LORD, "You are my fortress, my place of safety, you are my God, and I trust you."

3 The Lord will keep you safe from secret traps and deadly diseases.

4 He will spread his wings over you and keep you secure. His faithfulness is like a shield or a city wall. ^[a]

5 You won't need to worry about dangers at night or arrows during the day.

6 And you won't fear diseases that strike in the dark or sudden disaster at noon.

7 You will not be harmed, though thousands fall all around you.

8 And with your own eyes you will see the punishment of the wicked.

9 The LORD Most High is your fortress. Run to him for safety,

10 and no terrible disasters will strike you or your home.

11 God will command his angels to protect you wherever you go.

12 They will carry you in their arms, and you won't hurt your feet on the stones.

13 You will overpower the strongest lions and the most deadly snakes.

14 The Lord says, "If you love me and truly know who I am, I will rescue you and keep you safe.

15 When you are in trouble, call out to me. I will answer and be there to protect and honor you.

16 You will live a long life and see my saving power."

Isn't that calming prose?

The part about the lions was very interesting to me. I don't recall if I've discussed this before but I had a very vivid dream soon after Patty's diagnosis that relates to this. I've not discussed it much because I'm very cautious about proclaiming that the Lord spoke to me in some form or fashion. If anyone is interested I can relate it in another post.

Radiation 2/3 Complete

Patty saw the doctor last Thursday about the dizziness. He said it could be from some of the medication. Over the weekend it actually has improved.

Patty also has been having a feeling of not getting enough air when she breaths. She also talked to the doctor about this but he didn't seem to be too concerned. He sent her for an EKG Friday and a MUGA Scan this morning. Both are tests for your heart. The Herceptin infusions she is taking weekly have a small chance of causing heart problems. She has had two so far that have been fine. From what I've read there is a good possibility that the breathing issue is stress related.

Today will be her 23rd of 33 radiation treatments. She has been handling this like a champ. I'm starting to see the fatigue set in on her and her skin has been itching her a lot but otherwise she has not has any major reactions.

Friday she took Kendall to the zoo. She said there were 27 other schools there! Luckily, they both like the zoo. Patty walked around with Kendall and another little girl from her class whose parent wasn't there. While they were sitting eating an ice cream a bird came and, uhhhhhh, took care of business in the little girl's hair and Patty's shoulder! Next they sat down on some railroad ties and the little girl's shorts got tar all over the back of them. Patty told the teacher that this little girl's parents are going to wonder who was chaperoning their child!

Update on Patty

Patty hasn't been feeling great the last few days. She's had a light headed feeling and can't seem to get a deep breath. She's not sure if she's just become acutely aware of her breathing or what. I've read that the Herceptin can cause dizziness in 13% of patients so I'm not sure if this is what this could be or not. Hopefully, it is nothing. She's sees the doctor tomorrow so we'll see what he says. Pray that these issues resolve for her.

Team Katie & Kendall

I came home Wednesday night and Katie and Kendall had been making paper dolls. Katie told me she wanted to sell them for money to make Mommy feel better. Since its that time of year for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life fundraiser, I told her we could sell them to raise money for the ACS. They could hardly wait. They wanted to sell them right then!

So Friday night I helped them make a poster and they also made some no bake cookies with Mommy. They had their aprons and chef hats while they helped. We got up early, put on our Relay shirts, gather our signs, scooped up our paper dolls and cookies and headed down to the commons area of the subdivision. We got setup and waited, ....and waited, ...and waited, then finally we had a customer. Friends of ours Darrell & Beth were on their way to DisneyWorld so I asked them to stop by because I was afraid that we wouldn't get much business. How wrong was I?

Luckily someone was having a yard sale up the street which brought in a lot of traffic. Many drove on by but quite a few people stopped and got their paper dolls or "cow patties." Before I knew it, these little girls had raised, drum roll please.............., $80 in an hour and a half! Can you believe it? All on their own, their own idea. I was so proud of them. A silver lining on this dark cloud of cancer.

They already are bitten with the bug of success. Kendall informed next week we're going to Fountain City Park to sale them! Below is a pic of our volunteers. You can see them with their new glasses posing with their cookies and paper dolls.

Treatment Update

Patty is a 1/3 of the way through her radiation treatments now. She is doing relatively well with them so far. She has been extremely tired lately so we thought her red blood cell counts might be low but they checked it yesterday and it was ok. They're going to check her thyroid to see if there could be any issues there. She got her Herceptin treatment yesterday as well and it went as expected.

She has started to venture out without her wig in the last week. She's got enough hair to try to spike it up but it doesn't want to cooperate for some reason. It wants to merge towards the center and form a mohawk. Its also coming in a light brown rather than the dark brown she used to have. She's also began to lose some of the weight the steroids added while she was having to take those. She has also been trying to continue to work out when she can.

I plan to keep updating so keep reading! Also please continue to send Patty notes of encouragement if you want! Have a great day!

Random Musings

We had a great Easter yesterday visiting with family and friends. We also sneaked (I just learned "snuck" is not a word, lol...) in a little fun towards the end of the day with a movie.

Patty's hair continues to grow back in but it is more of a light brown rather than her normal dark brown. Her radiation treatments continue as well. She's been having back and chest pain lately which always brings her concern that something is wrong. Who can blame her?

That's one thing we will have to deal with I guess from here on out. I've kept holding out hope that things will ultimately return to normal but I'm beginning to realize that is not a possibility. A 'new' normal will have to develop which is something I'm trying to grasp.

Cancer is a journey. Long for some, short for others. But cancer is by and by becoming more and more a "chronic" disease. In the past, metastatic cancer was considered a definite death sentence but now, people are living for long periods of time even after their cancer has recurred. Just the other day I picked up a chart on a patient who had breast cancer in 1981. It recurred in 1984 but she is still alive today due to the different types of treatment that have become available throughout the years. Encouraging news for survivors such as Elizabeth Edwards or Tony Snow who recently announced they are battling metastatic cancer. Our prayers are with them in their battle.

Powered by ScribeFire.

Treatment Update

Patty completed her 6th of 33 treatments today. She's 18% of the way, lol... She's handling the treatments well. Usually, side effects from the radiation treatments don't begin to develop, if they do, until after 10 or more treatments. Hopefully and prayerfully these won't develop.
Her Herceptin infusions continue to take place every Thursday through the end of the year.

Powered by ScribeFire.

ACS Releases New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines

Yesterday, the American Cancer Society (ACS) released new Breast Cancer screening guidelines for women who have a higher risk to develop the disease. Click HERE to read them. Why did they do this you may ask? In the adjacent picture you can see the mammogram on the left and an MRI on the right of the same patient. Obviously there is much better detail on the MRI. MRI is not being recommended to replace mammograms but rather to complement them. For example, calcifications will show on a mammogram but might not on an MRI. Often calcifications are indicative of a possible cancer. MRI's also have built in software programs that use sophisticated algorithms to detect probabilities of cancer in lesions identified.

I may have told this story before so if I have please forgive me. When Patty had a biopsy of an area in March at my urging, the doctor had said it wasn't necessary, there was a another very small area that was seen. It did not look like a breast cancer. It instead looked like a benign lymph node. It was also in a difficult location to biopsy without causing a lot of pain and misery (This is not the area where a cancer ultimately developed). The Radiologist said we could get an MRI but he didn't think it was necessary. Patty had just had two biopsies and didn't want to have to go through another procedure. My instinct and experience was to disagree and strongly suggest that it be done but, I was persuaded by her weariness and his experience. And, her risk over the next 5 years of developing breast cancer according to several risk assessment tools was ONLY 2%.

Worst mistake I've ever made. I regret not following my initial instinct and knowledge EVERY day and will for the rest of my life. If we had proceeded, the MRI would have most likely discovered both areas in their earliest stages.

I said all that to say, for the current time it is still going to be difficult to obtain a Breast MRI unless you meet certain criteria. See the criteria below:

• have a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation
• have a first-degree relative (parent, sibling, child) with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation, even if they have yet to be tested themselves
• lifetime risk of breast cancer has been scored at 20%-25% or greater, based on one of several accepted risk assessment tools that look at family history and other factors
• had radiation to the chest between the ages of 10 and 30
• have Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Cowden syndrome, or Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, or may have one of these syndromes based on a history in a first-degree relative

This is due to the cost of the exam. Mammograms are relatively cheap in the health care arena. MRI's are not. These new guidelines may or may not be followed by your insurance company. There is a risk calculator that will be used to help see if you qualify for a Breast MRI. I strongly urge every female reading this to click HERE and assess your risk. Men, have your wives assess their risk.

One thing to keep in mind is this. If you don't meet the criteria but your intuition gives you concern or the physician wants you to return in six months for a follow-up exam, insist on having a breast MRI even if your risk factors do not meet the requirements (see above). You may have to even pay for it yourself. At that point you'll have to ask yourself, how much is your health worth or your peace of mind? Tough question.

March 22nd Spurgeon Prayer Link Corrected

I found out the link I provide to the Spurgeon devotional on prayer was not the right link. For those of you who attempted to read it I have updated it to reflect the correct link. It is HERE as well.

Final Setup Today

Patty comes in today for her final setup to begin her radiation treatments.

To explain, most patients come for an initial CT scan through their area of treatment so that we can then develop the most optimal treatment plan to treat them with. Once that is complete, we then bring them back in to "confirm" that the treatment plan is indeed most optimal. Once this is complete and approved by the physician, we can then begin their treatments. Once treatments are started, we image the patients daily to assure that we are indeed delivering the plan that was created. Got it? I thought so, lol...

Please continue your prayers for us throughout this process. Specifically that Patty doesn't have any unfavorable skin reactions to the radiation and for us as a whole. Trust me, we need them.

Spring Break

We didn't do much over Spring Break. I took Monday through Wednesday off and we traveled down to Chattanooga to visit with some good friends of ours that used to live here in Knoxville. Some of you know them as Earl Marcey.

We went down Monday afternoon and the next morning we headed off to the Georgia Aquarium. Self-purportedly the "World's Largest and Most Engaging Aquarium." Do you feel a review coming on? Good.

It was relatively easy to get to and the line wasn't long to enter except for the security. We had purchased tickets ahead of time online of which I definitely recommend. Be sure to print out the tickets they email you before you come though. One small step I seemed to miss. Alas, it wasn't a big issue as the will call line wasn't long and we traversed right on into the Aquarium. The design is well thought out as it is a pod design where there is a central Atrium/Lobby that is surrounded by 5 pods appropriately separated by aquatic life (river, ocean, etc.). With this design your not in one continuous line and you can enter whichever one looks the least crowded. It took us about two hours to tour the whole facility.

They do have some aquatic life that I had not seen before. I've been to several aquariums (Monterey, Newport, Ripley's, and Chattanooga) and hadn't seen a Whale Shark



or a Beluga Whale.







Both of these were pretty impressive. As far as being the largest aquarium in the world, well, it didn't seen any bigger than other aquariums I've seen. But, maybe that's just my revisionist memory, lol... It is definitely worth the trip to see it as least once.

We left and headed back to Chattanooga where we spent the night again with Earl Marcey. We got up and headed back the next morning. Below is a pic of the kids along with Earl Marcey's kids Alex and Eliza.

powered by performancing firefox