Round 4

I'm sitting here in the middle of my 4th chemo with my chemo fanny pack around my waist.
The side effects that happen every time in the beginning are going on. Cold sensitivity-I can't drink or touch anything cold for several days. Facial pain when I bite into something-it lasts only a few seconds but is not very pleasant. I'm starting to have vision problems. I don't know if it's strictly the chemo or my RP or a combination of both. I'll have to see if my eye specialist will talk to my oncologist to see if there is anything that can be done. Sometimes when I rub my eyes or sometimes randomly my vision will narrow to a tunnel vision view with everything blackened but a small narrowed view of what I'm looking at. It only lasts a few moments.

But the good news is  my cancer marker has dropped to now 4000 from the original 16000 which means I am responding to treatments! I think that is an amazing drop after only 3 treatments. I am feeling better, stonger, and more in the mood to start back into some small projects. This is good. I am thankful.

Hawaii and other updates...

This past round of Chemo brought with it some random side effects. One was that my feet started to really hurt in the middle of the night. The next day they were all red and it hurt to walk. I wasn't sure what it was but after talking to the nurse she said it was related to the Chemo and that they might have to ajust the treatment next time.

Eddie and I were surprised last week with a trip to Hawaii!!! A collection was made and several people from Eddie's work donated money to get us to Hawaii, including plane tickets, a place to stay and all expenses! What a sweet and generous gift! We had a great time. It was nice to see the sun, and just get away. Thank you to everyone who made that possible.

We continue to see blessings in our lives and consider our friends and family to be among the biggest. The love and concern that is expressed by so many touches my heart-even from strangers that I've never met.

Ian shared  our story with his ward and they are concerned about me. I have recieved cards and notes from members of his ward expressing their concern for me and letting me know they are praying for me. While I appreciate the prayers in my behalf  it is so nice to know that Ian, being away from home, is also being loved and supported by such caring people.

Monday is my 4th Chemo and halfway mark. On April 6th I go in for CT scan to see how I am responding to treatments. If it goes well, the plan is to have 4 more treatments.

Family Visits and Cancer Updates

Mom's brothers took turns to come see her.

She has 6 brothers and 1 sister.

5 out of 6 brothers came and

her sister is coming at the end of this month

Uncle Lee with Mom

Uncle Dan with Mom

Us with Uncle Dale, Uncle Tom, Aunt Angela and Uncle John

Cancer Updates

Mom had her third treatment this week and everything went well! She is feeling good. It amazing me how with all of the chemicals they are pumping in her, she can feel the way she does.

I expected so much worse (and it can be).

We are all feeling the strength of your prayers.

It really makes a difference! In more ways than you think.

_______

From Mom's blood work there are numbers called cancer
counters that represent how much cancer is in her.

She started off with 16,000 and was down to 11,000.
The doctor called today to say it is now down to 6,000!

To give some perspective...normal is 5. Not 500 not 5,000 just 5.

It seems to be working but we have a long way to go.

April 6th is a CT Scan that will tell more of the progress of the

treatments and will determine future treatments.

Feeling Good

Mom's second round of chemo went a lot better than the first. She still had an ER trip though. This time it was because of chest pain. Cancer patients can develop blood clots easier so with the chest pain we were told to go in and have it checked out.

Thankfully, everything turned out just fine.

Mom was able to keep food down and had good energy. (She still gets tired a lot, but she found herself doing more things this time) She did not feel nauseous at all either! It was a really good week...especially compared to her first week on chemo.
Her first week she was very sick and nauseous and just all around uncomfortable. She had fevers which could lead to infection so we would go to the ER to have that checked out. She always turned out to be ok. Just long nights at the hospital. She could not keep anything down and had to get rehydrated through an IV. Not easy at all, but she leveled out and made it through.

Thank you for all of your prayers! We are definitely feeling them.