Here's to Family

The results of the CT scan my mom had a few weeks ago showed no growth in her tumors. Only the tumor in her thyroid shrunk just a little. Because of these results, the doctor decided to keep her on folfox (the current chemo she has been on) for another two months of treatments. She will have another CT scan at the end to check the progress again and decide from there if there will be any changes.

From the talks I've had with her and check in calls, she gets tired more frequently now. Her hair has started to thin again. She has even started feeling nauseous and throwing up (sorry mom, but friends should know). I will catch her working on her quilts and doing things she loves which makes me feel so grateful. I am so happy she has energy to keep going. However hard it is and however sick she feels sometimes, I know she keeps going for us, her kiddies. I wish our family was closer so that we could be more helpful and share more memories together, but I know even when we can't see the daily struggles and feelings she has, that she thinks of us and finds it in her to keep going. I know we all think of her often and are amazed. There is nothing better than family and I feel so lucky to have mine. For those who haven't heard, the youngest in our family, Jason, is leaving in August to serve a two year LDS mission in the Philippines. I know it was a hard decision for him to make, but hard as it was our family is so proud of his decision. In January, we will welcome home Ian who is serving his mission in San Diego. My mom has been holding strong especially for him. He was gone when we learned about the cancer. I know when the two of them meet again, it will be a very sweet reunion. There is something about our family being apart, but feeling close. I love knowing I have them forever.

Good News and News

The good news is...Valerie followed me back to Seattle for what started out as a two week visit and has now turned into three! She came out to help with putting the house back together from the water damage. The new floor is in, and GORGEOUS! We all love it! Downstairs is all painted. The bathroom is nearly complete. It feels like a new house downstairs. Thanks to friends who came to help us in such stressful times. We appreciate the support and feel very loved!

Now for the news. After the last four rounds of chemo my numbers have dropped to 345. Today was my CT scan and we went over the results with my oncologist. The CT scan showed that the tumors in my liver and thyroid are stable...not growing, but the tumors in my lungs are growing and multiplying. He wants to be 100% sure that the new growth is cancer so I will be going in for a biopsy in the next couple of days. If it is not cancer, we will continue the treatment I am on now, folfox. If it is cancer, the chemo regimen will change, to folfiri. I qualify for a clinical trial. It will be an addition to the folfiri. Some of the side effects with the new chemo will be nausea, anorexia, acne rash and no more neuropathy (cold sensitivity and tingling in hands/feet).

It was expected that I would stop responding to the folfox at some point and would be switched to another chemo. There are four chemo regimens. All that I have done up to this point has been the first. If we switch, it will begin the second. There is a 50/50 chance that the clinical trial could be a better treatment. We have the choice to participate. I feel it is worth a shot.

One Day at a Time

Two days after getting back, my mom went in for chemo. She explained about her pain during her trip here and the Doctor decided to change up some of the meds and put her more in control over which at home meds she needed. During the infusion she broke out in a red rash. After stopping the chemo, the nurse talked to the doctor,and gave my mom Benadryl then waited a half hour. When she started the chemo again, it began with a slower drip and gradually built up to the normal flow. She was fine, but the Benadryl of course made her sleep. We'll see how she handles the side effects this week! Now that she has shown hypersensitivity to the oxaliplatin, she will need benadryl, or something like it, each time she goes in for chemo. The nurse said this hypersensitivity doesn't happen when you first start chemo but down the line several rounds later. Your body finally says, "Ok! I've had enough, I don't like you" and the Benadryl calms it down.

It's a watch and see situation. She may tolerate it just fine with Benedryl or something similar or she may just get to the point of not tolerating it anymore. Her numbers have gone down to 365, so they are moving in the right direction. Also, her white blood cell count was low so they gave her a shot to boost her white blood cells and told her to expect to be in pain for a couple of weeks.

In other news, I am hearing the new wood floor is beautiful! It was hard for my mom to be 3,000 miles away  while they laid the new floor from the water damage. (See here) I still can't believe that happened. A special thanks to all those who helped my parents with that. It is so comforting to know they have incredible friends who love them and would help out any way they can!

Everything works out one way or the other. Life is not suppose to be easy, of course. I know where to find peace. I know I am loved and hard things are for my growth. For all the 'surprises' in our lives, here's to taking one day at a time and getting good perspective from it.

East Coast Visit

When my Mom was on the pill form of chemo, she was feeling pretty good and around Christmas time we planned a trip for her to visit us in Charlotte. We planned for March, a big part because Wicked was coming to town. It was perfect, she booked plane tickets and play tickets and the countdown began. A few weeks before her coming out, she had stopped responding to the pill and needed to be put back on the infusion form. This makes my stomach turn because, well, for all sorts of reasons, but mainly because I knew it meant she was not going to be living life as comfortably anymore. The physical side effects of this treatment are harsh and seem to pile on.

Luckily, she was still able to come out. We had her for two whole weeks! Her sister also lives in Charlotte and my brother, Corey, lives two hours away. My mom got to triple dip!

There were two treatments before she came. The side effects are creeping back in her life. She had one bad day, her second day here. She had very bad pain, the exact same as in the beginning when she was prepping for her colonoscopy. We thought she might end up in the ER again. Things calmed down and she was good for the rest of her trip. Her hands and feet are peeling a lot and Corey found these really cool socks/gloves that are aloe/olive oil coated which are good.

She was surprised how much she liked the south and I had a great time showing her around. We went to the Columbia Temple, Farmers Markets, Latta Plantation, bakeries, southern restaurant to eat fried green tomatoes and shrimp and grits, lots of cute shops, parks, haircut, train ride, went to see OZ with Corey and Wicked with Lauana, and lots more!

It sure is quiet now that she's gone...

Chemo stopped due to hand/foot syndrome

10 days into round two of my chemo pill and I have the hand/foot syndrome again. They have already reduced my dose due to this side effect. Now they have me stopping all further chemo for this round and I have a week off next week. I guess they will reevaluate when I go back in to them. Maybe they will reduce my dose again. I feel so good other than my painful feet.
I am currently enjoying a visit from my brother and his family. Unfortunately, my feet started hurting the day they arrived so we can't go do much of anything because I need to stay off of my feet. Sorry, guys.
But I'm glad I can enjoy the blessing of family and feeling good.

Feeling Good

I've had people ask me to update the blog more often. I'll try to be more regular with my enteries.
I'm happy to let you know that I feel good. I am quilting again and working on various small projects. I still have not developed the ability to pace myself so I tend to wear myself out quickly but I do feel good other than getting really tired rather quickly. My cancer marker continues to drop, it is now at 560.
The first round of oral chemotherapy was interesting. At first I could not keep my balance which is not even a side effect of this pill. I experienced a mild case of the hand foot syndrome and so my dose has been adjusted beginning with this round which began yesterday.
I am looking forward to going with the young women in our ward this week on their high adventure. We will be white water rafting! So excited!

Mother's day blessings

So, I figured I had better put an update on the blog. I have been handling the Chemo pretty well until this last one. This week was a little tough. There is a side effect that affects the hands and feet. I've had it a couple of times before but never as bad as this week. My feet hurt so bad it was very hard to walk. I'm supposed to put lotion on them to keep them from cracking and peeling. As soft as I could I would apply the lotion but it was still painful. It's a burning pain and very tender to the touch. Even today I went to church and my feet were still a little tender in my shoes. It's never lasted this long before. This along with other side effects has made this week a little tough.
I am still grateful for all the little things that come into my life to make it easy to keep going. This mother's day was the best. I spoke to all of my children including my missionary. It was wonderful! I loved listening as they talked and laughed with each other. My kids really do love each other! :))) I love watching them develop into capable, confident adults and enjoy each other's company. This makes me very happy.
Thank you to my family for the best Mother's Day ever!

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.