Slight Progress

Joe has been doing Ok. He's extremely weak and tired, but seems to be gaining a little strength each day since he's been home. He lost 36 lbs (6 lbs since he's been home), but happy to report he actually gained a pound today. Yeah!!! It's the little things, like one pound at a time. Nutrition and hydration are the two most important things in Joe's recovery right now. For this reason, he spends most of his time focusing on them. He doesn't have an appetite, but really makes the effort to eat and drink more than he expels. He's close to a break even, but is gaining on it. Dr. Ong explained that he had to remove the portion of his bowels that absorbs nutrients and "forms bowels". The section that is left now has to take over that function and just hasn't quite got the hang of it yet. Medications are helping until they start working properly. Keep the prayers coming!! They are working. Love to all, Sherrie

Shelli Graduated and Joe was there!!

Joe made it to Shelli's graduation. It was a wonderful evening. The Seton Catholic High School community just embraced Joe all night long. Everyone was so excited to see Joe and he was so excited to see them. Shelli was beaming with pride that her Dad was there along with her family and friends. The evening just exhausted Joe, but it was so worth it. In the meantime, he is working hard on eating and drinking, but is still losing weight. He has lost 34 pounds now. We hope things start "sticking" soon and he's starts putting on weight. He is maintaining his hydration level, but he's right on the border. We are watching and monitoring everything very closely. Thanks for all the good wishes and welcome home messages. Joe is so happy to be home, we are so happy to have him home and it's the perfect combination for recovery!! XOXO Sherrie

He's Home!!!!

Joe was released today from the hospital and is home resting. They were very thorough when they released him and we have pages of instructions, along with 8 prescriptions. The nurse will be here 1st thing in the morning to check on Joe. He is very weak, extremely tired, but he will heal so much faster just being at home. He is really looking forward to Shelli's graduation tomorrow too. More to follow... XOXO Sherrie

Tuesday - getting closer to home

We had a couple setbacks yesterday, but today we're going forward. Joe had a drainage tube removed and it was extremely long and painful. Unfortunately, his ileostomy bag started leaking in the hole left from the drainage bag. They had to flush it out and work hard to prevent infection. Unfortunately again, 2 more bags leaked until they finally got it fixed. They also weighed Joe and he lost 4 more pounds for a total of 30 pounds since April 23rd. We were hoping Joe was going home today or tomorrow, but Dr. Ong said he's not quite ready. He hasn't been able to stay hydrated on his own yet, but he's getting closer. He has to eat more and drink more, while staying on all the meds to help things get absorbed in his system. Dr. Ong has also ordered Home Health Care for Joe to assist with any dehydration and his ileostomy when we get home. It's a nice comfort to know we can get him on IV's right away without having to come back to the hospital. Shelli's graduation is Friday and Dr. Ong is aware of that and doing everything he can to get Joe to the graduation without jeopardizing his health. Prayers welcome again!! Thanks everyone and hugs and kisses to all!! Sherrie

Sunday - getting better

Joe is doing much better since he hit bottom on Wednesday. They have him on about 8 different medications to help him. They have dramatically reduced his output and he is getting closer to the target he needs to hit before they can release him. Basically they measure his input vs. output and there is a number he has to hit to ensure he is staying hydrated. His output was 5 times greater than his input on Wednesday, but is going down with the help of the medications. The problem now is the meds are causing stomach cramping which stops Joe from eating and drinking. We're trying to find the perfect balance, which is difficult when the bowels have been through so much and are trying to be "re-trained" to function properly. Joe and I have also been having ileostomy training every day for an hour. It is manageable, but not one of our favorite things to do. Yesterday, his bag was faulty and started leaking. That was not pleasant at all. On a brighter note, please be assured I am being so well cared for by my Tucson host family Wayne and Rebecca and all our Tucson friends. In addition to all of them, our family and friends continue to support us through prayers, meals, comfort, help at home and just overall thoughts throughout the day. We not only hear them and read them, but feel the love and support continuously. Not a day goes by where Joe and I and our girls don't talk about it all and thank God for all of you. We love you and thank you and hope to give you good news soon that Joe is coming home. Stay tuned.... XOXOXOXOXO Sherrie

Wednesday - downward day

Today was a tough day. They had Joe eating and drinking on his own and his bowels were throwing it out faster than he could put it in. He became extremely dehydrated and lethargic. He didn't have the strength to walk or even talk. They weighed him and also discovered he has lost 26 lbs since April 23rd. Dr. Ong came in after a long surgery and saved the day - once again. He immediately changed up a bunch of things, checked Joe thoroughly and sat with Joe and I and explained everything that was happening. He could tell we were scared and near our breaking point. We are much better now and Joe is starting to feel better already with the new fluids. He stated Joe will have to stay in the hospital until he can keep himself hydrated without IV support. I'm glad for that since that was the mistake that landed Joe in the hospital the 2nd time (under a different Doctor's direction). I met a new friend at the hospital and she treated me to a wonderful lunch at the Arizona Inn. I have to tell you that if you ever want an amazing place to stay in Tucson, this is a great place. Thank you Kathy for such a great break during such a stressful day. Love to all, Sherrie

Tuesday - a little setback

Joe had a rough day today. He tested positive for a staph infection. He's been in isolation and I have to wear gloves and a gown to stay in the room. The doctor isn't too concerned about it and feels confident the new antibiotics will take care of it. They will test him everyday to make sure. He ate his first bite of food today since May 4th. It cramped up his stomach, but I guess that is to be expected as well. They have him drinking fluids, while staying on an IV to make sure he stays hydrated. He sleeps the majority of the time, but gets up occasionaly. We have also been having a one hour class everyday (with homework) on how to care for his ileostomy. An ileostomy is similar to a colostomy, but instead of the colon coming through his abdominal wall, they brought his ileum (a section of the small intestine)through the wall. We are learning how to empty, clean and change the bag. It's overwhelming at first, but I understand it will get easier. Can't wait for that day! On a positive note, I escaped the hospital and had a wonderful lunch with my Tucson co-workers. It was so great to see them, talk about everything that is happening and talk about work! I really enjoyed it and the timing was perfect. I was heading down fast, and they brought me right back up! Thanks Gary, Wayne, Milly, Tom and David. And a special congratulations to our wonderful girls - Candace for getting a promotion at work as a Reading Specialist, to Amanda for finishing her master's degree and Shelli for finishing high school today. Her graduation is May 25th. So proud of them!! Love to all, Sherrie

Happy Mother's Day

Thanks everyone for the wonderful Mother's Day messages. I woke up at 5:20am to the sounds of my grandchildren. We got to all spend time with Joe today and the hospital staff let Quinn (3 mos. old granddaughter) and Edison (3 year old grandson) in the room with Joe. It put a big smile on his face. Edison just kept saying "Papa got to rest now". He wanted to make sure Papa is being well cared for! Thanks to my wonderful daughters and son-in-law for all they did for me today too. I am so blessed to have such an amazing family. Joe is doing Ok - he actually got up and walked today, although it was very painful. Everything Dr. Ong told us is exactly what is happening. Joe is determined to get healed and get home, although he realizes it won't be for 2 weeks! He still has all the tubes/IV's/bags... unfortunately he is hungry, but can't eat or drink anything. Tomorrow we get trained on the colostomy care and he is planning on walking again. With Love and thanks to all, Sherrie

Saturday

Just wanted to give everyone a quick update on Joe. It's Day 1 and he's doing great - as Joe always does. He is on a pain pump, still on oxygen, has 3 drainage tubes, a catheter, colostomy bag and lots of IV's, but so thankful they were able to figure out what was going on. He is being well cared for under Dr. Ong's supervision and we thank God for bringing Dr. Ong into our lives. He is truly the best doctor we have ever met. He saved Joe - - no question about it. Joe was alert today and learned about everything that happened. He was brought to tears of thankfulness, as were the rest of us. He said to tell everyone thanks for the prayers and that to tell everyone that it truly is a testament of faith. So a huge thanks to God and to all of you for praying and believing. Joe has a long road ahead and will be here for at least 2 weeks. They have to keep him hydrated and let the bowel heal completely before he can eat or drink anything. It's going to be a long 2 weeks with nothing to eat or drink, but like Joe said "I can do anything as long as I know what the game plan is and I know where the finish line is". A true athlete. As always, thanks to all for your overwhelming support. It is incredible and we are forever grateful to each and everyone of you. All our Love, Sherrie, Joe and family

He's out of surgery

Joe is out of surgery and it went well. We learned a lot. When he became dehydrated after the first surgery, another doctor prescribed an anti-diarrhea medicine. Dr. Ong explained that it caused pressure in the bowel that was trying to heal and fuse together and instead ended up blowing the stitched area apart. It began spreading throughout his abdomen and further. It will take awhile to get the infection completely out of his system and he did have to put a colostomy bag in place. This will be in place for a few months. He also explained that Joe will be very sick for awhile, but he is going to recover. Because his bowels were traumatized with the hot chemo, they will take longer to heal and work properly, but he will heal. Then Dr. Ong gave us great news - he told us that Joe reacted extremely well to the hot chemo. He was amazed at how many of the tumors were already gone. He was really pleased to see how good the hot chemo worked. So with that, we thank God - because of this, Dr. Ong was able to fix Joe quickly, get him started on the road to recovery and give us more hope that the chemo is working! More tears tonight, but be reassured they are tears of joy and thankfulness. Love to all, Sherrie

Joe's in Surgery...again

Another tough day, but hopefully we've hit bottom and are on our way back up. They transported Joe to UMC last night (midnight). This morning, they ran tests and examined him and within 10 minutes of getting the results back, Dr. Ong was in Joe's room. He told us that they need to operate right away. Apparently the connection between the small bowel and the colon did not take and is leaking. As a result, "stuff" has leaked out and is infecting Joe. He said this happens in 10-15% of the patients and it has never happened to one of his patients. Joe is the first and Dr. Ong feels just terrible about it, but it needs to be addressed immediately. He said it may be from the HIPEC (hot chemo) or something else. It doesn't matter at this point. The infection and leakage are causing all the other problems that Joe was having and it must be addressed immediately. They took Joe back to surgery immediately. Again, we met under the mistletoe, kissed him and said "see you soon". The surgery is expected to last 4 hours. Dr. Ong warned us that Joe will be very sick from this surgery. He can't have an epidural because of the infection, but they will give him other meds to help with the pain. He will also have a colostomy bag as a result of the surgery. If all goes well, it may only be for a few months. He will be in ICU for a few days and Dr. Ong wants him to stay in the hospital for 2 weeks. This was extremely difficult for all of us to hear and we all broke down, but Joe told us and told us to tell everyone else, that we can't look back...only forward. He feels that he is in really good hands and has the utmost faith and respect for Dr. Ong - - - as do the rest of us. I'll update the blog once Joe is out of surgery and continue to update as he progresses. Thanks to all who are helping us out - our family, our work friends, our neighbors, our high school and college friends and all our other friends. Joe told the nurse today that God and his support group are getting him through this. So while you pray, please remember to add your thanks to God for us. We love you all, Sherrie, Joe, Amanda, Candace, Doug and Shelli

It's been a bad day

Sorry to report, but things are not getting any better. In fact, they are worse. Joe's oxygen level is decreasing, he has a very inflamed side, his heart rate is elevated, he can't eat or drink on his own and he is in a lot of pain. They ran a ton of tests today and all we know is he has a lot of fluid in a lot of places, he has no evidence of blood clots and his heart is healthy (although beating fast from the low oxygen level). Dr. Ong wants him back in Tucson so he can take over his care. They have ordered a transport (ambulance) for Joe tomorrow morning. In addition to all of this, Shelli came home from school with a bad sore throat. We ended up in urgent care tonight with her. She has an infection and canker sores down her throat, so luckily we got her in and got her started on meds. Hopefully she'll feel like a new person tomorrow. I know there is lots of love, support and prayers coming our way and I just want to apologize if I have not returned a call, text or email. Today was a rough one, so please don't think I'm ignoring you. Amanda has offered her phone number on the blog in case you can't get me. Her number is 480-204-5286. She said you can call or text her if you need to talk to one of us and can't get me. Thanks for your understanding and I'll update tomorrow as soon as I learn more. XOXO Sherrie p.s. To answer a lot of your questions, yes I am staying with my dear friends Wayne and Rebecca. They take wonderful care of me and my family so no worries about my Tucson accommodations. My other Tucson friends continue to reach out to me for support as well, so we are all taken care of during our stay(s) in Tucson.

Still Here

Joe is still at Chandler Regional Hospital. They are in constant contact with UMC and are monitoring Joe closely. They have his hydration almost back to normal (but he's still on IV's), he is still on oxygen (having breathing issues) and he's on a heart monitor because his heart is beating too fast (no stress here!) The good news is that his pain level is better and they are able to keep it under control. The better news is they test him everyday and his scan today shows signs of improvement from the blockage. He's not out of the woods yet, but making progress. If things aren't better tomorrow, he will have to get the "bile tube" inserted through his nose to his stomach. If that doesn't work, he'll be transported to Tucson for another surgery. The doctors really think that based on the test today, that this will work itself out. Your prayers are working...thank you so much. XOXO Sherrie

Back in the hospital - AGAIN

Sorry to report, but Joe is very sick again. He got home on his birthday (Friday) and was feeling fairly good. Just went down hill from there. He still has bowel problems and by Saturday stayed in bed. He started vomiting and said his pain was a 10 out of 10. I called 911 and they rushed him to Chandler Regional. We found out he has a bowel obstruction. I understand this can be a side effect of the surgery that Joe had. The surgeon here is working with the surgeon in Tucson to determine next steps. They may transport him to Tucson for surgery, perform the surgery here or it may work itself out. We're in a wait and see mode. In the meantime, Joe is on pain meds, antibiotics (running 102 temp), IV's (dehydrated again) and oxygen (shallow breathing issues). Keep those prayers coming and I'll update as soon as they determine where we go from here. With Love and Thanks, Sherrie

Happy Birthday Joe!

Joe got the best present for his birthday - he got to come home. He's doing well, but still has a ways to go. His bowels are still not working properly and staying hydrated is a constant battle. He's extremely fatigued, but hopefully that will improve as well. Our next appointment with the doctor is May 15th. We'll be discussing next plans for Joe. Pray for a good appointment! He also asked me to thank everyone for all the birthday wishes. It was amazing and really put a smile on his face. Thank you all so very much. It was great. Love to all, Sherrie and Joe

Joe's back in the hospital

We knew it was too good to be true, but Joe was released too soon. He kept getting worse each day since being home. He was having major bowel problems, getting dizzy, extremely fatigued where he could barely walk, lost his voice and was having chemo side effects. He also lost 17 lbs. The doctor wanted him back at UMC, so we drove back here today. He was severely dehydrated and they are running tests to make sure he doesn't have other issues beyond normal surgery side effects. He's had 2 bags of fluids and some meds and he is doing so much better. We're not sure when he'll be home, but if they can get his bowel issues under control, it should be soon. As always, we really feel the prayers kicked in this round. We got Joe back in time and he's already turning the corner. You guys are the best! XOXO Sherrie