Dr. Visit 8/30/12

Joe had his Dr. appointment yesterday and got the test results back.  The Petscan showed 2 large tumors, but the Dr. is not convinced they are 100% cancerous tumors.  They are located near scar tissue from the surgery, so it may be a combination of scar tissue and cancer.  Other tests showed that his hydration level has significantly increased since the ileostomy reversal, which is why Joe is feeling somewhat better.  His "tumor count" is up slightly from where it was right after the hot chemo surgery, but is down from where he started.  His B12 level is "dangerously low", so they started a series of injections right in the office.  He has to continue these injections weekly for at least 3 months.  So the bottom line is, the cancer is there, it's difficult to tell how fast or slow it is growing and Dr. S. wants Joe to start chemo right away.  The problem is Joe's bowels are still not functioning properly (no weight gain since he's been home) and chemo can make that situation even worse.  So Dr. S. has recommended Joe start chemo next week, but with reduced dosages.  He will have to go in every week and have chemo for 7 straight hours.  The good news is he will not have to wear the chemo pack for the additional 48 hours.  Dr. S. is hoping this will be strong enough to keep the cancer at bay, but not too strong that his body could not handle it with his existing bowel issues.  He feels (as does Dr. Ong) that the hot chemo really did a good job, although it can't get it all.  They keep reminding us that Joe's cancer has to be attacked from the inside out (chemo) and the outside in (the knife and hot chemo).  Time for inside out, since he's really had enough of outside in for now!

We are headed to Lake Powell for our annual trip.  We have no idea how this will go, but we have never missed this vacation in 20 years and Joe insisted that we go.  The whole family and several friends are joining us.  Joe said he may have to stay in the hotel during the day, but he doesn't care.  He doesn't want us to miss out.  Always thinking of others!  We get back on Monday and head to Tucson to meet with Dr. Ong on Tuesday to see if anything can be done to get these bowels working.

More to follow after our Tucson visit.

XOXO to all!
Sherrie

Shelli's off to college

She's all moved in and it was worse than I ever imagined.  The tears were abundant.  Like we predicted, Joe held us all together and the rest of us cried and cried.  Shelli is being very patient and letting me call her every day.  I'll cut back.....eventually.  She has a lot of friends and is already adjusting well.

Joe did good mentally, but not as good physically.  We're not sure if it was the altitude or the 2+ hour drive, but it hit him hard.  In his usual Joe fashion, he never complained and wanted to be around the action at all times.  We met up with his high school friend and family and their friends and our whole family was there as well.  It's great to see him smile :)

He has 2 more tests tomorrow and then we get the results on Thursday.  I'll be posting as soon as we learn something.  We have no idea how things will go.  He hasn't gained any more weight, but the Dr. hinted he may need to start chemo soon.  We'll just have to wait and see.

Love and thanks to all,
Sherrie

Tea Bags

A co-worker of mine shared a quote from his Pastor that reminds me of  Joe's strength:

"People are like tea bags.  You never know what they are made of until you put them in hot water." 

Joe is having a somewhat difficult time right now, and yet remains so strong.  His bowels are just not functioning properly and hence, no weight gain.  He is fatigued, experiences stomach cramping, nausea and other unpleasantries, yet he presses on.  He fights this every day and does everything he can to help around the house, support others and bring as much normalcy to our lives as he can.  I am truly amazed.

He did venture out last weekend to meet up with a lot of friends he has not seen in awhile.  Thanks to Dave who drove him and watched over him (like I would have or maybe even closer :)).  Although, it wasn't the same trip they had experienced in the last 30 years, it brought lots of laughs and memories for Joe.  He was so excited to see everyone.  Thanks boys for showing him a good time!

We will also be taking Shelli (our baby) to college on Thursday.  Joe and I and the girls will all be there to move Shelli into her dorm at NAU.  Joe will be strong and that's when I will completely fall apart! 

As soon as we return, Joe will finish up his tests.  We see Dr. S (oncologist) on August 30th and Dr. Ong on Sept 4th.  We will know the next phase after those Dr. visits.

Thanks for all the good wishes and follow up to see how we are doing.  You are a truly amazing support group that we will forever be grateful for.

XOXO
Sherrie
 

Dr. S. Visit 8/6/12

Today was Joe's visit with the Oncologist in Chandler.  He discussed lots of things, but I'll try and summarize the highlights.  First, although Joe has gained some weight back, he is still not strong enough for chemo.  He definitely wants another 10 lbs on Joe, plus the hole in his stomach from the last surgery needs to be healed much more before they can start chemo.  He expects it will take at least another month or so before these events will happen.  Until then, he's going to start a series of tests to try and determine how much cancer is left and how large the tumors are in Joe's abdomen region.  This is not that easy.  The tumors have to be sitting just right and so large before they can be detected.  In addition, there are certain tests that they can't do because the prep can really mess up Joe's gastrointestinal system.  Joe will have the tests completed within the month and from there, they will start the chemo.  The type of chemo will be determined from the test results.  Dr. S does not think he will be on the same chemo treatments he was on before the surgeries.  He thinks it will be something far less traumatic.  He gave us hope that all the surgeries and hot chemo really made a lot of progress against this terrible disease and eventually Joe will be on a maintenance program.  He also reiterated how good Joe looks.  He was amazed (as are all of us) with Joe's strength.  He commented several times on how well Joe looks and how much progress he made in between visits.  Please keep those prayers coming.  They continue to work miracles!  All our love and thanks,  Sherrie