More good news! My blood test results yesterday were stable enough to allow me to receive my fifth our of six scheduled chemo treatments. I really do feel "normal" with enough energy to go about my daily routine of doing laundry, running errands, cleaning house, and visiting with friends. I am going to school for a few hours today to get things in order for when we return after the holidays. Since I was in the hospital the whole week just prior to our Christmas break, everything in my office and in the library was left "as is", which I'm sure is not a pretty picture! It will give me peace of mind to put a dent in cleaning up the chaos. I am still amazed at the progress I have made in a little over a week and am so thankful that I am here writing this update, feeling positive and excited about the coming new year. Sarah, Bob, and I have so much to be thankful for in 2009 and are amazed daily at the outpouring of love, prayers, and support we receive from our extended family and friends all across the country. It has been a life-changing, amazing journey! Love to you all!

It's hard to believe that a week ago I was sent home from the hospital with Hospice to die. It is obvious that The Lord has other plans for me because I am still here! Not only am I still alive, but I am living a relatively normal life doing all the things I enjoy doing and praising God for a wonderful, blessed Christmas season! I am now known as "Miracle Moroney" by all of my friends. I have no idea how the blockage in my upper intestines became unblocked, but it did, and I am so grateful for another chance at life! My biggest challenge is to eat lots of calories, protein, and be diligent about taking all of my homeopathic supplements, some of which Suzie Gibson brought me from Germany. I feel amazingly well, am only on a slow release patch for pain control, and am sleeping like a baby at night. Sarah and Bob are absolutely remarkable in their loving care of me. Bob wakes up every morning to make fresh vegetable juice for me, and Sarah gives me daily injections in my stomach to assist in the digestion process. It's such a blessing to have these few weeks off from school so that I get plenty of rest, have a chance to visit with friends, go to the movies, and just relax. I will be discharged from Hospice tomorrow. I have an appointment to meet with my oncologist on Tuesday, 12/29, to discuss further treatment which will most likely involve finishing the two remaining chemo treatments I have been scheduled for. My plan is to return to school full time as I had been doing before the blockage occurred. My energy level is good, so I see no reason not to go for it! Once again, I thank all of you for your prayers, good wishes, and loving support. It is so comforting to know that so many people are thinking of us and are standing by to lend a hand whenever and wherever needed. You are indeed a gift from The Lord! Have a wonderful, prosperous New Year!

I haven't stopped praising The Lord for his mercy and his faithfulness to me and my family during the past few months, but even more so over the past week. It feels wonderful to be home instead of the hospital, and since I"be been here, I've gotten progressively stronger and better. The tube through my nose and into my stomach was removed today so I am able to talk and eat a little more than ice chips. All of you have been praying for me diligently, and I know that God has been bombarded with all of our petitions and has heard our pleas. I was able to go to church yesterday, and I really am back on the treadmill for short walks several times a day. The hospice staff assigned to me is outstanding and have checked on me several times a day and deal with all the medications and tubing that are administered through my port. Right now I am on very little pain medication. The most important thing for me now is to eat cautiously - small amounts of clear liquids and easy to digest foods. I'm starting to think jello is a gourmet dessert! It has not yet been determined if the blockage in my small intestine is still fully blocked, or only partially blocked, or by Divine intervention, completely unblocked. I am in no pain nor am I extremely hungry. I take a long nap every day and sleep exceptionally well all night. I am at peace about my current situation and realize how blessed I am to have one more "good" day. Please continue to pray for Bob, Sarah, and me as this has been a very stressful time. Sarah went out and bought a Christmas tree today to celebrate the fact that I'm still around, so our house smells wonderful and looks festive and bright. We are thinking of you and wishing you a glorious Christmas and a prosperous, healthy New Year!

Update on Ruth- bad turn

Late Saturday evening Ruth was admitted to ER at the Vail Medical Center due to excrutiating upper abdominal pains.CT Scans and x rays revealed a total blockage in the upper intestinal tract. She is receiving no norishment..only ice chips. Due to many factors, surgery to remove the blockage is not an option.We are working on getting her home so she can rest peacefully. She will be under the care of our good friends with our local Hospice group.

We are overwhelmed by the support of our friends, family, community during this difficult time. We know that you feel the need to do something, however at this time my dad and I are asking for your prayers and support. We are trying to limit our time on the phone, on the computer and are trying to spend our last days with Ruth. Please know that I will not be updating this blog unless anything changes. We will post information on the memorial service once it is planned.

I'm happy to report that my third chemo yesterday went well. I'm home today taking it easy, but I actually think I could have gone to school. Oh well, I'm paying medical bills on my computer instead. I've been back at school working full days, five days a week and feel amazingly energetic. I attribute this to God's grace, my diet, and all the homeopathic remedies I'm taking(some of which my niece, Suzie Gibson, is bringing from Germany when she and her family come home to Dallas for the holidays because they are readily available as over-the-counter items at the local drugstores there). I'm so grateful that I am able to live a relatively "normal" life again. The true test was when I helped shovel our driveway Monday morning after receiving about 6 inches of new snow! We are looking forward to the Christmas holidays, but this is an extremely busy time for Bob at the club, and for Sarah at the rec center because all the school kids will be there when they aren't skiing. Please continue to keep us in your prayers and let us hear from you, too! Merry Christmas and enjoy a glorious holiday season with family and friends!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We want to thank each and every one of you for your prayers, thoughts, helping us out, dropping off food, offering to help in any way and being a huge support for us in the last year. If we did not have our faith in Jesus Christ, our friends, family, and community this journey would be so much more challenging.

Ruth continues to do well with an additional good piece of news as her CA 125 level (indicator of cancer growth) went down nearly 700 points in the last week- from around 1200- 500. We are so thrilled with her progress!!
Ruth had a urinary tract infection a week or so ago, it has cleared up but something is still not right and we are trying to get to the bottom of it. Her energy and overall feeling has not been as high this week. She has had another CT scan and blood tests to try and see what it may be and will hopefully know the results soon.

Other than that we are looking forward to having a great Thanksgiving dinner with friends from out of town. Many thanks to all of you for everything!!!
Have a safe, healthy and Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Good News!

Praise the Living God! He is faithful in answering our prayers and now we have the data to prove it! The results of my most recent CT scan show that in comparison to the last one done in April, that the tumor mass in my liver is about half of the size that it was, the large tumor in the pelvic area is also significantly smaller, and the number of tumors throughout the abdominal cavity is significantly reduced! There are fewer cystic masses present, and they are now smaller in size. The report says that there is no evidence of any new disease! The fluid in my belly, my knees, ankles and feet has not returned which means that I am able to get around a lot easier and am able to return to school on a part-time basis for now. Overall I feel stronger and don't experience that terrible sick, yucky feeling everyday when I wake up. I had chemo #3 on Tuesday. I've been a little nauseated and tired yesterday and today, but that's not so unusual. I'm so optimistic and encouraged by the progress I've made, it's changed my whole outlook on life for the better! Thank you again for your prayers, phone calls, cards, acts of support and kindness that help strengthen us every day. It is so wonderful and comforting to know that you care and are there when we need you. Please continue praying for my steady improvement.
Thanks,
Ruth

My chemo treatment on the 27th went well although it did seem to zap me of the energy I had previously. Overall, I am still feeling much better than I did a month ago! I plan to return to school tomorrow, working 4 hours in the afternoon for a few weeks to see how I feel. The H1N1 virus has not hit our school, and we all hope it won't! My next treatment will be on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I will get a CT scan sometime before then. My blood work results did not reveal any significant changes except that I am not as anemic as I was on the last test, so that's good news. Bob ad Sarah are taking good care of me, in fact they are even spoiling me by doing most of the work to get the house and yard ready for the long winter ahead and have promised that they will do all the snow shoveling! (I'd better get that in writing!) Keep us in your prayers as I do believe that God is faithful to answer the prayers of His people.

Yahoo!

Ruth has been doing great for a week or so now. Two weekends ago Ruth and Bob were able to travel to Moab to enjoy the fall weather. It was a perfect weekend spent strolling around town.

Thursday Ruth’s niece Jennifer (who was in from out state) and nephew David came up from Denver to visit, help around the house and David and Bob enjoyed a fall bike ride together.
This past weekend started off with having a few friends and Ruth’s sisters Edith and Frances and Frances’ daughter Allison that were in town for the weekend over for dinner. Everyone enjoyed catching up with old and new friends and meeting our family. As I said on Friday night you know Ruth is feeling better if she is entertaining!

We had a wonderful weekend with Frances, Edith and Allison catching up, visiting and spending time with each other. We all know this weekend was a gift from the Lord as two weeks ago when they made the reservations it was unclear as to what Ruth’s condition would be.

Ruth had blood tests done yesterday and will have her 2nd chemo today. Her hair is falling out and we will shave her head tonight so back to the Jane Fonda wig. She is overall getting around better, sleeping more soundly at night and has more energy than me during the day. She hopes to return to school part time next week depending on how she is feeling.

Three weeks ago when Ruth was feeling so bad all she wanted was to feel good, normal one day and she has felt good since 2 Saturdays ago. Our prayers have been answered and we are so grateful for every day.

As a family we are making an effort to share our success with our friends and family of the RAVE diet. We are juicing every day and doing our very best to adhere to this change in our eating and lifestyle as we truly believe that it has been successful in the past with others, with us presently and will hopefully provide others with hope and a positive change in their life for the future. Bob has been very passionate about this and has brought about much awareness to our family, friends, and club community. Ruth has been adhering to this change for a few months now and we attribute her feeling good most important to prayers but eating well, support from family and friends and our wonderful community.

If you have any questions about the RAVE diet Bob would be thrilled to share more information about it (most of us can attest to his enthusiasm for this)! He would also be willing to share some of his special juice mixes with you too.

Once again thanks for all your prayers, support, love and encouragement during this time.

Just when I was wondering if I would ever feel "normal" again, I woke up Saturday morning without that overwhelming "sick all over" feeling! God is so faithful in answering my prayers! While I would have been thankful for one day like that, He has blessed me with 5 so far! I really believe that something inside by body is different. I don't understand it, nor can I put my finger on exactly what it is that is different except that I feel so much better. The swelling in my feet, calves, and knees is greatly reduced as well. My energy level is getting better and I am able to get around and do things without having to rest or take a nap every few hours. It's truly wonderful! Continue to pray for my complete healing, as I do believe in the power of prayer!

I only have good news in this update! I have had no serious adverse reactions to the first new chemo treatment. While I continue to feel "wiped out" and tired, I am able to eat and eliminate normally. My next chemo will be on Tuesday, Oct. 27th. I will have complete blood work done the day before and am not sure whether I will continue to get the weekly iron infusion I had been getting prior to this first treatment. It was such a treat visiting with my friend Boo and enjoying all her good cajun cooking. She fixed several recipes from her new cookbook and they are delicious! My sisters, Frances and Edith, are coming for a short visit on Oct. 22-25, and my niece Allison from LaGrange, GA will be overlapping a little from Oct. 21-24, so I'm looking forward to having company again before my next chemo treatment. In the meantime, I've gone to school to work a bit on planning for the next few weeks that I will be out. My long-term sub is the person who has worked with me in the library for the past 6 years, so she knows what needs to be done as well as I do. I feel very blessed that she is willing to step in and take over teaching classes as well as supervising the administrative side of running the library in my absence. Our family is so fortunate to have so many people praying for us and offering to help us whenever we need it. This kind of loving support has made this difficult journey so much easier and has actually enriched our lives in ways we never expected. Thank you all for your faithfulness!

I had my first new chemo treatment yesterday and have felt no adverse side effects so far, Praise the Lord! Since I have been having difficulty with regular bowel movements, an x-ray also done yesterday revealed that I have a partial blockage there so am now working on removing that and will continue on regular medication to keep everything moving! Interesting that when something as simple as that isn't working properly, what an impact it can have on your daily existence! Overall I am not experiencing a lot of pain, but remain very low energy. I have a lot of fluid retention in my feet, ankles, and knees which makes it hard to get around because I have so little flexibility. My next chemo is in three weeks. My good friend Boo Bourgeois Macomber from Abbeville is visiting me now, so we have all been eating her wonderful cajun cooking. One of her daughters is living temporarily in Moab, Utah, and the other resides in Crested Butte, CO, so she will be visiting them as well. It's wonderful having her here and she has been a tremendous help. Please continue to pray for healing and comfort in my illness until then.

Update 10/1- 12pm

Ruth is doing well considering how she was doing last week. On Monday she went in for an appointment to talk with Dr. Urquhart and they came to the conclusion to start chemo next Tuesday (10/6). She also recieved a blood transfusion as well as getting some blood work done. The blood results came back and they were not great but not the worst either. She is doing well but not great. Her echocardiogram came back and they are able to start chemo as her heart is in good condition. Not much other to report other than that. We appreciate your prayers as always and support.

Monday morning update

Ruth has had a rough rest of last week and a rough weekend. We were able to get her into Shaw on Friday for some fluids and to manage her pain a little better. We were also able to get the echocardiogram to see whether her heart is strong enough for chemo on Friday as well. She spent the weekend in bed resting. She was able to make it to the annual Wild West Day on Sunday at 4 Eagle Ranch a fundraiser for all elementary schools in Eagle County for a little while. She says she is weak all over, no energy and still just not herself. We are hoping that this is just due to the fluid removal. After asking the nurse at Shaw on Friday this could be caused due to the fluid removal and it could also be a progression of the disease. She is meeting with her oncologist today- Monday at Shaw to discuss what her next course of action will be. She will see if her body is strong enough to have chemo. We appreciate your phone calls, however we might not be able to return your call as we have numerous calls to return each day. Please continue to check back here for updates. If you would like to call us please call Bob at work at 970-754-6738 rather than our home phone as Ruth is resting, thanks! I’ll write another update later today or tomorrow after her visit with the oncologist. Thanks for all your prayers and support we could not get through this without you all!

I am so grateful to The Lord for His mercy and faithfulness in making the procedure to remove fluid from my belly successful! The doctor was able to remove 6 liters (12 lbs.) of fluid which was far more that anyone expected. Well, I thought I would feel like a million dollars after that, but actually I have been extremely ill with extensive pain, no energy, and an overall feeling of sickness all over my body. It was explained to me that after the rib cage and all the muscles had been stretched out by that much fluid, that the trauma of removing that buffer around my major organs after it is has been there so long is going to be painful and will take a while to return to normal. Meanwhile, I have been on a lot of pain medication, unable to go to school, and praying that my recovery will be speedy. Dr. Ioana Hinshaw, the gynecologic oncologist at the Rocky Mountain Cancer Center in Denver who ordered the procedure to be done also recommended the same chemo regimen that the team of doctors at the University of Colorado Medical Center recommended - adriamycynl with possible cytoxan. After I get an echo cardiogram on Thursday, I hope to begin chemo treatment early next week. It will be administered here at the Shaw Regional Cancer Center once every three weeks, which should mean that I will have time to regroup between treatments and continue to go to school during the two weeks between treatments. Bob and I drove back from Denver after the procedure in the first major snowstorm of the season - without snow tires on the car and very hazardous road conditions! Now we are enjoying the beautiful fall colors again but know that the cooler temperatures mean that winter weather is not far away. I'll try to keep you updated as often as I can, but some days I feel too weak to do anything. Please continue to pray for all of us as I get ready for the next phase of my treatment. Thank you for your cards, good wishes, prayers, phone calls, and unselfish support. Love you much!

Fortunately we have been able to make some progress this week that will keep us moving forward in investigating treatment options that might make me feel better. My oncologist here at the Shaw Regional Cancer Center in Edwards has referred me to a team of gynecologic experts at the University of Colorado Cancer Center in Denver. I will be meeting with one of them, Dr. Susan Davidson, on Thursday, Sept. 15th, for an evaluation and a consultation to see what the team recommends. On Monday, September 21, I am going to meet with Dr. Ioana Henshaw at the Rocky Mountain Cancer Center in Denver to attempt to remove the gelatin-like fluid around the tumor that is causing me such discomfort. I truly hope and pray that this procedure is successful so that I can at least get some temporary relief! On Monday, September 28th, Bob and I are going to MD Anderson in Houston for a 2-3 day evaluation by their team of uterine cancer experts to see what they recommend. My hope is to find some treatment that will slow down the growth of the disease and give me some comfort so that my level of pain is reduced , and my level of energy increased so that I can live a somewhat normal life with cancer. I am so encouraged by all of your prayers and your loyal support throughout this journey. We will try to keep this blog updated as often as we have anything new to report. I continue to work full time at Brush Creek Elementary as the librarian. My Fall Book Fair arrives this week, so I will be extremely busy. Thankfully, I have lots of parents who have offered to help, so it should run smoothly. Keep us in your prayers, specifically asking God to give us wisdom and discernment as to which, if any, treatment options would be best. We know that He is soverign in our lives and we just want to know what His will is for us at this time.

Praise God! He enabled me to make it through the first week of school with all the kids! It was definitely a struggle to make the transition of being on vacation to having 6-7 library classes a day. My schedule includes a 45 min. lunch break, so I have been coming home during that time to put my feet up and rest a bit, so that really helps. I wish that I could report that my energy level is up after having a blood transfusion two weeks ago, and an iron infusion on Thursday, but I really haven't noticed much of a change. I am really exhausted when I get home from school and usually just take it easy until bedtime. I am working on getting an appointment at the University of Colorado Cancer Center so that a team of experts in the field of uterine cancer can evaluate my case and make recommendations (if any) as to further treatment. In the meantime, I continue to pray and live as normal a life as possible on my vegan diet and a variety of homeopathic remedies. Thank you for your continuing support, outpouring of kindness, and all the prayers you keep offering for me!

The results of my most recent blood work shows that I would benefit from a blood transfusion which I will receive tomorrow at the Shaw Center in Edwards. Hopefully it will give me new energy! I will also meet with my oncologist there to discuss the possibility of whether or not I might be a candidate for some less invasive types of procedures to debulk the tumors. I am starting to take Frankincense, essence of orange oil, and Ningxia Red juice along with other homeopathic remedies to more aggressively try to stop the growth of the tumors. I continue on my diet, though I am very bored with it, but know that it is the right thing for me right now. Please continue to pray for us! I will start back to school full time in the library on August 24th. I thrive on routine, so I am looking forward to being back with all the kids and teachers at my school.

8/6/09

First of all our apologies go out for not updating this in a while.

We have been enjoying the time with numerous friends and family this summer and we are so grateful to all that have visited, called or e-mailed to catch up, re-connect and share stories. As always we appreciate your prayers, and notes as it means so much to Ruth and to us as a family.

Needless to say when there is good news we are eager to report it and the same goes for not great news either as we have so many prayer warriors out there ready and willing to pray.

Ruth continues to vigilantly follow her vegan diet, walking, and attending some classes at the rec center where I work. She continues on her naturopath regime and remains optimistic.

Ruth had her appointment yesterday down in Denver with her surgeon, Dr. Kevin Davis. She does have the option to do surgery to remove the tumor(s) however she has decided to not pursue that option as she has been down that road before, Bob and I do support her in that decision. Dr. Davis did mention that the tumor as is large as it can get without affecting major organs and causing major complications, it is already putting pressure on her bowels. Ruth wants to give Alfred a chance and hope that through his treatment and her diet she will have some relief of pressure of her stomach. She did also get her most recent blood draw results and they do not look good either, the CA 125 level is up, her red blood cell count is down and she is anemic.

Ruth does plan to go back to school full-time when it starts up in a few weeks and is looking forward to seeing the students and staff of Brush Creek after a restful summer.

On a more positive note we do have to give her a haircut already!

Thanks for all your prayers!

I've been experiencing "withdrawal" this past week now that our family reunion has ended and everyone has returned home. We had a wonderful time together, but it went by very quickly! I continue to feel well on my vegan diet and have the energy to do all the things I like to do in the summer in Colorado - hike, bike, and stay connected with family and friends. A recent ultrasound revealed that the tumors in my liver have actually gotten a little smaller, but the number of tumors in the abdominal wall are too numerous to count. It also showed that the amount of fluid build-up in my belly has decreased slightly, and that the 22cm X 3cm tumor mass in the pelvic area has not increased in size since June 6th. I am consulting with the surgeon in Denver about the possibility of removing the large tumor mass now that it seems to be stabilized. I am encouraged by the fact that my body seems to be fighting back, and all without the help of chemo! Praise The Lord!

Ruth had a great time with her family visiting a week ago. It was so special to spend time with them, share meals, and visit and catch up on the latest happenings with her nieces and nephews and their children. We are so thankful that they made the journey to come out and see her. She continues to do well with her vegan diet, whenever she has cheated a little bit (like eating a bowl of homemade ice cream) it has re-confirmed the importance of sticking to the diet with no exceptions. She did have a ultra sound on Friday to have a better idea of tumor numbers, size and location so hopefully we will have the results on Monday. We also remain hopeful that the numbers and size have decreased due to her diet, and regimen with Dr. Alfred Bamberger.

This week is very special in that my family (sisters, their spouses, nieces, nephews, and some of my sister's grandchildren) are all here visiting us in Eagle, Colorado! We are enjoying perfect weather for all of the outdoor activities we have planned, and of course we are just loving all being together in such a beautiful place! What a blessing! I continue to make progress on my vegan diet because Bob and Sarah are so supportive, as are many of my friends who make special dishes and soups for me that they know I can eat. I finished cleaning out a lot of "junk" from my office at school last week which is one more thing that I can check off my "to do" list for this summer. My leisurely days of summer are quickly passing by, but each one has been so wonderful, and I am so thankful that I have had this time to relax and try to regain my strength. I am extremely grateful for your prayers, cards, phone calls, and all the special things you do to make my life so meaningful and so blessed. Thank you!
Ruth

Doing Well!

We had a great time up at Sylvan Lake. Ruth is doing well on the all Vegan diet. She has been enjoying the great weather and going on some good walks and bike rides. She is helping sort various items at the rummage sale (the big one every fall in Minturn) today. Thanks for checking in. Thanks for your prayers!

CA 125 up but so are spirits!

Ruth is doing well and maintaining her strict vegan diet. The refrigerator has transformed from a typical American fridge to all organic and is filled to the brim with fruits, vegetables and many different things that will hopefully help get healthy again. The freezer is filled with frozen fruits and veggies too- we are all excited to be eating healthier!
We are celebrating Father's Day up at Sylvan Lake State Park- which is only 15 miles from our front door.
The CA 125 (indicator of cancer activity) count was up from 160 to 291 (higher numbers are bad) which we are discouraged about, but she has only been on the diet and the alkaline water for a week so hopefully things will start to improve.
We are so blessed to visit with family and friends this summer, we appreciate your prayers, support and advice. We remain optimistic in this battle and are overwhelmed the outpouring of love and concern that is demonstrated over and over again.

It's amazing how much better I feel now that I am finished with my last chemo treatment and am on summer break - a healthy combination that even the doctors couldn't have ordered! After Bob and I met with my surgeon on Monday, I have decided not to participate in any clinical trials and will not have any more elective surgery to remove the growing tumors. Instead, I will remain under the care of my oncologist at the Shaw Regional Cancer Center in Edwards, CO, who will continue to monitor my condition with weekly blood tests and to administer any medications I may need. I am also consulting with Dr. Bamberger at the Center for Longevity and Lifestyle Changes in Edwards to bring my ph level into balance and to detoxify my body so that my immune system may have a fighting chance to slow down the growth of the cancer cells. I am on a strict vegan diet with whey protein added, and am drinking lots and lots of alkaline water. After only a few days, I really do feel more energetic and am experiencing less pain than I was a week ago. Praise God! I am optimistic that my quality of life will improve, and I feel a lot better about putting good things in my body instead of poison! Bob and Sarah support me in these decisions. They have been so dedicated to caring for me over the past 6 months and are thrilled to see me doing some of the things that I used to be able to do before surgery and chemo. I got the results of my blood draw today and learned that my red blood cell count is improving, platelets are up, and my white blood cell count is normal. I am looking forward to visiting with family and friends over the next several weeks and finally being able to plant some flowers now that the probability of another freeze is unlikely. I enjoy "sleeping in" until 6 A.M., having a leisurely cup of tea, relaxing in our comfortable home, and receiving all the cards, e-mails, phone messages, and prayers that people near and far are sending my way. I feel so blessed to have this wonderful support. God is so faithful to answer our prayers with the thoughtful generosity of others. It is truly amazing.

CT scan results

CT scan results back-
We got the results back- not horrible but not good either.
The cancer has not spread to any other places/ organs that we know of. The cancer that is in there is growing. Ruth has a lot of discomfort in her abdomen; the fluid is starting to accumulate again as it had before her surgery in January. Her belly is very distended (enlarged). They talked about going in and removing the fluid however it is in 3 different places and it would only giver her temporary relief, it is not out of the question but now a question of benefit vs. risk. The chemo that her doctor here wants to try is one that was tested with the chemo sensitivity tests after the surgery and it was not effective so that is still a possibility, another possibility is doing clinical trial chemo but that would probably need to be done down in Denver. Ruth has an appointment down in Denver on Monday with her surgeon and will discuss further options with him. She mentioned to me this week that she feels like she has cancer- with that being said we are thankful for how relatively good she has felt and how much she has been able to do till this point and hope for better days ahead.

Thanks for your prayers!!

No chemo yesterday- CT instead

Ruth was supposed to have her last treatment of chemo before her PET scan in a few weeks, it did not happen she had a CT scan instead. She has not been feeling well since Sunday. She is noticing that her belly is getting bigger again, she is tired, achy, and in pain. When she walked in the nurses asked how she was doing, not that it was horrible but she mentioned that she was not doing well. After talking with the doctor and getting a consult from him they decided to withhold chemo for that day and do a CT scan (they did do it yesterday) and see what the results were. There is no sense in putting chemo in her body if it is not effective. We should have the results sometime today. Last time she had a CT scan it showed that it had spread to her liver so hopefully if we need to know anything we should be able to see it on the scan results. As soon as we have the results we will post info- hopefully at the latest by the end of the week. Please be praying for a miracle that all the discomfort is the chemo and God’s work working!

Thanks for your prayers!

Rough week- better now

Ruth had a rough week. She and Bob came back from Boulder on Monday. Bob had a great race and they had a good weekend. She had a chemo treatment on Tuesday along with an iron transfusion. She started not feeling well on Tuesday, stayed home from work on Wednesday and Thursday and will go back to school today- Friday. She went in to get some IV fluids on Thursday along with some medicine to help her not feel as nausious. Other than that you can't really tell that she was not feeling bad earlier this week. She has another treatment on Tuesday. Her blood results are fluctuating which is normal, one week it looks good and another week it brings back results that are not great but not terrible either. After her next treatment- next week- they will wait 2-3 weeks before she has a PET scan and we will go from there.

Thanks for all your prayers- will try to update this often.

Update on Ruth

Ruth had chemo on Tuesday this week and is doing ok, she is really tired and not feeling great but still went to school on Wednesday, much to our relief decided to take off today- Thursday. Hopefully with some rest she will be ready for the holiday weekend. She is hoping the reason why she is tired and in pain means that the chemo is effectively working and her body is fighting this disease. Her iron levels are a little low so she will need to get iron treatments for a bit through an IV between her chemo treatments. Her blood results came back looking good for the most part. Much to her disappointment she will not be participating in this years Bolder Boulder 10K run this year, however Bob still will and she plans on cheering him on. So if any female 62 years of age that is reading this you should enter the race this year as it will be your only chance to win the age group- good luck, she will be back for revenge next year!

Happy Memorial Day weekend- stay safe out there-to all the Men and Women in our Military that are serving, have served or will serve thank you for your service from the bottom of our hearts.

As always thanks for your prayers!

Doing Well!

Hi to all. Ruth is doing well. This was her off week from chemo. She will have another 3 weeks of treatments once a week then we will go in for a PET scan and determine what is next. She has been eating well and getting some deep sleep at night so that is great. Thanks for all your prayers!

One Day at a Time

Every day brings something new, it can either be a great day for Ruth or not such a great day. Last weekend she was able to go to Moab with Bob and meet me down there. We had a great weekend and did some biking. She felt well enough to join us on a ride or two, and some walking around town. This past week has had it's share of ups and downs. She has been very tired this week and in a fair amount of pain. Some days are better than others. She has continued to go to school and do a lot however it is a great relief for her to come home and get some rest. This morning has been tough for her but hoping she will be able to talk with her doctor and get on a good pain management plan. We'll keep you all posted. She did have her chemo during lunch on Thursday and tolerated it fairly well considering. I think all of us are learning to live more in the moment- not necessarliy in the past or future but to take every moment as it comes, whether good or bad and truly appreciate what we do have. As I keep on reminding her we have had a lot of good days and not that we want a bad day but it makes us appreciate those good days that much more!!!

I appologize for not updating the blog for a long time and there is no excuse, however I will try to be better about posting on a more regular basis- probably once a week unless there is news to be shared.

Thanks for your prayers.

Update on Ruth

Ruth was supposed to have her 4th chemo treatment yesterday (Wednesday) however plans have changed. Ruth has been having severe pain for a few days- since last week. She went in for her chemo treatment and the doctor ordered a CT scan instead. The results of the CT scan came back very quickly however they did not bring great news. The scan showed spots on the liver. Unfortunately all of her recent blood tests came back looking good and she has been feeling great until recently so there was really no indication that this was a problem. Needless to say we are all very discouraged, however we remain to put our faith and trust in God.
Ruth will have her 4th chemo treatment on Friday- tomorrow with a new drug- Gemzar as they will try something different. They will order another CT scan after 2 treatments of Gemzar to see if it is working.

Thanks for your prayers.

Chemo 2

Chemo #2 is over and all went well. It is such a blessing to be able to drive only 20 minutes to the Shaw Regional Cancer Center in Edwards to a "spa-like" facility staffed by compassionate, professional people. The results of the blood test done just a few days ago revealed that the CA125 number had come down significantly, which means that the first chemo regimen of carbo platin and taxol is working well, so yesterday we decided to continue on with that same combination of drugs. Toward the end of the day when the last drug, carbo platin, was administered, I had an allergic reaction so the oncologist made the decision to discontinue this drug. We will most likely switch to a different drug the next time and hope that it is as effective. The medical team who was with me yesterday reacted promptly and efficiently, and I was only in "panic" for a few minutes because the whole thing happened very suddenly. I was told that this allergic reaction can look quite different in different people, and that with this particular drug, it happens more often with patients who have received chemo before, have been off chemo for a year or more, and then get back on. If there is an allergic reaction, it usually occurs after the first chemo treatment, which happened in my case. The medical team was aware that this might happen, and had told me that there was a possibility it could, but I was confident that it wouldn't happen to me since this combination of drugs was working so well and I had tolerated it well the first time I underwent chemo. I still feel that we are making steady progress; this incident is only a blip in the road compared to what could happen, so I am very thankful. My energy level is good, so I have been able to teach full time. I have experienced none of bad side effects of chemo, and the level of pain and discomfort in my abdomem is improving over time. Everyone at school complimented me on my "haircut", so my new wig looks a lot like my real hair does, just a different style. Please continue to pray for me, as there is do doubt in my mind that God answers prayer! Love to all of you!

Update- 2/26/09

Sorry if any of you have felt out of the “loop”. I have not updated in a while because we really have no new news, which can either be a good thing or bad thing but we are thinking it is good. Ruth has been back at school for the last week or so, doing great. She is running a little more and more each day on the treadmill. She will go in for blood tests next Tuesday 2/2/09 to see where her CA levels are. When we get the results back from the blood tests we will then determine the best chemo treatment would be best, either the current one or a different one. Her next chemo treatment will be next Friday 2/6/09.

As always we are so thankful for your prayers, thoughts and support during this time. We are praying that either chemo will be effective and she will continue to be able to go to work and live a normal life as possible.

Will update next week sometime.

Update Wednesday 2-11-09

My day today after the first chemo treatment yesterday was perfectly normal! No real side effects of any kind, praise God! Bob and I drove to Denver for my follow-up surgery visit with Dr. Davis. The incision is healing fine, and he said that it is normal that my abdomen is still distended and very sensitive. The results of the tissue sensitivity tests performed at the lab in California were in. We are very discouraged to learn that my tissue was resistant to all of the drugs, which means that none of the drugs tested are effective. So, it's pretty much a gamble as to which combination to try. If my blood work shows that the chemo I received yesterday significantly lowered my CA125 count, then we will stick with that regimen. If not, Dr. Davis will decide on a different one. We are praying for positive results and know that The Lord is in total control of the situation. I plan to go back to work full time next week, taking off a few days for chemo every three weeks - or at least that is the plan for now. I am optimistic that I will continue to make significant progress in recovering completely from the surgery. I am probably about 60% there - walking and lifting small weights, eating normally, on no meds, sleeping better, and stamina improving daily. Sarah and Bob continue to amaze me with their loving care and attention to every detail. On Monday, friends from the Alpine Club sent a housekeeper to our house for the day - what a treat to come home to an immaculately clean house! I am truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of love, prayers, and support I have received during this time. I am so touched and grateful for my extended family and the many friends who are thinking of me and offering to help in so many ways. We are truly blessed to live in such a special community. Thank you all for your kindness and thoughtful generosity. Please continue to pray for my complete healing.

As Good as it Could Be- Chemo Session 1 Out of the Way!

We are all doing great!
Yesterday Ruth had her 1st transfusion, it went very well. She had a lot of visitors which she enjoyed, however the nurse was concerned about her not getting enough rest. I stopped by for the latter part of the day to drop off a frosty- which she ate all of it to my disbelief! All the staff were so accommodating, on top of everything, knowledgeable, willing to go above and beyond, we are so fortunate to have them apart of her team of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals that are treating her. She tolerated the drugs well, slept well last night with no complications and was up with me at 4 as she had enough sleep and was ready to walk maybe even start running on the treadmill this morning!

It was the same combo of drugs that she had last time as we still are waiting on the chemosensitivity tests to come back- we don't expect that they will change the drugs too much- if at all.

Ruth is headed to Denver today with a check-up appointment with the surgeon- will let you know if we know anything new.

As of right now her next chemo is scheduled for Wednesday March 4th.

Thanks for your prayers-

Chemo

Ruth is having her first treatment this morning. The infusion should take all day. She is eiger to get it underway. She was at school yesterday getting lesson plans ready for this week. She has an appointment down in Denver tomorrow to meet with her doctor. Other than that she is doing well and looks better and feels better each day. Now next stop for me is drop off a frosty for her this afternoon. As of this writing (6am- Tuesday) no tests have come back yet on the Chemosensitivity tests from CA, we are going with the same drugs as last time.
Thanks for your prayers!!!

Chemo # 1

Ruth had her port put in yesterday. The only complication was they couldn't get her oxygen up to a certain point (90% +) so she had to bring oxygen home last night (she was not too thrilled)- she can take it off this morning. She is eating well, feeling well and walking a little faster and faster each day on the treadmill.



Chemo # 1 (out of 6 for this session) is scheduled on Tuesday February 10th. As of right now they are planning to use the same combo of chemo that they used last time, so hopefully she will tolerate it the same. She has an appointment down in Denver on Wednesday with her surgeon to check up with him.

Thanks for your prayers, support and so much more!!

Update- Chemo

My mom had an appointment yesterday afternooon with the Oncologist. We are still waiting on accurate reports of the chemosensitivity tests from California. With the information that we have thus far we plan to go ahead with the same chemo treament drug that Ruth recieved last time. She tolerated the drug as well as could be expected- she was not very sick, continued life as normal as possible- going to school, running and doing as much as her energy level would allow. As of right now she is not a candidate for radiation therapy as it is very wide spread ( a lot of little tumors) in her abdomen. The doctor explained we will "manage the disease/chronic ilness with chemo" as much Ruth wants. She is planning to go through the initial 6 treatments of chemo (3 weeks apart) and after it is done we will evaluate how effective it was and go from there. We will never totally get rid of the cancer with the chemo (unless it is in God's hands- and it is) so it is managing it to live a normal as life as possible. The cancer may not come back for a month after the 6 treatments or 10 years or more. We will do more check-ups after the 6 treatments to evaluate where she is and what is happening and it will be for her to decide what she wants to do.

Ruth remains positive, is eager to get treatments underway and looks forward to getting back to her normal routine of running on the treadmill and school.

Ruth is getting her port put in for chemo this afternoon (a port is where they hook up the IV for the chemo treatments) this is about a 15 minute procedure.

Ruth has an appointment with her surgeon next week down in Denver. She also hopes to start chemo sometime next week.
Thanks for your prayers and support. Go out and live life!

Enjoying Home

Ruth is at home enjoying sleeping in her own bed, napping and eating bland food. We have an appointment on Monday with the Oncologist at Shaw Cancer Center so hopefully we will find out more about when and what her treatments will be. As soon as I get an idea of when her treatments will be I will post them on the far right side of this page below all the other things that are on the right. As a family we are so grateful for the outpouring of support, love, and prayers. It makes our journey through this challenging time easier. We love you!

Ruth is home!

My parents got back about an hour ago. After eating some food and getting on the treadmill she is in bed snoozing. She is looking forward to sleeping in her own bed. My father and I are headed to bed as we are going to work early in the morning.

A lot of friends/ neighbors have been calling to see what they can do to help. For right now we are doing good. All of us are trying to stay healthy. Many of you have called asking if you can drop off meals or do anything. Ruth is not eating much and my father and I normally eat at work or come home and don't eat much. If any of this changes we will let you know, thank you for your kind and thoughtful offers.
(Note- next remark is from Bob and Sarah) After spending a week in Denver with all the restaurant, Whole Foods markets, ect.. we are actually trying to loose all the weight that we gained sitting around the hospital room believe it or not!

Thanks for your prayers.

Update Tues. 8:30am

After having a difficult start to the night with a nurse that had challenges starting the IV for the 3rd time she got some well deserved sleep. She was seen up and about walking the halls early this morning by Dr. Davis. He told her she might be able to go home this afternoon! They are going to talk about a release time and get her some solid food for lunch to see how she does with that. Her spirits are high and she seems to be doing well. She said her body is swollen (arms and legs, ect..) so she had some blood tests done to see why and to make sure all the organs were working fine (they are!) we think she just needs to be moving around more. Now we just have to see if Vail Pass and the Tunnel stay open so they can get home.

Other than that I am looking forward to having my parents return home.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers!
I will post tonight hopefully when she gets home!

Update Monday 5 PM

Talked with my mom this evening- she feels "like a new person" after taking a shower, getting her eipdural, and NG tubes out. It is actually the longest coherent conversation that I have had with her in a week. She has eaten some food and is cooperating with her. After she talked with the doctor this afternoon he said it would be Wednesday before she is released but we hope if she has a good night it could be tomorrow (is what she is hoping and we are all hoping).
Thanks for your prayers and yahooooo!

Update Mon. 10:15am- NG Tube OUT!!

Got off the phone with my dad. NG tube is out. Should be released on Wednesday.
Thanks for your prayers!!

Update Mon. 7am

After talking with my mom yesterday evening she is doing well. She was able to have some soup for lunch. Hopefully she will be able to return home on Tuesday or Wednesday. With encouragement from my father she has been walking a lot and sitting up in the chair more.

When I called her this morning she was optimistic. She had some divestive system luck, was able to keep dinner down. They are hoping that the epidural will come out today and maybe the NG tube. She is looking forward to coming home as soon as they clear her to go. Of course it is dependent on her eating some more food and observation. They hope to talk to Dr. Davis this morning- he has been out all weekend at the National Gynecological Oncology Conference in California- we hope that he has some new treatment ideas for her or maybe some new chemo success have been studied and are ready for use! I will post this evening.
Thanks for your prayers!



Here are a couple of past history interesting facts:
-Ruth had her original surgery 2 years ago on January 16, 2007
- She liked her room so much they gave her the exact same room this time- I think she never wants to be in it again!
-She had been in remission for about 18 months till her most recent diagnosis

Update- Sun. 10:15am

Just got off the phone with my mom, she sounds great, more upbeat and excited for the challenges ahead of her in the next few days. Here are the facts:
- I think she will be released by Tuesday or Wednesday
- She is craving food- sherbert and tangerines
- They are going to put a clamp on the NG (tube that goes to her stomach) today so she can try to eat some food. If she does not get nauseated it means that her body is ready for more food, if she does get nauseated it is not quite ready and there is more waiting to be had.
- The food that she may be able to eat for this test includes sherbert, mashed potatoes and broth (may not sound good to you or me but after not eating for a week she is thrilled!).
- She will get the epidural out of her back on Monday (this has been used for pain management) from here on out pain meds will be administered through the IV.

My father still remains in Denver (yes I think he is stir crazy) but giving my mom the support and encouraging her with a positive attitude and plenty of walking.
She sounds better and more upbeat- however I think she will be happy to be home.
Meanwhile I am at home with the cat who is meowing more than ever to wonder where mom and dad are.
Hopefully I will get an update by this evening and will post.
Thanks for your prayers!

At Last!!!

Was going to post yesterday when I got back to Eagle but not much to report so I waited and have good news!

Ruth walked around the nurse's station three times non-stop after I left yesterday afternoon. I called her this morning, she had a rough night but her rough night was rewarded by her digestive system working again!!! They have not talked about releasing her yet or when but we are a huge step forward. When I talked to her she still had her tube down her throat. Other than that she is doing well and hopes to improve.
Will post when I know more.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.

Update 10:20 am Friday

Yesterday she walked around the nurses station island twice without stopping so she was happy to be able to do that.
Today is not such a good day for Ruth. She is pretty discouraged and tired of machines, alarms, tubes ect... The one positive note is she is getting a little bit of juice. On the other hand her red blood cell count was very very low, this has resulted in her getting a blood transfusion. They have given one pint and she is getting another right now- alltogether 2 pints. After the blood tranfusion they will need to monitor her for a few hours so she will not be able to walk. She is pretty upset about that- she was looking forward to walking more today but that has put a damper on that. She still has the tube down her nose into her stomach. We are still waiting for that gas, hoping that it will come today.

I am probably headed back to Eagle this afternoon or by Sunday. I will continue the updates, it might be before and after work.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers, we do appreciate them.

Update 2:45pm Thursday

Hi to all, thanks for your thoughts and prayers!
Ruth has had a great day today! She has been up and walking twice today! She continues to have a tube down her throat so difficult to talk but doing much better today. The pain and nausea have subsided for now hopefully for good. She was getting pretty discouraged so all of your prayers have helped in this matter.
On the other hand we are still waiting for her to pass some gas. After she acomplishes that obstacle she will be able to move beyond no food or drink. This is because she had some of her bowel removed and they do not want to rush the healing process. Her attitude and color is so much better. We hope to be home sometime by the end of the weekend if her body has healed enough to do so. Other than that we are enjoying the wonderful accommodations on the GYN recovery wing at the hospital. Needless to say she so thankful for cold water and ice chips unlike on Tuesday before surgery she never wanted to see water again after prepping for surgery.
We got re-confirmation that it has not spread to the lymph nodes from the doctor this morning- Praise The Lord!!!!

Thanks and will keep you posted as we get a chance.

Wednesday Morning 9:45 am

Thanks to all for good wishes and prayers. Ruth said she had a good night sleeping on and off. We are waiting right now for the big activity of the day- a walk up and down the hall. She is waiting to pass some gas so she can eat some food or drink anything. She still has a nasal tube down her throat so she is not able to talk much as it is painful. Other than that we are watching TV, reading comments to her and she is in and out of sleep. Thanks much for your prayers!

She Made It and is Doing Well!!

She is out of surgery, doing well. Here are the facts:
- She was given an epidural so hopefully she will sleep well through the night.
-The surgeon was able to get 90% of it out- including the big mass that was almost the size of a football.
- There was "a lot of cancer in there".
-The appendix was taken out.
-Part of the small bowel was taken out- 6".
-She had 2 Liters of fluid that was taken out.
- The tissue collected will be sent to California for chemosensitivity tests to see what course of chemo would be best for her.
-Doctor did not say anything about lymph nodes (they were enlarged)- will ask him next time we see him.
- She will start chemo in the next 2-3 weeks.
- She will be released from the hospital in 4-5 days- dependent on her bowels working.

We are waiting for her to get out of recovery, will head to her room to say hi then headed to get some sleep ourselves.
Thanks for your prayers!
5 PM MST

Waiting!

We left Ruth for surgery about 2:30 this afternoon. The doctor said he would be out to talk to us sometime before 5pm. We are waiting and taking advantage of internet access! Will post after we talk to the doctor. Thank you so much for all your prayers!

Surgery Date

Surgery will be on Tuesday January 20th @ 2:30 PM
Thanks for your prayers!

I am planning to go down for the surgery (not like I had originally planned). Will post when she is out of surgery and how it went- check back for a post sometime late Tues. PM or Wednesday AM- dependent on whether I get internet at the hospital or where we are staying.
Thanks!
SM

Background

This blog is for informative puropses for our family and friends to keep up with Ruth's treatment and recovery. We will be posting as we have information to share with you.

Ruth has been in remission for a year and a half, but she has recently had some health issues. After going in for numerous tests it has been determined that the cancer has returned to the abdominal wall. On Friday January 9, 2009 we are again fighting this disease with God's word in hand praying for His mercy and grace. Ruth will be going in for surgery sometime in the next few weeks. We expect that she will also have to undergo 6 rounds of chemotherapy. She has the same gynecological oncologist that she had last time, one of the best in the nation, so we feel confident that he is the man for the job.

We will post the surgery date as soon as we get one.

Right now we could use prayers that it has not spread to the lymph nodes.
As far as everything else we are set, thanks to everyone, we are so fortunate to have you in our lives.


RM & SM