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!