I've been feeling a lot better the past few days. Friday night, Michelle and I went to dinner. I'll admit that I ran out of steam really quick but it was nice to act like a normal human being. I went to bed at 10:00 pm and at 3:00 am on Saturday I woke up with what I thought was heartburn. I went downstairs and took some Tums and tried to go back to bed. I tossed and turned and the pain became so intense. It also moved to my back as well. I couldn't get comfortable. The only way I could lessen the pain was to pace. I called my Oncologist's message service but unfortunately she was out of town and didn't get her messages until 7:30 am. I was minutes from calling 911 as I thought I was having a heart attack.
My Oncologist called me and told me to go the ER. She was worried about a blood clot in my lungs. I went to Riverton Hospital (by the way, I have to plug this hospital. It is new and I've been so impressed with the care of the staff.). My Oncologist called ahead so they were waiting for me. When I got there, I was in so much pain. The ER Doc was a familiar face, it was Dr. Gardner who was the ER Doc when we found the tumor in my spleen.
They drew blood to check for heart attack enzymes and they also ran another CT scan to identify if there was a blood clot. Meanwhile, they gave me some morphine for the pain. While I was getting the CT scan, Michelle called my parents and my Dad came to the hospital. We waited for about an hour and they came back and told us that there wasn't a blood clot nor signs of a heart attack. They believe that I had an inflammation of the lining around my heart. They gave me a prescription for some strong pain meds and sent me home.
I was planning on returning to work today but I wanted to make sure that the pain meds were out of my system. I also had to get blood labs today. I don't know if this is good or not but I'm recognized by the good nurses and staff at the Huntsman Cancer Center at IMC. I was in a community room with 3 other patients. They were all getting chemo today. I felt bad as the youngest woman was in her 60's. It must be difficult to fight as an older patient. They all seemed in good spirits and commented that I was leaving my harem when I left.
As I said, I'm feeling a lot better. I think this is my new 100%, which is about 80%. I plan on working tomorrow. I'm excited but a little nervous. It has been a while but I'm looking forward to focusing on something other than the big challenge.
As always, thank you to everyone that is praying for us and serving us. We couldn't do it without you!
Monday, February 28, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
PICC Line
I had a PICC line inserted yesterday. It is a line into one of my veins that goes up my arm around and connects to one of my main arteries near my heart. It sounds scary and I will admigt that I was very nervous. The procedure took a couple of hours and was painful at a few points. The PICC line will make it so I don't have to be poked so much. They can now draw blood from the PICC line and all future Chemo treatments will be given through the line as well. I have to get it cleaned and flushed weekly but I think it is going to make my life a bit easier going forward.
I've also been dealing with some depression/anxiety recently. It is hard for me to admit this to such a large audience as I am typically a very positive person by nature. I'm still dealing with drenching night sweats (I'm told that they will go away eventually). Every night, I start getting anxious about going to bed. I also know that the medications can affect mood. I called my Doctor and asked about possible anti-depressants. It is hard to focus on one day at a time. I know that is how we are going to get to the end of this challenge, but I think some help is in order.
I'm going to start working next week (part time). I think that will also help me as I focus on something other than the "C" word. By the way, we've decided that the "C" word stands for "Challenge" instead of "Cancer". We are going to beat this and it is a challenge.
Once again, I'm going to thank everyone that has been such a support to me and my family. Michelle continues to be my rock and my kids are so amazing! I love family. My Dad and Mom have also been so great! They drop anything to help us out. I don't know what I would do without family!
I've also been dealing with some depression/anxiety recently. It is hard for me to admit this to such a large audience as I am typically a very positive person by nature. I'm still dealing with drenching night sweats (I'm told that they will go away eventually). Every night, I start getting anxious about going to bed. I also know that the medications can affect mood. I called my Doctor and asked about possible anti-depressants. It is hard to focus on one day at a time. I know that is how we are going to get to the end of this challenge, but I think some help is in order.
I'm going to start working next week (part time). I think that will also help me as I focus on something other than the "C" word. By the way, we've decided that the "C" word stands for "Challenge" instead of "Cancer". We are going to beat this and it is a challenge.
Once again, I'm going to thank everyone that has been such a support to me and my family. Michelle continues to be my rock and my kids are so amazing! I love family. My Dad and Mom have also been so great! They drop anything to help us out. I don't know what I would do without family!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Chemo 1 of 6
I'm not sure where to begin on this post. Day one of Chemo went very smoothly. They started with the Rituxan (the smart bomb). It went as planned. It takes 4 hours for that drug to be administered. The primary reason is that they start so slow as it has (non-human antibodies...mice antibodies). Some people have a reaction to it but I did just fine. They then adminstered the other drugs and everything went as planned but went much more quickly.
We went home expecting the worst. I felt like a time bomb just waiting for the after affects to hit. They didn't come on Friday. I felt very blessed...until Saturday morning. The vomiting began and didn't stop. Despite all of the drugs, I still had issues. Saturday was not a good day. I also had to go get a shot that stimulates white blood cells growth in my bones. It is supposed to make me ache but so far, it hasn't.
I had a slight meltdown on Saturday as well. I think it is the Prednizon (sp?). They told me it could have an impact on mood swings. I'm so grateful for my wife and kids, they were a great support for me. Michelle is amazing! I don't know how I will ever repay what she has gone through for me.
Today was also rough. Still vomitting. I was prescribed a better anti nausea medication and an anti anxiety/anti nausea medication. Three hours after taking them, I had issues again. I think I have a real weak stomach. I've gotta get this figured out before next time.
I'm sorry for some of you that have called or come to visit and I didn't speak to you. Please forgive me. I feel like crap and wouldn't be good company. I'm still optimistic but it is harder to stay so in the heat of the battle.
Thanks again to all of you that are supporting me and my family. Especially those supporting my family. We appreciate it so much!
We went home expecting the worst. I felt like a time bomb just waiting for the after affects to hit. They didn't come on Friday. I felt very blessed...until Saturday morning. The vomiting began and didn't stop. Despite all of the drugs, I still had issues. Saturday was not a good day. I also had to go get a shot that stimulates white blood cells growth in my bones. It is supposed to make me ache but so far, it hasn't.
I had a slight meltdown on Saturday as well. I think it is the Prednizon (sp?). They told me it could have an impact on mood swings. I'm so grateful for my wife and kids, they were a great support for me. Michelle is amazing! I don't know how I will ever repay what she has gone through for me.
Today was also rough. Still vomitting. I was prescribed a better anti nausea medication and an anti anxiety/anti nausea medication. Three hours after taking them, I had issues again. I think I have a real weak stomach. I've gotta get this figured out before next time.
I'm sorry for some of you that have called or come to visit and I didn't speak to you. Please forgive me. I feel like crap and wouldn't be good company. I'm still optimistic but it is harder to stay so in the heat of the battle.
Thanks again to all of you that are supporting me and my family. Especially those supporting my family. We appreciate it so much!
Update
This post is actually from Thursday but got put on a different blog. Sorry everyone!
We start chemo tomorrow, so we met with our oncologyst today. I had a bone marrow biopsy yesterday and I wasn't expecting an update from that procedure yet. We received great news...the cancer is not in the bones. The PET scan from earlier in the week shows no sign of entering into other organs and seems localized. Our staging was downgraded to stage 2b from a possible stage 3. This was a good day.
Looking forward to the first treatment tomorrow. Michelle's Aunt Terry came by and she is about to go to her 4th treatment out of 6. It was so great to see her and know that she is doing it. This disease seems to touch everyone somehow...someway. To all of my friends and family, thank you again for all that you do! Most importantly, thanks for the prayers!
We had a wonderful evening on Tuesday. My Dad and Michelle's Dad came over along with my brothers, my cousin Seth, and my Bishop. I received a blessing that I would be cured and that I would have the strength to battle through Chemo. Michelle also received a wonderful blessing, although I don't remember as much about it, other than I was feeling really sick and was trying to participate. Makenzie also received a blessing from our Bishop. It was very sweet and just reminded me that our children are so amazing. I couldn't do it alone, but I have the best support group ever, and if you are reading this blog, you are a member of that support group! So thank you!
We start chemo tomorrow, so we met with our oncologyst today. I had a bone marrow biopsy yesterday and I wasn't expecting an update from that procedure yet. We received great news...the cancer is not in the bones. The PET scan from earlier in the week shows no sign of entering into other organs and seems localized. Our staging was downgraded to stage 2b from a possible stage 3. This was a good day.
Looking forward to the first treatment tomorrow. Michelle's Aunt Terry came by and she is about to go to her 4th treatment out of 6. It was so great to see her and know that she is doing it. This disease seems to touch everyone somehow...someway. To all of my friends and family, thank you again for all that you do! Most importantly, thanks for the prayers!
We had a wonderful evening on Tuesday. My Dad and Michelle's Dad came over along with my brothers, my cousin Seth, and my Bishop. I received a blessing that I would be cured and that I would have the strength to battle through Chemo. Michelle also received a wonderful blessing, although I don't remember as much about it, other than I was feeling really sick and was trying to participate. Makenzie also received a blessing from our Bishop. It was very sweet and just reminded me that our children are so amazing. I couldn't do it alone, but I have the best support group ever, and if you are reading this blog, you are a member of that support group! So thank you!
Sunday, February 13, 2011
I'm a little late on the update...
Sorry everyone, I have not been feeling very well. Michelle and I went to the Oncologist on Thursday. We posted a few things on Facebook but this should give everyone a more thorough update. We were told that I have Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma with Large B Cell. There are actually two different types that it could be but they are treated the same way so we are not going to do additional biopsies.
The cancer is in the fast moving category, there are 3 primary speeds (Slow, Fast, Very Fast). It almost seems backwards but it it is easier to treat the Very Fast cancers as they can use treatments to kill any fast growing tissue.
We asked the doctor about removing the spleen and she said that it could be done but it wouldn't be effective. She used the analogy of horses in a barn. Most of them have gotten out of the barn so we would capture the 1 or 2 still in the barn but the rest are running wild. Not to mention, the spleen is a very integral part of our immune system and I would have to be on antibiotics for the rest of my life.
We started discussing the treatment. We are going to be using chemotherapy (RCHOP or CHOPR), same thing but I've heard it called both things. Each of the letters in RCHOP stands for one of the drugs in the chemo. I won't go into all of those details but you can find it online under R-CHOP.
The good news with this treatment is that it has a smart bomb. The R or Rituxan attaches itself to a special molecule called CD20 that is present on the surface of B-Cells. The B-Cells are usually the cells that become cancerous in many lymphomas. By attaching to this molecule, Rituxan inactivates the cancer cells and eliminates them.
***Full disclosure****I'm not that smart. I copied from a website.
So, I will begin chemo on 2/18/2011. I will have a total of 6 treatments, each 3 weeks apart from each other. I asked about radiation treatment after the chemo but they don't like to use radiation in this area as there are too many other organs that could be affected.
The statistics aren't as good as I would like for this cancer. There is about a 40% success rate but the average age for people with this cancer is the late 60s. That statistic also doesn't include the Rituxan which again is the smart bomb.
This next week will be a tough one. I had blood work today, tomorrow, I go in for a PET Scan, Wednesday, we go in for a bone marrow biopsy, Thursday we meet with the oncologyst again and then start chemo on Friday. We are still very positive about everything and continue to appreciate the thoughts and prayers.
Tuesday, we will be having family over to give blessings to me and the family. I am looking forward to this night. There is so much power in the priesthood. I'm sure there are many of you that won't understand what I'm talking about, I'm happy to answer any questions that you may have. It is a very special part of my life and my religion and I would just ask that you be respectful.
I may not post until next weekend but I love you all and appreciate all that you do for me, Michelle and our family. I don't know what I would do without Michelle and our kids. Sure makes it easier to fight!
The cancer is in the fast moving category, there are 3 primary speeds (Slow, Fast, Very Fast). It almost seems backwards but it it is easier to treat the Very Fast cancers as they can use treatments to kill any fast growing tissue.
We asked the doctor about removing the spleen and she said that it could be done but it wouldn't be effective. She used the analogy of horses in a barn. Most of them have gotten out of the barn so we would capture the 1 or 2 still in the barn but the rest are running wild. Not to mention, the spleen is a very integral part of our immune system and I would have to be on antibiotics for the rest of my life.
We started discussing the treatment. We are going to be using chemotherapy (RCHOP or CHOPR), same thing but I've heard it called both things. Each of the letters in RCHOP stands for one of the drugs in the chemo. I won't go into all of those details but you can find it online under R-CHOP.
The good news with this treatment is that it has a smart bomb. The R or Rituxan attaches itself to a special molecule called CD20 that is present on the surface of B-Cells. The B-Cells are usually the cells that become cancerous in many lymphomas. By attaching to this molecule, Rituxan inactivates the cancer cells and eliminates them.
***Full disclosure****I'm not that smart. I copied from a website.
So, I will begin chemo on 2/18/2011. I will have a total of 6 treatments, each 3 weeks apart from each other. I asked about radiation treatment after the chemo but they don't like to use radiation in this area as there are too many other organs that could be affected.
The statistics aren't as good as I would like for this cancer. There is about a 40% success rate but the average age for people with this cancer is the late 60s. That statistic also doesn't include the Rituxan which again is the smart bomb.
This next week will be a tough one. I had blood work today, tomorrow, I go in for a PET Scan, Wednesday, we go in for a bone marrow biopsy, Thursday we meet with the oncologyst again and then start chemo on Friday. We are still very positive about everything and continue to appreciate the thoughts and prayers.
Tuesday, we will be having family over to give blessings to me and the family. I am looking forward to this night. There is so much power in the priesthood. I'm sure there are many of you that won't understand what I'm talking about, I'm happy to answer any questions that you may have. It is a very special part of my life and my religion and I would just ask that you be respectful.
I may not post until next weekend but I love you all and appreciate all that you do for me, Michelle and our family. I don't know what I would do without Michelle and our kids. Sure makes it easier to fight!
Friday, February 4, 2011
Busy Week
A lot has happened since my last post. On Wednesday, Michelle took me to the IMC for some lab work. I am so impressed that a hospital that large can keep things moving so well and get people in and out as quickly as they do. The lab work was very smooth until the very end. The lab tech pulled out the needle and blood went flying everywhere. We were in a fairly small area but my blood hit opposite walls. I had to chuckle. It was very funny. The poor tech was very nervous and had to immediately change gloves and try to clean everything up but I found humor in the situation.
On Thursday, I went in at 8:45 am for my biopsy. Unfortunately, the lymph nodes close to the surface were not affected so they had to use a needle to get the samples. This procedure scared me to death. The idea of a needle going 5 or 6 inches in me to get a sample did not thrill me at all. They also took a lot of blood and my INR (a reading that tells them how quickly your blood clots) was at 1.7 and they wanted it at 1.5 or below. The good news is that they still proceeded with the procedure.
They finally took me back to the CT scan area. The doc pulled me into another room to take another look at my previous scan. He explained where he was going to target and why. I then went back and they started prepping for the procedure. They cleaned the area, they attached a grid to my back to help them pinpoint the entry point and trajectory. When it came time to start, they gave me a little verced, just to make me not care that much about what was going on and they also gave me some narcotics to help with pain.
I'm grateful to report that the procedure went so smoothly! The doc showed me the samples and it looked good to me...what do I know? :)
Had a rough day for the rest of Thursday. Coming off of those drugs wasn't fun. The good news is that I felt great today. I had visits from 3 great friends today. One has been fighting cancer for almost 3 years. He really helped me understand what was coming and didn't sugar coat what he had been through. It was great to pick his brain about his family and how to help them as well. Thanks Stew!
The next visitor was actually for Michelle. She and her husband have been through a lot and she knew that the wives need as much, if not more, support than the sick person.
Finally my good friend Paul came over with some chocolate chip cookies. He is a very dear friend and we talked about the cancer but then we talked about other things. I really appreciate this good friend and his sweet wife!
For the rest of you, don't be afraid to ask questions. I put this out there so people could keep tabs on what is going on but don't feel like you can't call. I've always been a big believer of surrounding yourself with friends and family in times of trial. Believe it or not, I feel blessed tonight. I'm so grateful for my knowledge of Jesus Christ and I know that he is truly the only person that knows exactly what I'm going through or will go through. He loves us! I know I'll beat this as that has never been a question with me. I'm so grateful for my loving wife and family. Michelle is my rock and I feel like the luckiest guy in the world to have her as my wife. I definitely married up! :)
Thanks for the continued thoughts and prayers. You'll never know how much that means to me and I feel them.
On Thursday, I went in at 8:45 am for my biopsy. Unfortunately, the lymph nodes close to the surface were not affected so they had to use a needle to get the samples. This procedure scared me to death. The idea of a needle going 5 or 6 inches in me to get a sample did not thrill me at all. They also took a lot of blood and my INR (a reading that tells them how quickly your blood clots) was at 1.7 and they wanted it at 1.5 or below. The good news is that they still proceeded with the procedure.
They finally took me back to the CT scan area. The doc pulled me into another room to take another look at my previous scan. He explained where he was going to target and why. I then went back and they started prepping for the procedure. They cleaned the area, they attached a grid to my back to help them pinpoint the entry point and trajectory. When it came time to start, they gave me a little verced, just to make me not care that much about what was going on and they also gave me some narcotics to help with pain.
I'm grateful to report that the procedure went so smoothly! The doc showed me the samples and it looked good to me...what do I know? :)
Had a rough day for the rest of Thursday. Coming off of those drugs wasn't fun. The good news is that I felt great today. I had visits from 3 great friends today. One has been fighting cancer for almost 3 years. He really helped me understand what was coming and didn't sugar coat what he had been through. It was great to pick his brain about his family and how to help them as well. Thanks Stew!
The next visitor was actually for Michelle. She and her husband have been through a lot and she knew that the wives need as much, if not more, support than the sick person.
Finally my good friend Paul came over with some chocolate chip cookies. He is a very dear friend and we talked about the cancer but then we talked about other things. I really appreciate this good friend and his sweet wife!
For the rest of you, don't be afraid to ask questions. I put this out there so people could keep tabs on what is going on but don't feel like you can't call. I've always been a big believer of surrounding yourself with friends and family in times of trial. Believe it or not, I feel blessed tonight. I'm so grateful for my knowledge of Jesus Christ and I know that he is truly the only person that knows exactly what I'm going through or will go through. He loves us! I know I'll beat this as that has never been a question with me. I'm so grateful for my loving wife and family. Michelle is my rock and I feel like the luckiest guy in the world to have her as my wife. I definitely married up! :)
Thanks for the continued thoughts and prayers. You'll never know how much that means to me and I feel them.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
The Cough that may have saved my life...
At the beginning of January, I developed a nasty cough. I went to my primary Doctor and from all appearances, it looked like bronchitis. My Doc prescribed an Albuterol (sp?) inhaler and we went from there. A few days later, I went back in as I was going downhill and experiencing fevers and sweats. I also had absolutely no energy. The Doc told me that 20% of the time, Bronchitis is bacterial so he prescribed an antibiotic (Doxicycline). He also gave me a sterroid pack and cough medicine with Codeine. I let the antibiotics run their course and I was still declining. One week ago today, I met with my Doc again and he ordered a chest x-ray. The x-ray didn't show anything in the lungs but he thought it was potentially A-typical Pneumonia. He had me come in for the next 3 days to get an I.V. with a heavy dose of Rocephin which is used to treat pneumonia. On Thursday, we were still no closer to fixing whatever was wrong. I was referred to an infectious disease doctor as the Doc thought it could be Tuberculosis.
We were having a difficult time getting into the Infectious Disease Doc, so my wife called a dear friend who is a Nurse Practitioner. He told her that if I was his patient, I would be in the hospital. We decided to have my Dad take me to the ER. We went to Riverton Hospital, I love that hospital! They ran several tests and decided to do a CT Scan of my chest. The tech made me do a second scan because something wasn't showing up right. I went back to my room and waited for quite some time. When the ER Doc returned, he said that there wasn't any pneumonia or TB but they found a mass in my spleen. They needed to run a second scan but had to wait until Monday. This scan would focus more on the abdomen.
The CT Scan on Monday confirmed what we thought. I have a baseball size mass in my spleen and my lymphnodes were enlarged. I have been diagnosed with Lymphoma. Although this is not what I wanted to hear, I'm so grateful for a cough that was persistent and kept me going to the doctor.
We told the kids and a few tears have been shed but overall, I'm very calm and at peace. I think we caught this early as it hasn't spread to the other organs in my body. I'm so appreciative of my friends and family. Please don't feel like you are intruding! In times like this, I've always tried to surround myself with those that I care about.
We are going to kick this cancer! I'm not worried about mortality, I feel very good and I appreciate all of the positive thoughts and prayers. I'll try to keep this updated as we progress through additional diagnosis and eventually treatment.
We were having a difficult time getting into the Infectious Disease Doc, so my wife called a dear friend who is a Nurse Practitioner. He told her that if I was his patient, I would be in the hospital. We decided to have my Dad take me to the ER. We went to Riverton Hospital, I love that hospital! They ran several tests and decided to do a CT Scan of my chest. The tech made me do a second scan because something wasn't showing up right. I went back to my room and waited for quite some time. When the ER Doc returned, he said that there wasn't any pneumonia or TB but they found a mass in my spleen. They needed to run a second scan but had to wait until Monday. This scan would focus more on the abdomen.
The CT Scan on Monday confirmed what we thought. I have a baseball size mass in my spleen and my lymphnodes were enlarged. I have been diagnosed with Lymphoma. Although this is not what I wanted to hear, I'm so grateful for a cough that was persistent and kept me going to the doctor.
We told the kids and a few tears have been shed but overall, I'm very calm and at peace. I think we caught this early as it hasn't spread to the other organs in my body. I'm so appreciative of my friends and family. Please don't feel like you are intruding! In times like this, I've always tried to surround myself with those that I care about.
We are going to kick this cancer! I'm not worried about mortality, I feel very good and I appreciate all of the positive thoughts and prayers. I'll try to keep this updated as we progress through additional diagnosis and eventually treatment.
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