Today Cathy had a tunneled peritoneal drainage catheter placed in her abdomen by Dr Slaby at Parkview hospital. This was an outpatient procedure and she tolerated it well. During the procedure they drained 5 liters of fluid from her abdominal area. This catheter will allow Cathy to drain the extra fluid (ascites) at home. Initially, she will have a home health care nurse demonstrate and assist her. Please pray that this will provide relief from the pressure and pain. Pray also that no infection will develop.
Thank you to all who have brought over meals or provided gifts at Christmas. I was able to see some of those smiles!!
Gratefully,
Lori
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Monday, December 30, 2013
Had our weekly visit at the Parkview Ortho this morning. Hemoglobin is lower than last time at 9.5, but not low enough to warrant a transfusion. Her blood pressure is low (80/44). Did not get the rest of the blood work totals yet. We will be going back to Parkview @ 6:30 am Tuesday to get a catheter put in and drain fluid off her abdomen. (probably be there till mid-afternoon) Since her last paracentisis, she has regained all the fluid plus about 12 pounds more! With the catheter, she will be able to 'self-drain' at home. We will be getting instruction on how to care/drain from a visiting nurse and maybe some type of home care for Cathy. Please pray that the procedure will go well and that she will be able to get this fluid off as it is making her very uncomfortable and causing back pain issues. Thank you for all your prayers and support throughout 2013. Wishing you all a happy and prosperous New Year!
Mike
Mike
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Sorry for the delay in the up-date. We got back from Chicago around 5 pm on Thursday and I went to work to cover for a coworker and I haven't had any time since then to do the blog.
We got in and out of the hospital within a 3 hour span. The nurses and Doctor were the same ones who put Cathy's port in almost 2 years ago---they are a wonderful group of people! They were able to get approximately 3 liters of fluid from her abdomen (about 12 pounds!). She was able to get instant relief from the pressure as they began to drain the fluid. While she was resting from that procedure, the heart nurse came up to her bed and did the echo cardiogram. (Talk about service!) We won't get the results from that until Monday, along with the tests on the fluid taken from her. There is still swelling, but she is able to function better than before. She seems to get REALLY tired later in the day--that does concern me, but I am keeping an eye on her. We go to the Oncologist at Parkview Hospital again on Monday to once again check her hemoglobin levels. Her blood test results that were taken on Wednesday at the Block Center came back improved from previous tests! (That was BEFORE she had the drainage done!) We are thankful to God for that! We still need prayer for the test on the fluid to come back negative for cancer and what direction to take as far as the treatments are concerned. (Her bilirubin total was at 1.1 on her last blood draw--which means ALL options are still on the table for treatment). Thank you for your prayers!
Mike
We got in and out of the hospital within a 3 hour span. The nurses and Doctor were the same ones who put Cathy's port in almost 2 years ago---they are a wonderful group of people! They were able to get approximately 3 liters of fluid from her abdomen (about 12 pounds!). She was able to get instant relief from the pressure as they began to drain the fluid. While she was resting from that procedure, the heart nurse came up to her bed and did the echo cardiogram. (Talk about service!) We won't get the results from that until Monday, along with the tests on the fluid taken from her. There is still swelling, but she is able to function better than before. She seems to get REALLY tired later in the day--that does concern me, but I am keeping an eye on her. We go to the Oncologist at Parkview Hospital again on Monday to once again check her hemoglobin levels. Her blood test results that were taken on Wednesday at the Block Center came back improved from previous tests! (That was BEFORE she had the drainage done!) We are thankful to God for that! We still need prayer for the test on the fluid to come back negative for cancer and what direction to take as far as the treatments are concerned. (Her bilirubin total was at 1.1 on her last blood draw--which means ALL options are still on the table for treatment). Thank you for your prayers!
Mike
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Cathy & I are here in Chicago at the Hampton Inn across from the Block Center. We had our consultation with Dr. Block and we are set up to do an ultrasound with a possible parasentesis (if there is enough fluid to remove) She is also getting a heart echo beginning at 8:00 am at St. Francis Hospital (same place she had her port put in).
Dr. Block is waiting to get results form the blood test we had taken this morning as well as the hospital procedures being done tomorrow before he discusses future options. He says that if the bilirubin count gets to 2 or above, the options get narrowed down for treatment. Those numbers would indicate that the liver cannot function well enough to process any type of chemo--not necessarily a BAD thing as the chemo side effects have been very hard on Cathy. The biggest thing we need to get under control is the swelling. We are hopeful that the doctors will be able to drain a LOT of fluid tomorrow, or give us some viable options. (Cathy has gained about 30 pounds of fluid weight since last visit).
Dr. Block ruled out the high dose vitamin 'c' at this point as it would add fluid to her current condition. However, he did say that there is a hormone blocker (Faslodex) which could be used in conjunction with the herceptin (it would NOT be processed by the liver that might be beneficial when we return for treatment. He suggested that we 'call it a day' after the hospital visit tomorrow and return next week for treatment--if we decide what we want to do.
We would appreciate prayer for the hospital procedures tomorrow and that we would get beyond the fluid retention so we can get back to the assault on the cancer. We will post again tomorrow after we get all the tests results and let you know the latest. Thank you for your perserverance during this fight. God bless.
Mike
Dr. Block is waiting to get results form the blood test we had taken this morning as well as the hospital procedures being done tomorrow before he discusses future options. He says that if the bilirubin count gets to 2 or above, the options get narrowed down for treatment. Those numbers would indicate that the liver cannot function well enough to process any type of chemo--not necessarily a BAD thing as the chemo side effects have been very hard on Cathy. The biggest thing we need to get under control is the swelling. We are hopeful that the doctors will be able to drain a LOT of fluid tomorrow, or give us some viable options. (Cathy has gained about 30 pounds of fluid weight since last visit).
Dr. Block ruled out the high dose vitamin 'c' at this point as it would add fluid to her current condition. However, he did say that there is a hormone blocker (Faslodex) which could be used in conjunction with the herceptin (it would NOT be processed by the liver that might be beneficial when we return for treatment. He suggested that we 'call it a day' after the hospital visit tomorrow and return next week for treatment--if we decide what we want to do.
We would appreciate prayer for the hospital procedures tomorrow and that we would get beyond the fluid retention so we can get back to the assault on the cancer. We will post again tomorrow after we get all the tests results and let you know the latest. Thank you for your perserverance during this fight. God bless.
Mike
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
On Monday (16th) we went for our weekly blood check at Parkview Oncology. We are pleased to report that Cathy's hemoglobin has returned to 'normal' at 10.5---which means no blood transfusion! That's the good news (Praise the Lord!), however the nurse did tell us that there is nothing they can do about the swollen abdomen because the cancer in the liver is causing the swelling and until we deal with that it will not get any better. If we can not get that swelling under control (i.e. the cancer), her liver will eventually fail.
We are headed back to the Block Center in Chicago on Wednesday to our regular Oncologist to discuss what options are available--other than chemo. At this point in time, we really don't want to put any more poisons in her body. If necessary, we will spend the night. We may see if we can do another ultrasound to check for any fluid that can be removed to help relieve the pressure.
We are thankful for all the support we have received from everyone who is "sharing in her suffering". We look forward to the victory that the Lord will give us over this cancer. I have been reminded of all the great things that our God has done throughout biblical history: adding 15 years to Hezekiah when he had a terminal illness--- Job and all his suffering and how God blessed the second part of his life more than the first--- All the miracles that were performed by our Saviour and His words...."I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." (John 14:12-14).
With God all things are possible and we know that He is able to do more than what we can hope or imagine----our prayer is that He would be WILLING. We also know that He is Sovereign and that He loves us more than we can fathom. IF He has chosen this method to take Cathy home and so glorify His Name through this process, we will STILL praise Him---He is worthy of that and so much more. We are HIS to do with as he pleases. Until that time, we will fight this battle with all that HE has made available to us.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Mike
We are headed back to the Block Center in Chicago on Wednesday to our regular Oncologist to discuss what options are available--other than chemo. At this point in time, we really don't want to put any more poisons in her body. If necessary, we will spend the night. We may see if we can do another ultrasound to check for any fluid that can be removed to help relieve the pressure.
We are thankful for all the support we have received from everyone who is "sharing in her suffering". We look forward to the victory that the Lord will give us over this cancer. I have been reminded of all the great things that our God has done throughout biblical history: adding 15 years to Hezekiah when he had a terminal illness--- Job and all his suffering and how God blessed the second part of his life more than the first--- All the miracles that were performed by our Saviour and His words...."I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." (John 14:12-14).
With God all things are possible and we know that He is able to do more than what we can hope or imagine----our prayer is that He would be WILLING. We also know that He is Sovereign and that He loves us more than we can fathom. IF He has chosen this method to take Cathy home and so glorify His Name through this process, we will STILL praise Him---He is worthy of that and so much more. We are HIS to do with as he pleases. Until that time, we will fight this battle with all that HE has made available to us.
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Mike
Friday, December 6, 2013
Low Hemoglobin, High Tumor Markers
On Wednesday afternoon, December 4th, Cathy went to the Parkview Emergency room with a dangerously low hemoglobin count of 5.3. They administered 2 units of blood. When she left on Thursday morning the count had risen to 7.9. The normal range is 12-15. Her stool sample tested positive for blood. Between the Block Center and Parkview it was determined that there must be some type of internal bleeding. While chemotherapy can cause a drop in hemoglobin, it doesn't account for such a low level.
Late this afternoon Cathy had an Upper GI endoscopy. The endoscope revealed 2 ulcers in the gastric antrum and 5 duodenal ulcers. While none of them were bleeding at the time, they can account for the low hemoglobin. She also has enlarged veins and swelling in her esophagus. We were so fortunate to be able to have Dr Wiersema perform the procedure. He will currently treat her with 40 mg of Prilosec per day unless the biopsies reveal a bacteria infection. Chemotherapy can cause "stress ulcers."
Cathy's last round of chemotherapy was on November 20th. Since that time she has suffered from these different side effects; swelling in the abdomen and legs, mouth and throat sores, fatigue, rapid heart beat, blood in her stool, anemia and nose bleeds.
While at home, she is extremely weak and is scheduled to receive more blood on Monday if needed.
Mike was given the most recent results of her tumor markers. On August 23rd the CA 27.29 marker was at 368, today it has risen to 3,138. The antigen 15-3 marker had been at 391 but it has risen to 3,320.
With all of these side effects and rising tumor markers please pray that they do not make the wrong turn in deciding future treatments. Pray that Cathy's body will quickly respond to the blood infusions and Prilosec and that she will regain her health and strength.
If you have any questions please call me at 260-459-0254.
Gratefully,
Lori
Late this afternoon Cathy had an Upper GI endoscopy. The endoscope revealed 2 ulcers in the gastric antrum and 5 duodenal ulcers. While none of them were bleeding at the time, they can account for the low hemoglobin. She also has enlarged veins and swelling in her esophagus. We were so fortunate to be able to have Dr Wiersema perform the procedure. He will currently treat her with 40 mg of Prilosec per day unless the biopsies reveal a bacteria infection. Chemotherapy can cause "stress ulcers."
Cathy's last round of chemotherapy was on November 20th. Since that time she has suffered from these different side effects; swelling in the abdomen and legs, mouth and throat sores, fatigue, rapid heart beat, blood in her stool, anemia and nose bleeds.
While at home, she is extremely weak and is scheduled to receive more blood on Monday if needed.
Mike was given the most recent results of her tumor markers. On August 23rd the CA 27.29 marker was at 368, today it has risen to 3,138. The antigen 15-3 marker had been at 391 but it has risen to 3,320.
With all of these side effects and rising tumor markers please pray that they do not make the wrong turn in deciding future treatments. Pray that Cathy's body will quickly respond to the blood infusions and Prilosec and that she will regain her health and strength.
If you have any questions please call me at 260-459-0254.
Gratefully,
Lori
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