Thank you for your continued prayers.
Since my last up date I have had two chemotherapy sessions. Number seven was on February 19th and went well. I had a few side effects the week after that included tiredness, diarrhea, and lower stomach pains. They lasted about three to four days.
On February 26th I had another routine CT scan of my abdomen and pelvis. Dr Brown (oncologist) wanted a new base line since I hadn't had any treatments since October 31st. The scan showed some calcified lymph nodes that had prior cancer in them. This is a good thing meaning the cancer has been reabsorbed in them. There were some minor changes to my ovaries that we are watching. Dr Brown said she wasn't going to change anything regarding my treatment plan and was very pleased with my scan results.
I went and saw Dr Lyman (colorectal) on March 7th for a follow up from my last surgery. He said everything looked good.
I had bloodwork and saw Dr. Brown on March 12th. Blood work all looked good and Dr Brown said I was ready for my eighth chemotherapy session yesterday, March 13th. Everything went well and so far feeling good.
Prayers:
- Pray for my parents, sister and niece. God knows the details
- Pray for no to minimal side effects from this last chemotherapy session
Pic: Me leaving my chemotherapy session yesterday. I know I look tired!
Thank you to all my prayer warriors! They are vast and numerous. I had the privilege to meet some more of them at my uncle's Retirement Party a couple weeks ago. It was amazing to meet people I didn't even know were praying for me. I was blessed by them as well as the family members I got to catch up with. Some I hadn't seen in about 8 years. It was really nice to spend time with some family! I sure do appreciate all the prayers! God is so good!
Most of January I was hopeful that I was healing from the drains being taken out. On January 27th I had my consultation with colorectal (Dr Lyman). He reviewed my records, scans and did an exam on me. Afterwards he told me that my body was in fact not healing and another surgery would be needed the next week so that I could get back to my chemotherapy treatments. He informed me that I would need to be off chemotherapy for 6 months to a year before my body would be ready for a more permanent invasive surgery to correct the perianal fistula I have.
On January 29th I turned another year older. I am thankful that God has kept me around for another year!
February 1st we got to spend 18 hours with a very dear friend from chiropractic college and his very nice girlfriend. I am glad I was feeling up to going out to eat dinner with them. Time with good friends is precious!
So, on February 6th Dr Lyman did an out patient surgery to place two setons in the openings of my fistula. These are made of silicon and look like rings. The purpose is to keep the holes open minimally so they can drain to keep infections at bay. He said he has had patients who have lived with these in for many years without problems. He also told us that he thinks that this fistula/abscess was caused by the 360 degree radiation I had around my pelvis initially for treatment. He said that he has seen where a person had radiation and 15 years later the skin breaks down in that area. He said that he wouldn't be opposed to me going back on Avastin since he doesn't think that caused this.
I am scheduled to see my oncologist (Dr Brown) tomorrow for bloodwork and then my next chemotherapy infusion.
Prayers:
- That the holes that the setons are in will heal a little to make the holes smaller.
- Prayers that I can restart chemotherapy and that it goes well with NO side effects.
- Prayers for a couple family members undergoing their own health bump in the road. God knows the specifics.
Pic:Valentines Day
Merry Christmas!
Sorry it has taken me so long to write this post but I had a lot to process. Thank you for your continued prayers.
Chemotherapy #6 left me very tired and a little nausous for about two weeks. During that time I developed a sore near my buttock/rectum. On November 14th I was scheduled for my next CT scan to check on the cancerous lymph nodes. That CT scan showed that the lymph nodes were stable and that I had developed an abscess near my rectum. My oncology team called me the next morning and told me to come in to be checked and to pack a bag for the hospital incase I needed to be admitted. Well, that checkup turned into a 14 day hospital stay resulting in 2 surgeries.
Once I got checked into the hospital I met with the general surgery team and they decided that they were going to do a debridement surgery the next day. Meaning they were going to scrape out any dead tissue so new healthy tissue would grow. The surgery went well but over the next couple of days my white blood cells keep climbing higher despite being on lots of IV antibiotics. Meaning the infection wasn't getting better but worse. Three days later the general surgery team decided to do a 2nd surgery while consulting the colorectal team. Together they decided to try a fairly new procedure. They inserted two Penrose drains to help the infection drain from my body. The plan was to leave those in for 3-4 weeks and then get them removed. As you can imagine it was very painful to sit on these. The day after that surgery my white blood cell count started to come down. Which meant that the drains were working and the infection was leaving my body. They kept me in the hospital for another 10 days because of my compromised immune system and the difficulty in keeping the drains clean. I was released to go home the day after Thanksgiving with my drains still intact.
I had a followup with the general surgery team on December 4th. At that time they decided to remove one of the drains. This made it a little better to sit. The last drain was removed at my last checkup last week. Now we wait for the holes to heal and close up.
So, what caused all this to happen? One of my chemo drugs, Avastin. Needless to say my oncologist has decided that I will be permanently taken off of Avastin. We will wait for this to heal 100% before resuming any more of my chemo treatments.
Prayers:
- For my body to heal 100% from this so I can get back to my treatments
- For NO more side effects
- For me to gain my strength back
