Update - Early March

I assume the readers of this blog are familiar with the recent developments in my struggle with colon cancer. I will not try here to recount all that has transpired, but rather will use this update to share what are the latest developments.

I had my first infusion (as it is called) on Tuesday, March 2. The procedure went longer than normal, nearly 6 hours, because I was receiving one new drug and they wanted to administer it slowly lest I should have any adverse reaction. Pam was with me during the first half of the session, and it was so good to have her there. It is not that I couldn't do it alone, but having her there to share with was so comforting. After the treatment I returned home bearing the shoulder pump that I wore for the next two days, returning to the clinic on Thursday to have it "disconnected". My reaction to the chemo this time has been much of what was expected. The treatment is simply "yucky". You feel "chemical", I know of no other way to describe it. I have had real bouts of nausea with this treatment. It is so unpleasant that it has nearly doubled me over at times. Yet it seems to come and go.

Today is Tuesday of the following week, and I must say today has been a better day then any day of the last week. But that's the way it goes. Immediately after treatment you are pretty degrade, but with each day that passes the feelings and condition improve. The treatments are every two weeks, and when the days have passed and it is time for a treatment again you are feeling pretty good. But then the next treatment knocks you back down again. That was my experience last go-round, and this seems to be much the same. So today was not bad. I had some difficult periods of nausea, but for the most part I am able to be busy and active in my role as husband to Pam and father to four.

I am currently schedule for four treatments over 8 weeks. After that they will repeat another CAT scan to determine what if any affect the chemo has had on the lymph cancer. Of course our prayer is that the treatments would be effective in shrinking the lymph nodes in question, and even eliminating the need for further chemo.

To all who are praying with us, we thank you for your prayers, for striving together with us before the throne of grace. We know with fullest confidence that all trials that touch our lives, big and small, come from our Father's hand with love and purpose. Pray with us, myself and Pam, that we will not miss any lesson he intends for us through this time of trial. And thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all the expressions of love and support that you have shared from your hearts. They mean so very much to us.

Rejoicing in Christ,

Walt

[Spring is on the cusp in the Northwest. The daffodils are in bloom announcing its soon arrival. Yea!]

Another milestone...

I want to share with you that I have reached another milestone in my cancer ordeal. I had my third CAT scan this week, and received the results from it and a blood test yesterday. Both were stellar. My surgeon said the scan was "beautiful" and no hint of any problems. And the blood workup showed all levels at normal and all systems normal. Wow, what wonderful news!

For the first year following my operations for colon and then liver cancer they were going to do a scan every three months to look for any further recurrence. The result of that now is a clean bill of health! This next year they will repeat the CAT scans but only twice, once in June and then assuming that is clean, again in December. The doctor relayed that the two year mark is the truly significant one.

We received all this news with great thankfulness to God and humility. We trust as He has been pleased to grant me further earthly life, that He will also be pleased to enable me to live to His honor and praise always.

Thank you to all for your prayers, and thank you for your words and acts of kindness and love toward Pam, Sara and myself.

Walt

Additional Good News

To add to my earlier post this week -

Yesterday I had a second colonoscopy. It has been a year since my first, the one that discovered my cancer. And of course that discovery kicked off a series of events that have made this a most difficult year. But God in His kindness gave me a good scope yesterday. They found no polyps, nothing but pink healthy tissue. And we thank and praise Him. They say now that another c-scopy is not necessary for 3 years. That's great news, and again, we praise and thank our gracious, kind God...who assures us:

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies. And not one of them is forgotten before God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear, you are of more value than many sparrows.

Jesus, Luke 12:6-7

Good News To Share

Time for another update.

I had my second 3-month CAT scan on Wednesday last week. And yesterday we got the results, a good, clean scan. My oncologist said he was real pleased with the progress I had made and he didn't see any reason to do another scan for 6 months! That was wonderful news, and we thank our gracious God for His great kindness to us.

In addition, he told me that I could discontinue the blood thinning medicine I had been taking since my original surgery a year ago. If you remember I developed rather extensive clots in my lower right leg following surgery and once I was home. And from that time I have been on this drug. But the doctor indicated it had been long enough, and again he didn't see any purpose to continue it. So yea, I am off that drug.

I continue to have an issue with the seroma in my belly. While it is closing the healing is taking some time, and Pam continues to pack it twice daily with gauze. My surgical oncologist says it will close with time, but will probably take a few weeks yet. It doesn't cause me pain, it is just there. So I need to be patient with that.

That's about it for now. I am feeling generally pretty good, and able to do most things I previously did. So again we give thanks to God and continue to trust Him. How precious is His promise that in all things, even in the midst of grievous trials, He is working good for those who love Him [Romans 8:28]. And Paul says we "know!" this to be true. How about you, reader, do you love Him, love God?

One More Time

Update: July 8
My surgery went well today. We were at the hospital at 6 AM and finished by noon. I have two small incisions, both of which are sore, but I am doing fine. I have a restriction on how much weight I am to lift for 6-weeks - not more than 15 lbs at one time - but other than that I am expected to be sore for a few days and then resume normal activity.
Thank you to all for your prayers. And thanks to our loving heavenly Father for His great kindness.

This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. The Lord's lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great is Thy faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him."

- Lamentations 3:21 - 24

Time for an update -
We met with our surgeon last Thursday, June 26. It was a standard followup visit to review the CAT scan that I had recently. Dr. Morris reiterated what she had told us the previous week via the phone, that the scan looked very good, there was nothing in it that caused her any concern. So this again was good news. Also today we received the standard blood test results from my last appointment with the oncologist. We had met with him last week to once again check my blood thinning levels and to access the shoulder port, a routine procedure every 30 days to keep it functional. The results of the blood work looked real good with my levels continuing to increase toward the normal level after being so low for so long. The "tumor marker" test was also well within the normal range and that too was encouraging. So it was a very good visit.

When we met with the oncologist he indicated that it would OK to remove the port in my shoulder any time. My surgeon agreed and has scheduled me for ONE MORE SURGERY early the morning of July 8. This time it will be pretty minor compared to the last two. The surgery to remove the port should only take a few minutes. She is also going to repair two small hernias that have developed along the abdominal incision. The combined surgeries should take an hour and a half, and I should be able to come home that afternoon or evening. So a minor little cut job...smile. Actually I am very eager for both of these operations. I am very anxious to have the port removed from my shoulder. It has served its purpose well, but it is time to have it out. And the small hernias create a pouching effect on my belly that I don't care for, and hopefully this surgery will correct part of that. Part of it too will be corrected with time and exercise. But I am anxious to have these two small areas repaired. So... "Here I am doctor, have at it!". I will have the normal recovery period of 6 weeks in which I am not to lift anything heavy, but other than that this should be relatively easy.

And God willing this will be the last surgery related to this situation. I say God willing, because while things look good and we are pleased to be regaining our health once again, and God has been most gracious and kind to see us through this ordeal while it could easily have been otherwise, we do not know God's specific purposes in all this, nor the future here He has planned for us. We trust Him whatever befalls us, and He is entirely free to work His good purposes in our flesh and our spirit. So for now with a good report, we are full of thanksgiving. And whatever the future holds nothing can take from us what He has given us, that joy "inexpressible and full of glory" that is the precious and abiding possession of all those who have tasted of His grace in Christ Jesus, who have known their sins forgiven and the sure promise of life now and forever.

If you share this joy, if you are a Believer with us in Christ Jesus, then rejoice with us in this good news of His kindness to us in this latest report. If you know not Christ, we urge you to look to Jesus in faith even now. The Scripture promise is sure, "Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved" (Acts 16:30-31). And again, hear Jesus' kind, welcoming invitation; "Come to Me all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light." - Matthew 11:28-30. How can anyone turn away from such a gracious overture?

Walt

P.S. The picture at top is of a beautiful, calm stretch of the Nehalem River close to our camp spot this past weekend.

First CAT Scan

We have some good news to share. On Wednesday this week, June 18, I had my first CAT scan following my chemotherapy, which ended on May 29. As you can imagine we were a bit anxious of the results. But we received a call from our surgeon on Friday saying the CAT scan looked "beautiful". She said there was nothing in the scan that caused her any concern, that the radiologist had also reviewed the scan results and indicated the same. Wow, what great news! We are so thankful to God. I have a follow up appointment this coming week with both the oncologist and the surgeon to discuss these results and plan out their followup care for the remainder of ths year. They have already indicated that we will do a CAT scan every 90 days for this next year, so the followup is already pretty clear. With these results we have a clear window for the next 90 days or so. As you all most likely know, the concern now is any reoccurrence, and the periodic CAT scans are designed to watch for that. So we appreciate your continued prayers, that God might be pleased to remove this cancer completely and that I might have no reoccurrence. As always we live with the joyful confidence that all our days are in His wonderful hands, and whatever He is pleased to do is for our ultimate good, that we might be conformed to the likeness of His Son, Jesus.
Once again, thank you to all for your love and so many expressions of care and concern, so many assurances of continued prayer on our behalf. It means so much to us.

Walt

The Finish Line

Hello to all my readers.

I know it is time for a long overdue update. And I have good news to share. Yesterday, May 27th I had my last chemo treatment. It is not completed yet, since I have to carry around this pump for two days. But I get it off tomorrow, the 29th and that is it for chemo. I am D-O-N-E, done! It has not been an easy process, nor without its lingering side affects. But it is wonderful to think that I am finished with this step in the process.

I sincerely thank all who have prayed and expressed love and support in so many ways. It has been a very wonderful experience to be on the receiving end of such love.

What does the future hold? In about 30 days they will schedule a CAT scan, as I am told, to establish a baseline for me. Then they will repeat the process of a CAT scan about every 3 months to keep a check on my progress. Ideally they will find nothing, no recurrence and I will have a clean bill of health moving forward. After a few clean scans I will be able to schedule to have my port removed and that too will be a real relief. So we, both Pam - who has been incredibly wonderful, loving and supportive through this whole process - and I are ready to move forward, God willing. I still am taking a blood thinning medicine daily. The doctor said Tuesday that I should continue this for a year. This is a result of the leg clots I experienced after my first surgery. But beyond that I am done with this treatment.

Again, thank you so much to all who have prayed. God is truly wonderful to hear and answer our prayers. We don't know what the future holds, what He has planned for this, whether this is it, or there are other phases to experience. But we do know that He is good and all our trials are brought to us in His loving plan. We pray that all this that we have experienced together, Pam and I, has had its good effect in our hearts and character, and that in the future we live more conformed to the image of His wonderful Son. For as Paul reminds us, whether we live or die we are the Lord's (Romans 14:8). And we rest in the wonderful assurance that He who has loved us from eternity and chose us in His Son, - who in the fullness of time sent His only begotten Son into the world to accomplish our redemption, - who then in our space and time quicken and renewed our hearts making us alive unto God, - and then sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts to seal and guarantee our future inheritance, - that He who has so purposed our redemption in Christ from eternity and worked it all out in our history, will ultimately finish His wonderful work and bring us safely to His presence and kingdom. Hallelujah!

And all God's people said, "Amen! and Amen!"

Walt

P.S. the picture at the top is a sunrise, not sunset...smile. There is a wonderful difference.