Archive for January, 2008
Round 1
Misty had her first round of the new chemo cocktail today. It took quite a while (6hrs of IV) but this process will get quicker as we move along. All in all, she did great with it. Felt a bit sick in the afternoon, but by the end of the day she had begun to feel better and any nausea was gone. This is good news…
Also, the insurance company approved payment for this treatment. This is also good news as its not an FDA approved drug for brain tumors. Truth be told…there are no approved drugs for brain cancer, so any and every treament gets scrutinized quite heavily. So we are very pleased with that. (PS…we just switched to Blue Cross Blue Shield and are very happy. I’ll tell more about this later)
Sincerely,
Hopeful in Long Branch
The rollercanster.
I’m not always sure how Misty does it. I mean…she gets pretty down at times, of course, but she manages to live in a complete rollercoaster of emotion and stay pretty level headed and focused. We pretty much get the full spectrum of emotion on a weekly basis and she is keeping her head up.
So for the happy stuff…Today, our little girl ate chicken cacciatore (yes, we have progressed to big kid food) off her own fork. I mean, we had to help her get the chicken on the end of the fork (it was more like a spork anyway), but she lifted it up and fed herself. And yesterday, I got a fairly complete sentence out of her. I had just read her this little pop-out book about “Aunt Phybian” (the amphybian) and she picks it up, walks over to my lap and says “more book dada.” I of course melted and read it like 19 more times. Then….on top of our fun with Livi, we get the privilege of seeing our best friends beaultiful new (less than a day old) baby girl, Lyla!
But in the midst of the joy there is also discouragement. Today we got the pathology report back of the tumor sample from the second surgery. It showed a progression to Grade IV. So while we were hopeful after the first pathology, our fears were confirmed today.
Really though, it doesn’t change too much. We are starting a new chemotherapy on wednesday and one way or another Misty will be healed. Grade IV just means its a bigger miracle I guess…
Still Stage 3!
Misty and I just got back from NYC. We visited the hospital this morning to get Misty’s staples and stitches out and discuss the pathology of her tumor with the neuro-surgeon. Pieces of the tumor were sent away to the lab to get studied and determine the stage (or grade) of the cancer. Depending on how quickly the cells are reproducing and other factors (like if it has its own blood supply), a grade is assigned to the cancer. The good news is that the biopsy from the first surgery is back and its still a stage 3 (there are 4 total stages). This is the same grade as it was a few months ago, so from a medical perspective, this is the best that could have been hoped for. Generally, when a tumor becomes agressive after being supprespsed by a chemo, the resulting cancer is a higher grade. We are waiting to get the pathology on the second surgery but this is very good news. Our spirits are lifted today.
Visual Narcotic
Dear Abby,
I’m addicted.
It’s been a few years really; I’ve been hooked ever since the drug was first so casually, yet so ubiquitously, pumped into communities across America. As with most drugs, the more you feed it the worse it gets. Increased heart rate, cold sweats, mild euphoria and insomnia are just a few of the very real effects I have experienced. I find myself lying awake at night knowing I need to sleep, but just needing one more dose. One more is never quite enough.
The good news is that availability in my region is limited, so I’m able to manage my addiction moderately well. I find myself only able to use for a few days out of a year. A few days and I’m through all the DVDs I get from the dealer…then I have to wait for the next season of 24 to come out.
Sincerely,
Addicted in Long Branch
—
PS. Jack Bauer got out of jail this morning (in real life) after a DUI charge – full story HERE - Please don’t drink and drive…it kills people. Every 30 minutes someone dies of an alcohol related driving accident in the US.
New Photos
I just finished uploading a few new galleries. Here are a few new ones:
- Justin & Genevieve’s Rehearsal Dinner
- Brian & Kate’s Birthday
- Livi’s First Birthday
- Michelle and Chad’s Visit
- Violet and Livi
- NYC Trip #1 (Tree Lighting)
- NYC Trip #2 (Radio City)
And these two were already posted, but still fairly new.
a good day
We have had a rough week…physically, spiritually, emotionally…but I think we are on the way up. Misty started to feel a bit better today. She had the strength to do some dishes (against my will…) and played with Livi a bit more than usual. It was a nice day.
We are thankful that her pain has subsided (no need for serious pain meds anymore) and that she is getting her strength back. We are praying for her hand function to come back completely and the swelling to go down on her face.
As the plan stands…we will be starting her new chemo in about a week…
First day home
It was nice to wake up in NJ…the familiar sound of Marmalade (our cat) scratching on our door – She inevitably wakes up before us and expects that we should be up to feed her and let her out.
Anyway, the day was restful. We had some help from my parents to watch Olivia and Misty was able to rest all afternoon. She is still having a good bit of trouble with use of her right hand and she is missing a few words here and there, but she’s doing pretty great compared to what we expected.
And Olivia knows how to blow her nose now…I’m so proud!
Just about out of here…
Last night was a bit better than the night before (the pain was much less) but as are all hospital stays, it wasn’t without incident. Misty’s roomate, a 71yr old bronx woman who just had some back surgery, had an allergic reaction to morphine in the middle of the night (2:30am) and she felt very comfortable being loud about it :) In all seriousness though, we felt bad as she was having a very rough night.
Anyway, Misty is doing great. I reviewed the MRI with the Neuro-Surgeon and there is no bleeding to be seen and her temperature has been stable so the liklihood of any infection is very low. Also, her pain level has dropped significantly and she is moving slowly but very much with it. Since she is doing so well, we are able to go home in just a little while (today!) to hibernate at home. After a week of nothing, we will start her chemo.
We have been encouraged by the prayers and words of so many. Thanks. Misty is ecstatic to get out of here safely after a successful surgery. I must say, it will be nice for me as well to get back to sleeping in my own bed…these hospital chairs have given me a kink in my neck the size of cincinati :)
