Merry Christmas!

Update from Sandy:

First of all, praise God for safe travels to and from Houston Dec 19-21.    This is the 9th trip we've made to MD Anderson.  Rod is a wonderful chauffeur and I would be lost -- literally lost -- without him!

Secondly (drum roll!!!), labs and scans are either stable or improved!  This is the fourth consecutive time in 2016 that we have received a "mostly" great report!  One of the cancer markers is even down to a single digit!  That has never happened before!  Except for a declaration that I am cancer free, these results are the best we could hope for!  I will continue chemo every other week and return to Houston in 3 months.  

My MDAnderson oncologist said she'd much rather share results of my labs and scans  instead of share bad news with her patients -- especially during the week before Christmas.  She only sees patients with pancreatic, gall bladder, and/or bile duct cancer.    She looked tired and concerned for her patients.  And it was just the morning.  I need to remember to pray for her and her medical team.   It must be very hard to deliver bad news. 

So, while I am giving thanks and celebrating the good news I received this week, I am also remembering those who are struggling, maybe with recently hearing the cancer diagnosis for the first time this week.   Or waiting to hear results of tests.   Or getting a dismal prognosis.  I remember what that was like (September 2014).  I know what it is like to get a dismal report (November 2015).   We all just do the next step.  Thankfully, God directs those steps.    

Someone recently texted me a message with the comment:  "There are so many things I can't do like I used to do as I get older."  I agree completely.  But there are two things we ALL can do as we get older.  We can love more deeply,  and we can thank God more often for His amazing plans for our future, whatever those plans may be.  

Thank you for praying for me and for being so encouraging to me.  TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY!

Merry Christmas!  May JOY invade every moment of this season and the New Year.  
Love,
Sandy

In and Out Again

Many people were praying for Sandy to remain in good health so she could speak at an event at church last Friday (Sept 30). And God said yes! She faithfully shared some of the lessons and truths she's learned or been reminded of as a result of this cancer journey. Around 250 people attended, and many have commented that they left encouraged, inspired, and challenged. Sandy left the event feeling honored, encouraged, loved, and greatly supported. A link to the video is below, as well as on the bottom of the intro section of this blog.

https://vimeo.com/c3media/review/185699250/24bdbf13d2

On Tuesday, October 4, Sandy had an already scheduled, routine drain exchange. Everything went well, and around 3pm she was home. However, around 4pm, she began having chills, shakes, and a quickly rising fever. We've been down this road enough times by now to know that an immediate trip to the ER was required. Thankfully, the skilled medical team was able to help, and she was released Thursday early evening (October 6). Her team discussed how to prevent this from happening every time she has a drain exchange, and they seem to have landed on the option of giving her an antibiotic prior to the drain exchange to ward off infection that results from the goopy, germy drain being slid through the inside of her body. Those were not technical terms, by the way. :)

True to Sandy-style, she not only taught her classes on Friday but also was a sub for two classes, in addition to a trip to the infections disease doctor, where she was given the meds to finish off this new infection. On Saturday evening she lamented that her weekly grading had not been finished...somehow, not even a rough three days was enough reason for her to easily accept not being able to complete everything she had planned!

While this up and down journey can be more than tiring at times, as Sandy says, it's better than the alternative! This is one example of the blessing being found in the difficulty - we'd be foolish to wait to have peace and joy until this undesired journey is over, because even if God heals her on this side of heaven, we would be wasting learning opportunities, and if He heals her IN heaven, we'd be short-changing our time with Sandy. Knowing our ultimate future allows us to live in the today and both look for and soak in the blessings that are in each day. 

2 Corinthians 4:17

"For these light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all."

Yippee!

Text from Sandy:

"All scans and tests are GOOD! Keep on with chemo every 2 weeks. This maintenance chemo appears to be keeping the tumor at bay. Praise the Lord!!"

Shortly after receiving this text, she sent another text that said another lady in town, who, six months ago, received the same diagnosis Sandy received two+ years ago, died last week. Same diagnosis, different earthly outcome. Please keep this other family in your prayers while you are thanking God for a good report for Sandy.

On the Road Again

Sandy heads to Texas for the next round of scans this weekend. She is understandably apprehensive and dealing with some anxiety about potential results. While knowing truth from God's Word is powerful, doubts relentlessly whispered in her ear by the enemy can be exhausting.  Please pray for peace, a smooth trip, laughter, and wisdom for her team of doctors and nurses.

Where Hope is Built

My Hope is Built on Nothing Less

written by Edward Mote (1797-1874)

My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

When darkness seems to veil His face,I rest on His unchanging grace;In every high and stormy galeMy anchor holds within the veil.

His oath His covenant and bloodSupport me in the ‘whelming flood:When all around my soul gives way,He then is all my hope and stay.

On Christ the solid rock I stand;All other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.

When the last trumpet’s voice shall sound,O may I then in him be found.Clothed in his righteousness alone,Faultless to stand before his throne.

Sandy has received the same combination of chemo drugs since November 2015. Besides some issues with neuropathy and not sleeping well, she's done relatively well with the treatment.  While I'm not minimizing those side effects, we've known all along they could be much worse.

Every two weeks, except during those unexpected hospital stays, Sandy has received 120 minutes of one chemo drug at the Cancer Center, as well as another chemo drug via the super-fun and not-at-all-annoying pump for approximately 48 hours. On June 16, about 100 minutes into the two-hour infusion, she started the precursor to a full anaphylactic reaction.  Chemo was abruptly stopped and she was given three medications to counteract the reaction. Everything was fine.  ("Fine," by the way, is such a relative term these days!)

On July 7, the same thing happened, except after only about 20 minutes into the two-hour infusion.  Both times, she was still sent home with the other chemo drugs in the pump.  The "only" reaction to the pump is that it keeps her awake at night.

The Dr said that the reaction she experienced in June was her body’s way of saying it doesn’t like this particular chemo anymore.  The second reaction, in July, was her body saying, “I REALLY don’t like this chemo anymore!”  Continuing to use it could lead to respiratory distress.  “Might be fatal” were actually his words.   

Well, she's heard that before!  

Two years ago, she was given 6 months to live!

So, even though it appears that this is the chemo drug which stopped and even reversed the tumor growth shown in the scans from November 2015, she is now OFF of it for the time being.  Her two oncologists (the one from Wichita and the one from MD Anderson) will consult with each other in the next few days; she expects to hear the results of that consultation on Aug 2.   The Houston oncologist told her in November that this is the last chemo available to her.  But who knows - maybe there’s something else that has become available in the last 7 months.  

From research she has read, there are desensitization protocols for this chemo.  There might also be a protocol for minimizing the progression of the neuropathy in her hands and feet caused by this particular chemo.  It simultaneously seems as though there are many options on the table and zero options on the table. 

As her Uncle Bill would say, God knows….and that’s enough!  

From a human perspective, this news can be devastating. The drug that is keeping her alive is now threatening to kill her. But that statement overlooks one major fact. The ONLY reason she is alive today is because of God. If God has chosen to use a particular drug, that's great. If He has assembled a team of medical professionals and blessed them with wisdom, that's great too. But even if those things are stripped away, she has the only thing she needs for life - she has God. Why has He chosen to preserve her life and not the lives of others, even those with very similar cancer stories? We don't know. Why has He not chosen to heal her completely, instead allowing her to deal with the side effects of cancer and treatments? We don't know. But the "why" questions are not only unhelpful, but also miss the point. God is sovereign. His way is best. His way is perfect. If He were to change at all, it would be a negative change. In His ultimate and perfect wisdom, she is living this exact life...just as in His ultimate and perfect wisdom, you are living your exact life. He has purposes far beyond what we can imagine. Do we trust Him? Do we hope in doctors and chemo drugs? Or do we put our hope in Him?

My hope is built on nothing less

Than Jesus' blood and righteousness.

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,

but wholly lean on Jesus' name.

On Christ the solid rock I stand

All other ground is sinking sand

All other ground is sinking sand.

Sinking sand - what a powerful description of what happens when we hope anywhere else.

We choose this day to plant our feet...and our minds, and our hearts...firmly on the rock that is Christ. 

TX Trip and New Test Results

Sandy and Rod made another crazy down-and-back Texas trip Mon-Wed of this week. I'll not go into details about the extra hours in the car, thanks to construction, or the test results that weren't available at the time of the long awaited appointment - why relive those moments? :)

Here's what you want to know:

*All three cancer markers are lower than they were in March. Low, for these, is good!

*All vitals were very good.

*Scan revealed "interval decrease" in all of the areas that have been watched, including the tumor in the bile duct. Decrease, for this, is very good!

*Everything indicates that the current intervention treatment is doing its job. There is a possibility that she can be moved to a maintenance dosage (whatever that means) in September if things continue in this direction.

Take a minute (or a bunch of minutes) and praise God for these results! Sandy continues to be thankful for your prayers and support.  With God in control, she's guaranteed a win, though this kind of report is the "win" that we have been hoping for.

Doctors continue to be surprised by how well she's doing. Did you realize we're coming up on TWO YEARS since her diagnosis?? If someone would have told me we'd be celebrating good news in 2016, I would have worried less in 2014.  Ok, so the real problem is my fluctuating level of trust in God's perfect plan.... It's a good thing He is patient and full of grace :)

Neuropathy, though not a surprise with the chemo she's receiving, continues to worsen bit by bit. At this point, doctors aren't changing anything, but are watching it closely. Please pray it not only stops, but reverses as well.

Sandy was able to enjoy time at the Lake of the Ozarks for four days with a dear friend. Among their adventures was administering an hour of IV antibiotics on the road (she wasn't the one driving!). When she returned, her labs were way too low to receive chemo, likely due to the extended course of IV antibiotics. Her next chemo appointment is next Thursday.

She is to continue getting a new stent every 8 weeks and a new drain every 3 months. We are all thoroughly convinced it's not wise to push those any longer than what is recommended.

Thanks again for your support!

Home and a new skill set

Sandy broke out of the hospital Friday afternoon. She might have been a tiny bit ready to go home...! Because the blood culture results indicated that the bug she's fighting only responds to IV antibiotics, she had the pleasure of learning how to give herself the antibiotic through her port tubing. She'll continue to do that once a day for awhile. Since her drain tubing and port tubing look identical, she is working on a patent for color coded tubing. Just kidding. But someone ought to!

She doesn't feel 100% yet, but so much better than last Monday. She's taking it slowly with food, on account of that bad tempered pancreas of hers. In time, that should improve as well. On Tuesday she returns to the Cancer Center for routine blood work.

Her next TX trip is coming up mid June. Please pray for excellent news, calm hearts, and good health between now and then.

Happy Memorial Day!

She looks so good! And then she didn't....

At church on Sunday, numerous people told Sandy how great she looked - her countenance was good, her skin tone looked healthy, her eyes had that pain-free spark again. Her hair has really grown thicker the past few months, and she has not been itchy for quite some time. The only not-quite-right thing she had been noticing was a feeling in her abdomen that can mean the drain is on its way to needing to be replaced. However, she had decided it would just be fine until her next TX trip, since the last drain, which has been pain free and leak free, was put in during her last TX trip.

You know how Kansas weather changes on a dime? How it can be 85 and sunny one day and then 24 hours later it's snowing? Sandy is clearly a Kansas girl through and through.

Sandy woke up Monday morning with intense pain and pressure. By now in her journey, she recognizes which type of pain and pressure means a bad stent and which one means a bad drain. This time it was the drain. Her doctors scheduled a drain replacement at St. Francis at 1:30 Monday afternoon. First, though, she went to the Cancer Center for lab work, since her counts were too low last Thursday, which meant she'd had an extra medicine over the weekend to increase the counts...a medicine that makes her feel lousy. By the time she arrived at the Cancer Center, her fever was rising, she was freezing cold, and it was becoming more difficult to think clearly. The nurse at the Cancer Center has seen Sandy like this several times before, and knew what it meant - call in the PA, maybe the Dr., and look at a possible hospital admission, hoping to stay a step or two ahead of sepsis. 

Sure enough, after talking to the PA and the Dr., Sandy was wheeled over to St Francis. Her outpatient drain replacement became an inpatient drain replacement plus whatever was needed. Thankfully, they kept supplying her with warm towels, she didn't have to wait TOO long to be taken to a room, and biggest of all, the nurse was able to find a vein to draw blood for additional labs on the first stick - that's almost unheard of for Sandy.  

After the drain replacement, Sandy felt much better, though not great. Labs showed that her pancreas is kind of angry, which is not unusual for this type of procedure. She is still at St Francis, on a delicious clear liquids diet, hoping to be dismissed Thursday afternoon. She's on summer break, after all, and has better things to do than sit in a hospital bed! 

This is a great reminder to be thankful for each good thing each day, not because we're afraid it won't last, but because each day truly is a blessing, and we're only cheating ourselves if we don't fully appreciate them all. 

Encouraging news

Rod and Sandy returned home late last night/early this morning. While tired, both from a busy schedule and from Dallas traffic, they were both in relatively good spirits. Tests showed that Sandy's cancer markers have gone down (that's good!) and she no longer has a blood clot (also good!). She will continue chemo every other week, returning to TX for more scans in three months.  Doctors decided not to do a full biliary exam since this drain, which is #5, is working well - perhaps better than any previous drains.

Thanks for your prayers! Please take a minute to thank God for this encouraging news. The journey continues!

Upcoming TX trip

Sandy returns to Texas next week Mon-Wed where she will have routine scans as well as some testing to determine the overall state of her drain, liver, etc. Please pray for safe travels, restful sleep, on-time appointments, hassle free parking, peace that passes understanding, and, most of all, very good results.

We're gearing up for our family's Easter celebration...kids, eggs, food, games, and extreme thankfulness for what Christ did for us on the cross. We cannot imagine how we'd be walking this journey without the hope and ultimate positive outcome that is ours through Christ.

New year, new semester, new drain...

In the weeks since the last update, quite a lot has happened, though not much has changed - fevers, tests, ER visits, appointments, opinions, pain, fear, hope, gratitude.

Sandy has had significant pain since the insertion of the drain. Doctors told her that it was the best available option at this point. However, the pain was using too much of the limited energy she has most days. Yesterday (Monday), she went to the hospital so radiology could look at everything and determine if any changes could be made so she would be more comfortable. I may not get all of these details right, but here goes! The drain had migrated down into the small intestine, was leaking, blocked, and overall very gross. Gross...that's not a word the doctors used. Their word probably had at least six syllables. :) 


A new drain was put in place and fastened to Sandy's belly using a special kind of covering she had not seen before. (If Rod was in charge of this update, we'd also have the right name for the covering...good thing I'm not getting paid for this job!) The drain is now sticking out quite a bit more than the previous drain, and is so far much more comfortable. Crazy that we're talking about a drain sticking out of your gut as being comfortable. Perspective, I suppose.


Hopefully all of this will relieve both the internal pressure Sandy has felt for weeks and the external discomfort caused by leaking bile.


The spring semester has begun, and Sandy is grateful not only to be teaching, but also that her supervisor arranged her schedule so she is teaching in the mornings and not in the afternoons. Her stamina is not where she'd like it to be, though I'm not sure whose stamina would be great with a migrated and leaking drain!


The next TX trip is in March. I'll update at least by then, if not sooner.