Not the day we hoped for

We went to our Dr.appointment today at Huntsman. The news is not what we have been hoping and praying for. The tumors have shown a slight increase in size, but show stablility. I know what you are all thinking. (Is this bad or good) Well, it is indifferent. It is not what we wanted but it is not without some hope. Dr. Grossman explained it like this. The tumors are like a ball, if you were to slice it into small sections then place them together again, then leave it for a time, then go back and slice it again, the chances are that you will not remove the same exact slice on the second time. The scan work similar to this. When you take a picture of a section of the tumor there is a good chance that it is not the same exact location as the scan before. Andy's tumor growth is measured in millimeters. Dr. Grossman said that the growth is small and still feels that proceeding with Il2 for another series is the right direction to go. So, Andy will go into Huntsman on Sunday and because of the holiday they will start treatments on Tuesday. So, many of you will have questions and the most evident is "what is next?" Next, will be the option that was not first on our list, surgery. I know that surgery seems the perfect answer, however, it holds many unknowns. We would have to go to either Texas or Maryland to have the specific surgery and gene therapy. Expensive and distant is how we view these options. Up to this point we have been able to place minimal effect on the kids and those around us. The surgery option will definetly change all of that. Please don't see this new information as negative and depressive. Andy and I have a firm faith that things will be okay, not perfect or easy, and possibly not what we foresaw. I know there is alot here in this post, and there is more that you want to know but please we ask that the questions will be limited, so we can have time to absorb what we have learned and accept each step that is placed before us. So with the memorial weekend here, we want everyone to enjoy it and not worry about or for us. We are going to bbq and have as much fun on Saturday as possible. I am going to take the kids to a movie on Monday, and we are going to live. That is exactly what we want you all to do. We also want to remember those in the armed service and those loved ones that have gone before. I hope that the rain will stay away and the sun will shine abundantly. Thank you for all you do, and please keep up the prayers they are needed and most accepted. We love you all.

A request for a little help

Ok, I have a special request. I have a friend I work with, who is really involved with cancer research, because he has some friends who are currently undergoing cancer treatments. I am only one of them. He has a noble cause and some personal goals. He does road bike races. Oh, Nelson is his name, some of you know him. Help him hit his goal of getting $1000 for the LOTOJA, Logan to Jackson hole bike race. (That is his preliminary goal, but his real goal is at least $1500.) All the donations go to the Huntsman Cancer Foundation. That's where I and many other people are getting treatment at. His link is www.huntsmancancerfoundation.org/nelsonbowen Any donation for him would be a donation for me and others who are going through treatment. I even donated, which he thought was wrong, having someone who has cancer donating to cancer research. But that is how strongly I believe in it and how much I support him. For his friendship and support. So every little bit helps, please be generous. Thanks a bunch all, I will have a post later today on how our meeting with the doctor went. Wish us good luck. Merry Christmas and have a lovely day.
Love Andy.

Sorry I'm not as quick to post as Andy. I am not a blogger that has the need to write everyday if there is nothing to report. Yesterday, Andy stayed home and took plenty of benadryll. We talked to our oncology nurse, Stephanie, explained the weekend and how Andy was feeling. She said that Andy was the second one that weekend to have this reaction to the contrast. She explained that next CT scan they will do some aggressive therapy prior to the scan. That scan is scheduled for around the end of July. Andy did go to work today. He is feeling tired and is worried that the weekend has set his recovery back a little. With time so short now before he goes back into Huntsman for treatment, we are all a bit on edge. So please be patient with us if we come off as cranky. We don't really want to see that our 4week break is almost to an end. It was nice feeling like we were almost normal again. Yet, once the word is given that cancer is in your life, you are never quite normal anymore. Normal for us now is treatment dates, CTscans, calls to Dr.'s, and hoping that all this will pay off with good news of remission. Of course, that information will not be known untill all the treatments are finished. We remind ourselves of the blessings that we have already recieved by so many wonderful people. We are extremely thankful for you and your support and love. I feel as though those words are minimal to the gratitude we have for each of you. Thank you over and over again.

Andy doesn't care what I blog about this weekend, so do you want the naked truth or not? Brace yourself! It was not as good as what we would like but not as bad as it could have been. On Friday, Andy went to Huntsman for a CT scan with contrast. Everything went well until around 10:30pm that night. Around midnight, Andy woke me up because he was too cold and feeling extremely ill. To look at him, his skin was bright beet red. We checked his blood pressure and called Huntsman for advise. The nurse I talked to, said that without seeing Andy she felt he may be having an allergic reation to the contrast and said that we should go to the emergency room at the local hospital if it continues and worsens. We did not go. Andy did not feel as though it was needed. I personally think he is sick of nurses and hopitals, no matter how nice they may be. We also feel that this problem is because of the contrast he took for the CT scan. He had similar reactions after the last CT scan in April. That is one reason the Dr. wants to do the scan a week before he goes back in for IL2 treatment to give Andy's body a break and to heal.
Saturday came and we celebrated Morgan's birthday. Morgan had a couple of friends over and played his heart out. Andy didn't feel much better, and slept off and on throughout the day. With the help of benadryll, Andy is feeling better today. Tomorrow may bring something different, but Andy is planning to go to work. Thank you for all that each of you do for us. We mean that, your prayers are helping more than you all know. THANK YOU!! You are all in our prayers also.

peggy is blogging again, shocking!

We made it to the weekend!! Andy has gone to work everyday this week. He made it 6 hours almost everyday. Wow! I know this seems like nothing to celebrate, however, for Andy this is a great thing. He has pushed himself hard to prove to himself and maybe to others that he can do it. I'm very proud of him it was not easy. With having 4 weeks off from treatments, this has made us fall into a rather normal routine. None of us want to think about what is to be in two weeks, so we are living each day and weekend with as much energy and life as possible. Of course this wears Andy out big time, but there is always a feeling of time running out, so a slow down is not possible. I have to tell you all something very humerous that happened this week with Morgan and Andy. Andy was sitting at the table eating breakfast and singing (in the most obnoxious way)and Morgan very politely walks up to his dad and says, and I quote, "dad, that song is yours. Why don't you keep it to yourself." Yes, my sweet and loving son totally dissed his dad. I love Morgan. Another wierd and totally common thing that has been happening around this nut house is we have been combining idioms. I know what you are thinking, we have to much time on our hands. Not true, just we like word games. Our favorite one so far is and you may all comment is, "a watched pot never calls the kettle black." or how about this one, "just like to peas in a barrel of monkeys." Oh by the way, Andy went in today to Huntsman for another CT scan. There is nothing wrong this is planned and needed to see the growth or lack there of (this is what we are praying for) of the tumors. We will not know the results until we talk to Dr. Grossman on the 28th (next friday) so please don't ask we have no answers. I want to thank everyone again for your support and prayers.

Had a rough weekend but made it to work today

Friday and Sunday were hard days this weekend but I am pretty sure I was able to get most of the toxins out of my body. I went to work today and was able to be there a lot longer than I thought. While it was tiring it was nice to be back in the grind. I hope to make it every day this week and next. I am sitting here fighting sleep while I write this and trying to finish my thoughts so they are complete. I don't think its working very well. But I am doing really good now. I am still fighting fatigue but that will take time to overcome. I should be almost back to feeling normal when I have to go back in for more treatment, sometime around the 30th of May if things go well. Between now and the end of the month I will have another scan to see what effects the treatments are having on the tumors, and if the Doctor says I am healthy enough to proceed with treatment on the 30th. We hope I will be. Keep us in your prayers, as you are in ours. Thank you for your love and support. Merry Christmas and have a lovely day.
Love Andy.

Went to work, now I'm paying for it.

I made it to work for part of the day on Thursday. Today, I have been ill all day. It is a result of being up and mobile. The toxins in my body have started to move and I get to have flu-like symptoms for a while. The good news is that the toxins are getting out of my body and I will have more energy when all is said and done, but getting there is no fun. But I keep going, I do a little, lay down for a while, do a little more, lay down, do a little more, well, you get the picture. This is what my weekend is going to consist of, being sick and pushing myself, so hopefully Monday I will be back at work again. It was nice seeing all of the people I work with, thank you for your concern and well wishes. I appreciate it very much. I will keep up the hard work and trying to recover. May your weekends be happy and sunny and accident and injury free. Remember sunscreen and plenty of water, its gonna be sunny and hot here this weekend. Its about time too. Merry Christmas and have a lovely day.
Andy.

Happy Mothers day to all, well all the Moms anyway.

Ok, today was long and hard. We went to visit all the Moms, and it really wore me out. It is amazing how just riding and talking can kick my butt so hard. I went to Joel and Zina's (the In-laws), and then needed a nap. Went to Ma and Pa Layne's and needed to go to bed when I got home. But I didn't, I helped my kids with procrastinated homework, which is a whole other story. But as I type this my eyes are fighting me in staying open. So as you can probably tell, this recovery isn't going as quickly as I would like, but I have lost all my water weight. So I just need to build up my energy levels. Which means that I will start walking more and trying to stay awake after I walk. That is the hard part. I just put my head down and bulldoze through it, hoping that when I make it through the other side there is not a cliff waiting for me to fall off of. Well, lots of love and appreciation to all who care and are so supportive, and thanks for the card from work, you guys are the best. Merry Christmas and Have a lovely day.
Love Andy.

Minor adjustment to posts

Ok, it has been brought to my attention that I have a tendency to "sugar coat" things and not give the "real" situations, and that my wife posting was a lot more informative on what was really going on. So I will try to be more upfront with what is really going on. For instance Tuesday, was a real bear of a day. While last week I was able to get more doses than they thought possible. It was with the help of a bunch of narcotics, which unfortunately have a lasting effect on me. I stay groggy for a few days when they are administered day after day and high doses like they were. On top of that the benefits of taking the pain away are not there, just the foggy hazy feelings.
The IL2 treatment has a tendency to settle in joints and old injuries, so my knee and hip were killing me, so I got to take some more pain pills, and sit in a fog for another day. The treatments also take a toll on my ability to recover, as far as my energy level goes. I spent most of the day sleeping and resting, because I didn't have the energy to walk to the mailbox.
I hope that was a more accurate and real depiction of my situation. If this is better let me know and I will try to keep it more "real."
On a good note, I have lost almost 15 lbs of water weight, only 10 more to go. That should come off tomorrow. I hope that was descriptive enough of how my day went, but on the upside, I am doing well and recovering. Like I said I am still very tired and just like the Doctors told me the recovery gets harder each time, especially with the amount of doses I got this last time. I am still really excited about getting so many. Woo Hoo!!!! ok, sorry I just get too happy sometimes. Thanks for all the help and support that we get from everyone. Merry Christmas and Have a lovely day.
Love Andy.

I made it home, to a tornado I think.

I am doing well, and recovering. The water weight is coming off slowly, which is expected. The water should really start coming off tomorrow or Tuesday. But with the huge windstorm we had while I was in the hospital we sustained some damage to an outbuilding and our fence in the backyard.

Here are some pictures, nothing like my before pictures, so Alan, its safe to look at. The Pictures are of my fence looking south, and my chicken coop which is still standing and the Horse barn, which is not is to the North. Also, in one of the pictures you can see the feeder is upside down with some feed still in it. Not tipped over, UPSIDE DOWN. How does that happen?!? So herein lies the question, how does a fence blow down to the south and within 50yards a horse shed blow down to the north? No one was hurt and no animals were injured, thank goodness, a friend has our horse while I am going through treatment or the horse would more than likely been in the shed at the time.

So we will be working on building a new fence and working on whether or not we are going to try to salvage the shed or scrap it and start over. I thought the pictures were very interesting. Like I said we are all doing well, and other than the dogs not being happy about being let out a little less, all in good spirits.

Merry Christmas and have a lovely day,

Love Andy.