Impute
DEFINITION: (verb) to credit or give responsibility to; to attribute.
We started our morning early with arriving at UAMS at 8:00 sharp. Our appointment was for 8:00. Chemo Sabe is doing so well on his arrivals. But then, I'm doing all the driving! We were #4 in line this morning. The earlier we get there the sooner we get in. We thought maybe the late arrivals are because they are weak or lose sleep because of their treatments, but we found out shortly after we got into the room it is because of your bag scheduling. We got into our cubicle around 8:35, but Chemo Sabe's bag wasn't hooked up until 10:00. The whole time was spent on the do's and don'ts again, the warnings, the flushing of the three tubes in the port and an injection into the stomach area of blood thinner. Then the hook up. It was the simplest part.
The "bag" looks like a camera bag he has to carry on his shoulder. It has two IV bags in it. The largest has Velcade and it goes through quickly for 24 hours. The next is a chemo that is pale red and it runs for four days. They each have their own battery pack. The bag weighs 8 lb. It feels like carrying a bowling ball. The pale red is very dangerous because if the tube splits or the bag burst, we cannot touch it. It will eat the skin. If such an error happens, we call UAMS immediately.
When we arrived home, after running all over town shopping, We replaced the strap from a laptop bag so he could carry it lower for balance.
The RN made a HUGE mistake today. We asked about restrictions, being in public like shopping, working, etc. She told us we didn't need to worry about the confinement part until his immune system went down. The program is specifically designed for all chemo patients to be outpatients so they can live as normal as life as possible. If he felt like working during the chemo, he could. They will give us fair warning about the immunity. Well, I think you already know what his next question was -- "How about riding my bike?" She said verbatim, "What ever you feel like doing, do it." He told her surely she was kidding. Well, she wasn't.
So after our shopping today, we came home, changed clothes, called our friends in Conway (Rainman and Stretch) and they met us in L.R. to eat. Then we drove on out the highway to the mountains and come on around the back way home.
How in the heck did he ride with the bag, you might be thinking. We put it in the saddle bag and ran the leaders up through his shirt. Worked out just fine. We stopped plenty enough times to ascertain he wasn't getting tired. We should have known better because he is now taking ten steriods tablets each morning with four other pills. He was very active, but pale.
His blood reports look really well, except for the WBC, RBC, hemoglobin and platelets. That's what they are working on. This is where the paleness comes from.
Chemo Sabe has four days of this chemo which should be complete by June 11. After that they wait until his blood count is very low and start to build back up before they do the induction. He stops his steriods on Tuesday, so they are claiming he will fall flat on his face because he will be stopping cold turkey.
We are so knowledgeable now about the process, the medication, the side effects and the good stuff, too. How do we know? We 'impute' to the RN and everyone that is so helpful to us at UAMS. There, I got the Word for the Day in.
Yesterday our appt was at 8:00 and we got in at 10:30 and out at 11:15 to go to another clinic. We got out of there by 1:00. We were worn out from sitting so we both came home for a nap. We watched a move and then went to bed at 7:00.
This man, Chemo Sabe, this love of mine, wants to ride to church tomorrow after we get out of clinic. He has labs, changed dressing and bag change out. Shouldn't take a few minutes, but we have to wait. We plan to get there by 8:00 again, but they can't change the 24 hr bag until it empties, which will be 10:30 Church starts at 10:30. We are only six miles from there, so I think we can make it.
We do have to make a stop at Krispy Creme for take our RN some donuts.
We had a great ride today. Chemo Sabe kept telling me he was okay since he had his acid. I guess I am just waiting for him to dive bomb.
Our friends lifted us up today. Chemo and I did too much talking. He says it's his drugs.
We feel better mentally. We think it is because we have gotten started on some kind of schedule and we know his Stage and we are more abreast of the meds and their purpose. We are though, still having problems with insurance. They approved the transplant at 50/50. We pay a deductible of $1,500 and they pay up to $125,000 for a year. Isn't that generous. Here's the kicker. The chemo pills we got today was $5,000 copay... No, that isn't a typo. It is $5,000.00. IF, the insurance approves it. We haven't heard yet.
I apologize, I should coun't my blessings and not complain. I have actually come to believe you shouldn't worry about how you are going to pay, but how they are going to cure. Since I have started thinking of that with the work of God's hand, I feel lighter. I am no longer carrying that load.
Pray for us should this precious man want to ride again tomorrow. I think he has maybe one more ride left in him, but only in the next couple of days.
We love your calls, you cards and your prayers. Please continue on --- Love Pepper
Chemo Sabe
- ChemoSabe
- Benton, AR, United States
- Diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma-- May 2008
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Durable -- Word for the Day - Wed. May 28, 2008
Durable
DEFINITION: (adjective) long lasting.
Since our discovery of Chemo Sabe's illness beginning on April 10, I have reflected on the first realization of my feelings 22 years ago at the start of our relationship. I was standing on a street corner after an accident in which the only vehicle I ever had worth anything was totalled. I only had one more payment on it and, boom, he had totaled it in a matter of seconds. I asked myself then, "Are you going to stick around in the hard times as well as the good? Or, are you going to take the easy way out and walk away?" I have never regretted the decision I made that day. We became "Durable".
We had a good day except for the waiting. We arrived for our appointment at 11:00 a.m. sharp. Chemo Sabe has been doing exceptionally well with his timeliness. Today was probably because I took him to work with me! ha.
He had lab, paperwork, medication instructions and then down to the Infusion Center. Our appointment there was 1:00 p.m. and we got there at 2:50 p.m. Not our fault. We got to our vehicle at 4:00 p.m. Just in time for the evening interstate rush traffic.
Our waiting time is usually never boring even when the time is long. We can be sitting and staring at the same thing (person) and then we look at each other without saying a word and roll our eyes or start laughing.
When we got to one check in station today the nurse was asking questions. One of the questions she asked was, "Do you have any symptoms?" He looked at her and said, "Yes, I do --- Fear". We all laughed. I could imagine Easton saying, "Well, yeah."
We had been waiting in a little room for about 30 minutes for a RN to return with prescription authorizations. We had already been in this room for 1-1/2 hours with another person. When the RN entered she asked, "Jim Rice?". We said, "No". She apologized and started for the door. We laughed and she realized we were teasing.
So, you see. We are "Durable" by out attitudes. We aren't kidding ourselves that there will be some days we will not feel so positive about the long waits. We see how other act. Good for the most part. But, when our bad days come, we will remember the light at the end of the tunnel.
He will be taking five medications beginning tomorrow. Four are antibiotics and anti-fungal and the fifth is a steriod, of which he will take ten (10) a day. The pharmacist wanted to make certain we knew the (10) wasn't a typo.
We get a day off tomorrow and return on Friday for the port, more lab work and more instructions. Then on Saturday we get the bag to carry for four days. We will have to return to the hospital every 24 hours until June 3. We have a follow up with the doctor on June 6.
Chemo Sabe has to fill out a "Smiley Face" sheet each day on how he feels. I am certain today it will be marked, "Great".
We are so lucky to have you all. We are so lucky to be able to get treatment so close to home. We have met only a few from Arkansas, but the rest are miles and miles from home. We are the fortunate ones.
We found out today what stage Chemo Sabe is in. He is a Stage IIa. I know you are just hanging on to the edge of your seats waiting for the medical definition. Stage IIa is greater than a Stage I and lesser than a Stage III. We heard it from the horse's mouth and it is even written in the book. Now you know the rest of the story. On our way out we ran into a man and his wife we met at the cancer party two weeks ago. They might get to go home this week. He was in Stage IIIa when they discovered his.
A new tenant in the "Care" house across the street from church was diagnosed when his kidneys failed last year. He has dialysis every day and was in the hospital all last week with high fever due to infection. He may get to go home this week. We are fortunate.
We are retiring for the evening. We are both working tomorrow. And, we are both glad we are working. Takes our minds off things.
Again, we are so grateful to each of you for your prayers, for making us laugh and for making us "Durable". Love, Pepper
DEFINITION: (adjective) long lasting.
Since our discovery of Chemo Sabe's illness beginning on April 10, I have reflected on the first realization of my feelings 22 years ago at the start of our relationship. I was standing on a street corner after an accident in which the only vehicle I ever had worth anything was totalled. I only had one more payment on it and, boom, he had totaled it in a matter of seconds. I asked myself then, "Are you going to stick around in the hard times as well as the good? Or, are you going to take the easy way out and walk away?" I have never regretted the decision I made that day. We became "Durable".
We had a good day except for the waiting. We arrived for our appointment at 11:00 a.m. sharp. Chemo Sabe has been doing exceptionally well with his timeliness. Today was probably because I took him to work with me! ha.
He had lab, paperwork, medication instructions and then down to the Infusion Center. Our appointment there was 1:00 p.m. and we got there at 2:50 p.m. Not our fault. We got to our vehicle at 4:00 p.m. Just in time for the evening interstate rush traffic.
Our waiting time is usually never boring even when the time is long. We can be sitting and staring at the same thing (person) and then we look at each other without saying a word and roll our eyes or start laughing.
When we got to one check in station today the nurse was asking questions. One of the questions she asked was, "Do you have any symptoms?" He looked at her and said, "Yes, I do --- Fear". We all laughed. I could imagine Easton saying, "Well, yeah."
We had been waiting in a little room for about 30 minutes for a RN to return with prescription authorizations. We had already been in this room for 1-1/2 hours with another person. When the RN entered she asked, "Jim Rice?". We said, "No". She apologized and started for the door. We laughed and she realized we were teasing.
So, you see. We are "Durable" by out attitudes. We aren't kidding ourselves that there will be some days we will not feel so positive about the long waits. We see how other act. Good for the most part. But, when our bad days come, we will remember the light at the end of the tunnel.
He will be taking five medications beginning tomorrow. Four are antibiotics and anti-fungal and the fifth is a steriod, of which he will take ten (10) a day. The pharmacist wanted to make certain we knew the (10) wasn't a typo.
We get a day off tomorrow and return on Friday for the port, more lab work and more instructions. Then on Saturday we get the bag to carry for four days. We will have to return to the hospital every 24 hours until June 3. We have a follow up with the doctor on June 6.
Chemo Sabe has to fill out a "Smiley Face" sheet each day on how he feels. I am certain today it will be marked, "Great".
We are so lucky to have you all. We are so lucky to be able to get treatment so close to home. We have met only a few from Arkansas, but the rest are miles and miles from home. We are the fortunate ones.
We found out today what stage Chemo Sabe is in. He is a Stage IIa. I know you are just hanging on to the edge of your seats waiting for the medical definition. Stage IIa is greater than a Stage I and lesser than a Stage III. We heard it from the horse's mouth and it is even written in the book. Now you know the rest of the story. On our way out we ran into a man and his wife we met at the cancer party two weeks ago. They might get to go home this week. He was in Stage IIIa when they discovered his.
A new tenant in the "Care" house across the street from church was diagnosed when his kidneys failed last year. He has dialysis every day and was in the hospital all last week with high fever due to infection. He may get to go home this week. We are fortunate.
We are retiring for the evening. We are both working tomorrow. And, we are both glad we are working. Takes our minds off things.
Again, we are so grateful to each of you for your prayers, for making us laugh and for making us "Durable". Love, Pepper
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Camaraderie -- Word for the Day -- May 27, 2008
Camaraderie
DEFINITION: (noun) a spirit of friendship.
Here we go. Tomorrow is the BIG day. If all goes according to plan Chemo Sabe will be receiving his first chemo shot at 1:00 p.m. I cannot tell you of the thoughts that have been racing through my little brain. I can only imagine what is going through his.
We did have a good Memorial holiday. Believe it or not, we rode our bikes on Sunday, after church and again on Monday. Chemo Sabe's wrist did fine. The bikes purred like kittens winding through the mountain highways. The smell of honeysuckle, gardenias, fresh cut hay and freshly mowed grass found a way into our nostrils leaving us with the desire to ride further away from home. Then we would pass a house where the dryer vent was releasing the aroma of fabric softener. Gosh, there we were -- back home.
We spent a lot of time with Tommy, Deanna and some family. We ran into some acquaintances yesterday on old Hwy. 5 and sat on a bench outside an old store and talked for two hours. Which brings us to today's Word, Camaraderie. We are so thankful to have the friends and family that call, write and pray for us.
I talk to my friend, KJ, every day and I can see the mist in his eyes when he speaks of how healthy Chemo Sabe looks and how hard it is to believe he is as ill as we have heard. He is such a friend that listens to my sobbing, complaining and dread throughout only the beginning of this process. I am so thankful for him.
Chemo Sabe got his hair cut off to about 1/2 inch all over. Just a hair closer to bald. I really like it. I believe he spends more time in front of the mirror now than before. He is enjoying it.
You will be reading about blood cells a lot within this blog. If you look at the border and background of this stationary, it reminds me of the healthy blood cells we are looking for in Chemo Sabe. Except they won't be green.
I will keep you posted when I can. We truly appreciate you all.
DEFINITION: (noun) a spirit of friendship.
Here we go. Tomorrow is the BIG day. If all goes according to plan Chemo Sabe will be receiving his first chemo shot at 1:00 p.m. I cannot tell you of the thoughts that have been racing through my little brain. I can only imagine what is going through his.
We did have a good Memorial holiday. Believe it or not, we rode our bikes on Sunday, after church and again on Monday. Chemo Sabe's wrist did fine. The bikes purred like kittens winding through the mountain highways. The smell of honeysuckle, gardenias, fresh cut hay and freshly mowed grass found a way into our nostrils leaving us with the desire to ride further away from home. Then we would pass a house where the dryer vent was releasing the aroma of fabric softener. Gosh, there we were -- back home.
We spent a lot of time with Tommy, Deanna and some family. We ran into some acquaintances yesterday on old Hwy. 5 and sat on a bench outside an old store and talked for two hours. Which brings us to today's Word, Camaraderie. We are so thankful to have the friends and family that call, write and pray for us.
I talk to my friend, KJ, every day and I can see the mist in his eyes when he speaks of how healthy Chemo Sabe looks and how hard it is to believe he is as ill as we have heard. He is such a friend that listens to my sobbing, complaining and dread throughout only the beginning of this process. I am so thankful for him.
Chemo Sabe got his hair cut off to about 1/2 inch all over. Just a hair closer to bald. I really like it. I believe he spends more time in front of the mirror now than before. He is enjoying it.
You will be reading about blood cells a lot within this blog. If you look at the border and background of this stationary, it reminds me of the healthy blood cells we are looking for in Chemo Sabe. Except they won't be green.
I will keep you posted when I can. We truly appreciate you all.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Prolific -- Word for the day (Friday, May 16, 2008)
Prolific
DEFINITION:
(adjective) producing many offspring or creations.
Throughout this process you will have to pardon my, what seems like weirdness to you, play of words. The words of the day I have found to date seem to relate to Chemo Sabe's journey. Prolific -- producing many offspring or creations. This brings to mind to me the stem cell transplant process. In approximately 3-4 weeks, after two weeks of chemo, Chemo Sabe will have just about all of his bloods cells pulled from his body. These cells (about 7 million), from my understanding, will be cleansed and the bad cells destroyed. They will be harvested and new cells will be produced (offspring or creations). They will then be infused back into Chemo Sabe's body, only a few thousand, and they will produce offspring/creations. They will swim around and somehow know which parts of Chemo Sabe's bone marrow needs new growth and cells. (The extras will be stored for the second transplant and future ones, if needed.) Boom --- There we have it -- Prolific.
Our day started quite early. We were at UAMS at 7:15. Our appointment was for 8:30. Chemo Sabe had his two lollipops by 8:00. He had a bone aspiration. An 8 in. needle in the left pelvic into one of the 25 lesions. It was very different that the bone marrow biospy which consists of an 8 in. needle of which I describe as an ice pick. So, today was a breeze. We are lucky there are not lesions in his right artificial hip.
Our next appointment was for 11:45 and the third at 1:00. We were told to tell the 11:45 MRI people we needed to be rushed in to meet the 1:00. So, we made the 11:45 at 9:30. The nurse behind the desk called Radiology for our 1:00 and got us in there at 10:00. Then we were back at MRI at 10:30. They were somewhat confused we were there because we spent all day there on Saturday. They had not made impressions of the two forearms and chest. They explained they called the doctor and informed him of the wire in Chemo Sabe's chest, therefore, could not get the scan. So, we were sent on our way.
We got to make it to our special lunch place at UAMS where the lady fixes us grilled roast beef sandwiches with piles of roast beef. To top it off, she calls us "Baby". We were in there last week at 10:00 a.m. and they don't open until 11:00. I whined a little about not being able to get my roast beef sandwich. She opened up the grill just for us and fixed us two.... That is only one example of how well we are treated by everyone at UAMS.
We went to a dinner party last night. The only attendees were Multi-Myleloma (MM) patients and their caregivers (that would be me). The very first person meeting us at the door is a lawyer for the state police and he is a spokesman for MM. He is a 17 year survivor. There were about 40 people in attendance and each one had a story. No crying in their beer. First of all, there wasn't any. We were/are blessed to be in such company.
We are heading out Sat. a.m. to meet a couple we ride bikes with. We won't be riding. It will be our last weekend away from home for awhile. I would think four to six months. We are looking forward to it. We both have busy weeks next week getting our work in order. Chemo Sabe has a couple of out of town trips and paperwork.
I wanted to prepare you that you will see some comments on this blog from Sissy. She is who we affectionately call Chemo Sabe's mistress. She has been my friend for 34 years (1973) and Chemo Sabe's for the 20 years we have been married. So, whatever she writes is safe. She is a true Christian friend. She is also a kidney/pancreas transplant survivor (Sept. 2000). You will love her.
Hey, Since Jim is Chemo Sabe, I believe I will change my biker name from Pepper to Tonto... I see a tattoo coming on!
We love you and your support. And we are continuously amazed by God's humor to keep our minds off the more serious things. That is a story for later posts.
Continue with your prayers. Please include in them the patients we see each day. Most of the faces are usually new ones. They are ALL MM patients. Kentucky, Michigan, Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, California, Colorado, Tennessee, Bahamas.. And, those are just the ones we met last night.
Pepper
DEFINITION:
(adjective) producing many offspring or creations.
Throughout this process you will have to pardon my, what seems like weirdness to you, play of words. The words of the day I have found to date seem to relate to Chemo Sabe's journey. Prolific -- producing many offspring or creations. This brings to mind to me the stem cell transplant process. In approximately 3-4 weeks, after two weeks of chemo, Chemo Sabe will have just about all of his bloods cells pulled from his body. These cells (about 7 million), from my understanding, will be cleansed and the bad cells destroyed. They will be harvested and new cells will be produced (offspring or creations). They will then be infused back into Chemo Sabe's body, only a few thousand, and they will produce offspring/creations. They will swim around and somehow know which parts of Chemo Sabe's bone marrow needs new growth and cells. (The extras will be stored for the second transplant and future ones, if needed.) Boom --- There we have it -- Prolific.
Our day started quite early. We were at UAMS at 7:15. Our appointment was for 8:30. Chemo Sabe had his two lollipops by 8:00. He had a bone aspiration. An 8 in. needle in the left pelvic into one of the 25 lesions. It was very different that the bone marrow biospy which consists of an 8 in. needle of which I describe as an ice pick. So, today was a breeze. We are lucky there are not lesions in his right artificial hip.
Our next appointment was for 11:45 and the third at 1:00. We were told to tell the 11:45 MRI people we needed to be rushed in to meet the 1:00. So, we made the 11:45 at 9:30. The nurse behind the desk called Radiology for our 1:00 and got us in there at 10:00. Then we were back at MRI at 10:30. They were somewhat confused we were there because we spent all day there on Saturday. They had not made impressions of the two forearms and chest. They explained they called the doctor and informed him of the wire in Chemo Sabe's chest, therefore, could not get the scan. So, we were sent on our way.
We got to make it to our special lunch place at UAMS where the lady fixes us grilled roast beef sandwiches with piles of roast beef. To top it off, she calls us "Baby". We were in there last week at 10:00 a.m. and they don't open until 11:00. I whined a little about not being able to get my roast beef sandwich. She opened up the grill just for us and fixed us two.... That is only one example of how well we are treated by everyone at UAMS.
We went to a dinner party last night. The only attendees were Multi-Myleloma (MM) patients and their caregivers (that would be me). The very first person meeting us at the door is a lawyer for the state police and he is a spokesman for MM. He is a 17 year survivor. There were about 40 people in attendance and each one had a story. No crying in their beer. First of all, there wasn't any. We were/are blessed to be in such company.
We are heading out Sat. a.m. to meet a couple we ride bikes with. We won't be riding. It will be our last weekend away from home for awhile. I would think four to six months. We are looking forward to it. We both have busy weeks next week getting our work in order. Chemo Sabe has a couple of out of town trips and paperwork.
I wanted to prepare you that you will see some comments on this blog from Sissy. She is who we affectionately call Chemo Sabe's mistress. She has been my friend for 34 years (1973) and Chemo Sabe's for the 20 years we have been married. So, whatever she writes is safe. She is a true Christian friend. She is also a kidney/pancreas transplant survivor (Sept. 2000). You will love her.
Hey, Since Jim is Chemo Sabe, I believe I will change my biker name from Pepper to Tonto... I see a tattoo coming on!
We love you and your support. And we are continuously amazed by God's humor to keep our minds off the more serious things. That is a story for later posts.
Continue with your prayers. Please include in them the patients we see each day. Most of the faces are usually new ones. They are ALL MM patients. Kentucky, Michigan, Arizona, Florida, Louisiana, California, Colorado, Tennessee, Bahamas.. And, those are just the ones we met last night.
Pepper
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Audacious
Our word for today: Audacious
DEFINITION:
(adjective) bold, daring, adventurous.
Isn't this going to be a bold, daring and adventurous journey for Chemo Sabe? We are already talking about him being bald. Won't all of you love that? We had probably, our last dip in the spa last evening. We are already talking about what we plan to do with the dogs during his down times when his immune system is at its lowest levels.
Did you know we won't be able to do buffets any longer? One of our favorite places is Buffet City in Benton. No more swimming in lakes or pools. No hugging or kissing anyone with anyone other than ourselves. That is going to be hard on Easton and Zane. And, especially his family. They are quite affectionate.
I haven't seen yet, where we have to stop riding our bikes. He is determined to do that once his wrist heals enough. Then we will ride like we are on stolen bikes.
Our lives will be changing dramatically. It reminds me of a quote I have in my wallet -- "Consider how hard it is to change yourself before you try to change others". Isn't that something God gives us every day -- Change? And, we still survive through it.
Our sermon on Sunday, "Why Count Your Blessings When You Can Complain?". Ken is so created when it comes to putting titles to things. The passage is Ps. 103... It talks about the things God can do. Our job is to continue our faith in that very thing. He can do it ALL.
We have three appointments tomorrow. Two are followup -- MRI and bone scans that the hospital failed to complete. Another is a bone aspiration. We have ordered more lollipops for this.
I will keep you posted.... Kathy
DEFINITION:
(adjective) bold, daring, adventurous.
Isn't this going to be a bold, daring and adventurous journey for Chemo Sabe? We are already talking about him being bald. Won't all of you love that? We had probably, our last dip in the spa last evening. We are already talking about what we plan to do with the dogs during his down times when his immune system is at its lowest levels.
Did you know we won't be able to do buffets any longer? One of our favorite places is Buffet City in Benton. No more swimming in lakes or pools. No hugging or kissing anyone with anyone other than ourselves. That is going to be hard on Easton and Zane. And, especially his family. They are quite affectionate.
I haven't seen yet, where we have to stop riding our bikes. He is determined to do that once his wrist heals enough. Then we will ride like we are on stolen bikes.
Our lives will be changing dramatically. It reminds me of a quote I have in my wallet -- "Consider how hard it is to change yourself before you try to change others". Isn't that something God gives us every day -- Change? And, we still survive through it.
Our sermon on Sunday, "Why Count Your Blessings When You Can Complain?". Ken is so created when it comes to putting titles to things. The passage is Ps. 103... It talks about the things God can do. Our job is to continue our faith in that very thing. He can do it ALL.
We have three appointments tomorrow. Two are followup -- MRI and bone scans that the hospital failed to complete. Another is a bone aspiration. We have ordered more lollipops for this.
I will keep you posted.... Kathy
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Persevere -- April 13, 2008 -- Dreaded Visit
persevere
DEFINITION:
(verb) to continue despite difficulties
This was the Word for the Day on my Yahoo today… April 13, 2008
We had our visit today with the doctors. The VISIT we dreaded for weeks. A month, to be exact. Our last visit with an oncologist was April 15. We finished all the testing from last Wed to Monday. He even tested on Saturday. The good in all these visits – we met a lot of people with Multiple Myleloma. People? – wrong word – Survivors! We have heard great stories and we have heard good stories and we have heard the bad stories. From the meds, the pain, the remissions, the recurrences, the tears and most importantly, the smiles.
Yesterday we decided we were leaving for the weekend. We are going to Eureka. Jim’s sister is watching the animals. We decided we would go to either celebrate or cry in our beer. Read on…..
Jim does have multiple Myleloma.. It is cancer in the blood. The cancerous cells eat away the bone marrow and bone. He will start his first chemo treatment on Wed, May 28. I won’t go into the regimen, because we are still digesting it ourselves. He will get a port and the blood tests, meds and chemo will be done through the port. It will become his friend. This will eliminate the needle in the arm on each visit.
He will then have a large quantity of his bloods cells taken from his body. This will make his immune system quite low. Quite low… After he gets through that rough patch, his good cells they took out of his body and refurbished will then be placed back into his system. That will be the stem cell transplant.
That was the bad news… The good news we were blessed with is: there is one lesion around his neck/spine area, one on each shoulder blade area and 25 in his back pelvic area. YES, THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS. We have spoken with people that have 36 on each shoulder with recurring. We have spoken to people that are high risk and can’t do anything for fear of breaking a bone. The reports seem to indicate this is not the case with Jim. It looks like it is in the early stage. God pushing him off the roof was a blessing in disguise.
Oh, with that… he does have a fracture in one of his vertebrae that can be repaired with a needle injection of cement. They are holding off on that.
Another bad news…. UAMS is ‘out of network’ with our insurance, so the insurance will not pay for the transplant and probably not the high potent chemo drug he needs, which the drug is $1,000 a pop..estimated at around $10,000 a month. Isn’t that depressing? I haven’t told you the cost of the transplant.
We have chosen two members of our family to run interference for us, translate to our family members anything/everything that goes on. They will let anyone know if we just are worn out, don’t want to talk, too sick to talk or just trying to catch up on work. They are telling Jim he will probably be off work for 3-4 months.
These two people were with us all day today. They are strong willed, stubborn, listen to the facts and only the facts, reveal the facts and only the facts, aren’t afraid to ask questions and will protect their family till death. They will be our translators of Jim’s disease to our families and ward off any uneasiness anyone has about what Jim is going through. We chose Tommy (our son) and Chaundell (our niece). We are fortunate to have such strong people to help us. Tommy is a go-getter. Bull in the china shop. Chaundell is an RN and not afraid to get straight to the point.
What did Jim and I talk about when we got home??????? Work… how much we will miss…. What we have to do to get things in order for ‘work’… Can you believe it???? I can..
We are relieved about what the doctor told us today. I especially was afraid I was going to hear I was losing my best friend soon. Heck, I may go tomorrow… He will probably out live me.
I guess you want to know if we will be celebrating or crying in our beer…… “Celebrate goods times, Come on”…..
p.s….. We are looking forward to seeing Jim bald. We came up with a new biker name for him today. Chemosabe… Spelled differently than the Lone Ranger’s nickname… I just can’t imagine Easton, our 4 yr old grandson calling him that instead of Poppy.
I will keep you posted when I can… It will be a long journey… When I get the okay from Tommy and Chaundell, I will forward you their numbers. Please feel free to call Jim or me, but please understand if we can’t talk. It doesn’t mean we don’t want you to call.
Keep praying for more miracles.
Kathy Rice
DEFINITION:
(verb) to continue despite difficulties
This was the Word for the Day on my Yahoo today… April 13, 2008
We had our visit today with the doctors. The VISIT we dreaded for weeks. A month, to be exact. Our last visit with an oncologist was April 15. We finished all the testing from last Wed to Monday. He even tested on Saturday. The good in all these visits – we met a lot of people with Multiple Myleloma. People? – wrong word – Survivors! We have heard great stories and we have heard good stories and we have heard the bad stories. From the meds, the pain, the remissions, the recurrences, the tears and most importantly, the smiles.
Yesterday we decided we were leaving for the weekend. We are going to Eureka. Jim’s sister is watching the animals. We decided we would go to either celebrate or cry in our beer. Read on…..
Jim does have multiple Myleloma.. It is cancer in the blood. The cancerous cells eat away the bone marrow and bone. He will start his first chemo treatment on Wed, May 28. I won’t go into the regimen, because we are still digesting it ourselves. He will get a port and the blood tests, meds and chemo will be done through the port. It will become his friend. This will eliminate the needle in the arm on each visit.
He will then have a large quantity of his bloods cells taken from his body. This will make his immune system quite low. Quite low… After he gets through that rough patch, his good cells they took out of his body and refurbished will then be placed back into his system. That will be the stem cell transplant.
That was the bad news… The good news we were blessed with is: there is one lesion around his neck/spine area, one on each shoulder blade area and 25 in his back pelvic area. YES, THIS IS THE GOOD NEWS. We have spoken with people that have 36 on each shoulder with recurring. We have spoken to people that are high risk and can’t do anything for fear of breaking a bone. The reports seem to indicate this is not the case with Jim. It looks like it is in the early stage. God pushing him off the roof was a blessing in disguise.
Oh, with that… he does have a fracture in one of his vertebrae that can be repaired with a needle injection of cement. They are holding off on that.
Another bad news…. UAMS is ‘out of network’ with our insurance, so the insurance will not pay for the transplant and probably not the high potent chemo drug he needs, which the drug is $1,000 a pop..estimated at around $10,000 a month. Isn’t that depressing? I haven’t told you the cost of the transplant.
We have chosen two members of our family to run interference for us, translate to our family members anything/everything that goes on. They will let anyone know if we just are worn out, don’t want to talk, too sick to talk or just trying to catch up on work. They are telling Jim he will probably be off work for 3-4 months.
These two people were with us all day today. They are strong willed, stubborn, listen to the facts and only the facts, reveal the facts and only the facts, aren’t afraid to ask questions and will protect their family till death. They will be our translators of Jim’s disease to our families and ward off any uneasiness anyone has about what Jim is going through. We chose Tommy (our son) and Chaundell (our niece). We are fortunate to have such strong people to help us. Tommy is a go-getter. Bull in the china shop. Chaundell is an RN and not afraid to get straight to the point.
What did Jim and I talk about when we got home??????? Work… how much we will miss…. What we have to do to get things in order for ‘work’… Can you believe it???? I can..
We are relieved about what the doctor told us today. I especially was afraid I was going to hear I was losing my best friend soon. Heck, I may go tomorrow… He will probably out live me.
I guess you want to know if we will be celebrating or crying in our beer…… “Celebrate goods times, Come on”…..
p.s….. We are looking forward to seeing Jim bald. We came up with a new biker name for him today. Chemosabe… Spelled differently than the Lone Ranger’s nickname… I just can’t imagine Easton, our 4 yr old grandson calling him that instead of Poppy.
I will keep you posted when I can… It will be a long journey… When I get the okay from Tommy and Chaundell, I will forward you their numbers. Please feel free to call Jim or me, but please understand if we can’t talk. It doesn’t mean we don’t want you to call.
Keep praying for more miracles.
Kathy Rice
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