Another down day

Are you dizzy from this roller coaster ride of ups and downs...we sure are. The doctors had said he would have much more energy today, but that was not the case. He spent almost the whole day sleeping and refused to eat more than a bite or two at each meal. Because they have not determined the type of bacteria causing the infection, Dr. T said he would stay in the hospital a few more days.

Thank you for checking the blog and keeping Les and Mom in your thoughts and prayers.

A much improved Les

A few days of IV fluids and antibiotics have made Les feel and look much better! His hemoglobin was also low and is receiving two units of blood. This will give him more energy and by tomorrow he should feel more like himself. He did eat a half a pancake and some hashbrowns for breakfast, so we are encouraged. He will stay here at Lakeside overnight and could be released tomorrow, but we haven't heard that for sure. Round 4 of chemo is still scheduled for July 8 - 10. Thanks for keeping Les in your thoughts and prayers.

Les admitted to Lakeside

For the last several days, Les has been sleeping almost 23 out of 24 hours each day. Eating and drinking again became an issue and we thought he was getting dehydrated. Today, he was brought to the ER and diagnosed with another bladder infection. The fluids did seem to perk him up and he has been awake more today than in the last 3 days. Because his white blood cell count is a little too low, they are admitting him at least overnight. Please continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Hope you can view this...

Les doesn't seem to be doing well. For the last several days, he has mostly slept and remained very quiet even if he is awake. He speaks very little and almost seems emotionless. He isn't complaining about pain and said food is starting to taste better. We aren't sure if this round of chemo is harder on him, or if we just forget how badly he feels each time.

For my class I'm taking this week, we learned about this fun website, Animoto. I thought I'd try to embed it and we can all remember some better times. It is 2 1/2 minutes long. I've found if I let the whole thing load first (press the play arrow on the bottom and then quickly press it again to pause it. A darker bar should slowly move all the way across the video) it should play without skipping when you press play again. Cross your fingers!

More of the same...

Lots of sleeping, not much eating or conversation. He continues to be very weak. Continued prayers for strength and peace would be truly appreciated.

One tired guy...

Round three of chemo finished on Friday with another shot to keep his white cell count up during the next week or so. He is having trouble eating and drinking again. This seems to be the biggest side effect of the chemo for him. He wasn't feeling too well today and as always, is very tired. We hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing Father's Day.

Thanks for all your continued support and prayers.

Round Three - day one of chemo

Before chemo started today, we met with Dr. T. He expressed his pleasure with the good news of the scans and went over them with us a little bit. The amount of shrinking of the tumor in the lung is really something to celebrate. He said the newer tumor on the T10 is actually in the bone, so Les will be receiving a dose of medicine through the IV every three weeks to prevent the cancer from spreading to other bones. His extreme weakness could be attributed to his very low blood pressure. They were going to give him something for that, too.

Dr. T shared that our tentative plan is to do six rounds of chemo (round three began today). After round four, we will scan again (approximately July 28). If there is no progress at that time (sometimes chemo plateaus) he wouldn't recommend further treatments. He is disappointed the legs aren't moving more and indicated after this long, he probably won't regain full use of them. The memory issues (word retrieval/short term memory/etc) could be attributed to a variety of factors (chemo, meds, depression, radiation) and is one of the more frustrating parts of the illness for Les. The bladder infection may also still be hanging around...they were going to culutre it and get back to us.

We are so thankful he is pain free. Thank you for all your prayers during this time in our lives. We would appreciate your continued prayers that he remians pain free and that his words and memories appear when he wants/needs them. Thanks for checking in and sending the birthday wishes his way!

Update

While upbeat after the news of the scans, Les has become very weak and tired again. He doesn't want to sit up in the chair much and when he does, sometimes keeping himself upright can be difficult. Chemo will go Wed - Friday with all treatments at 10am in Omaha. We're planning to celebrate his birthday tonight incase he is feeling poorly after chemo tomorrow.

The Rotarians met at the Care Center again today. This is one thing he really looks forward to. The early start isn't mom's favorite, but they are both so pleased everyone is willing to allow him to be apart of it every once in a while.

His legs are moving a little better each day. The right leg is much improved and the left foot continues to wiggle as well. Thanks again for all the positive comments on the blog, phone calls, cards, and emails. We appreciate you keeping Les in your thoughts and prayers.

There is good news!

We just heard from Dr. Tarantolo, and we have read the reports from the radiologist (with some help from the Internet for the big words). The news sounds really pretty good and we are cautiously optimistic!:)

Here is what we think we know. The mass in the lung on the left is down from 3cm to 1cm. The one on the T8 has significantly decreased in size. The tumors in the brain have also decreased in size and in number! All of your prayers have helped this to occur!

There does seem to be a tumor on the T10 that may have been there for a while and it has increased slightly from a previous scan. There may also be a new mass in the right lung according to the report, but Dr. T. didn't mention it. He said the progress that has occured is exactly what he thought would happen.

So, chemo will begin again on Wednesday, June 17 and go for 3 days. He will have 2 of these treatments and then we'll scan again.

We are encouraged and know it is because of all the prayers offered on Les's behalf. Please continue to keep him and Mom in your prayers.

Tests done...the waiting game begins

Les made it through all the scans today but was very tired. He finally finished around 6:45. Aunt Judy got him a peanut butter shake (full of protien) from DQ for supper and he after a few bites his comment was,"It kind of grows on you."

He was in good spirits even on the way home in the van. We were told we probably won't get the results until tomorrow afternoon. We're not sure how the results are going to come...none of us are excited about getting the news over the phone. Les did ask Dr. T once if he made house calls. His response, "How close is it to Quarry Oaks?" :) Wouldn't that be something!

More as we know it. Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers!

Another infection

Dr. Sexena confirmed that Les has another urinary tract infection. This one was without symptoms so it is good he was seen today. He will need to be well hydrated for the scans tomorrow. The appointment is at 2:45 and could last until 7pm. Natalie is coming late tonight and good friends Ed and Beth should arrive tomorrow, too. Results should come tomorrow or Thursday. Les told mom today he is just going to take things one day at a time. Good advice for all of us. Thanks for you continued prayers. We'll share results as we know them.

Sleepy Saturday/Better Sunday

Les slept almost all of Saturday. He has remained fever free during this low immunity time, so we are keeping our fingers crossed he can avoid an infection. Sunday was better. He sat in the chair for a while and saw quite a few visitors during the afternoon/evening.

Monday should be quiet, which will help to prepare him for some doctor visits later this week. Tuesday he sees his primary physician, Dr. Sexina, and Wednesday, the long couple of scans are scheduled. I have class all week, so I think Natalie will be coming mid week to wait with Mom while he has his tests. Please continue your prayers during this stressful time. We appreciate all of them!

Enjoying a beautiful morning

After a not so good day yesterday, Les was a little better this morning. In between therapy sessions, mom took him outside. What a great morning to be out!

He says he is not nauseous or in pain this morning, but continues to tire easily. A pretty quiet man in general, has turned even more so. It seems this round of chemo was a little harder on him than the first one. Please pray for strength and healing for both Les and Mom.

He's had better days...

Yesterday, when I asked Les how he was feeling, he said he's had better days. His voice is very weak and he continues to sleep through much of the day and night. He did take some pain meds for some backbone pain late last night.

The last couple nights he's had a chicken strip from Dairy Cone and that seems to taste okay. Vanilla ice cream and a chocolate elcaire are some other foods that seem to work for him. No surprise on the eclaire, right?

His regular weekly blood draw yesterday indicated his white blood cell count was within normal range, but they do expect it to drop in the upcoming days. June 10th's appointments (CAT and MRI) will start at 2:45 and last until about 7pm. Results should either come that day or the day after.

Thanks for keeping Les and our family in your thoughts and prayers!

Hanging in there...

After a pretty quiet weekend, Les slept most of yesterday. He did sleep pretty well during the night, too, which is great. Yesterday's PT was difficult with the extreme fatigue he was feeling, but he's on his way back for more this morning. Eating and drinking continue to be low on his list, as well. In addition to his confusion with time, there are some memory issues that pop up pretty frequently. We're not sure if it is all the meds or the cancer. Continued prayers are always appreciated. Thanks!