Finished

Mom finished up her Radiation treatments yesterday 06/24/2010. She was diagnosed on October 13th and had a surgery before that. So this whole process has been about 9 months. Hopefully Mom can enjoy her summer before she heads back to work in August. Thanks for everyone who has supported our family throughout this whole ordeal. This will probably be the last post on this blog but thanks to all who visited. I have a blog for our family that I try to keep updated if you are interested check it out. www.theraikes.blogspot.com

Start each day with a smile, live-love-and laugh awhile!!!

Long Process

Mom has been doing Radiation for awhile and it is starting it's toll. The fatigue started to set in about a week ago and she has a pretty nasty burn that they are treating and trying to heal up. She has had to miss 2 days so that has set her back just a little bit. They are able to treat the spot where the lump was and then they will go back and finish up the rest and hopefully by then the burn will be in better shape. I talked to Mom last night and she is ready for it all to be over with. It has been about 8 months so it's a long ordeal. She is set to be finished June 25, 2010 so we can all hope that she is able to stay on schedule and get this done and over with!

Radiation

Mom started her Radiation yesterday. She said the computer went down so it took a little bit longer but normally it should only take about 15 minutes. The drive there is about 45 minutes though. The doctor said she shouldn't notice to fatigue for 2-3 weeks (hopefully that is the case). She has to go for 6 1/2 weeks so I figure she should be done the week of June 13th. Which is 8 months post diagnosis. It's been a long 8 months for Mom but she has been doing the best she can with it all and we all really appreciate all the support you all have given her!

Mission Chemo-------Complete!

Mom finished up her Chemo treatments 2 weeks ago! What a relief. She has about a month off and then will start her course of Radiation which will be 6 weeks (5 days a week). Mom had a pretty good week last week but over the weekend she caught a cold and has been having a little bit of a rough time. Hopefully, she will start feeling better today.

1 MORE 1 MORE 1 MORE!!!!!!!

7 down 1 to go! Easy for me to say but thank goodness only one more treatment. Mom had her 7th treatment yesterday. These treatments are very long. She said she got there shortly after 9 and didn't leave until sometime after 2. I hope that she does better this round. She had pretty bad bone pain mainly in her legs. It started last time on Wednesday so keep her in your prayers that the pain doesn't get so bad this time! Thanks again for all the support. One more Chemo then she'll have about a month off and start radiation which will be 5 days a week in Bryan.

6 Down 2 To Go!

Gaining on it! Only two more treatments to go! The worst seems to be behind Mom! She is doing a little better with these treatments but of course as good as you can! She has been able to do a little more and seems to mainly just (I use that term lightly) have the fatigue and some body aches that come and go. Overall, she is taking this on like a champ! After the Chemo she will have about 2 weeks off and then she'll have to undergo 6 weeks of Radiation (5 days a week). The side effects from that sound like it will again be mostly fatigue. The worst part is that Defiance doesn't have a radiation center so she'll have to drive Bryan everyday which from their house is about a 45 minute drive. There have been plenty of volunteers to help get her there though! (Thanks for that!) Until next time!

Minor Setback

Normally Mom would have her next Chemo treatment tomorrow but last time there was a little miscommuncation and Mom thought she wasn't supposed to get a shot the day after Chemo (she had normally been getting the shot the next day--but she started the new Chemo drug and she thought she wasn't supposed to)--anyways. She was supposed to get the shot and so when she saw the doctor last Monday he had her get it then and she has to wait 2 weeks from the date of the shot to have her next treatment. So instead of tomorrow she will have her next Chemo treatment on Monday 02/22. She seems to be doing a little better this go around--it is just constant fatigue but other than that she seems to be physically feeling better. That's it for now!

5 Down 3 To Go!

Well Mom is over the halfway point! She had her 5th treatment yesterday (it was like 4 hours UGH!) But so far she seemed to be doing well. Just the same ole fatigue but that will be an issue for the duration I'm afraid. Mom did have a slight infection in her arm a few weeks ago and that is probably what made her so sick. The infection has cleared up and she seems to be doing much better. Again, I don't want to sound like a broken record but I (WE) really do appreciate all the continued support--it has made this whole ordeal a bit easier to manage!

Better Week

Mom seemed to do a little better with the treatment this go around. This time it was more fatigue than anything--she didn't get the headaches or mouth sores quite as bad as before so that was a good thing. She goes for #5 on Wednesday. She is gaining on it!

Halfway There!

Mom had her 4th Chemo treatment yesterday only 4 to go! I told her that this is the better half considering that once this half is over that she is done! Next time she will be starting a different Chemo medication so the side affects might be a little different. Sounds like hopefully they won't be any worse just different (numbness in her fingertips/body aches). Last week was the worst week Mom has had. She felt miserable and wasn't able to do much of anything. Hoping the next 2 weeks are better for her! The Sunshine basket from the Church came at a perfect time and it really made her feel better to thanks to everyone for that! She still has some to open so that was a great and thoughtful idea to last awhile! Cards, phone calls, and other ways of support are still coming in and we still very much appreciate it!

3 down......5 to go!

Mom is gaining on it! She had her 3rd treatment on Wednesday the 6th (dad's bday). Overall, she is doing pretty well. She is still struggling with extreme fatigue but she is learning what she can do and can't do! She also has been cursed with nasty headaches that she can't seem to get rid of. Thanks to everyone for continued prayers, cards, calls, and meals! I will probably be getting ahold of folks soon to line up meals for the next couple of months!

2 Down...6 To Go.

Mom had her 2nd Chemo Treatment last Wednesday the 23rd. This time things seemed to be a little better. She is still very easily fatigued but it will probably be that way for the next 6 months or so until this is all done and over with. On a good note though, she really didn't feel nauseated like last time so that has been a good thing.Jason, Austin, and I headed to Defiance on the 24th for a brief Chirstmas lunch with Mom, Dad, and Andy. Today Adam and the crew is heading back from Tennessee and will be in Defiance until Saturday and we are heading there Friday. I'm sure Mom will be glad to see all the kids......sure she'll be happy when they are gone too :)

Good news....for once!

Mom had the genetic testing done to determine if she had the mutation in her BRCA genes. If she had the mutation then the chances of recurrence were not very good odds--so if the mutation was present the next step would have been a double masectomy. She got the word today that she does NOT have the mutation which is a huge relief! Once the chemo is done she will probably still have to go for radiation should not have to have surgery. Also, this is good news for myself and my two pretty little nieces. If mom had the mutation in the gene there is a risk of it being passed down. So good news there! 2nd Chemo treatment is still on for the 23rd.

Winter Break

Mom has been put on Extended Medical Leave from work. It isn't really her health that is keeping her off--she is only part time and she has used all of her sick time so the school board decided that since she would have to be taking time off because of her treatments and dr appointments that the best thing to do for the time being is to put her on leave. Basically, the end result is they are holding her job for up to 2 years. Obviously, she doesn't expect to be out that long but good to know that she has a job when this is all said and done. I told her what better time to have off than the winter when it's cold and nasty she won't have to get out in it daily. She will have to go to the appointments and treatment but that won't be every day. She has been pretty fatigued and still not feeling too well--her body seems to still be adjusting to the Chemo. I think her having the break from work will be a good thing so she can just focus on getting the treatments in and getting better! Next Chemo is still scheduled for 12/23/09.

1 down 7 to go!

Mom's first chemo went pretty well (as well as chemotherapy can go?!?!?). She got a headache about half and hour after she was done and then went home ate a little lunch and took at nap. About 6:30 she started to feel nauseated but was able to eat a little she never got sick. Today she said she felt better this morning and that she was just tired. So far so good. From what the nurses said, sounds like there is a better chance that she might start to get sick this weekend. Fingers crossed that she won't but if she does they did give her some medication to help. She will go every other week for 16 weeks. So basically a total of 8 treatments with weekly blood draws and doctor's appointments in between. So that is the latest!

Chemotherapy Begins

Mom starts Chemo tomorrow at 10:15 at Defiance Hospital. I am planning to take her and spend the night there to make sure that everything goes alright. Keeps the prayers coming!

Update--Chemo in about 2 weeks

Mom is healing up and doing pretty good. She even went to work today. I think she was pretty tired though! She went to the Oncologist on Friday. He said that she is "doing well" and he said that he doesn't tell many people that so that was reassuring. With the spread of the cancer to the lymph nodes she is in Stage 2 but certainly manageable. He wants to see her back in two weeks and then the Chemo will start after that. He wants to make sure that all her incisions are good and healed before doing the Chemo--makes sense. So we will have a nice Thanksgiving with all the kids! Mom is still in good spirits and just ready to start the Chemo to see how it will affect her. Again, thanks for all the prayers, thoughts, cards, meals, etc it really is making this whole situation a little easier to deal with!

Chemotherapy

Sounds like Mom will start chemotherapy the week of Thanksgiving. We are thankful that this was caught early and that she is still with us. Just disappointed that she has to go through all of this.

Not Great News...but she'll be okay!

Mom went to the doctor today and got her drain out of arm so I am hoping that this will alleviate some of her discomfort. At the appointment she found out the test results from the lymph nodes that they removed last week at her surgery. Unfortunately, they did find cancer in 2 of them. This really doesn't change much as far as treatments and what will be done next. She goes back to the surgeon next to assure that the incisions are healing properly and also sees the Oncologist to finalize Chemotherapy. My guess is that will start within the next couple of weeks. I say the sooner the better (easy for me to say). Mom said they showed her some exercises to do to get her arm back in shape---sounds like that was a lot of fun :) She is hanging in there and trying to get into a routine every day to keep things as normal as possible. Looks like she may not be back to work for awhile. I think that her main focus as this point needs to be focusing on staying healthy and keeping herself strong. Mom really appreciates all the cards, calls, meals, etc. A good support system is one of the most important things in someone's recovery and my mom is blessed to have a great network of friends and family!

Getting Out

I headed to Defiance yesterday. Mom had a bit of cabin fever. She and I went out to see Grampa at the nursing home and Mom picked up a couple of things that she needed. It was pretty quick trip but I think it's just what Mom needed! She continues to feel better almost daily. She is still pretty sore. She gets the drain tube out on Tuesday and I would hope that would take care of some of the discomfort. Slow but sure she is recovering from this surgery. No other doctor appointments until next week so we won't know much else until then.