We had our first check-up visit with Dr. S. yesterday morning. He examined Lori’s tumor and found that it is definitely smaller than it was three weeks ago! Also, the lymph nodes felt normal, and Lori felt no pain when he examined her there. Three weeks ago, the lymph nodes were sore and there were solid lumps. This week, the lymph node lumps are either gone or much much smaller, and it isn’t sore. So, Dr. S. seemed very happy about her progress under Taxol, and we are relieved to hear such good news! I had begun to think the tumor had actually grown since her first appointment last month. I certainly didn’t expect to hear a good progress report this early. Continue reading

This morning, Lori is in Indy getting her port installed. The port will sit just under the skin at the top of her chest. The port has a silicone bubble through which the chemo will be injected in the future. It feeds directly into the blood stream. It’s an easier way of administering the drug vice using the IV method. The install requires a minor surgery using local anesthesia. Continue reading

Last Monday, Lori had her third chemo infusion. She has begun to fall into a bit of a routine as far as her reaction to the drugs. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, she is still very lively due to the steroids. On Thursday and Friday, she tends to sleep much more. On the weekends, she does very well with pain medications, and life seems pretty much normal. Now that her third infusion is done, that wraps up the first cycle. She’ll likely go through two more cycles of three infusions each. Continue reading

Lori’s second appointment went well. Her brother and sister-in-law were in town visiting, and they drove to Indy with us Monday morning. On the following Tuesday and most of Wednesday, Lori felt great due in large part to the steroids, I assume. Today, the steroids will have run their course, so I’m interested to see how she will feel. This morning very early, she was awake with some pain in her ribs, but she slept well overall. Continue reading

Things are going well over all. Lori is more tired than usual, but she is able to rest whenever she needs to rest, so that is good. Her pain is mild while the hydrocodon keeps on doing its thing. Other than soreness and some extra fatigue, she isn’t showing any other symptoms from the Taxol. We try to take a short walk every night just to keep her active, and she is typically able to accomplish that without too much trouble. Continue reading

Everything went well today. We left Lafayette for Indy at 1045, and we arrived at 1200 for a 1230 appointment. In the lobby, they have puzzles set out for patients awaiting their appointment times, and Lori and I crushed one puzzle (smallish one), started another, and found 11 missing pieces from the first puzzle mixed into the second puzzle’s box! So needless to say, we were feeling pretty proud of ourselves. They say pride comes before the fall, but we just kept on whipping those puzzles. Continue reading

We really don’t have a lot of news since Thursday. We’re gearing up for Lori’s first day of chemotherapy on Monday at noon. A decision on long-term care options and living arrangements is yet to come. Those decisions depend on how she responds to treatment and whether or not the HER2 test is positive. Continue reading

Typing on cell. This will be very brief. News was as expected, and we are certain Dr S is perfect for us. Biopsy results not all in. They ruled out 1 of the 3 types of breast cancer (ER). The HER2 test is still pending. If it’s not HER2, then it defaults to being triple negative. Either way, the treatment begins the same way with Taxol chemotherapy. She starts that on Monday. Avg life span of a person in her condition is 3 years but we already knew that her time belongs to God no matter how long that is. Continue reading

Dr. Schneider called tonight and told us that only some of the biopsy data has been processed. He didn’t specify what that data was. He asked us to meet him at 8:00 am tomorrow (Thursday) to start planning the way ahead based on what we have. His first patient appointment is at 8:45 am, so he is setting aside 8:00 for us out of his generosity. If we hadn’t had this connection, I’m sure we’d have had to wait until at least next Monday to see him. Continue reading

Today, I spoke to a very close friend of mine on the phone. He called from overseas where he is deployed with many others from my community. He told me that they have been working 80 hour weeks sustained. When his commander heard about Lori (He does not know Lori or me), apparently he sent everyone home early in an effort to remind everyone to focus on those things which are truly most important.
I can assure you that their work at that deployed location is very important! I told that story to Lori and my family, and everyone feels very deeply blessed by it. If that commander reads this, we thank you. Continue reading