Great News!!

We met with Rachel's Oncologist on Wednesday.... to receive the results from her PETScan. That test looks for cancer anywhere in the body.... the results were great!  No Cancer anywhere!!

What this does tell us though it Rach had Stage 2 Cancer.... we were unsure about the chest area... if it was a second cancerous node or her thymus gland glowing on the tests. With no glow now... it was a cancerous node and made her a Stage 2 Hodgkins patient.... but that being said... it's gone now!

She meets with a radiologist on Monday to discuss her radiation treatments. We'll do those in Joplin, Missouri at Freeman Cancer Center. Rachel will have two areas.... neck and chest radiated.... 15 days, Mon-Fri in a row. Those will start in early January. She'll have her consultation with the doctors and have the areas tattooed (marked) before the end of the year.  

She's almost done.... and we couldn't have received any better news than we did this week!

Thanks to all for your continued prayers and thoughts.... 

Update Monday December 8th

Rachel had a rough Sunday.... she was at her boyfriend's house and her resting heart rate hit 150.... she eventually calmed down, but her rate was still over 100 the rest of the day. On Monday, Jan called her oncologist and we are to take her to the emergency room should this ever happen again. Later on Monday, Rachel and Jan decided to take her to Girard Hospital when her heart rate reached about 125-130... She was examined and given IV Fluids... that brought her rate down to 80... she might have been dehydrated?? She has to continue to monitor her heart rate throughout the day.

It was also decided that she doesn't have to have any more Chemo treatments!!! So we decided to celebrate... Eric, Jan, Rachel, Tyler and I went to Olive Garden and had a great time...

We all made sure she drank LOTS of water.....

Treatment #7 12-3-08

This is Rachel's 7th of 8 treatments.... met with her oncologist before her treatment. What we/she determined is that she will not have any more of the drug that can affect her lungs. That will not be given to her anymore.... a relief for all! Rachel has also decided that she wants to have the radiation treatments for Phase 2 instead of additional chemo treatments.

So here is the plan... Rachel gets a new PET Scan on Wed December 9th... this is the "glow" test to show any cancerous areas in your body. We are assuming there will be no glowing in the neck area, but we are unsure about the heart area, where the 2nd lymph node is... If there is no glow.... we will assume that she had Stage 2 Hodgkins and that it is gone from the chemo. If there is a glow in that area, we will still not know if it is Hodgkins... since the lymph node is next to the Thymus gland. What we don't know is if she still has her Thymus gland...since they go away as persons reach adulthood. If it glows... we can: 1) radiate the area without a biopsy 2) biopsy the area, which is fairly major surgery...

We'll just wait for the test results before we decide what to do...

Rach had her treatment afterwards... did well for the rest of the week.....

Treatment #6 11-19-08

Another strong week for Rachel.... This was her 6th of 8 treatments and she had it on Wednesday and spent ... came home and laid low for a couple of days...then a weekend in Kansas City. Went to the PSU-NW MO game on Saturday and returned home that night. Still going to class and working a bit at the Love Bubble Coffee Shop.

Her overall energy is lower, but she is resting when needed and learning to pace herself pretty good.

As always, we're pretty amazed at her approach to all of this!

Treatment #5 11-5-08

Rachel took her 5th of 8 treatments on Wednesday. She handled it well and has rested much of Thursday.  She went through 2 tests prior to this treatment...since she is at the midway point of this round of chemo. The tests are for checking heart pumping and lung capacities. One of the drugs she is taking can negatively affect heart pumping for the long term, but her capacity level is well above the danger point (low danger point is 50/Rachel is at 65-70). Her lung capacity can also be affected long term since another of the drugs can create "fibrosis" in the lungs and cause breathing problems later in life. This number is still above the danger low level... but her number does cause the doctor to monitor it closely. She only has one more treatment with this particular drug and he will discontinue after her 6th treatment...and he feels there will be no long term damage to her lungs.  

This is the dilemma with cancer killing drugs.... you have to cure the body and rid it of the disease, but these are powerful drugs and some can cause long term damage to the body if not properly administrated.

Rachel's white blood count remains high after last weeks booster (neuprogen) shot... the doctor will continue to give that every 16 days...

We're getting closer to the end of this round.... Her hair has thinned quite a bit, so she shaved her head this week!  She put on one of the wigs we got her and she looks great!! Just like her hair is normally and her spirits picked up quite a bit as a result.  She said getting ready after a shower is so much easier than messing with her real hair!!  She has not lost any eyebrows or lashes.... She was supposed to lose her hair in week 2 and she still had some... we're hoping she won't lose any more.

She is starting back to work in the coffee shop.... and continues to be an inspiration to all of us!

Thanks for your prayers.... they're working !!! 

Treatment #4 10-22-08

Rachel had her 4th treatment last Wednesday.... we're halfway through Phase I of her treatments. Had the normal reaction... pretty tired for a few days... then she starts to bounce back a bit. On Thursday she had another Neuprogen shot to boost her white blood cell count which had again gotten quite low. I think the shot does as much to make her tired and sore as anything else. Rachel also had a flu shot... all of the family has to do this now... Kelly and Jan have had theirs... Eric and I get ours this week.

We celebrated Rachels 20th birthday on Friday... she was  a bit down that day... but we went to El Charro for Mexican... her choice!  She perked up quite a bit... later some of her friends came by and they all had a fun evening. On Saturday, she didn't go to Hays to watch Tyler play at Ft. Hays.. she stayed home and rested. That night she went to a wedding reception for a couple of hours. Sunday she and Jan went to exchange a couple of birthday gifts in Joplin. She is resting more, but will be back to normal by Tuesday.....

All in all, she is really handling this like a pro.... upbeat, positive and an inspiration to all. Rachel also wanted me to say how much she appreciates the cards and motivational stuff many of you send her!!!

Update on Eric: Eric's MRI and CT scans were returned. Doctor said he does not need knee surgery... good news!  Also, his collar bone was broken in several places instead of one??? But, all the various pieces have reset themselves in the proper alignment... so no surgery needed there as well!!  He can return to work with limited duty now... full duty in 3 weeks.

Treatment #3 10-8-08

Rachel had her third treatment today... going pretty well... she was up and around this evening with friends. She gets tired on treatment day and for the next 48 hours... then starts to bounce back. She is supposed to work on Thursday, but will probably stay home and rest. She is still going to class daily.

Had a consultation with her oncologist before the treatment and received some encouraging news. As we said in an earlier post, her white cell count was low and the fighter cells, which are a percentage of the overall white blood cell count, were extremely low. Last treatment her cell count was 3.0  (normal range is 5.0 to 10.0) and her fighter cells were .25 (normal range is 2.0 to 5.0). We were told she would not receive chemo with this number below 1.5 and she was given the 2nd treatment anyway. Welllll... last treatment they also gave her a drug that boosts her white cell count... the side affects can be pretty painful and Rach had a tough few days after that shot with some severe body pain. The shot was successful though... this week prior to the 3rd treatment... white cell count is now 14!!! and the fighter count is 7.5!!! really dramatic, positive increase... the doctor says she will receive this booster shot each treatment from her on, but he will decrease the dosage and hopefully some of the painful side affects.

Doctor is encouraged by her progress and so are we!! She's a tough cookie!!

Side Note:  Eric is better.... going to class again and starting to move around again...

10-1-08 Update

For awhile more... it's an Eric and Rachel posting.... Eric is getting better. He went to an orthopedic doctor this week. Eric will need an MRI and CT scan for his shoulder and knee. Doctor thinks his knee has cartilage damage and his shoulder may be separated and possibly not broken. But despite all of this, he's much better and off pain medications... getting out and about.

Rachel's booster shot to increase her white blood cell count has helped. Her weekly blood test showed an improvement in that area and the doctor is much less concerned. She has had a couple of bad moments this week with pretty bad back pain, headaches and body aches from the booster shot. Those are side affects she was told about... but she's better this weekend and is in KC for the Pitt State - NW Missouri game at Arrowhead. She has not slowed down a bit on schedule... but she does rest more in between classes, work and activities.  She also comes in earlier on "party" nights....  

All in all, she's been quite inspiring.... Her 3rd treatment is scheduled for this coming Wednesday.... 

Tough Day 9-23

Pretty tough day yesterday.... Rachel seems to be okay, but had to get a Neuprogen shot. That shot stimulates her bone marrow to produce more of the white blood cells that are quite low. Shot went fine... the side effect is pretty bad bone pain the next 24-48 hours, primarily in the sternum, hips and shoulders where much of your marrow is produced... 

but the additional tough part was with her brother Eric... he works for the City of Pittsburg part time while going to school. At 3pm yesterday, his boss showed up at my work to inform me that Eric had been in a work related accident. He was on a mowing tractor on a steep incline and the mower rolled downhill. Eric was able to jump off enough to keep from being crushed, but was injured. The tractor rolled to the bottom of the incline, about 80 feet and Eric fell down the hill about 50 or so. He luckily had his phone in his pocket... pushed his "send" button, which dials his last call and that happened to be his boss. EMT and Police showed up right away and he went to the hospital. He broke his left collarbone and has numerous cuts on the left side. His right leg has a deep puncture wound that can't be stitched and it has to bleed out and will heal..plus his left knee is pretty messed up. He can hardly walk on it. We will see an Orthopedic doctor on Friday or Monday.  I went over the to site of the accident last night, and I don't want to be overly dramatic here, but Eric is lucky to be alive. It is a very steep incline and he could have easily been crushed had he not jumped off in the correct direction. Normally you are supposed to wear a seat belt on those tractors, but Eric did not have his on... that is what saved him.

Eric is at home... as you can imagine... very sore....but he'll be okay in a week or so... you can't set collarbones, just immobilize them as best you can... it broke where the bone attaches to the sternum... so you can see the break push up towards his skin when he moves in the wrong way... pretty painful!  It will start to reattach within a few days.... we'll keep you posted on his progress as well.

Jan and I took the day off today... I went to the liquor store as soon as it opened this morning and purchased a fifth of vodka... we hope to be drunk by mid-afternoon.... 

Our house is a hospital ward right now... but again "this too shall pass"

Despite all of this... it really could've been a lot worse...

We know we're in your thoughts and prayers and we are very appreciative. 

Treatment #2 9-22-08

Rachel spent last weekend hanging out... went to St. Joe on Saturday with girlfriends to watch Pitt State play.... Her attitude is really great... expecting complete recovery and acts like nothing has changed in her life!

Rachel had her 2nd treatment yesterday...  Took an entire entourage with her... I think she actually would like to go with her friends and sister... Jan and I ask too many questions??!

On to the treatment....the part of her blood count (Neutrophil) that fights infection was pretty low yesterday.  Last week they told us if her Neutrophil count was 1.5 or lower they probably wouldn't give her chemo.  Last week  (her off week) it was at 1.6 and this week  it was   0.2 !!!  Very low-----they surprised us and went ahead with her treatment  - because they really don't want get behind.  Her other blood counts were pretty good, so that is probably why they went ahead with chemo.   She will get a shot today to boost her white blood cell count.    She feels fine, but is staying in for a couple days since she is so susceptible to infection right now.

Typically... the chemo wipes out your white cells... your body replaces them...The nurses told us that Rachel will probably be one that her cell count drops later in the 2-week treatment cycle rather that earlier.   

2 down..... 6 to go!! 

Week after First Treatment 9-15-08

Things are going well.... no major side effects from Treatment #1.  One down and seven to go!!

Rach had some jaw/eye/facial pain which is a side effect, but it only lasted a couple of days. She is resting when needed, but is doing all the things she always does... school, a little work and seeing friends. She went to the PSU football game Saturday and stood in the rain all game... it was miserable... but PSU won in the final minute!! 

Her boyfriend plays Cornerback on the team.

Everyone close to her is supposed to get a flu shot soon and Rach will get one, as well as some other ones.

She had a blood test this week... to check her white blood cell count... no results yet.

She has a great attitude!

First Treatment 9-9-08

Rachel had her first treatment on Tuesday, September 9th.  

She was accompanied by Jan (Mom), Kelly (Sister) and Eric (Brother).... she had visits from friends Kate and Kirsten while she was there.

Rachel's treatments are in the office of her oncologist in Pittsburg... she'll have them every other week.

They gave her a sedative... which is common for patients, especially younger ones.... they also gave her anti-nausea, steroids and benadryl in addition to her chemo treatment.

The treatments take about 2 hours and she slept through most of it... she woke up enough to come home... then went back to sleep until about 7pm.... she woke up hungry and asked for "Bamboo" which is code in our family for sweet and sour chicken... so like I did for my pregnant wife years ago... you shut up and go get in the car!

She ate great all nite... adding ice cream and caramel apples to the list and slept pretty good... 

So far so good!

The Diagnosis of Rachel

Hey everyone... 

Thought I'd relay this update on Rachel... 

 As most of you know Rachel was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma about a week before Kelly's wedding in August. She found a lump below her clavicle on the left side and after a couple of rounds of anti-biotics... it was surgically removed..(it was the size of a golf ball!) So.... we felt we should also get another opinion... we are quite happy with our Pittsburg Oncologist, but we want to make sure..

Jan, Rachel and I travelled to Omaha yesterday (Sept 5th) to meet with an 
Oncologist with the Univ of Nebraska Cancer Research Hospital... 
his expertise is Hodgkins Disease and we were getting a 2nd opinion.

It was a very rewarding trip... one that answered lots of questions 
and provided much hope to all of us about her disease and the short/
long term effects.

Here's the results of the discussion:
1) He agreed with the original diagnosis... Classic Hodgkins  Lymphoma (cancer) and it is possibly in a Stage 2 phase (there are 4 stages with this disease).  The stages are based on how many and which lymph nodes are infected. Her original node in her neck/ shoulder area was removed and that would be Stage 1. The next area 
that could be infected is near the center chest/heart area.. that is Stage 2.  Both doctors are uncertain if this area is infected because young people have an active Thymus gland near the heart that "lights" up under a radio active scan for cancer. This area lit up in Rachel, but they don't know if it lit up because of cancer cells or her Thymus. Despite the uncertainty... they are assuming it is cancer and calling it Stage 2.  BTW... the scan did not show any cancer cells left in the original Stage 1 area after her operation to remove that gland. (That's good news!)

2) Hodgkins is an unusual, but fairly common disease and one that has much research. Young people have an 85 to 95 percent of beating the disease on the first round... clear after 2 years... its 98 percent chance it will never occur again...after 5 years it's 99.9 percent gone forever.

3) Having Hodgkins does not make her "prone" to other cancers. It is a stand alone disease and doesn't mean it will lead to something else later on... the only other issue is the radiation used to  treat it...(more on this below)

4) All other questions related to the "effects" of Chemo were  answered... fertility, hair loss, potential sickness... lots of  good/positive/hopeful answers to our questions... the only negative  was the hair loss, but it will grow back... (except for me!)

5) His treatment options were nearly identical to what was suggested by our Pittsburg Oncologist... except for 1 month MORE of Chemo. Rachel will need 8 treatments of chemo.... 1 every other week.... so it will take about 4 months for the chemo treatments.  She is to carry on as normal as she wants... the doctor expected 
her to still go to school, work and have a social life. After this initial treatment, we'll do another scan and make sure the cancer is in remission. Rachel will then decide what she wants to do with the final stage of her treatment. She has two options: a) 2 more months (4 treatments) of chemo OR b) 15-20 days of localized 
radiation of those two areas in her chest. The radiation has some potential long term effects... mainly an increased chance of breast cancer or an over active thyroid due to the radiation being close to those areas. She has time to decide 
what to do with this...

Rachel will begin treatments on Monday or Tuesday of next week... 
Kelly is now an RN and works in Oncology in KC... she has arranged her schedule to come back and be with Rachel during all her treatments and the days immediately afterward... we're really appreciative of her doing this!

This is the latest news and we're ready to move on... Rachel's attitude is great, positive.... really a bit better than Jan and I have been at times, but we're all on the same page now. Get this over with and let Rach move on with her life.

Thanks again for all of your support, motivation and prayers...
It is all GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!