1.1.11

Happy New Year! I know I promised an update on Trish like a week ago, but the holidays won out. We Christmased from December 25th to December 30th with family and friends. It was needed and wonderful and exhausting. We survived . . . and maybe even thrived a little bit. Tekia declared it was the best Christmas ever. 

I guess I should fill everyone in on the last week and a half or so. The week of Christmas was an off-week for Mom (no chemo). However, she ended up going to the doctor on December 23rd because of a sprained ankle (she tripped and fell and then it turned all kinds of crazy colors, so we thought a trip to the doctor was warranted). As always, they did blood work. Her foot was just a sprain, but her hematocrit was low again (25). She needed a blood transfusion. Because the next two days were holidays, she wouldn't be able to get the transfusion as an outpatient like she did the last time. So Mom spent Christmas Eve Eve in the hospital. She received two units of blood that night and was discharged on Christmas Eve. Obviously, this made our last-minute shopping plans a bit more difficult, but we managed. 

Last Monday, Mom had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Tauer and was supposed to start her last cycle of chemo. However, when she told Dr. T that we had more family Christmas coming up that week, he told her it wasn't crucial to have that treatment right away and gave her one more week off chemo. Mom was thrilled. :-) We talked about Mom's trouble with blood counts. Dr. T was concerned that she might be bleeding somewhere, but she has no other symptoms of that. So we assume it's the chemo. Dr. T also pointed out that we have no idea how being on Herceptin for so many years could affect bone marrow and red cell production (Herceptin is still a relatively new drug for breast cancer, and most women don't take it as long as Mom has, so we don't know everything about it). Because Mom's had so much trouble the last few weeks (with blood counts and fatigue), he originally wanted to do a CT scan that day. But when he heard that Mom was feeling better after having a week off chemo and getting blood, he decided to wait on the scan. So, her last two treatments will be on the 3rd and the 10th, and her CT scan will be on the 24th. We talked about the future a little bit. Dr. Tauer wasn't necessarily negative, but he seemed a bit more cautious than usual. I think he was just trying to prepare us for the very real possibility that something could show up on Mom's next scan. Pancreatic cancer often recurs after surgery and it often happens quickly. If the scan on the 24th is clear, they'll continue to do frequent scans to monitor Mom for any signs of recurrence. If the scan isn't clear, our options are limited, but we're not going to worry about that now. Dr. T did mention an upcoming clinical trial that might be available to Mom in the future if she needed it. Hope. 

As far as Mom goes, she's had a great 2nd week off chemo! On her previous off-weeks, she's never really seemed to feel better. She's usually just as tired and weak as she is during chemo weeks. But having two weeks off in a row has made all the difference in the world. She's had more energy and her GI issues have been almost nonexistent! A few days have almost seemed - dare I say it? - normal! Needless to say, Trish is not looking forward to these last two chemo treatments after feeling so good this week, but hopefully these will be the last two treatments she ever has to have!

So, pray hard, dear friends. Pray hard and pray big and pray without ceasing. Pray like you believe in miracles. Pray for a completely clear scan on the 24th. Pray for a cancer-free 2011. 

"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." -Jesus (Mark 11:24)