Cheryl has been having some pain and redness on the side of her right calf since mid-March. When she saw Dr. Burke on March 16th, the area was about 2X3 inches and slightly red. He had a deep ultrasound done to rule out a deep vein thrombosis and the scan came back okay. He referred her back to our family practice. By the time she got in to their office, the area of pain and swelling was several inches long and substantially wider. They made a preliminary diagnosis of superficial thrombophlebitis and put her on Keflex (antibiotic) for several days which did nothing to slow the spread of the effected area.
On her return visit to Dr. Tomus' office, they changed her diagnosis to cellulitis and discontinued the Keflex and put her on Cipro and Cleocin (antobiotics) and gave her Vicodin for pain. Over the next several days, the pain increased and the area grew larger extending about three inches past where the NP (nurse practitioner) had marked on her last visit.
Which get us to this afternoon. The NP and doctor reviewed Cheryl's blood work and did not see an increased white count. Her hemoglobin is at 11 vs 12 but overall, the rest of her panel was in normal range. Dr. Tomus determined that the next course of action has to be hospitalization for IV antibiotics and additional pain meds to get this under control. He called in to Memorial Health in Savannah and coordinated a direct admit so we didn't have to go through the usual ER hassles.
After Cheryl was processed and was waiting to be sent to a room, we had a chance to meet with Dr. Ignacio who will be managing her care. He said that the course of treatment could take as long as five days to get the infection under control.
Before I left the hospital this evening, the had already given Cheryl her first IV bag of antibiotic and also gave her a shot of morphine to help ease her pain. The good news is, cellulitis is not normally life-threatening but it is extremely painful and can advance to other problems if it is not taken care of adequately.
Please pray that the antibiotics will be effective and that Cheryl will be released as soon as possible.
Wednesday Morning Update
Just got off the phone with Cheryl. She is feeling less pain in her right leg this morning. They did an ultrasound of her left calf since she was also having some pain there as well and they've discovered a new deep vein thrombosis. Her meds have been adjusted and they will now be monitoring the DVT on the left leg along with the cellulitis on the right leg.
Wednesday Afternoon Update
The vascular doctors have decided that Cheryl has DVT in both legs. They are going over her information to determine what else needs to be done. As of now, she will be adding Lovenox injections to her daily routine and it looks as if they will insert a filter in the inferior vena cava to prevent these clots and any future clots from migrating to the lungs (pulmonary embolism),heart or brain. We should know more by this evening.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Good News and Not So Good News
Cheryl had her first full follow-up with Dr. Burke Wednesday morning (3/16/11). Her physical exam went well and she appears to be making good progress. Dr. Burke said that all of her abdominal and pelvic CAT scans looked good and discussed that the lung CAT scan does still show some loculated fluid (trapped pockets between the lung and pleural lining).
As we were wrapping up the appointment, he told the nurse that Cheryl needs to have a CA 125 check since the last one was performed back in January, shortly after she completed chemo. He told us that the result of this test would likely be lower than the 19 she had on the previous one.
After the appointment, I dropped Cheryl off at home and went on in to work for a few hours and then headed over to the church to get ready for the mid-week prayer service. Shortly after 5 PM, Cheryl received a called from the Dr. Burke's nurse telling her that she needs to come back in for another CA 125 next month since this test was elevated.
By elevated, she meant that it had gone from 19 to 97.9. Dr. Burke had the nurse tell Cheryl that the elevated level may be due to the fluid that remains in her pleural cavity. There can also be other causes for an elevated CA 125 which is part of why they want to wait the 30 days to do a recheck.
With this bit of information, we are not panicked but we are most definitely praying for this level to come back down to normal range. We thank you for all of your prayers along the way and ask that you continue to lift us up to the Throne of Grace.
As we were wrapping up the appointment, he told the nurse that Cheryl needs to have a CA 125 check since the last one was performed back in January, shortly after she completed chemo. He told us that the result of this test would likely be lower than the 19 she had on the previous one.
After the appointment, I dropped Cheryl off at home and went on in to work for a few hours and then headed over to the church to get ready for the mid-week prayer service. Shortly after 5 PM, Cheryl received a called from the Dr. Burke's nurse telling her that she needs to come back in for another CA 125 next month since this test was elevated.
By elevated, she meant that it had gone from 19 to 97.9. Dr. Burke had the nurse tell Cheryl that the elevated level may be due to the fluid that remains in her pleural cavity. There can also be other causes for an elevated CA 125 which is part of why they want to wait the 30 days to do a recheck.
With this bit of information, we are not panicked but we are most definitely praying for this level to come back down to normal range. We thank you for all of your prayers along the way and ask that you continue to lift us up to the Throne of Grace.
Monday, March 14, 2011
A Reason to Celebrate (through Cheryl's eyes)
Cheryl's Remission Party was a real hit. With over 100 people in attendance, it was quite a time of celebration.
I took the floor to say thank you to everyone and was overwhelmed as I looked out at all the faces of family, neighbors and friends who were so helpful in getting us to this point.
Not only was the food good, the news of remission good, but our daughter Michelle also had some good news of her own to share. She announced that she is pregnant and is due on September 14th which was Granddaddy Leo Maxwell's birthday.
This news makes me all the more thankful o be through with chemo and feeling better. It gives me one more thing to look forward to.
This Wednesday, I will go see Dr. Burke who will have the results of my recent CAT scans. Since the CA125 numbers were good, we are expecting good news. We will update the blog with new of how the CAT scans turn out.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
And the News Is -------Good!
On Wednesday, Cheryl had an appointment with Dr. Burke, the gynecologic oncologist who performed her surgery last summer. He removed her IP (abdominal) port under local anesthesia. She is now somewhat sore from the inch and 1/2 hole he made in her side to access the device. Over the next week or so, the stitches should dissolve and the steri-strips will peel off and she should feel better.
Cheryl has a follow up appointment with him next month along with blood work and a CT scan of the pelvis and abdomen to make sure that there is no residual cancer left. Based on her low count now and how well she responded to the chemotherapy, he feels that she is in remission at this time.
She will be facing blood work every three months for the next year. If all goes well, they will move the testing interval out to four month and then eventually every six months after a couple of years. As long as we can keep her cancer-free, or at least under control, we will be very pleased.
We want to thank everyone for all of their prayers, support and kind words during this past eight months.
Plans are going well for Cheryl's remission party that we are going to hold at Westside Baptist Church, 108 N. Welborn St. (off Memorial Drive) in Hinesville on Saturday, February 26th from 2-4 pm. You are all invited to drop by so we can express our thanks to you in person.
Cheryl has a follow up appointment with him next month along with blood work and a CT scan of the pelvis and abdomen to make sure that there is no residual cancer left. Based on her low count now and how well she responded to the chemotherapy, he feels that she is in remission at this time.
She will be facing blood work every three months for the next year. If all goes well, they will move the testing interval out to four month and then eventually every six months after a couple of years. As long as we can keep her cancer-free, or at least under control, we will be very pleased.
We want to thank everyone for all of their prayers, support and kind words during this past eight months.
Plans are going well for Cheryl's remission party that we are going to hold at Westside Baptist Church, 108 N. Welborn St. (off Memorial Drive) in Hinesville on Saturday, February 26th from 2-4 pm. You are all invited to drop by so we can express our thanks to you in person.
Friday, January 28, 2011
If 22 Was Good News... What Does That Make 19?
Cheryl finally got word from Dr. Robertson's (oncologist) office with her CA125 results from the January 17th test. And the number is--- drum roll please--- 19. All the more reason to celebrate as we look forward to her remission party on Saturday, February 26th from 2-4 PM. Everyone near and far is invited to come. Please drop a line, comment on the blog, give us a call or tell us in person if you will be able to attend. We hope to have a large crowd join us fir the celebration.
Cheryl is looking forward to going to church service this Sunday. This will be her first time to attend in several months. This will be our quarterly communion service so that makes it that much more special for both of us.
We continue to be encouraged by Cheryl's progress and strength. She is doing all the laundry and has even gone back to ironing my shirts. I guess she is tired of seeing me leave the house looking rumpled. Keep praying for her total recovery in the weeks and months to come.
Cheryl is looking forward to going to church service this Sunday. This will be her first time to attend in several months. This will be our quarterly communion service so that makes it that much more special for both of us.
We continue to be encouraged by Cheryl's progress and strength. She is doing all the laundry and has even gone back to ironing my shirts. I guess she is tired of seeing me leave the house looking rumpled. Keep praying for her total recovery in the weeks and months to come.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Planning a Party
The 17th of January was a really cool day for Cheryl--- not because of the temperature but because it was the 13th day past her last dose of chemo and she didn't have to go back for another round of CHEMO.
Now, we are waiting for results from her latest CA125 and planning a party for Saturday. February 26th. Cheryl will have her lower port removed on February the 16th so she she should be healed in time for the party.
The Celebration Party will be Saturday, February 26th from 2-4 PM at the Westside Baptist Church Fellowship Hall (108 N. Welborn Street, Hinesville, GA 31313). This is our way of saying thanks to all those that have supported us during this time. We hope that you all will be able to attend.
We will continue updating the blog in the days and weeks to come.
Now, we are waiting for results from her latest CA125 and planning a party for Saturday. February 26th. Cheryl will have her lower port removed on February the 16th so she she should be healed in time for the party.
The Celebration Party will be Saturday, February 26th from 2-4 PM at the Westside Baptist Church Fellowship Hall (108 N. Welborn Street, Hinesville, GA 31313). This is our way of saying thanks to all those that have supported us during this time. We hope that you all will be able to attend.
We will continue updating the blog in the days and weeks to come.
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Finally Feeling Better
Last week's chemo really hit Cheryl hard. She had nausea and vomiting from Tuesday until Saturday afternoon. After a short reprieve of feeling better, she went in for her final treatment of Taxol on Monday 1/4/11. This triggered the nausea and vomiting again and it wasn't until midday today that she has started feeling human again.
In the midst of all this, we received word Sunday morning that Cheryl's Uncle Charles Gerstner had passed away at age 90. He was an Army veteran of World War II- European theater. There will be a memorial mass for this gentle, saintly man on Saturday, January 8th. We would love to be able to attend but after the problems that Cheryl experienced when we traveled to my father's funeral in November, we think it would be wiser for her to stay home.
This evening, Cheryl's energy level has improved and her stomach has finally settled. Even her voice is much stronger than it has been for the past week and a half. Now that the chemo is over, we are in follow-up mode.
Today, Cheryl had a call from Dr. Burke's office telling her that she will have blood work done in mid January. On February 16th, she will have a physical exam and will have her IP (abdominal port) removed. This will be an in-office procedure but if it is anything like the removal of her PleurX drains, she will be sore for several days following. They will also do the first flushing of her upper port which will need to be done every couple of months to keep it from clogging.
We do not have a date or time for Cheryl's follow up scans and x-rays yet but we will continue to pray that they will show that everything is clear. Our goal is to get her back up and moving/walking so she can regain her strength and stamina and be back to normal activities soon. We appreciate everyone's care, concern and prayers during these difficult months and we look forward to being able to return the favor in days to come.
Our daughter Michelle wants to make plans for a "Remission Party" when we get the word from the doctor. We are in full agreement with that. There will definitely be a hallelujah shout that day.
In the midst of all this, we received word Sunday morning that Cheryl's Uncle Charles Gerstner had passed away at age 90. He was an Army veteran of World War II- European theater. There will be a memorial mass for this gentle, saintly man on Saturday, January 8th. We would love to be able to attend but after the problems that Cheryl experienced when we traveled to my father's funeral in November, we think it would be wiser for her to stay home.
This evening, Cheryl's energy level has improved and her stomach has finally settled. Even her voice is much stronger than it has been for the past week and a half. Now that the chemo is over, we are in follow-up mode.
Today, Cheryl had a call from Dr. Burke's office telling her that she will have blood work done in mid January. On February 16th, she will have a physical exam and will have her IP (abdominal port) removed. This will be an in-office procedure but if it is anything like the removal of her PleurX drains, she will be sore for several days following. They will also do the first flushing of her upper port which will need to be done every couple of months to keep it from clogging.
We do not have a date or time for Cheryl's follow up scans and x-rays yet but we will continue to pray that they will show that everything is clear. Our goal is to get her back up and moving/walking so she can regain her strength and stamina and be back to normal activities soon. We appreciate everyone's care, concern and prayers during these difficult months and we look forward to being able to return the favor in days to come.
Our daughter Michelle wants to make plans for a "Remission Party" when we get the word from the doctor. We are in full agreement with that. There will definitely be a hallelujah shout that day.
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