Please Pray
Wednesday, July 15, 2009 by Theresa
It's day 3 of chemo and the side effects are hitting hard. Please pray for courage, encouragement and healing. We appreciate your prayers!
Praises!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009 by Theresa
Jack's procedure today was quick and efficient. They were able to easily widen the esophagus a little more. While 'in there' they could see a little irritation so the doctor gave him what I presume is some type of ulcer/acid preventative medication. He's home resting now and has this week to gain strength before chemo begins next Monday. Thank you for prayers!
Update On Jack
Saturday, July 4, 2009 by Theresa
Happy Independence Day Everyone! I'm listening to the fireworks go off... we can't see them through the trees. I'm a little late getting an update on Jack.
THANK YOU for all the prayers! The second stretching procedure for his esophagus went much better!
Mom saw Dr. Levenson in his yellow scrubs and hot pink radiation guard and said, "Oh, I need a picture of that!" And Trevor, a RT told her they needed a picture together! LOL If you look closely, you can see it is embroidered "Poopsie Levenson, M.D." Hmmm... So Trevor took the picture and then Barry said, "Now Get Out!" lol
Jack gets good attention wherever he goes. He always did know how to sweet talk the waitresses and store clerks... guess it works on nurses and techs as well! :-)
This is the picture of the "A Team" as they put it. They told Mom and Jack not to worry that the A Team was on duty that day. Trevor is holding the camera and that of course is Mom/Ruth. the gals are peeking behind.
When you go through something like this it really means a lot to have people helping you and working with you who have a good attitude and who are kind and respectful. It's hard being a patient!
L to R Jessica, Jack, Lynn, Ruth and Lori.
THANK YOU for all the prayers! The second stretching procedure for his esophagus went much better!
Mom saw Dr. Levenson in his yellow scrubs and hot pink radiation guard and said, "Oh, I need a picture of that!" And Trevor, a RT told her they needed a picture together! LOL If you look closely, you can see it is embroidered "Poopsie Levenson, M.D." Hmmm... So Trevor took the picture and then Barry said, "Now Get Out!" lol
Jack gets good attention wherever he goes. He always did know how to sweet talk the waitresses and store clerks... guess it works on nurses and techs as well! :-)
This is the picture of the "A Team" as they put it. They told Mom and Jack not to worry that the A Team was on duty that day. Trevor is holding the camera and that of course is Mom/Ruth. the gals are peeking behind.
When you go through something like this it really means a lot to have people helping you and working with you who have a good attitude and who are kind and respectful. It's hard being a patient!
L to R Jessica, Jack, Lynn, Ruth and Lori.
So, the procedure on 6/26 went well! They were able to increase the esophageal opening a bit and Jack has managed to keep down some soups and "mush". Another piece of good news is that the Candida yeast in his mouth/throat is gone! This last week they had checkup appointments and so far everything is looking "normal".
The next procedure will be Tuesday, July 7 at 7:30 AM to stretch it open a little more, hopefully this will be the last time.
Then another round of chembo begins July 13. This will be daily for five days like he did in March. He will do this in July and again mid August. Then hopefully everything will be done for good.
Please continue to pray for healing of cancer, for the esophagus to stay open, for him tobe able to progress in his eating and that he will have little or no side effects with this chemo round!
Thank you so much for all your prayers. We all appreciate them!
New Prayer Request and Pictures
Thursday, June 25, 2009 by Theresa
Here's Jack with his Relay For Life shirt on. He was not able to walk, but he's a big supporter! It's funny for me to see pictures of Jack now since I am so far away and don't see him in person. I can see that his face is thinner and his arms look like they shrunk in half! And his beard looks whiter. He sure looks good after all he has gone through!
This is Barry, the gastroenterologist. Um, Barry, most of the things you do... noone is even *thinking* about doing at home! LOL
As anyone who knows Jack knows, he makes friends wherever he goes! :-) This is one of his nurses Sandra. They "matched". She is also a survivor!
Jack's last procedure was on my birthday. When they got home, this is what they saw. Mom says it's my birthday present! I'll accept that! So, yes, on June 19, Jack did have another procedure to widen his esophagus. It had shriveled back down to about 8mm, mostly due to the "nuking" it got with the radiation treatments. In the procedure they widened it to about 12mm. He will need to have it widened in two more procedures, in fairly quick succession.
The procedure did go well, but was difficult for Jack. There was an issue with the anesthesia, possibly too much and it was hard to come out of it. So one of the requests is, that the anesthesia will work right and that Jack will be safe during the procedure.
Next procedure is this coming Friday, June 26th. The following will be July 7. And then it will be time to start chemo all over again.
There have been some residual side effects of either the treatment or the narrowed esophagus. Please pray for relief and complete healing. Pray that Jack's body would strengthen and build back up before the next treatment and chemo. Pray for encouragement and energy for both Ruth and Jack for all that needs to be done, dealt with and endured. God has been faithful and encouraging them both through Scripture and song, but we would be lying if we said it wasn't a difficult journey. Thank you all for your prayers and support.
Prayers For Jack Update and Blog On The Move
Thursday, June 18, 2009 by Theresa
Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been hear to blog much the last few months and especially lately. After a lot of frustrations, I have decided to try Typepad for blogging and so far so good. Hopefully this is the last time I have to move. If you look around the blog you can see it is pretty spare... I lost all your comments, my links, widgets etc. But I'm starting over.
Jack's updates will stay right here. That way we dont' have to worry about a lot of people switching blog addresses to check.
My Blog is now at Along The Way. I invite all my friends and family to join me there.
A long overdue update on Jack. First of all he did complete the six weeks of chemo and radiation and it was NOT fun. Lots of side effects, most, but not all of which are subsiding. That is something he will continue to need prayer with in the long haul.
A week or so ago he had testing done on his heart to make sure that the radiation did not cause damage and it initially looks okay! We are praising God for that. They will have the full report from the doctor next week.
The next step in the journey is tomorrow, Friday, June 19, 2009. Jack will be having another balloon procedure to stretch his esophagus. At that time the doctor will also be able to view what or if there is any damage from the radiation to the esophagus and the throat as well as sort out any other issues that may be causing or compounding eating issues. Please pray for Jack in this procedure that involves anesthesia, as well as for wisdom for the doctors in discerning what to do.
After these things are all sorted out, Jack will be chemotherapy again in a couple weeks. This will be the type that he receives via IV at the infusion center for five days. Then there will be another month wait and then one more round of that... then hopefully the "torture" will be done!
Thank you all for praying. I'm sure you know this has not been easy at all, BUT it's nice to know there is a whole army of prayer warriors around the world interceding on your behalf! We love you!
Jack's updates will stay right here. That way we dont' have to worry about a lot of people switching blog addresses to check.
My Blog is now at Along The Way. I invite all my friends and family to join me there.
A long overdue update on Jack. First of all he did complete the six weeks of chemo and radiation and it was NOT fun. Lots of side effects, most, but not all of which are subsiding. That is something he will continue to need prayer with in the long haul.
A week or so ago he had testing done on his heart to make sure that the radiation did not cause damage and it initially looks okay! We are praising God for that. They will have the full report from the doctor next week.
The next step in the journey is tomorrow, Friday, June 19, 2009. Jack will be having another balloon procedure to stretch his esophagus. At that time the doctor will also be able to view what or if there is any damage from the radiation to the esophagus and the throat as well as sort out any other issues that may be causing or compounding eating issues. Please pray for Jack in this procedure that involves anesthesia, as well as for wisdom for the doctors in discerning what to do.
After these things are all sorted out, Jack will be chemotherapy again in a couple weeks. This will be the type that he receives via IV at the infusion center for five days. Then there will be another month wait and then one more round of that... then hopefully the "torture" will be done!
Thank you all for praying. I'm sure you know this has not been easy at all, BUT it's nice to know there is a whole army of prayer warriors around the world interceding on your behalf! We love you!
Possibly Moving Blogs
Sunday, June 14, 2009 by Theresa
As you know I have been having problems with my comments and now my templates being temperamental. So, I have been trying a free trial of Typepad. So far I like it and am considering keeping it. It may fall under the category of "You Get What You Pay For"! :-)
So, would you mind checking for me and making a comment if you have time, the new blog I began for my digital scrapbooking called Forget-Me-Nots ? Let me know what you think of the format and ease of use. There is just one post there so far. Later today I will also link to my new personal blog. It will help if I get comments because that is one of the issues I am trying to work out and would like to see if it is going to work! Thank you!
So, would you mind checking for me and making a comment if you have time, the new blog I began for my digital scrapbooking called Forget-Me-Nots ? Let me know what you think of the format and ease of use. There is just one post there so far. Later today I will also link to my new personal blog. It will help if I get comments because that is one of the issues I am trying to work out and would like to see if it is going to work! Thank you!
Technical Difficulties
Thursday, June 11, 2009 by Theresa
I am having multiple technical difficulties with the blog... sorry for any inconvenience!
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