Round 1 is over

Well...the last few days were certainly full of adventure. As Aunt Kathy mentioned, Kiki and Dylan over the last week have both had this 36 hour stomach flu. Soon after Deron and I got home from chemo on Wednesday night, Deron started getting very sick. I immediately called my mom and asked her to get to my house. There was no way I was going to be able to take care of Deron and Deron could not take care of me. We were quite the pair that night. Deron started shaking so bad, the covers were moving. You would have thought that our house was a freezer box. My mom took the kids and I to her house so we hopefully wouldn't get the bug. Poor Deron was left at home alone with phone calls every hour to check on him. The next day was the worst for me. From the time I woke up I was so nauseous. I couldn't eat...couldn't drink...had more fluid coming out my rear end and was dry heaving. I was so weak that by the afternoon, I could barely walk. I had to go back to my doctors office for a white blood booster shot. When they saw me they took me back to the chemo room and hooked me up to a bag of fluids. By that evening, I was able to eat a few crackers and a few bites of soup but that was it. Yesterday, Friday, was much better. Still weak, I was able to drink a bit and eat a bit. I still had to go to the Dr. office and get another bag of fluids. I was actually able to drink and eat by last night. Deron was feeling so much better as well. Today, Saturday, I feel like I've got so much more energy. I've eaten cereal, drank a bottle of water and I just might get out of bed soon. lol
Hopefully my next chemo will be only chemo...not chemo with flu cocktail. Also, my chemo treatments are going to be every 3 weeks...not every other week. I'll have more recovery time in between treatments. I'll even be off for when my family all goes to Mission Beach in July. I can't wait.
I hope everyone is doing well.

Kim

Aunt Kathy Here With An Update

I have been getting calls asking how Kim is doing, so I thought I would give everyone an update. She had chemo yesterday at Dr. Zafar's office from 11:30 a.m. until after 6:00 p.m. It was a long day for her and Deron, but everything went well. She got a couple of new chemo's that she has not gotten before. I just spoke with Nan and she said Kim had a good night and rested pretty well and so far no nausea. Unfortunately, Deron got the flu that the kids had earlier this week and he is the one who had a rough night. I'm sure Kim will speak to you all soon on the blog, so stay tuned. Keep those prayers coming!!
Regards,
Aunt Kathy

It is hard to admit this but here it goes...

As soon as we set our surgery date to have my colon and liver resection, I was feeling very uneasy. I worked so hard to get through chemo to get to the point of having surgery and when it happened...I was so scared. When chemo ended, I ended up with strep throat then pneumonia, then cellulitous/vasculitous. When I was admitted I told Deron I felt like God was trying to tell us something. Why have I been sick for 3 weeks straight right before I'm supposed to have this major operation? It was my surgeon that ordered my scans...he called my oncologist with what the scans showed and my oncologist came to see us immediately. In 5 weeks my cancer had regenerated as if it had been untreated for 6 months or more. For the first time since I was diagnosed...I questioned God. I asked, "How could you bring me so far over the last 6 months and in 5 weeks allow this to happen?" I was very upset...I cried a lot. The more and more I thought about it...I realized something. God was giving us red flags...I even told Deron I thought that was what he was doing this last time I was admitted. Had my surgeon not ordered the oncologists scans we would have ended up in surgery on the 15th, they would have opened me up and realized they could not have operated. I would have then had to wait almost 2 more months to start treatment again. By that time, the cancer may have spread so much that we may have not had many options left. I now thank God every day for saving my life again. I know he is with us and will carry us through this.

Love,

Kim

I'm Baaacccckkkk!!!

Hello Everyone,
It is so good to be home. I slept so much last night. I did wake up a few times wondering why no one was in my room poking at me, telling me to take pills, giving me shots in the tummy (which I'm all bruised from), my IV machine beeping, taking my vitals and sticking that thermometer in my mouth, etc. lol Most of you that have been in the hospital know exactly what I'm talking about. My kids were so excited to see us home. I had to show Dylan my incision marks so he understood why he had to be so easy with mommy. My chest tube incision still isn't closed yet so we still have that one covered. Dylan and Kiki have never been so excited to sleep in their own beds. Dylan wanted to make sure that when he woke up I was still going to be home. Therefore, this morning they both ran in to give me a hug and kiss before Daddy took them to school. It is amazing to wake up to your 5 and 7 year old kissing you on the forehead and saying "I love you Mommy". That is probably the best feeling in the world.
I do have to say, giving birth to my children without a Tylenol was easier than having a tube stuck in my chest. I've been trying to use my left arm more and it feels awkward because they had to cut through my muscles and separate my ribs. Didn't you like that awesome description? lol
Anyways, we are done with that. Deron and I had a talk before I was taken into surgery. We were told back in October that I had cancer in my lungs. It was just never confirmed with a biopsy. We decided that if my lungs are positive for cancer then we can't get upset because that is what we were told 7 months ago. It would just be a bonus if it was not cancer. The way I see it is October 20th, 2008 I was told I had cancer in my colon, liver (really bad) and my lungs. Now, May 15th, 2009 I'm told I have cancer in my colon and lungs and my liver is looking pretty good!!! In my eyes, I'm better off now than I was in October. As my Aunt Kathy said, we start chemo again on the 26th. It will be every other week for 6 months like last time. My body responded very well last time and I expect it to do the same this time. I happen to have the worlds best healer on my side...our God!
Thank you all for your prayers...keep them coming!
Thank you Aunt Kathy for keeping everyone posted.

Kim's Home from the Hospital

Good news......Kim was discharged from the hospital this afternoon and chemo will start on Tuesday, May 26th. The oncologist wants to give her some time to heal from the lung biopsy surgery before chemo starts.

I'm sure she will be on the blog soon to communicate with everyone.

Glad you are home Kim!!

Aunt Kathy

Hopefully Discharged Today

Kim did not go home from the hospital yesterday, but hopefully today will be the day. They found a small pneumothorax (2 mm) in her left lung and she is still anemic. She remains in good spirits and her pain is less and less each day.

Angel Doc (Dr. Rodriquez - GI Doc who finally diagnosed Kim), came in yesterday afternoon to visit Kim which was very enjoyable for all of us. He isn't on Kim's case right now, but wanted to check on her and give her a big hug. The rest of us, including Dylan and Ki Ki got big hugs from him as well!

Samantha took Dylan and Ki Ki on a shopping spree to buy summer clothes yesterday. She wore Nan and the kids out after 3 hours, but you wouldn't believe the adorable outfits she got the kids. Samantha you are sooooo awesome to do this!! I wish you all could of seen the big smile on Kim's face when Samantha showed her all the great purchases. The kids are growing so fast that it is hard to keep them in clothes that fit. They will be the best dressed kids on the block for sure!!

Regards,
Aunt Kathy

Hooray!....Chest Tube is Out

The surgeon was able to remove the chest tube late yesterday afternoon and it sounds like the chest xray is looking pretty good. Thankfully, Kim's pain is much less now and she is able to take walks in the hall. There is discussion about Kim going home today and then getting the chemo in Dr. Zafar's office early next week.

Kim, Deron and the family wanted to send out a special thank you to Beth and Jimmy who have been taking care of Dylan and Kiki pretty much non stop the past week and also on a regular basis the past few months. Beth and Jimmy, your kindness is very much appreciated and the family can relax more knowing the kids are being well cared for and having so much fun too! It is people like you that have restored my faith in mankind and again we appreciate your generosity more than words can adequately express.

Regards,
Aunt Kathy

Update on Kim

Kim is doing well.......making us laugh by making very funny comments after she gets her pain meds! We have learned that having chest tube is one of the most painful things a person could possibly go through and the nurses are telling us that Kim is handling the pain better than most people would. Thank God for Dilaudid and that it works so well for Kim!!

It looks like the chest tube will not be removed yet. Kim is still draining a good amount of fluid from the tube and the chest xray is showing one area in Kim's lung that is not totally cooperating. This is nothing to be alarmed about and I'm sure the chest tube will come out soon. They just did another xray to assess the lung and I will let you all know when we get the report back what the results are.

Deron has been incredible in caring for Kim for the past week. He has rarely left her side and Kim finds so much comfort in him always being right next to her. Kim's illness has been devastating for Deron and the family is so thankful for his love for Kim and how he is demonstrating this love in Kim's time of need. Please say a few prayers for Deron as well that he continues to find the strength and energy to juggle all the responsibilities he has on his plate right now.

In closing, I would like to share a story with you that really shows the type of person Kim is and the remarkable attitude she has shown through this whole experience. After the lung biopsy on Thursday night, when she woke up, I had to tell her about the findings of the cancer in her lungs. Of course this was not an easy thing to have to tell her and I asked God to give me the strength and the right words to deliver the bad news. Right after I told her, she looked up at me and said, "At least my liver is okay!" I have never met such a positive and inspirational person that even in her darkest hours she finds something positive to think and say.

Someone commented on the blog this morning that the war was not won by one battle and Kim is getting ready to fight the battle again with some real strong Chemo and that cancer beast better watch out, he doesn't know who he is dealing with and how strong she is physically and spiritually.

Thanks so much for all the kind words and prayers! They mean a lot to Kim and all the family!!

Regards,
Aunt Kathy

Lung Biopsy Completed

It's almost 10:00 p.m. and Kim just arrived to ICU. I wish I had better news to share....the surgeon let us know that the pathologist reviewed the lung tissue specimen in the OR and it is positive for cancer in the lungs. The plan is for Kim to stay in the ICU for 24 hours and then she will move back to the oncology floor. They are hoping to resume Chemo on Monday.

This is another bump in the road for Kim, but her spirits remain high and she is ready to continue to fight the battle.

Keep the prayers coming.

Aunt Kathy

Today's plan

Today, Thursday, I will be under going an open lung biopsy. This is a pretty major procedure. I will be knocked out just like a normal surgery. The surgeon will be going through my left side, spreading my rib cage and cutting a chunk of my left lung off to have these little spots tested to finally find out what is in my lungs. I will be in ICU for at least 24 hours. My surgery isn't until 5pm. I will have a wonderful tube coming out of my chest for at least 2-3 days. They say it is very painful but I'll be on a morphine drip so we'll see how I do. I'm a bit nervous knowing that a machine will be breathing for me during this procedure but the doctors and surgeons say it's no big deal. Yeah, easy for them to say. If everything goes okay...which it will...they say I should be able to go home by Monday. I'm ready to get this show on the road. I'm curious to see how my body will handle this new chemo. It did great before, so I anticipate the same results this time. It's taken me a few days to get over my shock, disbelief and tears. I'm sure I may have a few more tears before this next 6 months of chemo is over...but that's okay. I'm ready to fight like hell AGAIN!!!!!
Thank you to everyone for your kind and encouraging words. Our prayers were heard before and I'm sure God will hear us again. I'll have Deron or my Aunt Kathy update tonight to let you know how I do in the surgery.

Kim

SURGERY CANCELLED!!!!

As some of you know, I've been in the hospital since Saturday evening. After fighting the Pneumonia this last week, I was having a bad pain in my right calf. Last Thursday afternoon, I went to my primary doctor to pick up my script for follow up x-ray. I mentioned the pain I was having in my calf and my doctor wanted to see me before I left his office. It was now after 5 pm and my doctor told me I needed to go the ER and have an ultra sound done to make sure that I did not have a blood clot in my leg. Everything turned out okay and I was sent home. I woke up the next morning having more pain than the day before. By Saturday, I could barely walk. Saturday evening I finally decided to come back to the ER. They were saying I had Cellulitous in my ankle area. For some reason, my surgeon ordered a CT scan of my chest, stomach, and pelvis. These scans are not showing good news. The tumor in my colon has increased in size, my lymph nodes in my stomach has increased in size as well which is putting pressure on my ureter and I may need a stint put in so I don't experience kidney issues. Also, my lungs are showing an increased number of spots. All of this change has happened since stopping chemo in mid April. Therefore, surgery is cancelled. We will be talking with the lung team to get an answer to what is going on with my lungs and I will be starting chemo again within the next few days. I will be on a different chemo regimen and my doctor said I have only a 20% chance of keeping my hair.
I have been having a very bad feeling about surgery this past week and I really felt that God was telling me that I was not ready for surgery. I certainly wasn't expecting this kind of news. It's a bit shocking to my whole family. I feel that I have taken a step backwards. I am ready to start back on the chemo fight. I would really appreciate as many prayers not only for my healing but also for my family as they try and take in this news. I love you all.

Kim

Spent the night in the ER

I have gone all 6 months of chemo and never even had the sniffles. Now that I'm done with chemo, I have had strep with the kids 3 weeks ago and my cough never went away. A few days ago I was getting a pain in my left shoulder area and it increasingly got worse. Finally yesterday I was in so much pain that I went to my doctor. It was almost 5pm and they do not do X-rays or anything in the office. Monday or Tuesday my doctor was going to get me in for a chest X-ray to check for pneumonia. Needless to say the fevers started and I hurt to even walk. The only benefit to having stage 4 cancer is that the ER will get you out of the ER lobby really quick and back to a room so you are away from the general public. lol They ended up admitting me last night (Friday night) but there was no rooms available upstairs so Deron and I spent the night in a very small room in the over flow area. As usual, we got very little sleep. The doctor came this morning and it was a bit safer for me to be at home rather in the hospital with all the crud going around. They have me on antibiotics and mild pain meds to ease my chest pain. I have limited time for my body to heal and get rid of this junk before surgery. I was really wanting to walk and ride my bike as much as possible over the next two weeks to gain a bit of endurance so I wasn't so weak for surgery. I guess I'll have to lay low for a few more days. The hospital and I have a love hate relationship right now. lol And the journey continues...

Kim

Surgery schedule

My surgery is scheduled for Friday, May 15th at Banner Estrella Hospital. The liver transplant surgeon will come to Estrella vs. us having to over to Good Sam Hospital. Estrella is a lot closer to home for me anyways. That will complete six full weeks off of chemo. I am very pleased to wait for the six week mark. They will take 1/3 of my colon and the surrounding lymph nodes. They will also be taking the right lobe of my liver which is about 60%. The reason for this is my liver was so bad when we started off and leaving any scar tissue from the tumors will only give the cancer a great area to come back. Therefore, they want to take any remains of cancer out of my body. Removing any and all cancer is totally fine with me. I will be in the hospital for at least 5-7 days after surgery. Then home to finish my 4+ week recovery. Deron will be updating my blog for me hopefully on a daily basis to keep you all posted on the post op recovery. I'm very excited and also a bit nervous. I was not planning on the liver resection but I fully understand their reasoning. I now have to make my "to do" list of everything I want to get completed before surgery. Please say a few prayers for my surgeons to have great knowledge and steady hands. Also say a prayer for my family and my speedy recovery. This was our major goal when I was diagnosed almost 7 months ago. I think I am still a bit in shock that my body has come so far in the last 7 months. God has been so good to me.
Hope all is well with everyone else.
Much love,
Kim