In and out

Kathie was checked in quickly (as in... 15 minutes) to Wake Forest in Winston-Salem on Christmas evening. Bob spent the night with Ben's family. They actually let Kathie sleep through the night after taking her temp and blood pressure at 11:30. At 10:30 in the morning, two oncologists came in to talk to her. The good news was that her white count had actually gone up since her blood tests on Monday... the bad is that she definitely had some sort of upper respiratory infection. They gave her some antibiotics via an IV but she got checked out in the afternoon...

Lauren spent 4 hours in urgent care the day after Christmas and only got back about a half hour before Bob and Kathie. So... everyone is still stick, but slowly recuping. At least Kathie was not neutropenic!

Kathie was tired today, but still managed a visit to the new house with Bob, Lynette, Kaitlyn, Sophie, Ben and Lauren. The seven of them also met up with Ben's parents for a nice lunch at the winery between Lexington and Winston-Salem.

So, despite Christmas not being fantastic, we still had a nice day today. Everyone just kind of lounged yesterday... all of us on a nice amount of antibiotics.

Posted by Lauren

Giving the doctors something to do

Well, we figured there are all those doctors and nurses that have to work on Christmas regardless, so we might as well make them feel like it was worthwhile to be there. Kathie was admitted into the hospital about an hour ago. They are doing the standard blood tests and starting an antibiotic tonight. Tomorrow (when you are allowed to have cancer), an oncologist will come in to look over everything and see how things are going.

Though the doctors made an excellent effort to keep Kathie out of the hospital on Christmas, her fever just kept going back up.

Bob and Kathie will stay in Winston tonight, and if Kathie is going to have to stay for a bit, Lauren, Lynette, Sophie and Kaitlyn will join them tomorrow.

All and all, this has not been our best Christmas... but tomorrow is a new day.

We will definitely be toasting to the end of 2007.

God bless.

Posted by Lauren

Merry Christmas?

Well, as noted before, Kathie got to get the second part of her treatment yesterday on Christmas Eve. Kathie and Bob spent the 23rd night at Lauren's fiance's (yes, you read that correctly) family's house.

The appointment was early on the 24th, and since Winston is about an hour an a half from Eddie's, it was worth being 10 minutes down the road instead. Blood tests showed her white counts as decent - but she pretty much slept the day away after receiving her Erbitux.

Unfortunately, Eddie's house has been a house of disease. Emily had some sort of virus at the beginning of last week, and a cough that was going off and on most of the week. Bob had/has a sinus infection, Lauren is suspecting she has managed to get a lovely case of bronchitis (self-diagnosis... she'll go into urgent care tomorrow if she still feels this badly). Lynette has a bit of a cold, and Ben (Lauren's fiance as of 12/13) also was starting to get a bit of a cold as well, but has now retreated back with his family in Winston. Basically, Kathie was surrounded by germs... and despite best efforts to not breathe around her (and a ridiculous amount of hand washing)... she seems to have caught something.

As a result, Kathie spiked a fever of 103 last night, which almost earned her a first class car ride back to Winston-Salem to get checked into the hospital (apparently, you can't have cancer on Christmas Eve or Christmas - the cancer center at Rex in Raleigh was closed, as was the one at Wake Forest in Winston, but in Winston they were going to admit her to the hospital right away, in Raleigh, we would have had to go through the emergency room). The doctor prescribed a z-pak, and we have all been crossing our fingers that she isn't neutropenic. Luckily, Walgreens was open last night, so Bob and Lauren picked up her z-pak along with more meds for Lauren.

Some tylenol and a wet wash cloth got Kathie's fever down to 100... and the decision was made to just keep checking overnight. Kathie and Lauren slept downstairs on the couches... Lauren waking up every two hours to feel Kathie's forehead. Everything seemed fine at 3:30 AM when Lauren did her last check, but Bob came down at 5:30, and Kathie was back up past 102. Again, she almost got to take a trip to Winston, but a little bit of time, tylenol and the wash cloth took it back down to almost normal... so the doctor said to wait and see if the z-pak helped. However, if her fever goes back up, Bob is taking her to Wake Forest to get some blood tests and an IV going. Merry Christmas, huh?

Anyway, Kathie does not feel like she is neutropenic - she is not feeling the weakness she has in the past, she's just tired, and has a very attractive cough... second only to Lauren's. Just in case she is neutropenic, those questionable foods are being avoided until we know that low neutrophils are not the cause of her fever.

On the positive side, Lynette was able to extend her and the girls tickets, so she and the twins are still here visiting grandma - giving her a healthy dose of laughs and smiles.

Posted by Lauren

First chemo...for the third time

Kathie and Bob had a long and busy day yesterday. Lauren headed to Winston-Salem with them at 9 in the morning, and they arrived at the hospital at about 10:30. Kathie had a blood test scheduled for 11:30, and a meeting with Dr. Aklilu at 12. Bob had a list of questions prepared, and Dr. Aklilu went over some issues from the last appointment.

The Good news:
- The bone scan shows no issues and no need to do any further tests.
- Kathie does not need to get a flu or pneumonia shot (not shown to be very effective with chemo - this is mostly just good news for Kathie, who did not want to get any more shots;) )
- Kathie is KRAS "wild type", which apparently = good for this treatment regime... this basically means she has the right markers on her cancer cells to have a good chance of responding to this particular treatment... Dr. Aklilu had promised he would do a "Whoo" cheer if this ended up being the case - and Kathie made him make good on his promise - arms raised and everything:)
- Kathie does not need to get a mammogram (again, this isn't "good" per se, but good to Kathie), Dr. Aklilu feels this will be "extra"... "...we have enough problems to deal with without going and looking for more cancer."

Lauren got to ask Dr. Aklilu about a treatment she had been researching, and though he was not very encouraging that it was a good option, he did an excellent job of explaining why - which is at least some comfort. Lauren was very impressed with her first meeting of Dr. Aklilu and is excited about the change - he definitely has a much better bedside manner than our "favorite" MD Anderson oncologist.

Dr. Aklilu was on time, as usual, and the appointment lasted exactly 1/2 hour - they are definitely more about staying on time at Wake, but also very patient attentive. He did a great job of answering all of Bob and Kathie's questions, and with a 1/2 hour meeting every two weeks, they will have plenty of time during treatment to check up with him.

Kathie did get in a little late for chemo treatment - but got a private little "pod" with doors and a television with a DVD player and VCR. We are assuming this is first time treatment care - and next time she will get a curtain pod like everyone else;) She'll still have the TV, DVD, and VCR and privacy though.

Unfortunately, there is a good chance Kathie is going to lose her hair again - she is hardly thrilled. We are also watching her VERY carefully for fevers and any signs of neutropenia since the holidays are fast approaching and we'll be around a lot of people! Bob is getting over some sort of cold, and Emily (Kathie's granddaughter) just got over some 24 hour virus and strep. Lauren has been popping airborne hopping to avoid everyone else's disease since she was worn down from finals week.

Unfortunately, Kathie has to be going to treatment on Christmas Eve AND New Year's Eve! Since Wake is only open 1/2 day on the 24th, Kathie and Bob will be staying at the Heruskas' on the 23rd so they can be at Wake early. Next week's appointment will be much shorter since she is just getting the erbitux.

We have an exciting week ahead of us as a family. Lynette and the girls are flying in tomorrow and all of the ladies are having a girls day out at the spa while the boys take care of the kids. Nothing says holiday spirit like facials, manis and massages:)

We're still figuring out Christmas since Eddie and Melissa will be in Indiana for a short trip to see her family over actual Christmas day and the remaining clan may head to the Heruska family Christmas - depending on how Kathie is feeling and her white blood count.

Posted by Lauren

Quick edit

Sorry, Kathie had not had a CT scan done at Wake Forest before... the one today was so he can compare apples to apples in the future.

Posted by Lauren

The Game Plan

Bob and Kathie felt they had a good meeting with Dr. Aklilu (now you have his spelling good luck with the pronunciation).

Eddie joined them for their appointment - more ears are always helpful when re-going through all the information presented in such a short span of time.

Kathie is currently getting another CT and then a Bone scan on Thursday so that they can see if they need to continue going to MD Anderson on a "regular" basis for scans. If Wake Forest's prove similar, they may not have to go to MD Anderson so often. This is also so Dr. Aklilu can determine for himself if he feels the tumors have truly enlarged (he had his own scans done there before and wants to compare apples to apples rather than comparing the MD Anderson scans to his own). There was some question in the family's head about whether Kathie has been on the FOLFOX long enough. It is supposed to be 4-6 treatments before it can be determined whether it's working. Kathie had 4, but only 3 were consecutive (she had one week that had to be put off due to low blood counts). Dr. Eng was very conclusive, but she is also not great about answering questions, and second opinions are just a good idea.

Kathie definitely likes their version of the CT scan better - she's allowed to eat while she drinks the lovely metallic lemonade (reducing the penny aftertaste effect) and it was 45 minutes versus the almost hour and a half at MD Anderson. We'll find out soon enough if this affects the overall quality of the scans.

Either way, for now, Kathie is looking at starting on a regimen of Erbitux and Camptosar. Many of you may recall that Kathie does not metabolize Camptosar correctly and that it causes her to become neutropenic. This treatment will be at a much lower level of the drug (supposedly helpful?) and they will be monitoring her neutrophils on a weekly basis to decide what level to keep the Camptosar at. So week one (starting Monday as of now) is both the Erbitux and the Camptosar, and week two is just the Erbitux. So this is also different in that she will be getting some sort of treatment every week. This regimen has about a 20-30% success rate, but Dr. Aklilu had a good point when he was speaking with them, 'It's either 0 or 100% for you.' And again, we're hoping since Kathie has been in the lower percentages, maybe she can be in the lower percentage for something positive this time:)

Due to the fact that they need to use the monitoring of her neutrophils to determine the amount of Camptosar to give her... she will not be receiving a regular neulasta shot, but will receive boosts if they detect her count going down.

Kathie will be on this treatment for about two months before we'll know if it is working. When they discussed some of the other options, Dr. Aklilu did not seem to believe there was strong evidence of extension with them, so this is the primary choice.

Bob is heading back to Lafayette and then Bob and Lauren will head down on Sunday (Lauren's finals are dragging all the way out to Friday and her roommate is graduating on Saturday). Lynette and Sophie and Kaitlyn will be joining the family for an early Christmas - so we'll be almost complete for the holiday. Christen will be coming for an extended visit in February, as it looks now anyway - but you know us, always changing plans!

Thanks again to all the friends who are helping out with the house in Lafayette.

Posted by Lauren

The next step...

Tomorrow, like last week, is a fairly important day, and as usual, we request any and all prayers that you have time for:)

Tomorrow, Bob and Kathie will meet the doctor at Wake Forest (I would tell you his name, but I haven't the faintest at how it's spelled). Bob and Kathie have been preparing a list of questions in order to make the best decision for Kathie's next step in treatment. They are preparing a smaller list about alternative treatments as well (non-traditional) to ask the Wake Forest doctor for a suggestion of someone who has expertise in the area. At the moment, we have no intention of replacing standard treatment with an alternative, but would like to consider ones with reasonable evidence for supplement treatment or general lifestyle change. It is important, however, that they do not interfere with the primary treatment.

There are about three options remaining with a lower overall success rate than the last two Kathie has done. However, it is important to remember that Kathie has been the freak in most of these areas... i.e. she was part of the 10% that couldn't metabolize the first one - meaning that there is a good chance that she will respond to the drugs that the lower amount of the cancer population doesn't (*disclaimer* there is no scientific evidence supporting such statements - just the hopeful ramblings of a daughter).

The decision will also be based on the results from the tests started last week. They are actually testing some of the drugs on some of Kathie's biopsies taken earlier. That can't be clarified much further, 1) because I'm trying not to think of cancerous lumps sitting in a jar waiting for something like this - eeew and 2) because I'm not even sure I understood the testing procedure correctly in the first place... and though I am Kathie's daughter, it seems wrong to make up stories here;)

So, we're all praying Bob and Kathie can get all of the information they need to make the best decision for Kathie, and for the family. Though the last blog was very positive, it is necessary to keep the reality that time and cancer do not go well together, and we need positive results soon or miracle - pray for whichever you'd like (or maybe it should be both?)... we'd be happy with either.

Some of you have requested Kathie's new address... aka, Eddie and Melissa's address. Being the internet, open to all, we respectfully decline posting that information on the worldwide web, but if you leave a note or e-mail Lauren (laducharme@bsu.edu)... someone will get back to you. Bob will still be in Lafayette a "majority" of the time, so if it is not urgent - mail will get to her eventually through him.

Posted by Lauren

A meeting with a kindred soul

Lauren forgot to mention that while at MD Anderson, Kathie got to meet her colon cancer friend, Jean (a connection made through a program at the hospital), face to face. Bob and Kathie did lunch with her. The woman is truly an inspiration - she's survived about 6 years with stage IV and still walks a half hour everyday.

On another note, Lauren attended Jeannie's funeral today and it was a beautiful memorial for a beautiful woman. Her husband had several words that reminded everyone that even when we can't see why something is happening a certain way, God has a bigger plan. If we look at it in that light - let's see how we've been blessed by Kathie's humble carrying of her cross:

1) I bet all you old... um, mature, people have gotten your butt over to see your doctor (pun intended) (and if you haven't, what are you waiting for? A personal invitation is unlikely and would be awkward, at best.)
2) We have non-Catholics praying through saints;) (and then praying for themselves...lol)
3) We learned that there are a ridiculous amount of websites dedicated to adding some junk to your trunk

and on a more serious note...
4) The DuCharmes have probably spent more time together as a family than they have had the opportunity to in a long time.
5) The outpouring of love and help from friends and family has been a blessing in itself - you have all shown us what the blessing of friendship is - and it's beautiful.
6) It has hopefully inspired us all to pay more attention to what is really important and let the small stuff slide.

The list could probably go on for awhile... but I figured we could all use a little positive thinking right now - so hopefully the abbreviated list does it for you.

Posted by Lauren

Disappointing

Well, today did not go as hoped - an unfortunate side effect of cancer. The news from the tests was disappointing. This chemo has not been working, and some growth has occurred in existing tumors. There was fear that the cancer may have metastasized into the bone (hence the fracture), but the bone scan was inconclusive - it does not appear that the cancer has spread there, but more tests will be done to double check.

On the positive side, there are three or four options to consider. Kathie is going to have some genetic testing to see if her body will be able to utilize some of the options and then Bob and she will discuss the options with the doctor at Wake Forest next week.

Sorry this is being posted so late, Lauren had class this afternoon when she found out about the results and then drove to Lafayette and went straight to Jeannie's wake.

Posted by Lauren

A cheap thank you;)

Kathie spent this past weekend as the last real time she will live in Lafayette. Bob and Kathie flew out to MD Anderson on Sunday, and though Bob will return "home," Kathie will be setting up shop at Eddie and Melissa's in NC until the house on High Rock is finished.

Due to the chaos at the house (someone came at 3PM on Saturday to take pictures for a brochure to sell the house and Kathie was trying to figure out what she was going to need until Bob came out to NC again), we did not get to do a formal goodbye with all of those who Kathie has called friends. And though we discussed ways of thanking all of those who have made meals, cleaned floors, dusted, helped with garage sales, escorted Kathie to chemo, opened jars for her when her hands hurt, etc - there's little more that we can do at this moment than say THANK YOU!

If we were a more organized clan, or Martha Stewart was part of our family, you would have all received handmade thank you cards, undoubtedly made of homemade paper, dyed by plants from our backyard - but... we're not that family. In fact, if anyone gets a Christmas card before Valentine's Day, I would say we are having a good year. So for now... please accept this cheap (inexpensive, not crappy) THANK YOU! You have been such a huge help - to ALL of us. It makes all of the kids feel better that their mom has had such wonderful support since they cannot be there all the time.

If anyone needs ideas for Christmas presents... buy yourself a plane ticket to go visit Kathie during next year (when Bob and Kathie aren't mooching off their oldest... er, only son;) ) We told Kathie a long time ago that her support system travels. I realize this isn't the practical solution for all of you - in which case, phone calls are good (in short doses - she gets tired much more easily these days) :)

Since Kathie never reads this (is she scared of what we write?), I can safely put in here that the next time Kathie is back in Lafayette for a good chunk of time, or maybe when the house sells, I would like to get those of you around together with her for a little send-off - you all have really meant so much to her. If we were an NGO, our financials in the way of volunteer hours, donated food, etc would be kicking other groups' a**!

_________________________________
On a more serious note. Kathie had many tests done yesterday. Today is the big day when they get back most of the results. Lauren will post those when she can, she's heading back to Lafayette tonight for Jeannie's wake and funeral. What we really need are prayers - lots and lots of prayers. Cancer only has so many treatments, so we really want this one to have been working.

God Bless!

Posted by Lauren

A Tribute to our Friend

Our good friend, Jeannie, passed away today. This is a picture at Kathie's first treatment with Jeannie by her side.
Please say a prayer for Jeannie's family.

No forced version today, but my favorite is below:

Hail, Holy Queen

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus, O merciful, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of Christ. Amen.


May God hold you in His hands eternally, Jeannie, and may He comfort those who weep for your passing.

Posted by Lauren

A little more Thanksgiving

Our main chefs:) Melissa did most of the meal, but Kathie did her stuffing.




Our two favorite baldies together:) You can kind of see Kathie's new hair growing in. Bob will not be so lucky.














Ready to eat:)














Just thought you guys would actually like to see how Kathie is doing.

Posted by Lauren

chemo, fractured rib

Kathie finally got back on track with chemo. She was having a little pain in her lower right lung area and was concerned that maybe she had fluid in her lungs again. They did an x-ray and did not find any fluid in her lung. What they did find was a fractured rib! We have no idea how she got a fractured rib - it's just a hairline fracture, but a little odd, just the same. There is nothing they can do for a fractured rib, so hopefully it will heal up soon.

The chemo went fine following the x-ray, but Kathie is definitely feeling more side effects. The tingling fingers are back and she has been nauseous since chemo on Monday. She's not sure its the meds that are helping her feel a bit better or if its because she's a few days out now.

Her friend Jackie has been staying with her and helping out (since Kathie has difficulty touching anything cold) and this weekend Lauren will be going home, since it's one of Kathie's last weekends at home in Indiana. Her friend Glenda will also be in town with her daughter Deborah.
On a last note, please pray for Jeannie's family. They are spending some time reminiscing and enjoying some family quality time.

Posted by Lauren

Back at peak

Kathie is still feeling tired, but all of her counts are going back up. Potassium is still holding out - must be getting a better offer elsewhere, but Kathie has almost convinced it... a few more bananas may do the trick (oh, and the supplements).

Oh a squishier note, Kathie's new bum came in. We did not go for the j-Lo booty, but a nice cushion to make sitting a bit more comfortable. I'm not sure she has tried them out, but we're hoping for the best. If you are looking for a butt improvement the websites we looked at were listed a few entries earlier - don't worry guys, there are different websites for you - the internet is infinite;)

Lauren will be joining the fam in North Carolina tomorrow with her German roommate, Juliane. Should be a fun day of travel. On the good side, Lauren will get to see Bob and Kathie's property with something on it for the first time.

Posted by Lauren

One adventure after another

Well, Kathie's white blood count continued to go down, and on Thursday proved to be very low (to the same count that it was last time she was in the hospital)... luckily, no trips to the hospital necessary this time. She got two white booster shots, one on Thursday and one on Friday, just before trying to head out of town.

She could already feel the shot working Friday morning because her bones started to ache (a nice experience as a result of the shots - your white is produced within your bones, good times all around).

Hopefully she'll be feeling a little less tired as the shots do their magic. She be washing her hands religiously to avoid picking up any little bugs. They also prescribed her an all around anti-biotic to help prevent that.

Oddly enough, besides being tired, Kathie is feeling pretty good - maybe not quite up to "day after Thanksgiving shopping" good, but an everyday kind of good.

Posted by Lauren

Little glitch

Well, so much for starting chemo today. Kathie's blood tests were not exactly what they want to see - she had too low of red, white and potassium levels to get chemo today. Unfortunately, it took a couple of hours before they even got to leave despite not getting much out of the visit.

Lynette probably has more details, but those are the few I can pass on in case the evening ends up being a little hectic.

Posted by Lauren

Donut...no, not the kind you eat

Kathie is still suffering from some "exit" problems that are causing a less than pleasant sitting experience. She said something so funny about it the other day that it made Lynette and Lauren cry, but has been banned from being posted - so just know that her sense of humor is not waning (spelling?) at all. In order to improve the sitting experience, Lauren has been looking on sites such as lovemybubbles.com and feelfoxy.com at "butt enhancing underwear" - that's right folks - you really can buy anything online. The underwear comes with a little padding to give you that "junk in the trunk" look... or in Kathie's case, avoiding a concave appearance. It's like having a donut in your pants - but it's not your grandmother's donut anymore... it comes in the shape of molded buttcheeks in memory foam or silicon. Will the options cease? One of the Canadian sites makes a pair of underwear that has 2" thick padding - anyone need to feel like JLo? Let me know and I'll give you the site;) But seriously, it will hopefully make sitting a bit better and more comfortable... I don't think she'll be taking it for a test run at the clubs like the rest of the people who frequent such sites.

The cute bald woman (as Lauren's circle of friends occasionally calls her) is not so bald these days... she's gaining just a bit of white hair back - which I'm sure will return to the natural red we all know she still has. The good news is that it is coming in thick too. I don't think it will be making an appearance in public in the near future, why waste a good wig?

Lauren, Lynette and Kathie had plans to go see The Bee Movie shortly after Lynette arrived on Saturday, but all three of the ladies were pooped (no pun intended for once) and decided to "nap" instead. The first half hour of the nap consisted of the lovely ladies crying from laughing as they snuggled up together in Bob and Kathie's bed... and after protests from Lynette to actually be allowed to sleep, the last half hour was spent completely passed out. Lauren was so out she woke up to find her ear folded over - ouch. Mostly, Lauren and Lynette tried not to attack each other or Kathie with their Mexican food breath.

They were roused by Bob and reminded that they had dinner reservations at a schmancy restaurant - and had 10 minutes to get ready;)

Dinner was amazing. After dinner, Lynette and Lauren parted ways with Kathie and Bob. Lauren and Lynette were put in charge of deciding on some things for how to stage the house to put it back on the market while Bob and Kathie went to play their last hand of couples bridge in Lafayette. Who do you think had more fun? Bob and Kathie busted up the whole group - just kidding, kind of. Seems like everyone in their group is going on to bigger/better... or just different things. They had a going away cake for Bob and Kathie and also gave them a beautiful book on Indiana. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people around us.

Lauren and Lynette mostly made lists of ideas for the house - we'll see what actually happens. Sunday, however, turned into a packing day as Lauren's room was pillaged... okay, that's a little drastic. A lot of stuff was packed up to - by Lynette mostly. Kathie laid on the bed as Queen, directing her minions and Lauren took things off shelves but was hesitant to suffocate them in a box;)

Tomorrow starts chemo again. Hopefully this round will go a bit better.

Posted by Lauren

Mother Teresa's slacking

Well, Kathie is finally starting to feel back to "normal" and thinks she'll be back up to full speed just in time to get chemo on Monday. She went to play bridge last night and really enjoyed herself (winning always helps - she got second;) ) Really, she enjoyed getting out of the house for a bit and having the chance to talk to someone besides herself.

Two days ago, her friend, Laurie "dropped in" to help Kathie finally nail down what colors to use in the new house (which is still moving at snail speed).

This weekend, Lynette and the girls will be visiting and Lauren is also heading back to Lafayette and picking Lynette up on the way.

So onto the title... Kathie's friend Jeannie is at MD Anderson this week and we would like to put our "fan club" at her disposal with extra prayers to Mother Teresa. So we're asking for prayers that her CAT scan comes out well this week. Kathie doesn't really feel that the kidney stone removal Mother Teresa is getting credited for is really all that impressive - so we're hoping to add something a little more spectacular to her name.

Posted by Lauren

Spoke too soon

So scratch that about Kathie doing really well. This week she has experienced quite a bit of prickily hands - starting about 45 minutes into chemo and remaining fairly constant since then. A little heating pad has been helping, but you clearly can't grab things and have a heating pad on at the same time. Add a little nausea and loss of appetite and you have a better picture of how she's doing now. Kathie's also more fatigued this time around than last. Her side effects have been getting progressively worse through the week. Monday started the prickling. Tuesday added the low appetite, Wednesday added the nausea and Thursday had the greatest fatigue. Bob has been out of town until last night, so Mary Ann has been frequently checking up on Kathie (thanks!)

She said fish and chips sounded good last night (does chemo also turn you English?), so Mary Ann was bringing her that, but Lauren suggested she flip through one of her cancer cookbooks and see if anything sounded good and then ask someone to make it for her. We'll see if she decides to do that. Right now, we all just want her to feel better.

On a happier note, if her hands feel better for big enough chunks of time she'll be making a wedding veil for Lauren's friend, Kristen. This will temporarily stop her from harassing her own daughters about getting married;)

Posted by Lauren

Wake Forest

Kathie is doing well. Bob and her made a trip down to North Carolina last week to give the oncologist at Wake Forest (in Winston-Salem) a little test drive - it went very well. The oncologist down there (Bob is supposed to e-mail me his name) worked at MD Anderson for a bit (for his residency?), so there's still the name, even if it's somewhere else. The great thing about him is that he actually has a bedside manner, something that has been missing with Dr. Eng a bit. To add to the pros, he worked with Dr. Eng when he was at MD Anderson, so he knows her personally. This will help a lot with communication when Kathie has Wake Forest as the primary care and MD Anderson as consultants. Kathie will officially be moving her treatment to Wake Forest December 10th, after her December 4-6 check-up at MD Anderson.

"Is the house almost finished?" that may prompt you to ask. No, not quite - Kathie and Bob were disappointed by the progress since they had last visited. However, Eddie and Melissa have generously offered to house Kathie until the house is ready. (We're not sure how many margaritas were shared before this offer came about;)


Posted by Lauren

Red Fingers

Kathie started having a little reaction from the chemo in her hands on Thursday. The tips of her fingers look burned and she has a little bit of peeling skin. Oh the joys of chemo. Luckily, in the stages of this side effect, she's only on stage 1... stage 3 is the whole hand (or whole foot... or both), and a purple red - we're trying to prevent that. While Lauren was in Chicago yesterday she bought Kathie some moisture cotton gloves and socks to wear at night (one of the recommendations in the literature about this side effect).

If it doesn't go down by next week, the doctor will discuss changing the dosage of the chemo. Hopefully, it will clear up.

On the plus side, she was feeling up to a game of bridge... the first time Bob and Kathie have made an appearance to couples bridge in four months.

Posted by Lauren

Take II (again)

This past Monday was Kathie's second chemo treatment with FOLFOX. Kathie's friend, Mary Ann, was supposed to take her... but unfortunately, Mary Ann had another friend diagnosed with cancer who needed a ride to Indy for test... so neighbor Sue stepped in to take her instead.

Kathie had chemo followed by a delayed Avastin treatment -- the paperwork hadn't been sent over for the exam she had last week, looking at why she was bleeding (they needed proof that it was not perforation or some other side effect of the Avastin). Debby (Dr. Cusack's wife) brought over Dr. Cusack's report that he had found it to be internal hemerrhoids and not side effects of Avastin and then the Avastin was finally administered. Kathie had a nice nap from the Benedryl (they give it to her to prevent reactions from the Avastin).

Jackie, a family friend from South Bend, met up with Kathie towards the end of treatment to take her home and stay with her while Bob is in Mexico. Kathie was feeling pretty good until today - she just feels like she ran out of steam. She had her pump removed this afternoon, but has felt a little worn-out all day. Tomorrow she'll receive her neulasta shot, which will hopefully help give a little boost.

Of course Jackie and Kathie have been doing a little shopping - mostly for floor tiles as the house in NC slowly but surely getting there.

On a closing note, we need a lot of prayers to be directed towards Kathie's chemo buddy who has started clinical trial chemo treatment - it's a rough treatment and she and her family could really use all of our prayers.

Posted by Lauren

"Are you looking at my bum? You bum looker!" (read in Brittish accent - it's better that way)

So, the title is only funny if you were a fan of SNL during the time of Mike Meyers. I thought of it today when Kathie was telling the awkward story of how a family friend was looking up her bum this morning - no worries, it was just our family doctor (who is my friend from HS's dad). Needless to say, she isn't thrilled this is being shared to all of you either;)

Anyway, rather than immediately seeing a gastroenterologist, who would have made her clean out once more - something no one was thinking was the best idea since that's all she's been doing on her own - she saw the fam doctor to see if he thought she needed to see someone else. As it goes about 50% of the time, Dr. DuCharme (Kathie, for those of you that have missed that family joke over the last billion years) had accurately predicted that it was basically an interior hemorrhoid (not quite, but basically) that was pretty dang tired of all the stuff that has been pushing it around over the last few weeks. So, that's the good news - nothing too serious, but she needs to resolidify (it's been getting better, but not perfect quite yet), to give her bum a little break.

She also had another round of blood tests while she was in - again, looked decent - not the best, but not bad. With positive results and some peace of mind about the bleeding issue, Bob and Kathie are in Tennessee for a couple of days and then off to North Carolina with the boat in tow. We're aiming for it to be a less "exciting" trip than last time she was in NC.

Posted by Lauren

What goes up must come down

This won't be full of accurate counts, as I just got back from NYC and Kathie was catching me up on my drive from Indy back to school.

This past week, Kathie's sister, Eileen, and niece, Melissa, came to help out in case the new chemo caused a down day or two - but this time around, it did not. Kathie felt pretty great all and all. In fact, Bob and her have plans to head to Tennessee and then North Carolina - or they did until today.

Kathie had a little bleeding today, and spent a couple of hours in the emergency room trying to figure out the cause. No answers have been found yet, and Kathie may have to go see a gastroenterologist (just what she wants to have to do again). They did blood counts to make sure her platelet count wasn't in the toilet (though to some extent, that's exactly where it was;) - that was Kathie's pun, I can't even take credit for that one.

Anyway, all the blood counts were reasonable, some better than others. She went to the bathroom later this afternoon without another incidence, so we're hoping it was just a side effect of all the stuff that has been going on the past 2 weeks. She'll be calling her Lafayette doctor tomorrow to see what his thoughts are on the issue.

As I mentioned, the chemo went well and no major side effects, but she can already tell that the cold sensitivity is real.

Change of Chemo

Hello all. Sorry for the delay. I am traveling this week, and Lauren is in NY without internet, so we are a bit behind.

Anyway, Kathie started her new chemo (FOLFOX plus Avastin) on Monday. All went well so far. She did start to feel some pain when she touched some cold things (one of the common side effects of FOLFOX), but it wasn't too bad. She kept her drinks lukewarm for the last few days as well b/c cold drinks can cause a person to feel like their throat is in pain or swelling.

We will try to get more posted to the web site, but for now, it is about 2:30 AM my time, and I need to hit the hay.

posted by Ed

Round II

Kathie starts Monday with her new chemo, FOLFOX. She had an appointment this last Monday with Gil (one of the docs at DiMartino's office) and they decided they couldn't start this past week as she was not releasing solids yet.

Bob and Kathie decided to do Mondays instead of Tuesday (like the last round) because they're expecting her to follow the same trend of pooping out 4 days later, so this way she'll still be able to enjoy or do something with people on the weekend.

I'm off to NY for the week, so it may be awhile until there's an update, unless I miraculously have internet and time (or if someone convinces Eddie;) )

Posted by Lauren

Back to the real world

Well, we all went back to our separate corners on Tuesday - well kind of. Monday was Magical Kingdom fun, all the way to the park closing. Lauren realized that the rides change a bit in 11 years (they aren't quite so adventurous;) ) Eddie, Melissa and their kids hit just about every ride I think, while Lynette and her girls hit the tamer ones (including the torturous "It's a Small World"), a splash area, and the most important thing they did was twirl with Cinderella! Bob rode a few rides with the girls, and Kathie went on Dumbo, It's a Small World, and Splash Mountain (she ducked and somehow missed the majority of the water that soaked Bob, Christen and Lauren for the rest of the day). Kathie was doing great!

Tuesday was breakfast with the characters (Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy and Donald Duck). The kids had a ball, and Lynette, Chris and Lauren got their picture with Pluto (or maybe it was Goofy?) and the whole famiy had a photo op with Mickey. After breakfast: Eddie and Melissa took Lauren to the airport and then their family continued the drive back to NC. Christen went to the airport with Bob and Kathie and they also had Sophie and Kaitlyn as Lynette hops from one coast to the next (she has a wedding to attend) and Lynette returned to KC with just herself. We loved getting the question "Where are you folks from?" - they weren't prepared for our range:)

All in all it was a great family trip and everyone is back safe and sound. Christen and Kathie have already gotten to work preparing a garage sale they are putting on Friday and Saturday. Aunt Christen is in for a good time in a few days, as she'll fly back to KC with the twins by herself!

DuCharmes, We run for fun

Disney. Phew, who knew having fun was this much work? :) We all (Bob, Kathie, Eddie, Melissa, Alec, Emily, Lynette, Kaitlyn, Sophie, Christen, and Lauren) arrived safely in Orlando. Kathie is doing much better (less bathroom trips!) but we've been wheeling her around to stay on the safe side and keep up her energy. Lauren was the first to arrive, but followed shortly by Christen, Bob and Kathie who flew in from Houston. They all checked in - Christen's room (which she is sharing with Lynette and the girls) was fine, but Kathie, Bob and Lauren's had a little smell to it - which there was no way Kathie was going to be able to deal with, so they had to swap rooms - meaning they were no longer so close to Christen's room. It has all worked out though. The rooms aren't too spread out.

(Tired family - taking a break, Eddie's family is in line to get a picture with Stitch, I believe)

The first evening was relaxed - we all ate dinner together, but it was pretty low key after that. Day two, however... well, look at the title. We were move, move, move on Saturday. We certainly got to see a lot though, and the kids seemed to enjoy themselves - but it was ridiculously humid and hot. Lauren was even in what of the mini-performances - she was the screaming like a lunatic character;)

Day three was a break day. We all went to Downtown Disney, though we weren't all together for too long - it's tough when there's a princess shop and a legos store. The adults all enjoyed the first non-pizza meal we'd had in awhile and then there was a parting of the sea. Those that got out of dodge right after lunch were wise - it broke out into quite a storm. Lynette had headed back with the girls and Bob and Kathie while everyone else had stayed at DD. Eddie and Melissa and their kids left shortly after, managed to take the ferry part of the way back, but when the storm broke loose, had to walk back from the neighboring hotel. Lauren and Christen got a pretty nice brunt of it, because they were stuck trying to get out of DD during the downpour, ended up on a bus which was unfortunately making the rounds to one of the water parks before going to the hotel. A 16 minute ride to DD from the hotel via ferry was a 30 minute bus ride back. Those who had made it back to the hotel enjoyed a little bit of pool time.

Tomorrow is another day of running for fun (aka - we're in a hurry to do everything;) ) at Magic Kingdom. Thank goodness for Melissa - she's figured out almost everything for this trip! But the whole family has to keep thanking The Bank of Bob:) ... We call him Dad.

Kathie has been doing a good job of just enjoying herself and she really is doing much better this week. She doesn't need the wheelchair except to keep longer lasting energy. It also hasn't hurt in getting great seats for some of the events;) But the worst at others - so it evens out.

Posted by Lauren

CEA is like the CIA - sneaky

Well, the exciting news we were going to share with everyone is that Kathie's CEA level went from 250 to 25 - we thought, "ooh, miracle - the liver is going to be free and clear," but we were mistaken....

Apparently, the CEA can be a flaky indicator of how things are going. Sometimes it's awesome, other times it's a double agent, getting your hopes up.

So here's the real news, and I couldn't think of any ways to make this funny:

The chemo has done nothing. The larger tumors have simply gotten larger and some new small ones have appeared. To top it off, as my friend Kristen said, our whole family has to be unique - the doctors believe Kathie falls into a group of only 10% that doesn't metabolize camposar - an ingredient in the FOLFIRI cocktail, which would explain her severe diarrhea. Kathie has to be off chemo for at least 2 weeks (or until the FOLFIRI is pretty much out of her system) before they will begin FOLFOX (we will be continuing with the Avastin alongside of that). It will be around January if we know if that one is working.

God of course gave a silver lining - and that is that somehow and for some reason they had this appointment at MD Anderson. As you may all recall, she's only been getting chemo for about a month, so they typically wouldn't have seen her yet - thank God they did, we have lost very little ground in the scheme of things.

Everyone flys into Orlando tomorrow. Lauren told Kathie that if she isn't feeling well, they can lay beach towels out on the hotel beds and have pretend fun:) Either way, it will be wonderful to have the whole family together.

Posted by Lauren

Looking good!

Yesterday was low-key, as it was a day off from doctors. Kathie is still a little liquidy, but was informed that she would have to go to the emergency room to get liquids if it got bad again - call me crazy, but if you are in a hospital to have a bunch of tests run, it seems they would be able to attach you with a bag of liquids if need be? For right now, she's okay, but if she starts to run a fever, it's back to the long waiting room of the ER. The genius who created that system should probably retire and admit that they are dumb.

Anyway, as mentioned, she's still trudging forward right now. The break from doctor visits yesterday allowed Christen and Kathie to enjoy a little make-over in lobby of the hotel. The Rotary House has lots of events for the patients and their families - but we usually don't have time to attend any of them, so it was neat that Christen and Kathie were able to yesterday. Men don't understand, but a good coat of make-up can make a woman feel like a new person - and I think it definitely perked Kathie up for a bit since she's been feeling a little sickly for over a week.

Today it is back with doctors. They will go over the blood tests and the CT scan from Monday.

Posted by Lauren

Back to MD Anderson

Kathie and Bob flew to Houston on Monday. Kathie was feeling a bit better on the flight but got sick shortly after landing. Christen also arrived from Hawaii safely.

Today was a day of tests. Kathie started with a blood test and we are waiting to confirm some results, but they may be amazing - but until it gets confirmed, that's all you get. Kathie was also thrilled to get an endoscope done today - all clear. She took a little nap (as did Christen) before returning this evening for her CT scan. She's still not eating much, but Irene's carrot cake convinced her to try;) Lauren chastised her jokingly for about two seconds for eating so heathily - but Kathie really needs the calories, so whatever works at this point.

Kathie proclaimed victory as she only had to drink one cup of stuff for her scan (as opposed to the three she choked down... and later threw up... last time). She also had them push the iodine through a needle put in earlier that day (her veins are not exactly amazing right now - so they figured it would be good to leave one in just in case) - not only is it unusual for them to do that, but it was also a much smaller needle than they usually use. Being sassy, as she is, she will now protest any treatment contrary to what they let her get away in her sick state today - boy will they regret bending the standards;)

Bob and Kathie did a happy poop dance today when she had a nice firm bowel movement - yep, that's how our family rolls these days. Unfortunately, it was a fluke and she's still not 100% solid yet. Sorry, I'm running out of creative ways to talk about all of this shit... (oh, I'm cracking myself up!) Either way, hopefully she's feeling better soon.

Kathie's spirits were dampened a bit when she heard some not so great news about one of her fellow chemo warriors - her family is in our prayers and we are praying that the next attempt works better for them.

It turns out that when the going gets tough, the tough go to Disney... "I'm going to Disney World!" is not just for olympic champions and lottery winners anymore. The cancer patients are taking it over! Why do already happy people need to go the happiest place on earth? - that's just greedy;)

Posted by Lauren

Jail Break 2

Kathie was released from the hospital today. All of her counts are going up in the right direction, and her neutrophil count is sky high. She is still a little gassy - have to keep the romance alive somehow, you know? She's less weak today and looks like in general approving. Bob and her are just going to veg at Eddie and Melissa's today and then they are off to Houston tomorrow. Christen is meeting them there.

Kathie did leave with a little warning from the oncologist that diarrhea can be more than a good song lyric... it can be dangerous for cancer patients if it gets too bad. On that note, she's going to have to pay serious attention to the length of time it goes on, as the dehydration risk and nutrient loss is very real.

Posted by Lauren

Slow and steady

Sorry everyone has been left hanging. As you may have expected, we've all had our hands a little full with this situation. Kathie is slowly but surely starting to feel better. Her hemoglobin count improved after a transfusion and her white blood cell count is also steadily increasing with help from a lovely drug called neupogen- it's not quite as rockin' as last time she was in the hospital for low count, but she's reaching normal human averages around 4,000. Her fever is also reaching normal levels (probably not quite Kathie's normal level as she is cold like Lauren with a 97.6 rather than 98.6 average). All of her tests came back negative, so the antibiotics were stopped yesterday. Her appetite is still not up to par, but Bob is boiling it down to the crappy food at the hospital - we now remember why there are jokes about bad hospital food... Kathie had been relatively lucky in Lafayette and at MD Anderson with food - but NC is not impressing us quite yet in the way of food.

Hmmm... you are now wondering, "How does Bob know about the food?" Well, seeing as Kathie is supposed to be flying to Houston on Monday and the fact that she still feels like poo (oh, the puns will never cease to be amusing), everyone decided that it would be better if someone flew to Houston with her. For a little while, this looked as though Eddie might get the gig, but he had a family vacation already scheduled with some of their friends and no one thought it was fair to push him out of that. With a little help from MD Anderson's travel service (have we mentioned lately how good they are to us overall?) Bob got Kathie and his Indy to Houston Hobby tickets exchanged for Raleigh to Houston Hobby ones for no fee:) Lauren drove home on Saturday to protect Kathie from Bob's sense of style and packed a bag for her extended trip. She dropped Bob off at the airport on the way back to BSU. The poor guy did not look too excited about the two rolling suitcases and his briefcase and backpack - we're talking about a man who takes only the bare essentials typically;) Kathie is going to have about a season's worth of clothing to choose from, as with a little investigation by Melissa into what she had brought to NC for her [originally] 3 day trip could last a normal person a good week.

Things we have learned from this experience:
1. Kathie is stubborn (oh wait, we already knew that)
2. Everyone who is housing Kathie needs to have a list of her meds, chemo info, and port info (we are now sending her around with a travel sheet of said info)
3. There are good doctors all around the country - Kathie is thoroughly enjoying the oncologist who has been checking up on her there
4. Hospital food is still bad in many places
5. 3 trips in a month with chemo in-between, not such a hot idea.
6. No matter how busy your life is, time seems to appear when it needs to (Bob's change of plans for the weekend, Eddie and Melissa's time while trying to get to Florida, Lauren's trip to Lafayette for 4 hours (plus 4 hours round-trip) )
7. Eddie and Melissa could have their own emergency response team - they handled the situation like rock stars (well, that's probably not a good comparisons as rock stars would probably need to be the ones in the hospital?) ... um, like an awesome EMS team!
8. Those little safety bars in showers? GOOD IDEA!

We still need prayers for Kathie, as the diarrhea is still an issue and she still feels a little weak. Hopefully we will get good news from MD Anderson this week - though it is early in the game as far as her treatment goes. We all want Kathie to feel better for her family dream trip to Disney, as it is by her request that we're all going (not that anyone is complaining too loudly;) ) Prayers for the rest of us would be greatly appreciated too...

Posted by Lauren

No flight home yet

Well, the flight home last night was definitely canceled. When Kathie woke up (from getting in at 3 AM from the ER the night before), it was already 1:00 in the afternoon. The diarrhea had not stopped and she now had a fever. So, we decided to head back to the ER. But, Kathie decided to make it a little more exciting than that. She hopped in the shower for a quick soaping, and instead, ended up getting dizzy and falling in the tub. No injuries were sustained in the fall, thank goodness. But, because of the fact that she had obviously gotten worse rather quickly, we decided to call the ambulance to take her in.
After a few hours in the ER (blood tests, EKG, urine sample, etc), they decided to admit her in to the hospital. They started some general antiobiotics at that point as the fever was not going down, and the white count had dropped even further (1.3). The red count appeared to be "OK" as it had not moved from the night before really. After finally getting to a private room a few hours later, we started trying to get her on the mend. Kathie spent the night in the hospital trying to recover from neutropenia (low white count). She had a pretty high fever for much of the evening (up to 103 at times). Tylenol did not seem to knock it down too far. And, each BM was still only water, but they were much less frequent after finding a drug called Lomotil.
We also begged the local oncologist for a neupogen shot (tries to kick start the bone marrow in to making more white cells). The antibiotics continued and was alternated with general fluids.

The next morning (Friday), Eddie arrived bright and early, ready to talk to the doctors to see how things were going. Unfortunately, not much happened until 11:30. Our internist came in to tell us that the white counts were getting slightly better, but that the red count had dropped to 8. (Below 8 is the point that requires a transfusion). We asked for a red cell booster shot, but we were told that the oncologist would make that decision. Finally, at 4:15, the oncologist came in. He actually recommended a transfusion over the shot for the red cells. So, we will soon have a blood transfusion done (one bag tonight and one tomorrow). In theory, this should kick start the hemoglobin counts, and should give Kathie a lot more energy. The oncologist also agreed to another neupogen shot as well, which was our hope. He is also starting something called Sandostatin and Questran to try to "firm up" Kathie's trip to bathroom. (OK, not as funny as Lauren, but thought I would give it a try anyway). So, those things should all happen soon/tonight.

Kathie is still quite weak. Her fever is down to about 100, which is good, but still not home free. She is definitely getting up to go to the bathroom easier than before with no dizziness, too - another good sign. But, her abdomen has some soreness to it - especially when she stands. The doctors say it is just b/c it is irritated so much after so much diarrhea. She is trying to choke down some canned pears - another good sign as she really has not eaten anything except 2 cubes of jello since 6 pm on Wed...

I asked her if there was anything "juicy" to tell you, but she just smirked... she loves having her personal habits posted on the internet...

If you have a moment, some prayers wouldn't hurt. She needs to get better soon or things get a bit interesting. She is supposed to be back to Lafayette to pack for a trip to MD Anderson on Monday. We are hoping to get some good news that the chemo is working during that visit. Directly from there, she goes to Disney World with the whole family for a few days. We are hoping she can get well enough to make the trips - soon.

Posted by Ed

The shower scene

Kathie found a way to make the shower scene not so sexy today. Eddie will fill in the holes after he's had some sleep since he's the first hand knowledge... but the short version just so you have some info:

Kathie woke up with a fever, got dizzy and fell in the shower (did not go unconscious).... went to hospital in ambulance.... lots more tests, lower white blood cell count, but slightly higher red blood cell count... admitted to the hospital, staying overnight, getting a white blood cell booster - Eddie is staying with her. Fever was around 103 last time I talked to Eddie... and Kathie was receiving antibiotics (just in case - they still aren't sure if it's just low white blood cells causing fever, or if she has an infection of some kind).


Posted by Lauren

All is "well"

Kathie and Melissa did not leave the hospital until after 2 AM yesterday. Nothing too serious, but definitely some dropped numbers for Kathie. First off, the x-ray just showed irritation - just as you'd expect from someone suffering from diarrhea most of the evening. There was no obstruction shown. Her white blood cell count has dropped, which was unexpected as she received a Neulasta shot last week to boost it. Her red blood cell count dropped as well - only .3 from having to get a transfusion. Unfortunately, she could not get new boost shots for either of these issues without being admitted which was not on the top of anyone's priority list at 1 AM, so they put a call into the on-call doctor at Dr. DiMartino's office. They said to come in on Friday (Kathie is flying home today) and to go back to the hospital if she had a fever or more pain. Neither the ER doctor, or the doctor at DiMartino's office felt the boosts were necessary immediately. Kathie and Melissa will probably call Dr. D's office themselves today to double check that response.

The best part of the story from yesterday: Kathie wasn't exactly having anyone rush to attend to her at the ER, so she took off her wig figuring if she looked a little more sickly that would help. A+ for tact mom:) Unfortunately, Melissa and Kathie still enjoyed an 8 hour adventure yesterday.

Kathie did leave the hospital having received fluids. She will fly home today with her mask on (and she wore it around the hospital yesterday - where better to pick up something nasty than in an ER?) and we'll all hope that she isn't stuck next to the kid blowing snot into his hand or the adult that never learned to cover his mouth when coughing. The stool sample results will not come in for 2-3 days, so Dr. DiMartino can request the results from there. The will indicated whether or not there is bacteria present.

Thanks for the thoughts and prayers - just another day in the ups and downs of reactions to chemo and cancer!

Posted by Lauren

Exploring NC doctors

Unfortunately, it has not been a slow week. Kathie was feeling tired to some extent most of the week following chemo. Wednesday, Saturday,Sunday and Monday were particularly tiring (though it probably did not help that she was helping Bob, Lauren and Ben pack up and move some of the things out of the lake house in Indiana over the weekend). Tuesday, Kathie went out to NC by herself to go check on the house's progress and to visit Eddie, Melissa and the kids.

Today was doom day. *WARNING - bathroom talk coming up... get into mature adult mode before continuing* Though Kathie's bowels have been pretty normal for having a huge chunk of her intestines taken out and then stapled back together, today was a little loose (nice euphamism if I do say so myself). This in itself would not be an issue if it wasn't the whole day and with great frequency. According to my sources, about a half hour after Kathie had something to drink her stomach would start to gurgle. She had approximately 9 Ammodiums with no end in sight and everyone started to get a little concerned about the hydration issue - so into urgent care she went with Melissa. They decided that blood needed to be drawn, and so she got bumped to the hospital instead, so that blood could be drawn from her port (it has not been confirmed whether this was Kathie's request, or their suggestion). Many theories have been thrown into the air as to what is causing her issues, but until the blood tests, x-ray, stool sample tests and possibly (but hopefully not) CT scan come through. I believe liquids are being pumped, but they want to know what is going on, as it could be something serious, or could be as "small" as a reaction to her red blood cell shot last week.

As it stands now, that's pretty much all the info (2nd hand), and Melissa and Kathie are still at the hospital. Hopefully news will come through soon, in the mean time, prayers that it isn't something serious like a perforation wouldn't hurt.

Posted by Lauren

A little tired

Kathie had chemo on Tuesday- it will be over three weeks until her next one because of the trip to MD Anderson coming up, and then the family trip to Disney. She has been very fortunate with her side affects so far, but that's waning a bit this week. She's finding herself a little more tired today than usual - usually it doesn't hit until Saturday. We're all hoping it has more to do with running around with 3 year olds this past week at Lynette's in KC.

She had a good time in Kansas with her granddaughters, Lynette and Eddie (who was also visiting). Everyone is looking forward to spending time together in Florida in 2 weeks!

Leavin' on a jet plane

Kathie was jet-set again yesterday on a trip out to Kansas City for another visit with Lynette and the grand-kids. She sported her wig and mask (to try to protect her from germs). Before she left, she stopped by the Doctor to get the go ahead because she feared she may be getting too dehydrated. But the Doc said she was good to go and to just pay attention to it. If she gets lightheaded or dizzy, we'll head to the ER. So far, so good.

Today we had to, of course, go to one of Kathie's favorite furniture stores in Kansas City-- Woodson's. And Dad, I cannot take any responsibility for what happened there...if anything. Hypothetically speaking though, if anything were to happen, the damage was minimal.

Good news

Kathie had her semi-regular appointment with Dr. DiMartino on Thursday. Questions were asked about vitamins, cold medication, blood test abbreviations, etc. The good news? Kathie's CEA (Cldfkjdkjdklfj Eldjfjkdjfldj Aklkdjflkdj... or something like that;) - it's a blood test thing that is an indicator of if cancer activity is increasing/decreasing/staying steady (or at least, that's what we pay attention to it for). For change to be considered significant, it has to be a large number change (1/3 -1/2... 1.5x/2x the initial number). Kathie's number was right below 400, and droped to about 250... significant... not necessarily meaning a significant response, but at least meaning that the treatment is working and we're currently headed in a good direction. Last time it had only dropped by about 30... so it could be showing a positive trend, or there's a different lab personal:)

Kathie's energy continues to remain fairly high, minus some fatigue that she's had for about, oh the last 40 years or so. She's pretty much shot by 3PM, and needs a good nap - which Lauren joined her for a couple of times - um, to show support.

Lauren headed back to school Thursday evening (after she took Kathie in to get her pump removed and they ran a couple of errands). Today, Kathie was going to head over to BSU to "help" Bob with the couches (or look at him and Lauren's roommate's fiance unload it like Lauren did) and do a meal with Lauren, but the Saturday wear-down won. Kathie decided to stay home and will probably rest most of the day. Tomorrow, if trends continue, she should be back up and running.

Posted by Lauren

Catching up

After Lynette left, Bob and Kathie went to North Carolina to deal with the house "issues." Besides a little cold that she picked up from home, she did fine while she was down there. While they were in NC (staying with Lauren's boyfriend's family and then with Eddie and Melissa), Lauren drove back to Indiana from Connecticut to be home for Kathie's chemo while Bob was on a business trip. The lapse in blogs has been a result of Lauren's driving exhaustion;)

Yesterday, Kathie went in for the usual - some chemo and Avastin. They gave her precautionary Benadryl since she had a reaction to the Avastin last time. Instead of the almost 2 hours it took to push the Avastin two weeks ago, it took only an hour and Kathie just had some slight tingling around her mouth. She felt a little sleepy at chemo and managed an hour nap.

I'm not sure we really need to be worrying about her appetite - Kathie wanted a taco salad and practically licked the take-out box clean. Lauren sat in the chair next to her, wearing her new wig towards the end - just to prove that she literally is turning into Kathie.... all Lauren needs is the mom haircut and pair of mom-jeans;)

Kathie, as usual, was feeling pretty impressively good after chemo and so Lauren and her ran a couple of errands - including creeping out their hairstylist, Natalie, when Lauren went in wearing Kathie's wig.

Due to a low hemoglobin count (less than 10) she got a shot to boost red blood cell growth - different from the Neulasta that boosts her white blood cells. Btw, her white blood cell count is still sky high.

Today, you would never know that we have a sick woman on our hands... she slept in (after staying up until midnight watching Night at the Museum with Lauren) and then Lauren and her were running around, doing errands and spending an enthralling hour looking at door handles and locks. With her wig on, it was like looking at Kathie 4 months ago - Fr. Dan thought it was her hair. We'd like to video tape people's reactions - some people are seeing her with extremely thinned hair and the next day she has a full head of hair!

The hair has disappeared at a quick rate, though she's still holding on to every precious strand in hopes that some grow back before they all disappear... which the doctors suggested may happen. We shall see. The part she's absolutely loving? It's all red, no hair dye needed... not that she does that;)

Tomorrow, we return to give back the pump and there is an appointment to chat with Dr. DiMartino.

Posted by Lauren

Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny-Go!

"Grandma" is out of control and Lynette has officially given up trying to keep up with her.

Kathie started yesterday morning making Lynette and the girls French toast and orange juice. (Aren't we supposed to be "helping" her???) Then got us going out to the park to feed the ducks with a bag of bread and stale popcorn. I never knew ducks liked popcorn. On the way to the park, we picked up Kathie's newly coiffed wig which looked eerily more Kathie-like than it already had. We left the wig on the styrofoam head sitting in the car to scare passers-by while we went to the park. Kathie finally sat down to take a rest while Jackie, Lynette, Sophie and Kaitlyn rode the park train. But she didn't sit for long, as right behind her was a shopping opportunity (a little craft store next to a senior citizen bingo hall). We weren't sure whether to look for her sitting at a table yelling "bingo!" or in the store, but then we saw her in the store window. Busted.

After the park we just might have hit the ice cream shop....for the kids, of course-- and then we ran a couple other errands.

Back home for lunch and then Kathie is ready to go again. WHAT? Lynette is ready for a nap. Which she is embarassed to say she stayed home and took while the kids watched tv and Kathie and Jackie ran back out.

Kathie and Jackie get back home, but Kathie's not ready to sit yet. She makes a redneck sprinkler/water fall on the deck for the kids by hanging a hose from a hook in the roof. She'd like it to be referred to as an "invention." So the kids played in her invention on the deck for quite awhile while we watched. Like Jackie said, "there's more to Indiana than just corn."

We finished the night with a nice dinner and yummy peach pie brought over by Kathie's neighbor Maryann. Thanks Maryann!!! Mmmmmmmmm. Jackie headed off back to South Bend (boo hoo) and Lynette and Kathie packed. Bob got home from a business trip late that night.

This morning Lynette, Sophie and Kaitlyn left for home followed by Kathie and Bob to North Carolina to go raise a little heck at their house being built. Don't mess with Kathie and Bob when building their house...

Hopefully it will be a slow news week until chemo treament again, as no news is probably good news. : )

Out and about

You would never know Kathie was drained from taking a shower on Saturday by looking at her today. A family friend, Jackie Batill, came in town yesterday from South Bend. They went out to run some errands yesterday afternoon and started the day off today planting some flowers at the house while Lynette attempted to vacuum and mop according to standards. Jackie followed up with some dusting that was allegedly up to code. Then we all took a break in the nice, humid, blazing heat of the afternoon out back.

Jackie and Kathie took off again on some other missions this afternoon. One of which will be to drop the wig off for a trim a-la-Kathie-style. It has been sitting on various counters freaking us all out when we walk in the room, thinking Kathie's head has been placed on a counter.

A big thanks to Jackie who has been learning the good and the not-so-good parts of Lafayette running out to get groceries, dinner, children's tylenol....etc. We love you! We love all of you who have kept Kathie in your thoughts, prayers, visited, brought food, given rides and friendship.

What NOT to do as visitors

As I (Lynette) have yet to post one update and am now AT the house, I figured it was about time. Even though we got in on Thursday afternoon, I logged in to the blog Friday to check out was going on! Then I got sick. So I realized I was a perfect example of what not to do when coming to make a visit.

1. get sick and have to be taken care of and fed by the ones you are trying to help
2. trash the house
3. take over the tv with cartoons when Bob and Kathie are trying to watch a game of golf
4. bring fighting children

Besides that, our visit has been great. ; )

After an 8 hour drive in on Thursday Lynette and the girls were met by Kathie, her sister Eileen, niece Melissa and great-nephew Noah. Kathie was ready to drop off her chemo pack and hit the mall. What??? Lynette and the girls went along for the drop, but had to go home to rest while Kathie hit the mall. This woman is crazy. Nothing will keep her from a great sale.

Friday Eileen, Melissa and Noah left. Kathie and Lynette's daughter Sophie took a nap for a bit and then all of us hit the wig store. Kathie is still losing hair, but it is just very thinned out now...not gone (or half gone, like Bob's). Luckily, neither one of them has resorted to a comb-over. Kathie didn't want to lose any more of her own hair by trying on the wig, so Lynette tried it on. She looked like a mini Kathie and Sophie and Kaitlyn thought that was pretty funny. It's pretty full, but a perfect color match. So Kathie decided to get it. She'll either trim it herself or take it to the beauty salon for a cut. After the wig shop, we were off to get Kathie's Nuelasta (sp?) shot. (a white blood cell booster, which we're not quite sure why they still administered since her white count is already through the roof). Sophie and Kaitlyn made themselves at home at the doctor's office--coloring pictures, helping themselves to water from the little water dispenser. They already know the drill.

Friday night was an exciting 39th anniversary dinner for Bob and Kathie (an exchanging of cards and Olive Garden takeout--which Lynette joined them for). They said it was always how they dreamed their 39th anniversary would be.

Saturday Bob was off to the lake before we could get out of our pajamas. (Which is not saying much when we're in our pajamas at 10am). But Kathie was absolutely exhausted. Taking a shower and getting dressed put her over the top. She could hardly sit up and have a conversation. She was worried that her red blood cell count, which had been low on Monday may have dropped further. So we trekked to the hospital to get a blood count. If her count was too low, she would need to get a blood transfusion. Her red count was actually up a bit (10.8) and her white count was still sky high. So the doctor said it was probably "just" the chemo and the now added avastin treatment. He advised her to just take it easy and rest and said she should be feeling better in 24-48 hours.

We drove up to the lake and Kathie rested on the couch while Bob took Lynette and the kids out to the "swimming hole." The girls loved it and had a blast. Bob tried the best he could to keep up with Sophie as she darted around the lake.

Sunday morning Kathie woke up feeling a bit better and Lynette woke up sick. Bob took care of things around the house and fed everyone. The girls waded in the pool a bit and then took a walk with Kathie to her neighbors for a visit while Lynette napped (another "what not to do while visiting"). By Sunday night, Kathie was asking Lynette if she needed anything. (Trust me, you will never feel so low as to have your mom who just completed round two of chemo asking you if you'd like a head massage!) She was definitely getting her energy back.

Today, Monday, Bob is off to work then on a business trip. I'll have to see what's on our agenda...shopping maybe?

Tired

Kathie is surrounded by love: Eileen, Melissa, Lynette and the precious children of the latter two (Melissa's son and Lynette's girls).

I stand corrected on the Avastin - it was an "allergic" reaction, but different from the ones that they (the staff) has encountered before... she said she got "flushed" but also mentioned that she could use some color, so she wasn't sure it was really a bad thing;)

There's a bunch of technical jargon for why Kathie is tired... long of the short of it - she has enough iron, but the red blood cells are small (or something like that) and not everything is connecting quite like it should be.

She's all about the naps this week, but has also managed to get out of the house to... *gasp*... go shopping;) I think when she doesn't want to shop anymore, we'll know it's serious.

Hopefully, it remains a slow news week.

Posted by Lauren

Avastin, Day #1

Kathie restarted chemo today. Avastin was added to the regiment... and ended up slowing the process down a bit. When Lauren spoke with her at around 1:30, she was doing pretty well, but ended up having a slight intolerance (not an allergic reaction - that would have caused a whole different set of issues) to the Avastin. They had to slow down the administration, but she got through it. Bob estimates they won't get out of the doctor's until close to 6 this evening. On the "upside" - Jeannie was there to be her pal today, as her chemo was also off-track. Due to the complications, Bob stuck around for the whole treatment.

The delay in the end of the chemo/avastin treatment will delay when she gets her pump... delaying when she goes in to get it off on Thursday... but it's all part of the game.

Kathie's sister, Eileen, and niece, Melissa, will be in tonight to help out around the house during the week.

Posted by Lauren

Bob's shopping

The title is pretty much just to frustrate Bob. Kathie is doing pretty well, still figuring out pills and how they affect her - this week's trial is with some iron pills. 3 have been causing her some stomach cramping, 2 seems to be okay - but she's supposed to be taking 3.

Kathie and Bob went shopping yesterday (Bob claims that men go "buying" not "shopping".... and I quote, "there is a fundamental difference between men and women." Phew, good thing he explained that before I got any older;)

When Lauren spoke with them yesterday, they both sounded in very good spirits... It may have helped that they were fed an excellent brunch by Sharon Reed, Eddie's mother-in-law.

Kathie will resume chemo this Tuesday. Her sister, Eileen, is coming in for a few days and the week is ending with a visit from Lynette, I believe. Kathie will also be starting her first treatment of Avastin along with chemo. It's a big week.

Posted by Lauren

Jail break

Kathie got out of the joint today, with sky-high white blood cell counts... anyone who didn't know what was going out would have automatically thought she had leukemia. As Eddie mentioned the other day, she will resume chemo next week with a slightly lower dosage (about 10% less).

Posted by Lauren

A few corrections

OK, we got some bum data on the last post. That is what happens when you play "telephone" and get info from someone who got info from someone else who got info from a hospitalized patient that is not taking notes. So, here is the new, hopefully more accurate data.

Bob and Kathie actually talked for about an hour with DiMartino (oncologist) and finally got some answers.

Kathie's white count is really 560, not 900. Even though normal is 4k-10k, they want to get her up around 10k before they do chemo. This is so that she can have some "buffer" in order to not crash the count down to nearly 0 again. So, chemo is definitely off until next week.

Her red count was actually correct, but they are going to give her some shots of some red cell booster medication as well as a stronger shot/dose of the white count booster shots. We are hoping that this will help both white and red counts get back up.

The "good news" is that the blood test has come back and there is no meaningful infection. She had blood tests from the port and other veins. Interestingly, an infection in the port would be a "bad thing" b/c they are very difficult to get rid of. Again, though, no infection was found. DiMartino said that the fever will probably simply remain until the white count gets back above about 1500. Apparently, it is a "normal side effect" of having such a low white count. So, again, hopefully the shot tonight helps get this up tomorrow.

Kathie will, most likely, be spending the next 2 days in the hospital. She is getting antiobiotics by IV every 8 hours as a precaution.

The other thing Bob and Kathie found by being able to actually sit and talk with DiMartino is that this is a somewhat normal reaction to chemo. The dose that is assigned at first is based on height and weight only. Then, after the doctors see the effects, it is modified. For example, if Kathie's white count hadn't gone down at all, the dose probably would have been upped. Since the white count took such a dive, the doseage will obviously be lowered. In the next treatment, it will be adjusted by 10% down.

Sorry about some of the misinformation. Hopefully, we can keep the right info flowing in the future.

posted by Ed

Still in the hospital

A quick blog update for the day.
Kathie has received some of the test results back. So far, there is no obvious reason for the fever. The CT scan did not show a sinus infection/blockage, the x-ray did not show any lung issues, and the urine analysis was negative, also.
So, for now, they are still on the same path -
Monitoring her and continuing tests (blood test should be read tonight some time).

She received a shot last night in an effort to increase her white blood cell count. This seems to have helped a bit, but the count is still too low. It is up to about 900 (not sure about the units on this number). She needs for it to get above 1000 before they will consider giving her chemo. A 3rd party tells me that 4000-10000 is normal (although I haven't verified those numbers). So, we are hoping that another shot will be enough such that she can continue chemo soon. Unfortunately, the shots do give her some pain in her bones and spine. This is, apparently, a normal side affect for these "white cell booster drugs".

She is also a bit low on her red cell count. It is 8.9 (again, not sure of units). Apparently, below 8 is getting to the point where a person gets a transfsion. So, they are keeping an eye on this as well.

Tonight, she will spend the some more time in the hospital, trying to get healthy. It is a good thing she thinks Bob looks cute in his mask :-)

On another topic, she has started losing her hair already. She thought she noticed that hair was starting to come out over the weekend. Now, however, she is removing "clumps" of hair, and is definitely noticing it thinning. I guess she will soon be able to relate to her husband and son's baldness...

posted by Ed

Quick update

Quick update about Kathie:

She is in isolation for this evening - no flowers, no vegetables, etc. She's having tests out the wazoo to pinpoint what exactly she has (she has some sort of "infection" - meant to be vague- due to the low white blood cells), receiving antibiotics (general until they figure out exactly what it is) and some drugs to boost white blood cell count. That's it for now... more tomorrow when we see where the test lead.

NO FLOWERS

So, upon a little research, I have found that when Kathie is experiencing Neutropenia (the official name for her having low neutrophil count - 50-60% typically makes up your white blood cells) it is the absolute WORST time to have flowers, as they tend to carry fungi and other various germs. Also, though Bob said there is a ridiculous amount of food at home (thanks for taking care of him and mom!) - uncooked foods are also a no-no right now....

Here's the info I found on the web (thanks again Google!) http://www.oncolink.com/treatment/article.cfm?c=2&s=13&id=68

- Eliminate uncooked foods, which may contain germs, from your diet, including:
cold soups made from fresh fruits or vegetables
salads of raw vegetables or fruits
raw meats or fish salads
natural cheeses
uncooked eggs
fresh, frozen and dried fruits
uncooked herbs, spices and black pepper
instant iced tea, coffee or punch
sushi and sashimi
Avoid fresh flowers and plants which may have germs in the soil.

Thanks for helping us watch out for her!

Posted by Lauren

The good, the bad, and the ugly

If this looks too long... read what's under the asterisks - it's the important stuff... but the beginning is something Kathie wanted on here.

So, Kathie called Lauren on Saturday to put a "funny" story on the blog... but Lauren did not have access to the internet until today.... so here's that part:

*WARNING* Bathroom humor is present... and honestly, that's just the way we like it these days...

Saturday, Kathie was finding herself a bit blocked up (while being visited by her very good friend, Glenda)... and pulled out a couple of the muffins specified for constipation issues, made by Lauren and stocked in the freezer. The pain meds have that lovely side effect... or they cause the reverse, in which case there is a casserole in the freezer with that label. (Cancer cookbooks are divided by symptoms).

She ate one muffin and waited a bit, wondering if she was going to have to take another sapasitory (sp?)... but thought she'd give a second muffin a try before popping yet another pill. Alas, a couple hours later she had a "movement" that would please any man if it were his own.

The end of the story was apparently funnier when spoken between Glenda and Kathie... but the punchline is supposed to be something like.... "The fish that got away." I understand the joke, but I'll let you take it how you want... I think it's funnier that way.... it's the little things in life these days.

Lauren was simply pleased that she had done something helpful while at home. By the way, if you ever have a little "stop-up" issue, the Zucchini Raisan muffins are really quite tasty.

*********************************************************
Thank you to those that prayed for Jeannie... not quite a miracle, but she had some positive test results while at MD Anderson last week:)

On a less happy/humorous note... Kathie started spiking a fever again on Saturday... nothing too big, and it went down fairly quickly. Yesterday, however, it started going up again, reaching 101.3 (a "call the doctor ASAP" temp with cancer), but got it back down with some tylenol - as suggested by doctor. She took her temp again at 3 AM and it was back up, but "Dr. DuCharme" (slash, she didn't want to go sit in a hospital at 3 AM over sleeping), decided to take some more tylenol and skip the phone call to the late night group until this morning, since she had a blood draw scheduled for today anyway. Unfortunately, the blood test results came back with a not-so-good finding - she basically has no white blood cells. Kathie was told to report ASAP to ICU and checked in around 2 this afternoon. We're not sure what exactly the protocol is for this situation, so we're waiting and seeing how she is treated for the problem, and I'll try to update later this afternoon if I have any news. DO NOT CALL BOB RIGHT NOW and ask how she's doing... If you must, call Lauren, but really, all the news I've got is on here.

The other half

This will probably be the shortest entry yet (some of us have work to do! ;) )

Bob went in for a colonoscopy and the coast was all clear... and probably will be for days thanks to the stuff they give you!


Posted by Lauren

Check up with DiMartino

Kathie and Leigh went in for Kathie's appointment with Dr. DiMartino on Tuesday. Kathie felt the appointment went well. Dr. DiMartino said that her liver seemed to be staying about the same - it wasn't extra swollen or anything like that. She also said that Kathie actually did very well with the chemo and hopefully that is indicative of how she will react with the rest of treatment. After reviewing what Kathie was taking for pain, Dr. DiMartino prescribed something different, feeling that some of what Kathie was taking was too toxic to be taken on any kind of regular basis. They also chatted about some alternative treatment methods, which Kathie will be looking into further with some of the alternative medicine people at M.D. Anderson (nothing will be done instead of chemo, but rather in conjunction with, if she gets an okay). Dr. DiMartino also reconfirmed the the level of fluid in the lining of the lungs is lower than showed up on the x-ray taken the week after the lining of her lung was drained.

Getting off of the hydrocodeine (I think that was the drug?) has helped lower Kathie's feelings of nausea a bit - or at the very least, the vomitting ceased when she stopped taking it. The current issue is some mouth sores.

On another note, we'd like to direct everyone's prayers back to Mother Teresa - this time for Kathie's friend Jeannie, who is at M.D. Anderson this week for a check-up. Mother Teresa does need two miracles afterall, and Jeannie could very much use one of them. So if everyone could pray for some very positive test results for them, or if you are feeling daring, a cure... that would be great:) Kathie would greatly appreciate it.

Posted by Lauren

Another week, another helper:)

Lauren left on Saturday to head back to CT. Kathie had thrown up once before she even left. The rest of Saturday seemed to go okay, but Kathie took it easy, just in case.

Sunday, Bob and Kathie made it to Mass, but Bob headed up to the lake by himself afterwards and Kathie stayed home to recharge. Lauren's replacement, Leigh, came in early Sunday evening and will be staying for the week.

Kathie is definitely starting to be symptomatic from chemo (vomitting, "digestive issues," and most recently, mouth sores) - let's hope the side effects aren't the only thing happening! We won't find out how the tumors are responding until the next PET scan.

The pepcid Kathie has thrown into the medication mix seems to be helping a bit, and she stopped taking the codeine pain meds (which created more nausea).

Thank you to those that have e-mailed Lauren offering to help, we don't want to have to rely on one or two people (as there is a long road ahead), so we greatly appreciate a multitude of offers. It's never too late to add your name to the list:) Just e-mail Lauren at laducharme@bsu.edu with what you can do, restrictions on that and your phone number!!!

Those who cannot volunteer any time and wish to help out in some other way (beside donations to the American Cancer Society)... Several people have offered to have food sent in, only Lafayette doesn't have any services like that (unless you count pizza), so Bob and Kathie are accepting small gift certificates to places that have pick-up at the very least... right now the ones that would help are Bob Evans, Olive Garden, Logan's, and Chili's. (The first two more importantly). Even if Bob and Kathie don't use all of them while they are still in Lafayette, most of those are rather extensive chains, or we'll let our visiting caretakers take themselves out;)

Posted by Lauren

Doctors, doctors, doctors, pills, pills, pills

Lauren took Kathie in to get an x-ray around 10:30 to check for fluid in the lungs. The x-ray actually showed she had less liquid than she did on the last check... that was the good news. The bad news is that we had no explanation for why she was having a difficult time breathing. The x-ray did show her diaphram was a little elevated - but we don't know if that was in comparison to the previous x-ray, or just in general. A little while after getting home, Dr. Cusack's office called asking Kathie to come in there (they had arranged the x-ray), so they could give her a little more thorough check-up.

At Dr. Cusack's he didn't notice anytihng that caused him any more concern than the general situation, so we went on our way from there. Dr. Cusack did suggest taking some pain medication to relieve the feeling of pressure, and wrote her a prescription for a new one. Kathie took that immediately and it did quickly relieve some of her shoulder pain (an off-shoot of the liver pain) and the liver area also eventually felt a little less troublesome.

Kathie was moving slowly, but still moving;) After taking the pain medication, Lauren and her headed to the wig shop, which of course was freakishly closed (the hours said it should have been open - so the guy may have been on vacation or something). They had a little time, so they then tried the sporting good store for a good water bottle and then the bookstore for a paint book - walking away with nothing from either. At 4, Kathie had doctor's visit 3 (though this one was planned in advance), she had her stitches in her nose removed.

The appointment at the dermotologist went much better than the day she went in for surgery. The nurse who took out the stitches did a great job, and Kathie didn't even feel it. Bob called as Lauren and Kathie were leaving the office to see if Kathie felt up to eating out - she was feeling pretty good, so the three of us met up at Chili's. The half rack of ribs sounded good to Kathie and she ate most of those and was in good spirits throughout dinner. Bob had thought that perhaps some of her symptoms were due to acid reflux (something they had also brought up at M.D. Anderson), so he got her some pepcid, which seemed to help a lot with some of her discomforts. She was still feeling good after dinner, so Lauren and her went around to some of the restaurants that were around that area who offer pick-up and got some menus for the future.

The weather was great in Lafayette today, and was still gorgeous when the three of us got back from dinner, so we went on a 15 minute walk. Kathie did great on the walk in comparison to some of her earlier walks. Lynette called shortly after they returned from their walk, and while Kathie was talking to her, she got really nauseous, and then got sick for the first time in awhile. Lynette wanted me to mention that as soon as she returned to the phone, she picked up in the conversation where she had left off! Kathie felt fine after throwing up and unfortunately, the vomitting could be tied to a number of variables, so we're just going to go with that it sucked.

About an hour and a half later, she got sick again - and again, felt pretty much fine afterwards... no residual nausea - but after the second time, she got a little more cautious and decided to settle on the couch for awhile. After making a few phone calls (she's trying to get to everyone who has called - but it's going to take awhile!) she hit the hay a little before midnight. We'll see what tomorrow brings, today was not the day Kathie or Lauren had planned!

Posted by Lauren