Category Archives: Disease

New News

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I had a friend from Hawaii message me looking for an update and when I responded, he said, “Thank God, I was worried for a minute there.”
I understand that. No news isn’t always good news, so here’s some news. When Ann Sophie, Will and I first arrived in Minnesota and got going with the Mayo thing, we had appointments almost every weekday, and usually a few. I was at the clinic Monday thru Friday and worried if I would need them when they were closed over the weekend. If it was outside office hours, I’d go to the ER.
These days, the appointments are much less, the next one a scan on Sept.21. But it’s a big one. When you are in chemotherapy, you might feel better and hope things are going better on your insides, but you really can’t be sure until someone looks in there and tells you for sure. This CT scan is where we find out how the meds have been working. If you remember, I’m taking a couple chemo pills that are hopefully reducing and eventually eliminating the Cancer that almost killed me a short while ago. They are part of a “targeted therapy” taking the place of the standard chemo I started out with. If this works like we are hoping and praying for, I could at some point be cancer free!
Sept.21 is when we find out just exactly how it’s been going.
As for me, I am doing much better symptom-wise. The swelling in my legs, feet, stomach, and back has all but disappeared which is awesome for me. The fluid drain I had in both lungs has decreased significantly. The right one stopped flowing completely and was removed. The left one still produces about 150ml each night. But that’s way less than before when it was at 750ml.

One of the ways you tell how well treatment is working is to look at the symptoms. Less fluid means less reaction to Cancer, so we hope for the best. The only unknown is steady pain in my neck. This appeared about a month ago and we have not been able to get a hold of it or find out a reason for it. The docs have theories that it could be Cancer in my spine, which from an MRI scan 2 weeks ago, is still present-no bigger, no smaller. Is the pain coming from this? If so, they’ll do radiation treatment. I really would rather not have this and hope that’s not the case, but it’s possible. To me, it feels more like a sore neck you slept on wrong.
Ever since this ordeal started, I’ve been taking a medicine cabinet full of drugs, so these could be reacting to each other or maybe a side effect from one or more of them. Ibuprofen helps with the pain and morphine doesn’t, interestingly enough. We hope for good news on the 21st! Anyway, that’s it for now. Thank you for your prayers and support.

Plus Outweighs Minus

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The old adage “no news is good news” applies to the lack of recent blog posts. Nelson is doing better than ever in Rochester, Minnesota, on his journey through these six months (so far) of cancer treatment.

Since our last report ten days ago, lots has happened—or I should say hasn’t happened, since there have been no visits to the ER and no hospitalizations. And here are some other things that are, thankfully, no longer happening either:

  1. Nelson’s right lung has dried up in terms of producing fluid, and the catheter has now been removed.
  2. His swollen right arm and both legs are much less swollen after diuretics removed 20 pounds of fluid from his tissues.
  3. His appetite is back.
  4. His nausea is nearly gone.
  5. His doctors believe he’s almost strong enough to go to the full dose of targeted immunotherapy. (When he had Covid, along with simultaneous other challenges, they’d started him on only a half-dose so as not to overwhelm him.)
  6. His daily dose of morphine has been decreased by a third, so his pain is less.
  7. He doesn’t use oxygen at all now and maintains levels between 92-96. He can take short walks and go on low-key outings.

None of these things would have been possible a month ago, and Nelson’s overall situation has improved dramatically. As Ann Sophie put it, “He’s more of his old self now, interested in projects and very sharp mentally.”

Of course he still has lung cancer, so there are some negatives that remain:

  1. His left lung is still producing fluid, though it’s much reduced, measuring about 300 ml each day.
  2. He still struggles with fatigue, so outings have to be brief with space between for rest. This is quite the opposite of Nelson’s healthy self when he was hard working and loved adventure, the more the better. But his work now is to fight this powerful disease, and he is fighting well.
  3. Though the fluid being produced by the cancer cells seems to be decreasing, his swollen feet and bloated abdomen are still problems.
  4. A new development is a sore neck with pain traveling from neck to shoulder. Doctors are watching this and will most likely do an MRI to investigate. His team has told them not to worry about this, but as Ann Sophie said, “Easier said than done.”

Thursday Nelson will have another blood test to determine if he’s strong enough to handle the full dose of immunotherapy. If they decide to do that, he will no doubt experience an increase in nausea. But they’re ready with all the anti-nausea drugs he might need, and all of us hope the stronger therapy will agree with him. A double-dose would mean a doubly strong attack against every cancer cell.

In the mean time, we continue praying—and trusting the God who we know has a good plan for Nelson’s life.

“Trust in the Lord, and he will act.” (Psalm 37:5)

Happy Encounters

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Last week little Will’s grandpa got to meet his first grandchild, who is almost five months old.

When Ralph arrived from Germany, he also got to be reunited with his wife Astrid, his daughter Ann Sophie, and his son-in-law Nelson. It’s difficult to understand what’s happening in the little apartment in Rochester, Minnesota, from 4300 miles away in Europe.

But now Ralph has adjusted to the medically-oriented lives of his loved ones and how things work at the Mayo Clinic. Like the rest of us, he’s learning that by the process of elimination, doctors figure out what something isn’t, before they determine what it is. And this process can be frustrating for all of us.

Last week, Nelson’s vomiting and diarrhea had increased to epic proportions. Doctors thought it might be a response to trace remnants of the chemotherapy drugs mixing with the new immunotherapy drugs. Or it might have been Nelson’s reaction to the new immunotherapy as his system tried to switch from chemo to that.

They drew blood again (almost a daily occurrence) and finally discovered he had a bacterial infection of his digestive track, which was evidencing itself in the vomiting and diarrhea. Several days after he began antibiotics, though, the vomiting and diarrhea began decreasing—much to everyone’s relief, especially Nelson’s.

Throughout this time, he’s been taking the two pills daily that make up the targeted immunotherapy, and yesterday he spent time with the head oncologist on his case and another doctor. They were both pleased about where he is with the new therapy but will keep it at a half-dose for a while longer.

In meeting with pulmonology, they learned that about 150 milliliters of fluid are still “caught” in pockets at the bottom of his right lung. Though they tried to drain it out, the regular suction method failed. They may try to get it with a needle.

If they succeed, then they’ll also remove the catheter on that side and close up the wound. The left lung still needs draining daily, and Ann Sophie does that with excellence. It remains a mystery why the right lung had initially produced lots of fluid and now has dried up, while the left lung, which hadn’t produced much for many weeks, now has more.

But that’s the way it is in the world of medicine. One issue gets sorted, but then another one appears. But we have faith in the doctors we’ve worked with thus far and have seen their expertise and determination in action. Their goal is to resolve Nelson’s cancer symptoms and the side effects from drugs until the immunotherapy and his own immune system can overwhelm the cancer. And what a happy day that will be!

“My Child, never forget the things I (the Lord) have taught you. Store my commands in your heart. If you do this, you will live many years, and your life will be satisfying.” (Proverbs 3:1-2)