Chemo Vacation

We met with Dr Sheehan on Wednesday and now after 6 months of chemotherapy, a VACATION. Sabine gets 10 weeks off until the next blood test to see what has happened with her "numbers." She will get to enjoy Christmas and a Florida vacation before we go back to the cancer clinic!

Me, Sabine and Mocha on one of our daily walks!

Update: Sabine has just completed her 6th three-week round of her current "chemo cocktail" -- subcutaneous Velcade and oral does of Revlimid and Dexamethasone. She now has a three-week respit before going back to Dr Sheehan and a blood-work check. The strategy is to see how the cancer has responded to the battle she has just given it.

January marks our fifth year and what Sabine calls her "expiration date" based on the "five years" she heard Dr Sheehan mention as a part of her diagnosis on January 16, 2007.

All in all, except for Sabine being a little more tired, she remains active and positive. We are preparing to visit daughter Yumi in San Antonio after Thanksgiving, Florida at the end of January, and a big "birthday bash" during the July 4 weekend next summer celebrating, respectively, our 75th and 60th birthdays!

A friend of mine asked what was going on because he didn't see any new posts on this blogsite. Well, as I've said before, "No news is good news!" I find that blogging is how I process my anxieties and other feelings. So, when things are going smoothly in the "cancer fight," I tend not to blog.

So far, this summer has seen the cancer under control -- a maintenance. And so I try to make our life as "normal" as possible (that is, if you can call home hemodialysis 5 days a week "normal.) Nevertheless, we are enjoying life, and remembering to be grateful in this time of grace.

This summer we had another family get-to-gether (last summer it was houseboating the Mississippi). It was on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. We rented a big oceanside house for a week, went kayaking (see above), walked the beach, went cycling, pursued the wild horses, and checked out the Wright Brothers National Monument at Kitty Hawk.

We are now on our fourth cycle of the "chemo cocktail" (Velcade, Revlimid and dexamethasone) which means two weeks "on" and one week "off."

Sabine's "numbers" a in control for now.

Life remains good and we are grateful!

Thanks be to God!

New Wood: Thomas Merton on Busyness and the Violence of Modern Life

New Wood: Thomas Merton on Busyness and the Violence of Modern Life

Checking In

Three hundred and thirty-five posts later...

I bet you wonder what has happened to us? Remember the old adage, "no news is good news." For me, I simply don't feel compelled to blog when things are going good. I mean, "carpe diem!" I just want to spend all the precious time I can with Sabine.

After a good six months (most of the summer) without chemotherapy we knew it was coming. The cancer "numbers" had been creeping up so it wasn't a big surprise when Dr Sheehan put Sabine back on a chemo regimen a couple of weeks ago.

The treatment now is what I call a "shotgun" approach -- a little bit of Velcade (subcute 2x/wk) with oral Revlimid and dexamethasone. Sabine is a little tired but I wouldn't know. She is out exercising on our hills and in the pool (we have really had some HOT weather -- so much for living up north!).

This weekend we are going to do another bike and paddle excursion on the Bark River near Ft. Atkinson.

We are both looking forward to another Couper Get-Together on the outerbanks of the North Carolina seashore in August. Whoopee!

We have lost a couple of friends from our cancer support group. That always is a wake-up call for me. I grab my spear. I mount the ramparts and watch out for danger...

Updates -- Long time, no hear!

A silent blog for me is a good blog.


Sabine and I were recently interviewed along with some of our dialysis support group members last week.
http://www.fox47.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/vid_3005.shtml


Things have been going well this summer (again) with Sabine being off chemo while Dr Sheehan watches the cancer growth.

Almost miraculously her cancer "numbers" didn't rise much this past month. (Sabine thinks it was a lab error!)

But I choose to be hopeful that maybe this nasty stuff is being harnessed!

We'll see as we meet with Dr Sheehan this coming Wednesday.

Sadly, a friend in our cancer support group died last Sunday. His name is Gil. Please keep him and his wife in your prayers. He was a kind and gentle man who will be deeply missed. He was a retired elementary school teacher.

March is Myeloma Awareness Month

MARCH IS MYELOMA AWARENESS MONTH!

HELP RAISE AWARENESS.

   

WHAT IS MULTIPLE MYELOMA?

            The second most common blood cancer

            Affects an estimated 750,000 people worldwide

SYMPTOMS

            Bone pain

            Anemia

            Kidney issues

            Frequent infections

            Extreme fatigue

            Pain or numbness in hands or feet

 GET INFORMED!

     

 CALL The IMF Hotline – 1-800-452-CURE 

 VISIT THEIR WEBSITE www.myeloma.org

ON FACEBOOK:  www.facebook.com/myeloma

Another drop!

For those of you who are following the "numbers," they are down again. Second round of Velcade/Dex and the chemo has repressed those nasty light chains down into the normal range -- 18!

What's next? Well, we will see Dr Sheehan next Tuesday and see if we continue the present course, wait and see, or try something else.

In the meantime, life is good.

2012 Update

Sabine and our son, "Zeke" just before his journey took him
to Guatemala. Zeke came home for Christmas and stayed
for awhile to see that mom's chemo went okay.

Here we are! Starting our fifth year living with cancer.

I think I updated the present. Sabine's numbers started climbing this summer (but had a whole summer off without chemo). We predicted Dr Sheehan would start an intervention this fall -- and he did.

We started a two week cycle of Velcade + dexamethasone, with a week off.

After this first cycle the chemo knocked Sabine's rising number down almost to the normal range.

Dr Sheehan decided to do one more Velcade/dex cycle and see what happens.

So, that's where we are today -- in the second cycle -- we had to cancel our trip south this winter because of the chemo cycle which requires us to go into UW Hospital two days a week for the Velcade which is administered by IV drip.

Sabine continues exercising and being her wonderfully happy self. She is a little tired, but doing well.

I have gotten my book into the publisher and also doing well.

God is good and will provide.

New Year's Blessings to all of you!