Wife Still Down but not Out

[Patriot]

John and Sharon, I thought about you two all day and want to extend my very best wishes to you both on this sacred night

for better or worse, good news or not so good, may you somehow feel the Peace and Comfort of the real spirit of Christmas through all the stress and pain and worry

I wish I could send Sharon a portion of my good health somehow

Smiles,

Mike

 

[MCML]

Wishing you both a wonderful Christmas day, John and Sharon.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

Best wishes to you John and Sharon.

 

[fjrboomer]

Patriot and all of you who have followed our saga I am sorry I did not respond earlier to your inquiries. We had a bad month but things are looking better now. Sharon entered the hospital Friday after Thanksgiving due to severe dehydration. She had not been able to eat or drink which resulted in her condition. We knew there was a problem and she had been hydrated at the clinic the Tuesday before Thanksgiving but obviously it was not enough. After 8 days in the hospital she was released and came home.

Since her return home she has been doing much better. She has been off the chemo for over 6 weeks now and almost all of the ill side effect are gone. She will restart the chemo when she is physically able. It was working even though the side effects got the best of her. When she restarts chemo it will be at a reduced rate than previously.

I told her that all this bad stuff was a blessing in disguise as she was physically and mentally able to enjoy Christmas with her family. Christmas has always been her favorite time of year. Her sister and our daughter came over and decorated our house like she likes it. And believe me she has lots of decorations. She was the crew boss! It has been a very special season for both of us. We hope all of you had a very special Christmas and we wish you all a very happy New Year. We are looking forward to a better year than the last one as Sharon continues in her fight to win against her cancer.

John

 

[Patriot]

Patriot and all of you who have followed our saga I am sorry I did not respond earlier to your inquiries. We had a bad month but things are looking better now. Sharon entered the hospital Friday after Thanksgiving due to severe dehydration. She had not been able to eat or drink which resulted in her condition. We knew there was a problem and she had been hydrated at the clinic the Tuesday before Thanksgiving but obviously it was not enough. After 8 days in the hospital she was released and came home.

Since her return home she has been doing much better. She has been off the chemo for over 6 weeks now and almost all of the ill side effect are gone. She will restart the chemo when she is physically able. It was working even though the side effects got the best of her. When she restarts chemo it will be at a reduced rate than previously.

I told her that all this bad stuff was a blessing in disguise as she was physically and mentally able to enjoy Christmas with her family. Christmas has always been her favorite time of year. Her sister and our daughter came over and decorated our house like she likes it. And believe me she has lots of decorations. She was the crew boss! It has been a very special season for both of us. We hope all of you had a very special Christmas and we wish you all a very happy New Year. We are looking forward to a better year than the last one as Sharon continues in her fight to win against her cancer.

John

I know ya'll will keep on keeping on...our prayers and thoughts and mojo are constant in Sharon's behalf

Ya'll's positive spirit is so encouraging to me personally and your description of this year's Christmas experience made my day

Peace and Health for 2011,

Mike

 

[Niehart]

John, there are a lot of us following this but not posting. Thought not posting we are send you & Sharon lots of prayers.

Here is wishing you two all the very best for 2011!

 

[fjrboomer]

We received good news this morning. Sharon is now recovered enough that she is starting the chemo again. We both have mixed emotions about it as we know it is essential to win the battle but we are concerned about the side effects since they were so sever before. We will be monitoring her condition on a daily basis are are intstructed to call when we see anything out of the ordinary immediately. Hopefully the reduced dosage will continue to defeat the cancer but not make her so sick. Again we thank everyone for your kind words and prayers

John

 

[FLFJRS]

John and Sharon,

I am new to this forum , but not to the devastating effects of cancer. Please know that I am now also keeping both of you in my prayers. We all here are friends waiting to meet someday.

 

[Patriot]

John and Sharon

How's it going my friends???

my knees hurt

 

[tesla]

Random, infrequent poster here that noticed your thread. I'm pulling for your guys and sending positive energy your way. Sounds like you have an abundance of it already but given what your going through you can't have enough.

 

[fjrboomer]

Patriot thanks agin for your inquiry. Sharon started the chemo after the holidays at a reduced rate and she is having some of the side effect as before but at a tolerable level. She has some pretty good days and some that are not so good. The blood count is improving but at a very slow rate. But the way we look at it any improvement is a good thing. Sharon is walking more with just her cane instead of the walker unless she is having a bad day.

Sorry your knees are bothering you but as you get closer to my age more things will be hurting. If they are hurting from kneeling to pray for all of us who are enduring hardships we all thank you. Take care and stay safe.

John

 

[Niehart]

John, thanks for keep us in the loop.

You know how we feel and we are still sending lots of good karma Sharon's way.

 

[SacramentoMike]

John, I was thinking about you two just a day or so ago, and dug this out from old posts. Didn't see your update at the time. I'm very glad Sharon's making progress, even slow progress. Our thoughts are with you both.

 

[fjrboomer]

Thanks Sacramentomike for your concern. I have some good news. Today Sharon's picline was removed after having it for a year. She is still doing chemo but in pill form and the med they were giving to rebuild bone has been replaced by a shot she will receive once a month. for those who do not know a picline is used for infusion of chemo and blood draws. It eliminates having to insert needles frequently which eventually weakens the veins. The former bone builder was done by infusion thus the continued need for the picline. Sharon has been doing an oral chemo since late October.

This does not mean we have won the battle with cancer yet but it is hopefully a step in the right direction. With the picline we had to go in every week for a dressing change on it. Now we will only go once a month for blood draw and Dr. visit. She also could not use the arm the picline was in when showering because it could not get wet. She also had to wrap in in waterproof plastic to insure it did not get wet. Her life has just become much simpler.

John

 

[Patriot]

Thanks Sacramentomike for your concern. I have some good news. Today Sharon's picline was removed after having it for a year. She is still doing chemo but in pill form and the med they were giving to rebuild bone has been replaced by a shot she will receive once a month. for those who do not know a picline is used for infusion of chemo and blood draws. It eliminates having to insert needles frequently which eventually weakens the veins. The former bone builder was done by infusion thus the continued need for the picline. Sharon has been doing an oral chemo since late October.

This does not mean we have won the battle with cancer yet but it is hopefully a step in the right direction. With the picline we had to go in every week for a dressing change on it. Now we will only go once a month for blood draw and Dr. visit. She also could not use the arm the picline was in when showering because it could not get wet. She also had to wrap in in waterproof plastic to insure it did not get wet. Her life has just become much simpler.

John

WOO HOO...

 

little steps, but steps nontheless !!!

 

sore knees, but more kneeagrams sent daily

 

[Niehart]

Thanks for the update John.... :yahoo:

 

[fjrboomer]

This will hopefully be my last post on this topic. We went to the Oncologist on Wednesday and for the 3rd month in a row the blood count was within normal range. He told us that the cancer seems to either be under control or in remission. He hesitates to use the word remission in cases like Sharon's since she was so advanced when discovered a year ago February. He said that the cancer does hide in the body and can be almost undetectable at times. Sometime in the future they will do another body scan which will better determine the status of the cancer. Since she has had so many scans in the past year he wants to wait a little because of the amount of radiation she has already received over the past year. He feels her condition and how she feels are the best predictors of the status of the cancer at this point.

Sharon has been gaining weight (a good thing) and using less pain meds. She will always be on the pain meds and will continue the oral chemo indefinitely. At the current dosage it does give side effects but they are manageable. Sharon will always be susceptible to breakage of bones due to the damage that has occurred. She will continue to receive shots once a month which will help strengthen the bones.

We are hopeful now that we can return to a more normal life. We know that the threat of reoccurance of the cancer is always there but we will be watchful and she will continue to be monitored. Again I want to thank all of you on this forum for all of your thoughts and prayers. There is no doubt in my mind that they have helped tremendously.

John

 

[HotRodZilla]

Wow man...That is good news. We will continue to hope that things stay manageable and do not get worse. Cancer is an awful thing to fight...But I think you already know that. Your wife's ability to fight and her strong spirit will continue to get her through this.

 

[Patriot]

WOO HOO !!!

This has been a great day for me,

but is substantially better from reading of Sharon's progress and both of your spirit, fight, & tenastiny

GO SHARON GO

I / We appreciate any news or post you might like to express - good or bad.

I'm reminded again that much good and love can come from cyberspace.

We will always care and we have so much more in common than motorcycles.

GO JOHN GO

 

[Niehart]

John, your post made my day! Thanks :yahoo: