Dear OCF friends,
Just an update on my cancer. May 7 I had a right hemicolectomy, in which the cancer was discovered to be quite a bit larger than they thought. The surgeon said that he got all the cancer, and a few days later we got the pathology from the removed lymph nodes. They were all negative, thank God! So the surgeon said that I was a Stage I. A few days later I had a PET scan. I saw Ron's Oncologist on May 17, and he told me that the PET scan showed 5 lung nodules along with some suspicious mediastinal lymph nodes. There were 3 nodules in the right lung and 2 in the left.

At that point, we didn't know if the lung nodules were metastases from the colon, or a separate lung cancer. The Oncologist sent me to a Cardio-thoracic surgeon at St. Luke's in Milwaukee. I had a Mediastinoscopy and Right Lung Wedge Resection on May 28, 3 weeks after my colon surgery. Two days later I got rid of the chest tube and was released. On June 1, I got the word that the lung nodules were negative for cancer. They were scar tissue from my many pneumonias in the past. Again, thank God! The next day I had my Port placed.

Today I went back to the Oncologist for the final chemo verdict. He said that I was on the fence between Stage II and III. He is going to try to get me into a trial. Either a trial using FOLFOX or a trial using FOLFOX plus Avastin. If neither trial will accept me, I will just start FOLFOX next week with him. The total treatments will be 12 (6 months worth), with chemo being every other week. I will go in on day 1 for an infusion of Oxalyplatin, then get hooked up to a pump with the other 2 chemos, 5-FU and leukovorin. I come back on day 4 to get unhooked, and on day 5 come in for blood work and a shot of Neulasta to keep my counts up.

So that is the plan as I know it right now. I am feeling fairly good, although I am very tired already and I haven't even started chemo yet! I am also still taking pain meds for pain where he took out part of the right lung. The kids and I survived June 6, the first anniversary of Ron's death fairly well. We had each taken some ashes and we all went out on the farm to a special place to each of us and sprinkled them. We had a nice lunch, and I invited his mother over to join us. The actual sprinkling was pretty emotional but the rest of the day went okay. Better than I thought it would be, anyway. I thank all of you for your kindness and your prayers (and your kneemails! lol). I appreciate and think of you often! I wish all of us good health!
Lori