Sunday, November 29, 2009

Moving On

Happy Holidays to All:



As mentioned in my last post we've been sprung and we're taking advantage of that. We spent the week before T-Day at the river just hanging out doing a little cleaning but that was about it. Amazing how a house can get dirty even though you're not there, of course the yard is a different story that never ceases to create work for us.



We got back Thursday so we could meet with Ret's primary in Edmonds on Friday and you would have thought she was one of their lost children, hugs, kisses and a great deal of emotions as well. It was good to be back! I will tell you however that I was amazed, I don't know why though, that Eileen Ret's doc knew every detail of our three month odyssey at SCCA. It is so refreshing and meaningful how they track your progress and communicate that to all involved.



We really haven't cut ties completely with SCCA/Hutch we have a few more procedures we need to complete that I'll briefly talk about. But in addition they want Ret to go on a clinical study involving two cancer med's that have been used to help keep Ret's type of cancer at bay for the long term. While they believe these two med's have been effective in doing just that they have not been used in concert and that is what they want to measure. It depends on how you look at these things and certainly everyone involved has an opinion but at this point the comment from Ret was she doesn't want to be a Guinea Pig and I'll leave it at that.



As they do, the SCCA manages your complete health care, meaning if there are any normal types of tests one should have just for general health maintenance you get it. Well Ret's mammogram came back with a couple areas of concern, a cyst in one breast and what they say looks like a possible calcium deposit in the other. She'll have biopsy's done this next week and the obvious diagnosis will me made, however they do say in both cases they are not overly concerned.



As always thanks to all for your continued support you really don't know what it means!!



Love,

Ret & Jack

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

We're Free.................Kind of!

To All:

Well we were sprung from our little UW prison on Friday last week and I must say it was none too soon!! While the caregivers were able to walk around, go outside, down to the cafe and other places Ret was pretty much confined to the 8th floor and her room. I know now that we are out it was more of a mental drain on her than physical. They sent us home with a new schedule of going back to SCCA/Hutch. In meeting with them on Monday it looks as if we'll have just a couple more weeks there and not everyday thank goodness, then transfer back up to Edmond's and Ret's primary oncologist.



As I may have mentioned in the past Ret's cancer is not one where if there are no recurrences or signs of cancer say within 5yrs you're considered cured or at least cancer free. Hers is one that never really goes away so we'll work with the SCCA/Hutch and her primary to determine a drug therapy that best suits her and her lifestyle to help manage the cancer. She'll continue to have monthly visits to her doc for the first year then every six months there after, in addition to that she'll have monthly zometa shots to help with the acute osteoporosis that the cancer caused. Also if necessary we have a few million stems cells in the U-Store-It should she need another transplant. The little over achiever!



As always thanks to all for the cards, letters and calls. It's truely hard to explain how much it means to Ret!



Love,

Ret and Jack