How Could I Forget my Better Half - JIM!

I forgot, among all the surgery reports, to mention Jim's checkup. Jim takes a hormone shot every so often to keep his prostate cancer at bay. There was a report from the medical research last fall that indicated it might be better to take this shot continuously, rather than every so often. Problem is that the shot has side effects that aren't great (heart problems, bone density problems, hot flashes, etc). Jim's doctor  reviewed his case with his peers via their "Tumor Board" monthly meeting (really makes you want to be a part of THAT group, doesn't it????) Their perspective - the known side effects don't seem to be outweighed by the suspected benefits, and so he's continuing on the "every 3-6 months" timing for the hormone shot. EXCEPT the doc did go ahead and give him the shot in February. Doc said he'd rather give it to him now, and likely skip through the summer, since the hot flashes are more inconvenient then. So he's "flashing" now instead in July :) I like to think Jim's handling the hot flashes for the family, since I seem to have escaped that issue - isn't that nice of him! :)

Month after my Half Boob Job....

I've been meaning to post an update, but its been a busy month.

I feel really good, and the surprise fluid tested out to be nothing, so no bad news there. I healed up pretty well from surgery. I have a scar acrss my back, where the surgeon took skin to create a pocket in the front, that goes from under my armpit about halfway across my back. Most of it will be under a bra, guess my string bikini days are over - oh, that's right, they've BEEN over! The worst part was the surgical drains - I had two initially, the first came out after a week, but the second has been hanging around, literally, until today - finally draining little enough that they were able to remove it. Now the incision it left just needs to heal. And I need to "outgrow" my afternoon nap, which has become pretty standard for me since I've been off work. But I can finally sleep at night on the side the drain was on, so I'm pretty excited about that news!

Two weeks after my surgery Amy had foot surgery - repairing an injury from soccer about 9 months ago, she was able to play through the the majority of her college recruiting season with cortisone shots, but it was time to finally get it fixed. She is on crutches and using a scooter for 7 weeks (5 left), so she makes my little drains look pretty wimpy to complain about.

A week after Amy's surgery, Jenny had surgery on her wrist to fix some tendonitis that had been hanging around for a couple years and increasingly bothering her. She thought it best to get it fixed before starting grad school (Physician Assistant program) in a couple of months. Probably a good decision, but made for a long several weeks - everyone was vying for the same couch and TV remote, and we had to keep all the pain meds and antibiotics straight. Hopefully the worst of that is behind us (well, for everyone but Amy who still have several weeks/months of recovery ahead of her)!

Phase 2 of "The Boob Job" will be sometime in May. In the meantime, I'm a little lopsided, but it does feel different, and better, having SOMETHING on that side! I'm glad I decided to try reconstruction again - hoping to get things mostly finished up before we get too deep into the summer.

Quick post-surgery update

Mom was in surgery for about 4 hours (I think). The tram- flap procedure was successful, meaning the doctors were able to move tissue around to build an area for reconstruction.  Unfortunately, the surgeon found some fluid buried within her tissue. We think this is the same fluid that her oncologist had already found, and there are no indications at all that it would be cancerous. The fluid is being tested to make sure it wasn't an infection or anything nefarious. This obstacle did mean that the surgeon couldn't continue with the reconstruction procedure, until he knew what it was, and that takes 72 hours. So basically, mom's reconstruction got cancelled due to inclement weather at halftime. To be continued in approximately two months.

She is staying overnight at Christ, and will be home tomorrow morning. She sounds good and is comfortable and ready for bed! I think in the grand scheme of things, though this is a set back, she's just happy to be in the position of health that she can be having these procedures, so is generally fine with the delay. I'll let her fill in the details that I haven't quite gleaned from interpreting doctors words through our parents when she's home!

Thanks for all your prayers,
Julie and the rest of Deans (/ McMahons)

What's Next?.....

Jim and I both had good checkups in December. Since we both see the same radiation oncologist, we schedule our checkups with her together, and since she has a daughter that also plays soccer, we always have a nice long visit with her - she is very generous with her time, and likes to catch up on how the whole family is doing. Jim's urologist is also pleased with his progress, though he is considering moving Jim from intermittent hormone therapy to continuous - it helps to keep the prostate cancer at bay, but it's also hard on your bones and your heart. The doctor planned to review Jim's case with his peers, and Jim will probably learn more at his February checkup.

Teri has news too. 18 months after all the active treatments are complete, all 3 doctors say no signs of the cancer coming back, and so she is going to have another breast reconstruction surgery. While wearing a prosthesis isn’t horrible, it’s not the most comfortable thing, and swim suits are a bit tough. So Feb 13 is surgery day. My new line -  “I’m getting a new boob for Valentine’s Day!” (We make some sick jokes around our house these days J ) The plastic surgeon will take some skin from my back and swing it around to put some additional skin in the front, and then use an implant to build a mound. Then they make the other side match, so I really am getting a complete boob job! Recovery is expected to be 2-4 weeks, so a nice little break from work too. They might not be able to do everything in one surgery, so there might be some followup work in a couple more months, but hopefully mostly complete before summertime.  A little scary, but exciting too. Will post a picture of the “new me” later! In the meantime, please keep all these doctors in your prayers - we are counting a lot on their wisdom and knowledge and skill!

Merry Christmas!

We are indeed blessed this Christmas. Not only a new son-in-law, but good checkups for Jim and Teri to celebrate too. Though Jim's PSA started to rise again, 7 months after his last hormone shot, the doctor continues to think the hormone therapy is the best option right now, as more options are coming out of clinical trials and being vetted and debated. Though the hormone therapy isn't working for as long as it first did, that was expected, and it is indeed still working. And since Jim runs to battle the side effects (bone and heart problems) he looks great! Teri had a good round of checkups too - all still seems to be clear, and she is talking to the plastic surgeon about possible reconstruction options, maybe in the springtime.  Now she needs to lose weight like Jim to get back into bikini shape for the summer - well, maybe just swin suit shape!

It's amazing the difference a couple years can make. Two years ago my cancer was back, my mom had passed, and our family was feeling a lot like "Job" from the Bible - "really, God, can you send one more bad thing this way?" and of course, he could, but he didn't, and instead he sent healing love, supportive friends, and a path out of the dark times. And tomorrow, we celebrate a pinnacle of GOOD times, as Julie weds the love of her life, Shea McMahon, surrounded by family and friends and our Healing Lord Jesus Christ.

For any who would like to join us virtually, the technology of the times is evident at the church provides a webcast of the service! Who'd have thunk it?

To access the wedding, go to www.saint-max.org and scroll to the bottom where it says ChurchCast (icon), click that and then there will be an opportunity to watch (play) if you want to view live, beginning Sat Nov 3, at 6:30 pm, or if you want to view it after, it will be listed in the archive section. If you have any questions there is a number on the page to call their support team.

 

Please keep Julie and her new family, and us and our everchanging family, in your prayers, and we will keep you in ours as well. Thanks for all the support you all continue to provide!

The Great Prostate Cancer Challenge

It's been about two years since we started this blog, and I guess we are in a pretty good place considering where we were then. Saturday, September 8th, Dad completed his 3rd Great Prostate Cancer Challenge 5K. I ran with him (went last year, but couldn't join because of wisdom teeth surgery!). It was a nasty rainy day that became a beauitful one just in time for the race. Sort of fitting for the last couple of months of news for him. He found out in May that his last round of hormone therapy was not as lasting as we had hoped, and he would have to have another round. This is a treatment with a lot of uncomfortable side effects for him, especially to suffer through all summer. So we are all thrilled that his latest visit to the oncologist in August (the day before his birthday) brought the news that his PSA levels remained undetectable, indicating the last treatment had at least lasted 3 months. We are hoping that each round will last as long as possible, so the news we hope for is that at his next 3 month visit, he will get the same news. The first few rounds of treatment lasted him over a

year, so we are hoping for improved duraiton for the next few.

Dad and I at the Urology Group's 5K in Norwood.
Dad won an Oscar Robertson signed basketball!

This is all a lesson in being an advocate for your own treatment. In the last month, two new prostate cancer drugs were rushed to the forefront for FDA approval due to their tremendous success in clinical trials. One of these could be the next treatment strategy for Dad, though fingers crossed the treatment he is on now will last years and years. In the last month, several studies have also emerged claiming that the intermittent therapy Dad has been on is not as successful as the continuous treaetment with hormone therapy. Unfortunately, the side effects of the therapy make this a difficult treatment decision. He opted to go off of the treatment for the next few months, while the doctors wait for more research to confirm or dispute the current evidence. Keeping abreast of these issues is obviously very important, and the doctors don't always bring these up first, so doing your own research is always a tremendous aid!

So for now, Dad is enjoying the diminishment of the side effects of his last round, Mom is enjoying her current health (though battling some small, continuing issues from her treatments) as well as Dad's lack of hot flashes, tiredness, lack of sleep, etc. And everyone (including me) is trying to exercise and eat themselves into their wedding clothes for my November wedding, where I will feel like the most blessed daughter in the world to have both my parents there.