A Year In Review

Today is 1 yr. since Vince was diagnosed! I can't believe it! It seems like yesterday. I still remember waiting for the call from the doctor about the MRI and the feeling that I had until he called. I didn't want to even think he may have cancer, so I kept saying to myself, self...don't even go there...you don't know for sure what it is, but my mother's intuition told me otherwise.

I remember when he called and told me that Vince possibly had a disease called Ewing's Sarcoma. He said that we should see an Oncologist named Dr. Eckhardt at UCLA. Little did we know how serious it really was. We thought they would just go in and remove the tumor and everything would be fine. We were wrong.


Along the way, I have seen God's hand in this journey, from the doctors, nurses, family and friends of friends who in some way were associated with his cancer and provided help to us when we didn't know which way to turn. We have met so many amazing people at the hospitals, chemos, dr. appointments & the internet, too. They have made a difference in our lives, and have made us laugh and even cry. The reality of this disease is in our face every day and we don't like it. No one does. Here is a quick synopsis of his journey for the last year:

• 9 Chemotherapy treatments & hydration totaling 600 hrs. spent getting 6 different toxic chemicals pumped into his body

• 25 Radiation Treatments-totaling over 2 hrs. of targeted treatment to his humerus
  

• 116 days spent either in the hospital or at doctors appointments (a speeding ticket and a few parking tickets, too)

• A few trips to the ER (of course at 3:00 a.m. every time)

• CT Guided Biopsy

• Surgical Biopsy

• Bone Marrow Biopsy

• Port Placement

• Bone Scans

• MRI's

• Xrays

• Platelets

• CT Scans

• Ultrasounds

• Bloodwork galore

• Limb Sparing surgery

• Drugs for:

• Pain

• Nausea & Vomiting
  

• Mononucleosis

• Fevers

• Headaches

• White Blood Cell Booster

• Constipation

• Swelling

• Allergies

• Anxiety

• Boredom

• Stomach Pain

Vince has been so incredibly strong through this last year, but to be quite honest with you, it's getting tougher. He is sick and tired of the whole thing at this point and he really desires to have a normal life. One of his biggest desires is to have his hair, eyebrows and eyelashes back. Those feelings are not any different if you are a man or a woman.

The doctor told us that it is extremely tough for patients at this point because the urgency is not there, as far as surgery and radiation to get the tumor to shrink and get it out of the body. The battle at this point is to try and sterilize his body from any lurking cancer cells, fighting an invisible monster, the unknown. He is a little more than halfway done.

His next treatment will be September 25th, all necessary scans will be taken at that point and he will be re-evaluated. My heart is once again asking for your continued prayers and moral support for Vince. We need to help him keep his eye on the goal. Not an easy task. The journey continues.......


Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory. 1 Peter 1:21