Round 3 Week 3:

Ok. I am into week three the third time around now. Guess that makes me some sort of expert on Sutent therapy now! Haha. I still can't completely predict how I will feel but have a better idea of what to expect. It seems the side effects roll on and off. What happened the first month seems to phase out a bit, then a new fun side effect kicks in. The third month seems to be doing that same pattern. GI upset is a little better and my mouth hasn't been as sore yet. I am getting the flu-like aching muscles and joints, especially my hip joints but I am managing ok so far. The swelling of the soles of my feet was the worst side effect last round and it is starting to get me this time around too, but mostly on only one foot so far. Last month's swelling caused thick callouses, which then fell off, leaving raw areas, one of which, about the size of a nickel, is now swelling and getting very sore. I can still drive but walking is pretty uncomfortable. They say too much walking will make it worse so I am trying not to do marathon grocery shopping for the rest of this cycle!

Last week I still had a little of the congestion left from that respiratory infection and coughed a bit, not real hard, but I must have been twisting or something at the time and I felt something pop in my rib cage - OUCH. It created a sharp pain within a few minutes that remained fairly painful for most of last week. I felt like I was 6 weeks post-op again. At first I thought I cracked a rib or pulled a hole in my lung or something. I couldn't draw a deep breath in to cough anymore, or breathe deeply, or lie on my back in bed without extreme pain. I was tempted to dig out the narcotics from my first days post-op! I saw my family doctor after a few days and she felt it could be a broken rib or a strain of the muscles that are still fragile connecting that space where my 9th rib was removed. If it wasn't better by today (Monday) she wanted me to have an xray. I was glad I had recently had a negative CAT scan (Hope I reported that on the blog?), because that helped me not to get too nutty with worry. It has finally eased up though, and I feel a lot better today. It is still sore but I can breathe deeply and move around almost normally again. Praise God! I still do not like the feeling of being "fragile". I had been trying to do all I could to care for all my normal responsibilities but I can see that I need to be a little bit more careful. My kids love to help - I will have to let them!

So, I guess I am in this chemo /targeted therapy routine now. I can start to predict when I will feel lousy and schedule things around that. One friend asked me how many rounds I have LEFT. WOW what a great way to look at it. I have to do 8 or 9 rounds. I am in round 3. So maybe I should start to count DOWN - only 5 or 6 rounds left! :-) CAT scans are every 3 months for the first year, which give me some reassurance that no cancer is coming back .... at least not yet. Please continue to PRAY that the Lord would completely heal me, and allow me more years on this earth. I just had my 50th birthday - most women might try to ignore that but I am happy to get this far, and praying that I get to see a few more decades on earth. Getting old is seeming like a great idea lately! :-)

If you read the last blog entry I hope you saw the mode we are in, the place God seems to have us in.... WAIT.... wow is this biggest my weakness. I never have been good at waiting, and even worse at not knowing what will happen next. I am a planner! Well all of that has been changed in my life without my consent, and I do NOT like it! I am trying to learn my lessons though, and wait on the Lord. We were very sad that the judge ruled that we have to accept that low settlement from the trucking company that our former lawyer agreed to without our ok. We had to just emotionally detach from that for a week or so lest we really loose all hope. But, we are moving forward with this new information and trying to figure out what to do next. We are going to appeal as that is the only way to get an explanation from the judge as to the reasons for her decision. Then we will see if there is more that we can do on the trucking company case.

The other issue is the business insurance settlement, which is still not happening either. We have 4 experts on our side now (accountant, insurance agent, 2 attorneys). We are trying to arrange a meeting with all of these godly and concerned men, to help us sort this out and decide what we can do to reach a fair settlement. Please pray that we can find a time SOON when all 4 can meet, and that the Lord will show us the best way to proceed.

We have been blessed in so many ways these last few weeks. We were really to a point of utter despair for a while and I feared we would not survive financially or emotionally, but we were lifted up by the kindness of so many people, with cards and groceries and loving care. God knows who you are even though in some cases WE don't even know! THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH for lifting us up from the pit. HE has provided a ray of hope. More than anything, I thank you for remembering us in prayer, and coming back to read my LONG entries!

Last but not least, a friend who has been so kind and loving and caring to me since I got sick is now, herself, facing major surgery on Wednesday for probable ovarian cancer. Please pray for Deborah, her husband and two sons (the ages of my boys) and her extended family, many of whom do not know the Lord. Thank you so much.

Karen