Thursday, January 24, 2008

Posted for Sheri...

Hi All,

Just thought I would give you a quick update on what is going on with Wally. As you know, he was admitted to the hospital last Thursday to have a new stent put in since the tumor was blocking the old one. His liver function numbers were rising and his red cell blood count was dropping. The doctors allowed him to come home on Friday with some iron and vitamin C in hopes of raising his red blood cell count. We went to the clinic on Tuesday for a blood draw and are very thankful that his liver function is dropping to more normal levels due to the new stent but his red blood cell count has remained the same. That being said, he tends to tire a little easier and I would say could use a suntan to bring some color to his cheeks:) Of course, Wally being Wally, he doesn't allow much to slow him down. He has many 'toys' and needs to play with them, such as his new jack-hammer! So how many people do you know own their own jack-hammer? Needless to say, he received a verbal tongue lashing from me (I feel like the mother of 6, not 5!) for not only the jack-hammering event but the next day, he decided to move around some logs! I know that he wants to stay busy and active but if any of you have ideas that might be more suitable to his condition i.e.. nothing that will strain or jiggle his insides, it would be very much appreciated:)

His next chemo will be next Thursday the 31st (his birthday) then again on Valentines Day. I think there is something wrong with this picture!

Thank you all again for your prayers, thoughts, cards, and emails. We are all hanging in and riding this thing together.

Until next time,

Sheri

P.S. Here's a short video of Wally coming to the rescue to help his next door neighbor remove a pipe from his lawn.

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Latest Update

Posted for Sheri...

Hi All,

It's Sheri again to finally update you on Wally's condition. His chemo session on the 4th was pretty uneventful except that his liver function numbers were higher than normal - we assumed it was due to a little bit of the bubbly to ring in the new year:) Therefore, the doctor said no alcohol. We were planning a 5 day cruise to Mexico 4 days after chemo and Wally was a little bummed that pina coladas were off limits for the cruise. He was certain that this tropical slushy drink was the new rainbow sherbet to cure all cancers! The first 3 days of the cruise, he wasn't feeling too peppy and slept a lot which is what this cruise was all about - RELAXING! By the 4th day, he perked up and was in true "Wally" form. :)

His stomach has been a bit more queasy these days and he has been lower on energy. We assumed it was the accumulative affect of the chemo. He became very sick last night at 2:00 in the morning and was running a high fever. He didn't want to go to the hospital so I gave him some Tylenol and put some cold compresses on his head. I finally put my foot down at 3:00 when his fever hadn't gone down enough and said we were going to the hospital anyway. We got up, dressed, warmed up the car and were ready to go when I checked his temperature one last time only to see that it was back to normal. This time he put his foot down (we do a lot of stomping around here) and said he wanted to just wait until his 9:00 appointment. Needless to say, his liver function numbers were higher, even without the pina coladas, and his billiruben number was up. The doctor determined that his stent was blocked and needed to be "unblocked" so he did not receive chemo today but instead was admitted to the hospital for another ERCP. The procedure was successful and he should be able to come home sometime tomorrow.

Wally continues to be be very much at peace with this cancer. He has a very strong faith knowing that God has numbered his days before the foundations of the earth.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support for Wally and our whole family.

Sheri