Posted for Sheri...
Hi All,
I know many of you are wondering how Wally’s first chemo session went. I am pleased to announce that it was very uneventful – he actually slept through half of it. :) We had a 2:00 appointment but they actually didn’t start treatment until about 4:45 – translation: we didn’t leave the hospital until 8:00 which made for a long day. So far so good as far as side effects – NONE! At this moment he is really feeling good and I am trying to keep up with him. We were told that this regiment shouldn’t cause too much nausea which was Wally’s biggest concern so if he can get through the next few days he will definitely be a happy camper. They did give him some anti-nausea medication which really knocked him out last night and allowed him a great night of sleep. Regarding loss of hair – he may see some of that after his third treatment but since he is a Carruthers he may be stubborn enough to keep it all!
Thank you all again for your prayers and correspondence. We both so appreciate each and every one of you.
I will continue to keep you posted when I have some updates.
Sheri
Friday, October 26, 2007
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Chemo starts next week
Posted for Sheri...
Hi Everyone,
It’s time for another WallyGram update. Wally had his appointment with the oncologist today which went well. The doctor was very pleased to see that Wally was looking and feeling so good. He asked him the question, “If you didn’t know that you already had cancer, would you think that you might have it?” Of course his answer was, “NO”. He even woke up the other morning and told me that he didn’t think he had cancer anymore because he was feeling so good! That has been a wonderful blessing for our family. He also had a flu shot today since they were giving them for free at the hospital and the doctor said it certainly wouldn’t hurt to get one, especially today.
His next appointment will be on Wednesday, the 24th for all of his tests which include a CT scan, chest x-ray, and blood work so that they can have a baseline for comparison. He will then start his chemotherapy on Thursday, the 25th and will go every two weeks for the next year – that sounds like a long time to me! His chemo will include 3 different drugs and each visit will be approximately 4 – 5 hours. I think Virginia Mason Hospital may get a little old after a while, although it will be a great time to catch up on some reading and just have some quiet time together. :) Wally, being Wally made the comment that maybe he will just ride the bus into Seattle for his chemo and I can just pick him up when he’s done. Both the doctor and I gave him the look of “You’re kidding – right?” Many of you think Wally always has good ideas – as you can see, some are not so good!
After a year, they will reevaluate and decide what to do next. He may go on a maintenance program or take some time off from the chemo. We will just have to wait and see how he does. Again, we are learning to live day by day. We love his doctor who has a great attitude and is a believer and will also pray for his patients – he looks at his job as a ministry! Praise God.
We will have to see how he reacts to the chemo – being a Carruthers, he may breeze right through it. Wally’s father used to always say, “Wipe up the blood and get back to work” and I think that has been passed on from generation to generation. Wally’s father also beat cancer – twice!
We continue to be encouraged by your blogs, e-mails, phone calls, cards, letters and prayers – many from people we don’t even know!
Next update will probably be next week.
~Sheri~
Hi Everyone,
It’s time for another WallyGram update. Wally had his appointment with the oncologist today which went well. The doctor was very pleased to see that Wally was looking and feeling so good. He asked him the question, “If you didn’t know that you already had cancer, would you think that you might have it?” Of course his answer was, “NO”. He even woke up the other morning and told me that he didn’t think he had cancer anymore because he was feeling so good! That has been a wonderful blessing for our family. He also had a flu shot today since they were giving them for free at the hospital and the doctor said it certainly wouldn’t hurt to get one, especially today.
His next appointment will be on Wednesday, the 24th for all of his tests which include a CT scan, chest x-ray, and blood work so that they can have a baseline for comparison. He will then start his chemotherapy on Thursday, the 25th and will go every two weeks for the next year – that sounds like a long time to me! His chemo will include 3 different drugs and each visit will be approximately 4 – 5 hours. I think Virginia Mason Hospital may get a little old after a while, although it will be a great time to catch up on some reading and just have some quiet time together. :) Wally, being Wally made the comment that maybe he will just ride the bus into Seattle for his chemo and I can just pick him up when he’s done. Both the doctor and I gave him the look of “You’re kidding – right?” Many of you think Wally always has good ideas – as you can see, some are not so good!
After a year, they will reevaluate and decide what to do next. He may go on a maintenance program or take some time off from the chemo. We will just have to wait and see how he does. Again, we are learning to live day by day. We love his doctor who has a great attitude and is a believer and will also pray for his patients – he looks at his job as a ministry! Praise God.
We will have to see how he reacts to the chemo – being a Carruthers, he may breeze right through it. Wally’s father used to always say, “Wipe up the blood and get back to work” and I think that has been passed on from generation to generation. Wally’s father also beat cancer – twice!
We continue to be encouraged by your blogs, e-mails, phone calls, cards, letters and prayers – many from people we don’t even know!
Next update will probably be next week.
~Sheri~
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
WallyGram Update
Posted for Sheri...
Hi All,
Sorry for the lag in updates but not much is happening at this time. Wally continues to feel pretty good, especially when he is eating the proper foods. For some reason chips, salsa and beer don’t sit too well with him (I obviously wasn’t around to play food monitor at the time) and I have to admit that I am not always sympathetic! I prefer to fix him a nice glass of beet, carrot and apple juice. :) Yum!
The doctor gave him the thumbs up to travel to California, so on Thursday we hopped a plane to the bay area to visit with family and friends. He will see his oncologist on the 17th then I’m assuming he will start chemo almost right away since it will have been a month since his surgery. Thank you all for your continued prayers, thoughts, cards, blogs, e-mails, etc... It really is very uplifting for both of us to see how blessed we are by our friends and family.
I’ll keep you updated when I get more info from the doctors.
Sheri
Hi All,
Sorry for the lag in updates but not much is happening at this time. Wally continues to feel pretty good, especially when he is eating the proper foods. For some reason chips, salsa and beer don’t sit too well with him (I obviously wasn’t around to play food monitor at the time) and I have to admit that I am not always sympathetic! I prefer to fix him a nice glass of beet, carrot and apple juice. :) Yum!
The doctor gave him the thumbs up to travel to California, so on Thursday we hopped a plane to the bay area to visit with family and friends. He will see his oncologist on the 17th then I’m assuming he will start chemo almost right away since it will have been a month since his surgery. Thank you all for your continued prayers, thoughts, cards, blogs, e-mails, etc... It really is very uplifting for both of us to see how blessed we are by our friends and family.
I’ll keep you updated when I get more info from the doctors.
Sheri
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Home Sweet Home
Posted for Sheri...
Quick update…. I was able to bring Wally home today – about 11:30. I honestly don’t think the doctors could have kept him there another day. I arrived at the hospital at about 9:00 and found him sitting on the bed, freshly showered, dressed (shoes and all) and anxious to go home! He had to wait an hour for one more intravenous antibiotic so he asked the nurse if he could squeeze the bag to make it drip faster. :)
Looking back on the last month (I can’t tell you if it feels like years or just days), there have been so many blessings that God has granted our family even though it seems that things aren’t always working in our favor regarding Wally’s health. We were blessed by the doctors and hospital staff and feel that God gave us some very special physicians to watch over Wally and I honestly believe he was a blessing to them by his strong faith and peace in God. He is motivated to fight this cancer, at peace with God’s will for his life, and thankful for the many blessings that God has provided our family. Many of those blessings have come through all of you. Thank you once again for your continued prayers, thank you for the touching cards and notes, thank you for your visits, and thank you for all of your help with meals and transportation for the kids. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we have an uphill battle to fight. Praise God that He is bigger than cancer. We continue to pray for His miraculous healing hand upon Wally.
~Sheri~
Quick update…. I was able to bring Wally home today – about 11:30. I honestly don’t think the doctors could have kept him there another day. I arrived at the hospital at about 9:00 and found him sitting on the bed, freshly showered, dressed (shoes and all) and anxious to go home! He had to wait an hour for one more intravenous antibiotic so he asked the nurse if he could squeeze the bag to make it drip faster. :)
Looking back on the last month (I can’t tell you if it feels like years or just days), there have been so many blessings that God has granted our family even though it seems that things aren’t always working in our favor regarding Wally’s health. We were blessed by the doctors and hospital staff and feel that God gave us some very special physicians to watch over Wally and I honestly believe he was a blessing to them by his strong faith and peace in God. He is motivated to fight this cancer, at peace with God’s will for his life, and thankful for the many blessings that God has provided our family. Many of those blessings have come through all of you. Thank you once again for your continued prayers, thank you for the touching cards and notes, thank you for your visits, and thank you for all of your help with meals and transportation for the kids. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we have an uphill battle to fight. Praise God that He is bigger than cancer. We continue to pray for His miraculous healing hand upon Wally.
~Sheri~
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Tuesday Night Update
Posted for Sheri...
Wally is definitely back to Wally. He is doing very well considering the surgery he had. They removed his epidural today and put him on oral pain meds. The surgeon won’t let him go home tomorrow – says that Thursday is already a day earlier than what he usually likes to see. Although I have to say when Wally told him he was going to go home and buy an elliptical machine to start working out, the look on his face was amusement with the thought that he may have to keep Wally in the hospital for another week if he keeps up that kind of talk. :) He is also starting to get picky about the food – not that he has actually eaten that much - but when he was served cream of tomato soup today, he protested and said he would rather die than eat tomato soup! Hope the nurses can put up with him for another day and a half.
His spirits are up, he looks good and as he says, “I’ve got places to see and people to do”. He’s ready to come home. Please keep praying as we go into the treatment phase of this. Pray for strength and patience for our whole family and of course for God’s miraculous healing hand.
~Sheri~
Wally is definitely back to Wally. He is doing very well considering the surgery he had. They removed his epidural today and put him on oral pain meds. The surgeon won’t let him go home tomorrow – says that Thursday is already a day earlier than what he usually likes to see. Although I have to say when Wally told him he was going to go home and buy an elliptical machine to start working out, the look on his face was amusement with the thought that he may have to keep Wally in the hospital for another week if he keeps up that kind of talk. :) He is also starting to get picky about the food – not that he has actually eaten that much - but when he was served cream of tomato soup today, he protested and said he would rather die than eat tomato soup! Hope the nurses can put up with him for another day and a half.
His spirits are up, he looks good and as he says, “I’ve got places to see and people to do”. He’s ready to come home. Please keep praying as we go into the treatment phase of this. Pray for strength and patience for our whole family and of course for God’s miraculous healing hand.
~Sheri~
Monday, September 24, 2007
Current Update
Posted for Sheri...
Hi All,
I have been spending my days with Wally and he is doing very well. He continues to walk the halls, actually faster than I can, and impress the nurses with how much air he can suck in. Today was his first day of “food”. For dinner, he actually had some cream of potato soup and grape juice! He should be able to come home on Wednesday as long as he can eat solids. We spoke with the oncologist today and Wally will start treatment in about a month. He will also be bringing a naturopath on board to work with him. Virginia Mason sees more pancreatic cancer patients in the country and we have been told by several people that this oncologist is also world renowned for his work. Please continue to pray for complete healing as he endures the chemotherapy and continue to pray for that peace which passes all understanding. God has brought these amazing doctors to us and we are watching God working in them and through them in more ways than one and we are very thankful.
Sheri
Hi All,
I have been spending my days with Wally and he is doing very well. He continues to walk the halls, actually faster than I can, and impress the nurses with how much air he can suck in. Today was his first day of “food”. For dinner, he actually had some cream of potato soup and grape juice! He should be able to come home on Wednesday as long as he can eat solids. We spoke with the oncologist today and Wally will start treatment in about a month. He will also be bringing a naturopath on board to work with him. Virginia Mason sees more pancreatic cancer patients in the country and we have been told by several people that this oncologist is also world renowned for his work. Please continue to pray for complete healing as he endures the chemotherapy and continue to pray for that peace which passes all understanding. God has brought these amazing doctors to us and we are watching God working in them and through them in more ways than one and we are very thankful.
Sheri
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Sunday Night Update
I talked to Sheri earlier tonight, she said that Wally was out walking some laps at the hospital. This is great news, the sooner he rebuilds his strength after surgery the better and the sooner he can go home.
The plan is still to start the chemotherapy in about a month, but he should be home sometime this week. If you have any personal messages that you'd like to send to him, please fee free to email him at wallycarruthers@hotmail.com. You'll probably have to wait a while for a response as he might not get to reading them for a while, but don't let that stop you from sending all your love and prayers to him.
I'm planning on going to see him tomorrow, and I'll take all the comments posted here so he can read them so post away.
The plan is still to start the chemotherapy in about a month, but he should be home sometime this week. If you have any personal messages that you'd like to send to him, please fee free to email him at wallycarruthers@hotmail.com. You'll probably have to wait a while for a response as he might not get to reading them for a while, but don't let that stop you from sending all your love and prayers to him.
I'm planning on going to see him tomorrow, and I'll take all the comments posted here so he can read them so post away.
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