Birthday Girl

Our little girl is growing up! She will be 29 on the 7th of June. It's hard to believe that it was just one week after her 28th birthday that she was diagnosed with cancer. She was told that she had a few months to live, and that was one year ago! She has traveled a long and difficult road and you have been beside her every step of the way. We are SO thankful that you have been here for our family in so many ways.
We are trying to think of something creative to do for her birthday. (I know, it's only a week away so Im not giving you alot of time.) One of her friends has suggested "buying her a star" and naming it after her. VERY CUTE! So far, I have come up with nothing so we would love to hear any ideas that you have.
PS Thanks for the ideas that ya'll have been sending in on Kecia's insurance situation. Most of them are things we had never thought of and Kecia is following up on every single lead. Ya'll are the BEST!

Kecia made it home from the hospital yesterday afternoon. None of the cultures they took grew into anything but her fever stayed down through the night and all of her counts came back up so they released her without ever finding out exactly what the problem was. Several people were able to make it up to the hospital and she really enjoyed the company. Kecia's dad is in continued discussion with his employer about his position with the company so there is some hope that he may be keeping his job afterall. Yeah! Also, there were so many people that contributed to Kecia's Angel Food fund that we were able to provide meals for the family every month for a whole year. Thanks to each of you for your prayers and support! And don't forget...Carter Blood Care is always in need of blood and platelette donations which will allow you to save a strangers life while helping Kecia with her hospital copays.

To the Hospital Again

Kecia has been battling this fever for over a week now and at her appointment today her doctor decided they needed to hospitalize her. They want to try and pinpoint exactly what is wrong and then treat it accordingly. They are assuming that it will be an ordinary infection of some kind that she is just having a hard time shaking off, but want to make sure it's nothing more serious. They are going to start her on fluids and IV antibiotics while they figure it all out. She is having a very hard time right now and is in need of prayer in several areas. First, for her on going sickness, but also for her financial situation. Kecia has been told that she will need some type of chemo for the rest of her life based on the type of cancer that she has. It was brought to her attention that most insurance companies have a max payout and once you reach your lifetime number they no longer cover you. She has been concerned about that for the past few days, but hasn't felt good enough to make any calls or check into her options. The thought of not having insurance is terrifying to her because her treatment will need to be lifelong. If anyone has helpful information about secondary insurance or options for people with terminal illnesses please share them. (Kecia's cancer is still considered terminal even though there is currently no active cancer) You probably already know that Kecia moved back in with her parents after the diagnosis but you may not be aware of the fact that she pays about half of the bills for the household. She also pays about $1600 per month on medical expenses. She found out this morning that her dad lost his job and that she is now the sole bread winner for her family. She was already very stressed when she left for her doctor's appointment about the financial situation, but now she is on her way to the hospital in great emotional distress. She is asking that we all pray for her physical health as well as her spiritual clarity. It is so easy to say that we are trusting God to take care of the things that we are unable to handle, but it is often alot harder to actually stop worrying and truely give this problems over to Him.

Kecia was due to see her "team leader" today, but she woke up very sick last night and had a 103 degree temp this morning. So, she went to her Oncologist first and they loaded her with fluids and some meds. She is home resting now, but very uncomfortable and not able to hold anything down. For most of us, this is just annoying and we know we'll suffer through it for a few days and then be better. For Kecia, this is still very dangerous. She has very little "germ fighting power" and a cold or infection can lead to things that can kill her. They did a chest x-ray and said it looked clear which is good but they are watching her carefully. She was told to come straight to the hospital if things get any worse. Keep our girl in your prayers! One can never have too many.

Kecia is home from the hospital! Her surgery went as planned and she is recovering well. She reports being sore, but not any more than expected. Last time Kecia had surgery, it bothered her that she always had to ask for help everytime she had an itch because her incision site was too sore to reach. The girls and I left her a personalized backscratcher so she won't have that problem this time around. They are expecting to be able to move forward with the daily radiation treatments in the next 2-3 weeks. That is scheduled to last 7 weeks. I didn't see Kecia today, but we spoke several times and she sounded very positive and upbeat. She was proud to tell me that she had recently purchased her first Bible. I know there are several in her parents' home, but I hadn't realized that Kecia didn't have one of her very own. I wish I had known...that would have made a great gift during all these surgeries and hospital stays. Oh well, she has one now! Will update again soon.....

Another surgery

Kecia saw Dr. Laidly on Friday and was told that her new port looks awesome. It is almost completely healed and functioning 100%. The incision where her old port was removed, however, is not healing up. It still bleeds everyday and is hosting an infection that they can't seem to clear up. They have scheduled her for another surgery on Wednesday to do a "scar restoration." It will involve removing as much infection and scar tissue as possible and then stitching her back up. It could involve a skin graft if they have to remove so much tissue that it cant be pulled together. It sounds like a small surgery...and it is just a day surgery, but Kecia has averaged one operation every 7 weeks since this whole thing began and she is feeling a little down about going through it all again. She keeps thinking that "this will be the last for awhile" but then there always seems to be one more. She has come SO FAR! But surgery takes its toll on the body and she is feeling very tired. Please pray for her as she prepares herself for the procedure that she has come to know all too well.

You would all be so proud of our girl! She went out in public with no hat and no wig this week. She has really struggled with the self image problems that face many woman in her situation. She purchased a wig, but found that during her menapausal heat flashes that it was unbearably hot. It looked adorable on her, but she only wore it a few times. She opted instead to wear her trusty old baseball cap...to the doctor...to the store...,and to church. She joined me the other day to venture out on a small excursion to find a birthday gift for one of my daughters. I noticed immediately that she was "bare headed". She bravely choose to wear only a braided headband. Her hair is only about an inch or two high, but it is getting thicker every day. She checked into getting extensions put in but they can't do that until her hair is at least 3 inches long. When I asked what prompted her decision to go capless she said that it was time for her to deal with the fact that she has "no hair" and do the best she can with it. She "girled" herself up with painted nails, dangly earrings, and new lipstick, and off we went. We didn't get far before she was exhausted, hot and limping, but that's not the point! This is a personal triumph for Kecia and I am so proud of her! She asked me to put this on her blog because she knew you would all celebrate this small (yet, so big) milestone with her.

Kecia had her first round of chemo on the new schedule yesterday. It is a much higher dose than previously, but she would only need to get it once a month instead of every week. She was very hopeful that this would allow her less down time and more productive time. At first, she reported feeling pretty good...a little nausea and tired but okay. However, by late afternoon today she began experiencing a rather painful side effect. Her feet used to be numb and tingly, now they feel like they are on fire. They are red and hot to the touch. She can barely walk and is in excruciating pain when she has to get out of bed. She said she keeps checking because it feels like they are actually blistering. She read the info sheet and it says that these are normal side effects,in addition to cracking and bleeding. Kecia is disappointed because she was so excited about feeling good again and getting back to normal. These thoughts then leave her feeling guilty because she knows she should be thankful and not "crying about a little thing like her feet." I assured her that it is perfectly normal to be thankful for the fact that she is recovering and still cry when her feet burn like fire! Please remember her in your prayers. Ask that the Lord guide her doctor's decisions as she adjusts Kecia's medications and tries to regulate her schedule to allow Kecia a "normal" life while still keeping cancer at bay.