6-29-09 Good News For Team Kecia! According to her doctor, the scans reveal no new cancer growth. She is still cancer free! They were hoping that these scans would also reaveal that there was new bone growth so that they could do the surgery on her spine and hip that would immediatly releve her constant pain in those two areas. There was no new growth, infact, to quote her doctor, "we can't do the surgery because your bones are just all used up." Some may have been frightened or offended by such a declaration, but we just laugh. Kecia is much more comfortable with a doctor that shoots straight with her instead of jogging around sensitive subjects. She prefers to have the bare truth so she knows exactly what she's dealing with. I was impressed by her comment ..."that's okay, we've been praying for cancer-free scans. We'll start praying for bone growth now."

More Scans

Last minute prayer request! Kecia got a call yesterday afternoon telling her that they had scheduled her full body scans for tomorrow, Thursday the 25th. She is usually very excited about getting her scans done because it is the only way to measure how much sucess they are having with the treatments. So far, all of her scans have come out showing good news. She was suprised by her feelings of overwhelming fear and anxiety. She knows they have to be done and feels silly for being so frightened. I assured Kecia that her anxiety was perfectly normal. She is working so hard to get back to having a "real life" again and the thought that the scans could tell her that this whole process is starting over is just too overwhelming to consider. We prayed about it alot and she was able to put everything back into perspective, which is always helpful. Her scans are scheduled for 10:00 tomorrow so she is asking that we all watch the clock and pray for her around 9 am. We are asking first, that she keep her eye on the eternal goal and not just the daily one her on earth. Second, that she feel God's presence and take great peace and comfort from it. And last, that her scans continue to be cancer free due to a miraculous cure and not just a medical cure. Thank you for you support and continuous prayers. We probably won't know anything until Monday but will let you know as soon as we do.

It feels like it's been so long since I last posted. That could be because my husband has brought home alot of his work lately and I have had little access to the computer. The good news is that there is no bad news to report. Kecia had chemo last week and while it would be a far stretch to say she felt fine...she sure didn't feel as bad as she used to when she was getting her large weekly doses. She went in today for her big huge shot in the stomach (the one that keeps her in menapause) so she can expect to be very achey and sore for about 3 or 4 days. Tomorrow they start her radiation. She goes in every day at 10:00. They will scan her for measurments and make her do all the yucky paperwork that one would think they could just write "ditto" on everyday. Her actual radiation treatment only lasts about 20 minutes, but she ends up being at the hospital about 3 hours by the time she's done. We are hoping and praying that this will be alot easier on her than it was the first time around, just like the chemo is proving to be. She had her last saline fill a week ago so now they just wait until her 7 weeks of radiation is done to begin preparing for the breast reconstruction surgery.
While she doesn't always feel great and has alot less energy than the average person, I am so happy to report that she looks great. Her hair is about 2 inches long and growing in nice and thick. She actually has enough now to wake up with bed head. While she doesn't find our jokes to be all that funny, she is pleased that it is growing long enough to allow her to worry about having "bad hair days". There was a day not long ago when every day was a no hair day, so all in all this is a big improvement. Since reducing her chemo and going off the steroids, Kecia has lost almost 15 pounds. Her color has returned and I find that from time to time I am actually starting to see that "spark" in her eyes that we have all missed for so long now. GO KECIA GO!

We made it home from San Antonio in one piece but boy are we tired. The kids had a blast and it felt like we never stopped running at full speed. There was so much to do and so little time. It was a great family vacation...but now we get back to the same old grind.
Kecia went in to meet with her oncologist today. They went over her charts and schedules to see if they could double up on some of her treatments so she wouldn't have to keep going in so often. He thinks they may do her shots on the same day as her chemo in the future which would knock at least one day off for her. He is going to review it a little more and let her know at their next meeting. (next week) She had her monthly dose of chemo today and was feeling bad before she even left the center. She knew she would and has planned for several days in the bed. She tries to look on the bright side and said "well, at least I'll get lots of work done." She goes in on Wednesday to get all of her scans done that will take the precise measurments for her radiation which is scheduled to begin on Monday. Her oncologist says they will also be doing her full body scan soon as well just to make sure she is still cancer free. Kecia is a little aprehensive about it because in the back of her mind she is terrified that they will detect something and this whole process will just start over. She tries so hard to put her worries in God's hands but that is alot easier said than done. It is something she really struggles with and would appreciate your prayers on the matter.

6-5-09 I haven't updated in awhile because we have been waiting to find out why Kecia keeps having symptoms of an infection that can not be explained. In the past 3 months she has been on a very powerful broad spectrum antibiotic 4 different times. Two of those times it was in the hospital with an IV drip. She goes in feeling very weak, achey everywhere, low blood counts, etc. and after a few days of the antibiotic she starts feeling better. By the time she finishes her round of meds she feels great again...for about 4 days. Once she is off of them she starts feeling bad and every day gets worse until they start treating again. She wants intense testing to determine the exact type of infection that she has so they can pinpoint the treatment to get rid of it instead of just putting a bandaid on it. We all worry because we know that extended use of antibiotics just leaves you immune to them. Kecia can't afford to be needlessly immune to them. Her doctors seem reluctant to do some of the tests that might help to pinpoint the problem and we are a little confused and frusterated about it all. She plans to try and find out more and get some answers as to why they aren't taking this as seriously as we feel that they should, on Monday. In the meantime, she finished her last antibiotic treatment about a week ago and started feeling the downward slide again yesterday. By today, she was feeling really bad and in alot of pain so we are praying that someone will be able to identify the problem and find a solution. I probably won't be able to upate on that doctor's visit for awhile because James and I are taking the kiddos to San Antonio for a stop by the Alamo, Sea World and the Natural Bridge Caverns. We will be gone all week but will update when we get back.

On a happy note, one of Kecia's friends Karina has joined with a group of ladies to "race for the cure" in the Komen 3 Day Walk. They are wearing t-shirts that say "Happy Birthday Kecia, and are walking in her honor again. (you may remember that they walked for her last year shortly after her diagnosis.) I will try to get pictures of that and see if Lacey (our tech support) can update the blog with a few. Have a great week and please continue to keep our girl in your prayers!!