Mile Marker #7

Hello Friends!  We have reached Mile Marker #7 of John's journey.  We wanted to give you a quick update on what has been happening these last few months and ask for BIG PRAYERS this week for John and the family please.

The scripture we chose for Mile Marker #7 is Joshua 1:9, “Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

As a quick refresher from our last post, the liver ultrasound from May showed that 4 of the tumors had reduced in size and 2 had increased.  While this wasn't an apples to apples comparison (comparing a PET to an ultrasound), we and the doctors were encouraged by this!  Praise Jesus for this encouragement!

Since May there have been some additional side effects set in.  At times he can become breathless when climbing stairs.  There is also pain on both sides of his ribs and he hasn't been able to take deep breaths as a result.  And he is much more tired, needing naps and lots of rest time!  The Doctors have stressed all along how important rest is for him and he is needing it daily now.  So we will see if the scans reveal any correlation to these symptoms or if these are just side effects of the protocol he has been on.

Also, the last week of July was a rough one.  The Get Well Center had John try a different protocol to replace the IPT, due to the expense of this treatment no longer being affordable.  They tried a different type of chemo in a pill form called Roxane, along with increasing the dosage of Treosulfan (one he had already been on) at the same time.  The overall goal was to try to have the same effect of IPT as a whole, but have the expense lowered significantly.  After just a few a days, it really took a hard, scary toll on John.  He was extremely nauseous and weak and in turn dropped additional weight quickly.  As a result they quickly decided to discontinue the Roxane and drop the dosage of Treosulfan back down to what he had been doing for some time.  Since then the nausea has gotten better, but his strength and breathing haven't returned to normal.  So, we are trying to determine if the additional side effects mentioned earlier are as a result of this change in protocol or not.  

In addition to the conventional treatment above, John has worked with the Get Well Center to help prioritize which natural protocols will be most effective, given the continuing costs of these treatments not being covered by insurance and having to stick to a budget at this point.   

So, what is happening this week that is so important?  John has CT and bone scans scheduled this Wednesday, 8/12 and Thursday, 8/13.  This is the first time since his PET Scan on February 24th that we will have an overall better picture of what is going on in his body, as his last ultrasound was only of his liver.  For those of you who are facing, fighting or overcoming cancer or know of someone who has, you understand the level of attack that you can be under the week of scans as well as the waiting period after to hear results.  That is one of the many reasons why we are asking for prayers this week and next.  John most likely will not receive any results back until next Friday, 8/21.  We will update the blog as quickly as we are able to once results are in.  

Please, PRAY BIG for complete healing on John's body!  Also, prayers for John and the family to find encouragement from the scan results would be greatly appreciated!  We want them to feel Jesus' blanket of peace during a time of uncertainty.  We also pray for their eyes to continue to be opened to how God wants to use them during this time for HIS glory.  

Thank you again so much for your love for John and our family!

In His Love,

The Gooney Gurneys