Radiation therapy complete

Howdy family and friends,
Completed 5th and final radiation treatment this am. Each session was the same. Three catscans to check the physics, data, and alignments, then 4 shots of radiation, another catscan, 2 more shots of radiation, another catscan and two more shots of radiation, totalling 40 doses in the five treatment sessions. Good news is that the treatment catscans show that the skull tumor has shrunk, and is in different colors in varying layers caused by damage to the bad boy cells. The Bad news, well there is no bad news! Just some side effects to work through, although I probably will not be able to go on reconnaisance patrols behind enemy lines, since after 40 shots of radiation, I glow in the dark. The radiation oncologist reports that frequently results are not apparent at this stage, so he is encouraged. Next step is a diagnostic MRI in 4 weeks and follow-up visit to the radiation oncologist where he will report the diagnostic MRI reports compared to the original diagnostic catscan. Pray for zero tumor, although anything under 20% of original size is considered successful and unlikely to do further damage.
Thank you for your prayers and support. This would not have happened without my knowing of your prayers and support! You are an awesome support team and I love and appreciate you more than words can possibly say! Next step, laproscopic surgery to remove left kidney on August 14th. Joshua 1-9 Living Bible tells us:

Be Brave and Bold
Banish fear and doubt,
For remember,
The Lord your God
is with you, wherever you may go.

Jack

4 down--1 to go

Today Jack had his 4th radiation treatment, and all went well, as expected. Dr. Kersh said he can see that the tumor is beginning to shrink, so that's the great news for this day! Once again, the technicians et al at Riverside's Radiosurgery Center are wonderful. When we walked in today, the 2 technicians that are always with Jack were just standing there waiting for him as though they were the official greeters! His skin is somewhat red in the area of his scalp that receives the radiation so we're soothing that with a special cream; and he is to always wear his special hat when he plays golf--the one with the floppy rim! It's cute, and he's faithful about wearing it. I had mentioned to him today that these radiation treatments have come and gone so quickly, and he just looked at me--as if to say they haven't been quick enough. Well, we'll soon be into August, and anticipating the kidney surgery. We took a huge leap last week in planning a vacation the end of September. That will be 6 weeks post-operative and he should be feeling good. We'll be taking a cruise to New England and Canada with dear friends from McKinney, TX--Mary Nelle and Don Cummins. Mary Nelle has posted on this blog, and we are so grateful for the long friendship we've had over 48+ years. Then following the cruise, we'll be returning to Hilton Head, SC the end of October for another week away. So, these are some activities that keep us looking forward.

Thank you all for your prayers for Jack; and your prayers for Jack's Uncle Luke, and cousin Lindsey. God promises us that He loves us, His grace is sufficient for us, that He will supply all our needs, and that He will direct our steps. These are the things that give us confidence in this journey we are on. The statistics our oncologist has shared with us show that many will have a recurrence of cancer, with or without follow-up treatment post surgery; our prayer is that Jack will be in the non-recurring group and that God will keep the cancer away.

Blessings to all of you,
Karen

Lindsey Layne Daniel

Lindsey passed away this morning around 3 a.m. As was her wish, she did make it back to her home in Oklahoma City. Funeral services are this Tuesday in Broken Bow, Oklahoma. My dad had a soft spot in his heart for Lindsey - he loved how she looked after her Granddaddy in his later years, checking in on him everyday. She loved the Lord and her family a lot and she will be missed by many. Our prayers go out to her parents and other immediate family members and her close friends.

Updates

After the third round of radiation my Dad remains active, but he is definitely tired. He is keeping up with a schedule of going into their cabinet shop and getting out to hit some balls on the golf course each day. My mom remains faithful; however, she has experienced some hard days facing this serious illness with my dad. They had an appointment with the oncologist this week who spelled out to them how complicated kidney cancer is. It has a high rate of recurrence and follow up treatment is not always a clear course. Difficult information to process, and while sometimes during this journey their spirits sag, they always seem to rally back as they know that they are in God's hands throughout this time. For now we are thankful that my dad is tolerating the radiation treatments well.
Our cousin Lindsey went by air ambulance from the Cleveland Clinic to her home in Oklahoma City today. Hospice care has been arranged for her and she will be in her home surrounded by her family and friends. Please continue to pray that they may have peace and comfort during this very difficult time.
As a family, we are in a season that has several family members struggling with serious illness. While we have a very strong faith and remain stalwart, these are hard experiences on both those who are sick, and the rest of us who love them so much. We do appreciate all the prayer, support and encouragement as we continue on through these tough times. A special thank you to my mom, Uncle Robert and Lindsey's parents as they are the primary caretakers in the daily trenches and we are grateful for all you do.

A special request for a dear family member

Our cousin, Lindsey, who is only 29 years old, has been admitted to the Cleveland Clinic in OH. 9 years ago she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and due to complications from her cancer treatments she is now having heart and lung complications. She was being evaluated for a lung transplant, but we heard yesterday that she has weakened drastically. She and her family have been informed that she is too weak to receive a lung transplant and that no further medical intervention is expected. It looks like she may not pull through this. Because so many of you care about our family, we wanted to ask that you please join us in praying for Lindsey, her parents Steve and Debbi, and brother Joe.

60% Done

Round 3 of Radiation was completed today without a hitch - or should I say hiccup! Overall, my Dad is feeling ok -- lots of off and on headaches and some tiredness for sure, but he is able to remain active in spite of this. They don't expect to see any shrinkage of the tumor for another 4 weeks or so, with the hope that it will shrink by about 80%. Thanks for checking in to see how things are going - so far, so good...

Happy Happy Birthday DAD!!!!

Hope you have a great day and know how much we all love you ~~~~

you are OUR superhero

Round 2

The second radiation treatment went well - took a bit longer this time as a slight hiccup (a real one) halted the radiation. Because the radiation is so precise and the area covered is so sensitive, any movement at all stops the radiation beam. The beam then has to be re-transmitted, so due to that slight movement, it took just over an hour for the whole process to be complete.
The Doctors were glad to hear that my Dad has been able to stay active and is enjoying playing so much golf. They are pleased that he doesn't seem to be letting this diagnosis beat him down. The ability to stay positive is an important component of fighting cancer and it has without doubt helped that so many of you have provided encouragement and support in cheering my Dad on through this journey - it certainly goes a long way toward keeping his spirits up!

Great time....

From top to bottom --- Sandi, Tami, Jacquie, Karen, Jack, Jeni, Matt, Lauren, Jessie (on Lauren's lap hiding), Amanda, Taryn, Megan, Carsyn, Lidia and Kyle. (Missing from photo were the official picture takers Dale and Louis; and Jon.)

We had a great visit over the 4th -- For the first time ever, all 9 grandchildren were together! We ate a lot and had lots of fun from watching a parade and a great display of fireworks; to eating, swimming, eating some more, playing golf, shopping, watching movies, eating again and playing cards. Matt, Jacquie, Louis and my dad made an awesome foursome to compete in the annual Firecracker Golf tournament where they tied for First Place!
We had a good time while it lasted, but everyone had to head off to their various homes, jobs, summer camps etc. and it's now back to the normal routine.
Tomorrow (7/7), at 10:00 a.m. is the 2nd round of radiation. We are hopeful that it will go as well as the first round did with little to no side effects again. When I have more pictures assembled, I'll post a slide show of the weekend's various activities -- Tami

Forgot to Mention

The best news of all from yesterday is that the tumor has not grown at all during this long wait for the radiaiton to start! Don't know how I could have forgotten to add that!