Some improvement

John has been doing the PT exercises and eating more for a couple of days and we're seeing a little improvement in stamina. It probably helps that he is still on a break from the Sutent which resumes on Thursday. Yesterday he rode out to Moffitt with Ellen for some more bloodwork which was an exhausting event, but mission accomplished and back home for a rest. Flip and Rick Miller came by this morning with home baked bread to go with her strawberry-banana and champagne jellies, perfect for Saturday brunch, and we look forward to a salmon dinner this evening being prepared by Andrea Zelman, thank you!

John is well enough today to use his Blackberry for e-mailing, so we are all getting a little work done and enjoying this sunny day.

Physical Therapy

Will and Lauren flew back to CA Tuesday; we so enjoyed their company and all they did for us while here. Will lent his incomparable high tech talents to all of us, and Lauren her always cheerful willingness to help with whatever presents itself.

Today John had his first PT appointment with Nan Morris. He was happy to have an idea of what to do to build up his muscle strength and will return for more therapy with Nan, and following her instructions, now has a work out program for home. He feels better already!

This, combined with new prescriptions to address weakness caused by the radiation which compromised the thyroid gland, give us all hope for some strength returning in a few weeks.

Dinner tonight was a beautiful seafood crepe menu courtesy of Sharon Pizzo. Delicious! Thanks to everyone for your continued support.

Monday, May 3, 2010

It's been a festive week here, with family coming in from out of town to celebrate Dad's 60th birthday. Anna arrived on Wednesday evening, in time for his actual birthday on Thursday.

Dad unfortunately spent much of his birthday on an unplanned trip to Moffitt, where the family had questions about the fatigue that has been dogging him in the past few weeks. Happily, the doctors were very reassuring, finding no neurological problems or other issues to worry about. They did a few blood tests and seemed confident that either the fatigue would fade as he completes inhibitor treatment near mid-June, or else it was due to something easily treatable like a hormone imbalance.

Thursday also marked Dad's final day of his current round of medication, which he is happy to put behind him!

Late Thursday night, Lauren and I came into town as well. On Friday, we properly celebrated his birthday along with Lauren's and Aunt Dee's. We even made Dad's favorite boyhood cake, a "1-2-3-4 cake" with vanilla frosting.

Here's a picture of the festivities. Apparently no one else got the message that this was the "zany" picture:

On Saturday, Lauren and I went to Men's Wearhouse to select groom and groomsman outfits for our wedding this summer! The suit passed muster with Dad, who has quite a critical eye for menswear.

Sunday saw a bit of an increase in Dad's energy level. He spent a lot of the day chatting with Lauren and me, also reading three full newspapers(!).

Since the last blog post, we have been so grateful for the delicious food brought by many friends and neighbors: Debbie Edwards, Mary Lib Howell, Dana Ludwig and Irene Guy, Harriet Plyler, and Karen McKinney. It's very touching to see this great outpouring of support from so many corners. I've also got to ask Dad just how he came to know so many amazing chefs! This is WAY better than what we're used to out in California.

Sleepy Sunday

It's raining pollen here on Chapin Avenue, as the wind stirs in the trees. John is asleep and Ellen is working on a sewing project. She has been able to get back to some of the things she enjoys, including evening chorus practice the last two Tuesdays. It's been nice for her to get out a little as John seems stable and I'm able to keep him company after work. Chronic fatigue still persists, but John is strong enough to read which, luckily, is one of his favorite pass times. Thanks to Ellen Cheek for bringing dinner last night, it was delicious!

Postive Report

John's trip to Moffitt today for the MRI on his brain yielded positive news! Ellen writes:

His MRI, taken this morning, shows a marked diminishing of the tumors and their surrounding swellings, anywhere from 25% to 50% smaller. Of course, we all surmised something was going on the right direction, since he is markedly improved, brain-wise. It was wonderful to get concrete proof of this! His next big moment will be in mid-June when he has a CAT scan done to see how the meds are working against his kidney cancer. We feel so positive about all this!

So the extreme fatigue seems to be worth tolerating for these good results. He was strengthened for today's challenges by a beautiful smoked turkey dinner last night courtesy of Margo Harrod. Lovely seasoned mushroom rice, soft rolls, and sugar snap peas followed by key lime pie were all included in the feast. Thank you Margo!

This Week

Saturday night Norman Stallings and his lovely daughter delivered a Nags Head seafood feast complete with salad, baguette, dessert, and a lovely white wine. It was delicious and such a treat to have a gourmet dinner delivered.

This week we are looking forward to Thursday, another visit to Moffitt, and hopefully more light shed on John's circumstances. Life remains quiet at home.

Quiet Days

John managed a business conference call yesterday, and has spent much of the rest of his time since Wednesday resting, napping, and reading. He looks forward to getting more strength and energy back. It appears recuperating from radiation is a long, slow, process.