A date to remember

Good morning everyone,

APRIL 8, 2008.  Write that date down.  Dr. Filatov's Office called me this morning to tell me that the date I report to the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic is April 8th.  My first appointment is with Dr. Leong (Radiation Oncologist) at 10:25 AM April 8th.  The cancer Clinic will call me a few days beforehand to give me all of the other pertinent details.

I now have 12 days to get ready and prepare myself for this new chapter of my life.

I will continue to keep everyone up to date with frequent postings.

Bye for now,

Rick

Happy Easter

Good morning everyone,

It is a beautiful sunny morning in Prince George, -8 C with a high of +8 forecast.  The mounds of snow are starting to recede which is definately a sign of an impending springtime season.  

When I was growing up my father used to tell my brothers and sister all sorts of neat things about this and that.  Well one day I remember he told us about Easter and why Easter Sunday falls on a different day each year.  Well I forgot exactly why it does until last week when my friend Emory Darling sent me an e-mail explaining it.

So for those of you who don't know, this is why Easter falls on a different day each year. According to the Lunar Calendar Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox (Mar. 20th this year) and that's why it moves around on our Roman Calendar.  Some other interesting facts: the last time Easter was this early was 1913 and the next time it will be this early is 2228 (220 years from now).  The earliest date Easter can actually fall on is Mar. 22.  The last time it was March 22 was 1818 and the next time it will be March 22 is 2285.  I want to thank Emory for refreshing my memory.

Be well everyone and I wish you all a Happy Easter and I look forward to wishing you the same thing next year.

Bye for now,

Lumpy, aka Spot

Panendoscopy Results

A Good Thursday Afternoon,

My visit with Dr. Filatov was short and to the point.  He found the "Primary" cancer site, a small spot, under my tongue at the back of my mouth.  The "lump" is the secondary site and the cancer has migrated from the tongue area.

Weather this is good news or bad news is inconsequential because, I still have cancer.  Now the Cancer Clinic will know there are two areas to treat.  I am neither happy nor sad just glad the "staging" part of the diagnosis is over.  Dr. Filatov promised to phone the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic, part of the Surrey Memorial Hospital, in Surrey, B.C., today and forward my file to them. There may be a delay before I hear from them because of the Easter Long Weekend.  He said it could take up to a month before I am called in and start treatment, I'll hope it happens sooner.

Lastly, my mouth, left ear and throat are still very sore and he said it will take another week before the pain is gone, oh great.

So long for now everyone,

Lumpy or maybe I should now be called "Spot"

On the rebound

Yoski all,

Finally!!!! After 5 days of hideous pain in my throat and left ear, today I'm feeling almost "Rick like" again.  The aforementioned pains have subsided to more than tolerable levels and I'm feeling re-energized. 

I took care of legal matters today, you know wills etc. and am prepared for what ever befalls me over the course of my up coming cancer treatments.  I see Dr. Filatov on Thursday, 1:00 PM and I will then be able to give you all a more complete update.

Until then I wish everyone good health and happiness.

Lumpy but, seldom "grumpy"

  

Turn for the worse

Good morning all,

I have had a relapse and this morning I feel terrible.  My left ear is aching as bad as I can ever remember and I can hardly swallow cool water.  I forced myself to eat some scrambled eggs so I could take 2 T-3's.  My nose is bleeding on and off and it is a bother.  

Brad has left to return to Fort St. John.  I am so glad he was here.  I cannot imagine how I would have survived without his help and support.  I will lay low for the rest of the weekend.  Yesterday I felt great and maybe I over extended myself.

I called Dr. Filatov's office yesterday afternoon and I will see him on Thursday March 20th.  I will then learn the results from the panendoscopy and we will discuss what's next.

Keep smiling my friends.

Bye for now,

Rick 

Panendoscopy, March 13th

Good morning everyone,

I made it through the panendoscopy.  The Hospital personnel were truly magnificent. The procedure went very well and I did not experience any discomfort but, I must say that the next 8 hours of recovery at home were sheer "Hell".  

Brad brought me home after we had picked up my prescription medicines and I went straight to bed.  Some time later,  I got up to gargle with the throat medication and I think I went into shock.  Brad had to help me get back to bed and covered me with extra blankets.  I was shivering uncontrollably.   I started to give myself Reiki treatments to ease the pain in my throat and ears and to calm myself down.  The ear aches were severe.   Within an hour of getting home I had a terrible reaction to the T-3's prescribed by Dr. Filatov and was horribly sick.  Brad ducked out and bought some Gravol gel caps and ginger ale.  The gravol settled my stomach and I was able to rest much more comfortably. 

I continued to give my self Reiki and gradually I seemed to be getting better.  Brad made me some beef broth and I was able to keep that down along with Jello.  I took another T-3 after I ate but, around 9:00 PM I was horribly sick again.  

I slept poorly last night and my throat is  still raw and sore this morning.  It is still to painful to swallow food so I'm the jello kid.    On a positive note, I have regained my voice.

I seem to be getting better with each passing hour and I will soon be back to my usual self.

I'll post more after my next appointment with Dr. Filatov.  I expect to see him next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Bye for now,

Lumpy

Pre-Surgical Visit

Good afternoon everyone,

Well, well, well, well.  I was up at the crack of dawn this morning and off to PGRH before 8:00 AM for an ECG.  What a great procedure the hospital puts you through.  Take a number at the Lab and wait only to find out that I have to go to Pre-Admissions first.  There goes 45 minutes. I then get a booking slip and go back to the Lab and the booking slip is processed pretty quickly and then its off and down the hall and around a corner to an unmarked waiting area.  

Nobody is around and I wait and wait for somebody, anybody to appear and tell me what to do. Finally this really pleasant Nurse shows up and says "what are you waiting for?"  I tell her and she says "be with you in a moment".  Yippee!!!! Headway at last.  After a short wait she calls me into an examination room and I have the ECG.  Oh but, that life could be as easy as an ECG.  10 minutes later I'm back to Pre-Booking with a copy of the ECG and I'm asked to wait, the anesthetist will be with me shortly.  Shortly turned out to be 90 minutes later.

The anesthetist was a very pleasant Doctor type and we went over what I can expect next Thursday when I have the Panendoscopy.  I can expect quite a bit of discomfort starting with the insertion of the Trachea tube.   In earlier surgeries I've had, the doctors and the anesthetists have found that it is very difficult to insert the trachea tube so it will be inserted before I am sedated and the Doctor said it will not be pleasant.  My throat will be frozen but I will still find it difficult and unpleasant.  YUKKKK!!!!  I'm going ask Dr. Filatov if I can have a shot of Morphine while I'm in pre-op to settle me down.  Once I am put to sleep, I will feel nothing until I wake up.  Dr. Filatov has told me that he will paint the areas from which he takes scrapings with Codeine and that will help to reduce the unpleasantness in my inner nose and throat areas after the surgical procedure.

Brad will have to stay with me for a full 24 hours as a precaution and by then I should be well enough to be wholly on my own.  Keep your fingers crossed for me.

I think we are near the end of the "staging" process.  Next step after this is the Cancer Clinic. All things being equal, I am in good spirits and learning how to cope better as each day comes and goes.  I am positive that I will conquer this cancer and return to my regular self.

Until later, so long everyone,

Rick, soon to be "Lumpfree", first cousin to "Humphrey" the camel.

 

Good news

Good evening everyone,

I went to see Dr. Filatov today at 1:30 PM my time.   It was pretty nearly 2:30 before I actually saw him.  I told him of the lump on the right side of my face.  He examined me and said that I have a swollen gland and it is not a tumor or a lump and that there is nothing to worry about.  I am greatly relieved to hear this news and my spirits are soaring to night and I'm listening to the Bare Naked Ladies,  the Maroon Album and the song right now is Baby Seat. It's a good rocker and fits my mood perfectly.

On Thursday morning (10:15 AM) I go to PGRH to see the anesthetist and find out what to expect from the Panendoscopy on the 13th.   After that procedure we will wait for the results which Dr. Filatov expects by Tuesday the 18th.  I will then have another appointment with him to go over the results and what comes next.  

For the first time today, Dr. Filatov said that he doesn't expect to find evidence of any other cancer during the Panendoscopy.  My CT Scans have all been clear.  He also said that the lump may be the primary site after all and I think that is good news.   After that appointment he will refer me to the Cancer Clinic in Vancouver.  I asked if I could be referred to the Cancer clinic in Surrey, B.C. located at the Surrey Memorial Hospital and he said certainly.  My son Brock lives within a kilometer or two of SMH and Linda Leighton one of my dearest and best friends lives within a 10 minute drive of the hospital.  I will make a decision on which clinic to go to after we go over the results of the Panendoscopy.

When at the cancer clinic I can expect Radiation Treatments lasting up to 6 weeks and the lump will be irrigated, whatever that means.  He does not expect that surgery will be required to remove the lump and at this point he does not think Chemo Therapy will be required either.  I sure hope he is right.  

I'll try not to get to far ahead of myself and wait for new developments as they come.     

Bye for now from an elated Lumpy