Hello everyone,
Life is quiet and serene here on the 965 acre Triple G ranch which is located 10 kms east of the small village of Fort Fraser, B.C. and 25 kms west of Vanderhoof, pop 4,400 on hwy 16 West. It is a cow/calf operation and they run about 80 mature cows with a corresponding number of new calfs. The ranch is pretty much self sufficient in terms of feed for the animals ands provides a good living for Dolores, her mother (90 years old), Milton her older brother (67) and her son David (41). Dolores plants a 3 acre vegetable garden annually and most years they raise chickens for meat, which are often referred to as "freezer guests". One of the calfs is butchered annually to provide beef for the coming year.
I drove here Thursday April 24th from Vancouver a distance of 920 kms. It snowed really hard between Hope and the Toll booth on the Coquihalla Hwy a distance of 60 kms and the road was slushy and quite slippery. For those of you who don't know, the Coquihalla is a high mountain highway between Hope and Kamloops. The Surrey Summit is 1,444 m or 4,743 feet above sea level. Hope is at sea level .
As I drove north from Kamloops on Highway 97, the weather was mixed, rain at the lower elevations with snow at the higher points along the road. The last 255 kms from Williams Lake to Prince George was all in brilliant sunshine. From Prince George to Fort Fraser was mixed sun and clouds. It was a long trip but, a relatively easy drive. I left Surrey ar 9:30 AM and was here at 7:15 PM. I made good time.
I have helped Dolores with the chickens, she collects about 90 eggs per day from 3 chicken koops. The koops need to be cleaned everyday and new feed and water is given to the birds. It has been an eye opener for this "city slikker". I have also helped prepare the flower gardens for spring planting.
That's it for now. More at a later date.
Rick, aka Lumpy
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
On the go
Hello all,
It's Tuesday evening and two busy days at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic are over and I am none the less for wear and tare.
I had an appointment with Gregory Heubner, my Councillor, yesterday morning and we went over what's been happening during the last week and how I have been coping. It is a comfort to me to receive reassurance and reinforcement of what I am doing. We also discussed the procedures for the rest of today and tomorrow and later when the Radiation Treatments start.
After leaving Gregory's office I went to Dentistry and Dr. Gardner gave me a check up. I was given a clean bill of health in that area. I then had mouth moulds fitted for the upper and lower teeth. These will be used to make trays for Fluoride treatments which I will have to use during the Radiation and for three months after.
In the afternoon I went into have the mould/mask of my face and neck area made. Today at 10:00 AM I was back into the moulding department and minor adjustments were made to the mask. At 11:30 I had an MRI. I was prepared mentally for the test and used my new breathing techniques to calm myself down as well as Reiki. After lunch it was back to moulding for a CT Scan with the mask on.
Now its time to wait for the Radiation Treatments. I am on the waiting list for the week of May 5th but, it could be longer but, certainly no sooner.
Dolores, my new friend and companion in Fort Fraser has invited me to come and visit with her until it is time to return to Vancouver for Radiation. I will leave for her house tomorrow morning. I will still be checking my e-mail daily and adding the odd post from time to time until the Radiation starts. After that there will be frequent postings.
As you can tell I am well and happy. Good luck everyone.
Rick
It's Tuesday evening and two busy days at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic are over and I am none the less for wear and tare.
I had an appointment with Gregory Heubner, my Councillor, yesterday morning and we went over what's been happening during the last week and how I have been coping. It is a comfort to me to receive reassurance and reinforcement of what I am doing. We also discussed the procedures for the rest of today and tomorrow and later when the Radiation Treatments start.
After leaving Gregory's office I went to Dentistry and Dr. Gardner gave me a check up. I was given a clean bill of health in that area. I then had mouth moulds fitted for the upper and lower teeth. These will be used to make trays for Fluoride treatments which I will have to use during the Radiation and for three months after.
In the afternoon I went into have the mould/mask of my face and neck area made. Today at 10:00 AM I was back into the moulding department and minor adjustments were made to the mask. At 11:30 I had an MRI. I was prepared mentally for the test and used my new breathing techniques to calm myself down as well as Reiki. After lunch it was back to moulding for a CT Scan with the mask on.
Now its time to wait for the Radiation Treatments. I am on the waiting list for the week of May 5th but, it could be longer but, certainly no sooner.
Dolores, my new friend and companion in Fort Fraser has invited me to come and visit with her until it is time to return to Vancouver for Radiation. I will leave for her house tomorrow morning. I will still be checking my e-mail daily and adding the odd post from time to time until the Radiation starts. After that there will be frequent postings.
As you can tell I am well and happy. Good luck everyone.
Rick
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
1,2,3 PULLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Yoski,
I am now minus two back teeth from the top, one from each side. Brock drove to the Dentistry Clinic in the Diamond Centre which is located on Laurel Street next door and across the street from Vancouver General Hospital. The 2 dentists were first class. The right hand tooth was very stubborn and took some significant effort to get out and lots of extra freezing. The left one took extra freezing as well but came out with less effort. I was bathed in sweat but survived the ordeal.
I'm now back at Brock's place with gauze pads stuffed in the back of my mouth to stop the bleeding which has now nearly stopped. The freezing is still in but, I'm sure that there will be lots of pain when it comes out in another hour or two. I have a litre of liquid Tylenol 3 so I think I will be OK!
The next step is an MRI on Wednesday April 23 and I've heard that on Thursday after the MRI results are known the moulding department will start to prepare the mould of my head that I will wear during the Radiation Treatments.
So, once again we move on to another step in this long process. That's not to say I am in a big hurry to start the Radiation Treatments but, that is why I am here and the day will come when they start. Keep those cards and letters coming.
Bye for now,
Ricky Ticky Timble
I am now minus two back teeth from the top, one from each side. Brock drove to the Dentistry Clinic in the Diamond Centre which is located on Laurel Street next door and across the street from Vancouver General Hospital. The 2 dentists were first class. The right hand tooth was very stubborn and took some significant effort to get out and lots of extra freezing. The left one took extra freezing as well but came out with less effort. I was bathed in sweat but survived the ordeal.
I'm now back at Brock's place with gauze pads stuffed in the back of my mouth to stop the bleeding which has now nearly stopped. The freezing is still in but, I'm sure that there will be lots of pain when it comes out in another hour or two. I have a litre of liquid Tylenol 3 so I think I will be OK!
The next step is an MRI on Wednesday April 23 and I've heard that on Thursday after the MRI results are known the moulding department will start to prepare the mould of my head that I will wear during the Radiation Treatments.
So, once again we move on to another step in this long process. That's not to say I am in a big hurry to start the Radiation Treatments but, that is why I am here and the day will come when they start. Keep those cards and letters coming.
Bye for now,
Ricky Ticky Timble
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
More good news
Good evening everyone,
This morning at 9:30 I met with Gregory Heubner, a Clinical Social Worker with Patient and Family Counselling at the B.C. Cancer Agency. We seemed to connect from the moment that we met. He is a very observant fellow and picked up quickly where my stress and anxiety levels are.
For those who have had some experience with personal counselling, Gregory is going to employ Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. He wants to focus on my breathing mantra, my humour, the good thoughts that I have of myself and my sleeping habits. He focused on anxiety being fear of the future/unknown; worry is the precursor to anxiety and depression is the fear of the past. Heady stuff indeed. I have another appointment with him next Tuesday at 9:30 AM.
I then visited the Dental Clinic and was given the news that I have an appointment for tomorrow morning, April 16th , at 9:00 AM at Vancouver General Hospital to have two, top, back teeth extracted. Oh yukity yuk, yuk, yuk. Brock is going to drive me there and back. It will be back to liquids for a few more days.
I post more tomorrow and bring you up to date on my dental trials.
Bye for now,
Toothless in Vancouver
This morning at 9:30 I met with Gregory Heubner, a Clinical Social Worker with Patient and Family Counselling at the B.C. Cancer Agency. We seemed to connect from the moment that we met. He is a very observant fellow and picked up quickly where my stress and anxiety levels are.
For those who have had some experience with personal counselling, Gregory is going to employ Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. He wants to focus on my breathing mantra, my humour, the good thoughts that I have of myself and my sleeping habits. He focused on anxiety being fear of the future/unknown; worry is the precursor to anxiety and depression is the fear of the past. Heady stuff indeed. I have another appointment with him next Tuesday at 9:30 AM.
I then visited the Dental Clinic and was given the news that I have an appointment for tomorrow morning, April 16th , at 9:00 AM at Vancouver General Hospital to have two, top, back teeth extracted. Oh yukity yuk, yuk, yuk. Brock is going to drive me there and back. It will be back to liquids for a few more days.
I post more tomorrow and bring you up to date on my dental trials.
Bye for now,
Toothless in Vancouver
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Some positive news
Good morning everyone,
After a somewhat frustrating week there is a positive note to post. I met with Dr. Don Anderson, surgeon, yesterday afternoon at 3:45. My long time friend Bob Pavich drove me to the appointment and sat in with me during the examination and the question and answer period that followed. Dr. Anderson was pleasant, skilled and informative. His patient manner was sincere and caring.
He wanted to inspect the tumor which is located at the base of my tongue and not under the tongue as I have previously said. He used a fine, hand held viewing scope which he inserted up through my left nostril. I was hesitant to let him do this but, he was firm and insistent while being gentle, sensitive and encouraging. The procedure took less than a minute and I felt none of the discomfort I experienced in Dr. Leong's office or in Dr. Filatov's office in Prince George.
Dr. Anderson will remove the tumor in my neck, which he said was now 5 cms, after the Radiation Therapy. I am to call him 4 to 6 weeks after it is over and he will examine me again or Dr. Filatov can do it. Dr. Anderson will then schedule the surgery. He said the reason for the delay is to allow the body to clear the dead cells from the tumor site. The tumor in my neck is made up of large number of affected Lymph nodes which are clustered around the carotid artery. The tumor will shrink considerably during the Radiation treatments and make its removal much easier and less risky. He will also remove all of the other lymph nodes from the left hand jaw area. I think he said there are about 150 lymph nodes on each side of the jaw. Both Bob and I were impressed with Dr. Anderson and I have complete faith in his ability.
Another good piece of news. I have an appointment with to see a councillor from the Family Counselling Centre which is attached to the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic Tuesday morning next week. My emotions and temper have been scrapped raw and are lurking just under the surface and the Counselling will be of great help and comfort.
I am going to enjoy my weekend with Bob and his wife Lillian and return to Linda Leighton's for Sunday and Monday nights. I will be a Brock's house from Tuesday through Saturday morning next week.
So long for now,
Lumpy
After a somewhat frustrating week there is a positive note to post. I met with Dr. Don Anderson, surgeon, yesterday afternoon at 3:45. My long time friend Bob Pavich drove me to the appointment and sat in with me during the examination and the question and answer period that followed. Dr. Anderson was pleasant, skilled and informative. His patient manner was sincere and caring.
He wanted to inspect the tumor which is located at the base of my tongue and not under the tongue as I have previously said. He used a fine, hand held viewing scope which he inserted up through my left nostril. I was hesitant to let him do this but, he was firm and insistent while being gentle, sensitive and encouraging. The procedure took less than a minute and I felt none of the discomfort I experienced in Dr. Leong's office or in Dr. Filatov's office in Prince George.
Dr. Anderson will remove the tumor in my neck, which he said was now 5 cms, after the Radiation Therapy. I am to call him 4 to 6 weeks after it is over and he will examine me again or Dr. Filatov can do it. Dr. Anderson will then schedule the surgery. He said the reason for the delay is to allow the body to clear the dead cells from the tumor site. The tumor in my neck is made up of large number of affected Lymph nodes which are clustered around the carotid artery. The tumor will shrink considerably during the Radiation treatments and make its removal much easier and less risky. He will also remove all of the other lymph nodes from the left hand jaw area. I think he said there are about 150 lymph nodes on each side of the jaw. Both Bob and I were impressed with Dr. Anderson and I have complete faith in his ability.
Another good piece of news. I have an appointment with to see a councillor from the Family Counselling Centre which is attached to the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic Tuesday morning next week. My emotions and temper have been scrapped raw and are lurking just under the surface and the Counselling will be of great help and comfort.
I am going to enjoy my weekend with Bob and his wife Lillian and return to Linda Leighton's for Sunday and Monday nights. I will be a Brock's house from Tuesday through Saturday morning next week.
So long for now,
Lumpy
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Dental visit, etc.
Yoski everybody,
This morning I saw Dr. Pamela Gardner at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic's Dental Office. A full surround ex ray of my teeth was taken and she discussed it with me. She is recommending that the top two back teeth (one on each side) be extracted before the radiation therapy begins. Each of these two teeth sits above a space where my two bottom 12 year old molars used to be.
After radiation therapy, blood flow through the jaw bone and surrounding area is greatly reduced. If either of these teeth need to be extracted sometime in the future, the wound caused by the extraction would not heal because of the lack of blood in the area. These extractions are now a preventative measure and I have agreed.
Dr. Gardner also went over the short and long term side affects that I can expect as a result of the radiation such as loss of my saliva glands and loss of taste (not always permanent). It will also be very important that I take good care of my teeth after the radiation as my tooth enamel will be affected and I will be prone to more cavities. She wants me to call her after my appointment tomorrow with Dr. Anderson (the surgeon) and advise her if the lump will be removed before or after the radiation because if he operates now the extractions will happen 10 days after the surgery and if he waits until later, the teeth will come out next week.
The MRI of my neck and throat has been scheduled for Wed. April 23, 11:30 AM at the Surrey memorial Hospital. This is good news because that's less than 2 weeks from now. Also, the Family Counselling Service called and left a message for me today. I'll call them tomorrow and arrange to see a counsellor. Things are beginning to happen.
I'll let you know what happens with Dr. Anderson asap.
Bye for now,
Lumpy
P.S.: If you need to contact me these are the numbers:
c/o Linda Leighton at 604-582-7337
c/o Brock Honey at 778-995-6765
This morning I saw Dr. Pamela Gardner at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic's Dental Office. A full surround ex ray of my teeth was taken and she discussed it with me. She is recommending that the top two back teeth (one on each side) be extracted before the radiation therapy begins. Each of these two teeth sits above a space where my two bottom 12 year old molars used to be.
After radiation therapy, blood flow through the jaw bone and surrounding area is greatly reduced. If either of these teeth need to be extracted sometime in the future, the wound caused by the extraction would not heal because of the lack of blood in the area. These extractions are now a preventative measure and I have agreed.
Dr. Gardner also went over the short and long term side affects that I can expect as a result of the radiation such as loss of my saliva glands and loss of taste (not always permanent). It will also be very important that I take good care of my teeth after the radiation as my tooth enamel will be affected and I will be prone to more cavities. She wants me to call her after my appointment tomorrow with Dr. Anderson (the surgeon) and advise her if the lump will be removed before or after the radiation because if he operates now the extractions will happen 10 days after the surgery and if he waits until later, the teeth will come out next week.
The MRI of my neck and throat has been scheduled for Wed. April 23, 11:30 AM at the Surrey memorial Hospital. This is good news because that's less than 2 weeks from now. Also, the Family Counselling Service called and left a message for me today. I'll call them tomorrow and arrange to see a counsellor. Things are beginning to happen.
I'll let you know what happens with Dr. Anderson asap.
Bye for now,
Lumpy
P.S.: If you need to contact me these are the numbers:
c/o Linda Leighton at 604-582-7337
c/o Brock Honey at 778-995-6765
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
First meeting with Dr. Leong
Good evening everyone,
Sorry to be so long in reporting on my meeting with Dr. Leong yesterday. Read on and you will understand why.
Now to yesterday. My appointment with Dr. Leong was absolutely one of the most dreadful experiences of my life. It was so good that Brock was with me. Dr. Leong is going to be my radiologist (Radiation Oncologist). We were at the hospital for 10:25 but we were left waiting until 11:45 then we met with a Medical Student, a very nice and personable fellow. Finally Dr. Leong came in and we went into an examination room. He tried to insert a scope up my nose to view the cancer under my tongue. The same proceedure Dr, Filatov did the first time I saw him in January. It was horrible, worse than horrible. Even though he froze my nose and throat, I went into shock and he could not even get the probe past my nasal passages and into my throat/mouth. Finally after much anguish on my part, fear, terror, anxiety, throwing up and general mayhem he gave up trying. Now he will schedule a MRI od my throat and neck area to see what he is dealing with.
He will also try to co-ordinate the MRI with the commencement of the Radiation Therapy as much as possible. I gather that it will take longer to schedule the MRI than it will to schedule the radiation. He has prescribed ATAVAN for me when I go for the MRI to sedate me and relieve my anxiety. Wonder why he didn't do that yesterday?
Tomorrow AM, April 10th, I have an appointment with the Dentistry Clinic at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic (FVCC). The bottom right hand side of my mouth where Dr. Vansickle pulled out my 12 year old molar last Wednesday is still very very sore. I cannot eat or even drink without taking pain pills first. I'm still swishing with Amosan and taking Ibruprfen and liquid Tylenol 3. Maybe the gum is still infected. I hope I'll find something out tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.
On Friday afternoon I see Dr. Anderson a surgeon. He will decide weather to remove the lump now before the radiation or after the lump has been shrunk from the radiation. Goes to show you the value of Dr. Filatov when he told me that there would be no surgery or Chemo. As for Chemo, Dr. Leong does not think I could stand up to the rigors of Chemo Therapy given my current state, so it is not planned for now.
I am expecting to receive a call from the FVCC internal Counselling service and I have agreed to having a personal councellor to help me through this difficult period.
I am feeling much better today and spent a lazy afternoon with son Brock enjoying the springtime grandeur of this area.
I'll keep you all up to date on an ongoing basis.
Bye for now,
Rick
Sorry to be so long in reporting on my meeting with Dr. Leong yesterday. Read on and you will understand why.
Now to yesterday. My appointment with Dr. Leong was absolutely one of the most dreadful experiences of my life. It was so good that Brock was with me. Dr. Leong is going to be my radiologist (Radiation Oncologist). We were at the hospital for 10:25 but we were left waiting until 11:45 then we met with a Medical Student, a very nice and personable fellow. Finally Dr. Leong came in and we went into an examination room. He tried to insert a scope up my nose to view the cancer under my tongue. The same proceedure Dr, Filatov did the first time I saw him in January. It was horrible, worse than horrible. Even though he froze my nose and throat, I went into shock and he could not even get the probe past my nasal passages and into my throat/mouth. Finally after much anguish on my part, fear, terror, anxiety, throwing up and general mayhem he gave up trying. Now he will schedule a MRI od my throat and neck area to see what he is dealing with.
He will also try to co-ordinate the MRI with the commencement of the Radiation Therapy as much as possible. I gather that it will take longer to schedule the MRI than it will to schedule the radiation. He has prescribed ATAVAN for me when I go for the MRI to sedate me and relieve my anxiety. Wonder why he didn't do that yesterday?
Tomorrow AM, April 10th, I have an appointment with the Dentistry Clinic at the Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic (FVCC). The bottom right hand side of my mouth where Dr. Vansickle pulled out my 12 year old molar last Wednesday is still very very sore. I cannot eat or even drink without taking pain pills first. I'm still swishing with Amosan and taking Ibruprfen and liquid Tylenol 3. Maybe the gum is still infected. I hope I'll find something out tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.
On Friday afternoon I see Dr. Anderson a surgeon. He will decide weather to remove the lump now before the radiation or after the lump has been shrunk from the radiation. Goes to show you the value of Dr. Filatov when he told me that there would be no surgery or Chemo. As for Chemo, Dr. Leong does not think I could stand up to the rigors of Chemo Therapy given my current state, so it is not planned for now.
I am expecting to receive a call from the FVCC internal Counselling service and I have agreed to having a personal councellor to help me through this difficult period.
I am feeling much better today and spent a lazy afternoon with son Brock enjoying the springtime grandeur of this area.
I'll keep you all up to date on an ongoing basis.
Bye for now,
Rick
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
I'm here
Good morning all,
It's 7:36 AM in Vancouver, B.C. I arrived here at my friend Linda Leighton's house yesterday at 5:15. It was a good drive down from P.G. although there was a major spring snow storm in and around Quesnel. I would say there was +/- 3 inches of wet slushy snow on the highway and driving conditions were treacherous to say the least. A good thing I had my snow tires removed and the summer tires put on last week. It was scarey.
Highway 97 south of Quesnel was closed due to and accident and I was forced to make a detour around the accident site. I stopped in Williams Lake and had a short visit with Franco & Colleen Listro. It was then on to Cache Creek for a rest break and a gas fill up, $1.25.9 per litre. I decided to drive the Highway 1 through the Fraser Canyon rather than the Coquihalla Highway. A good choice as there was very little truck traffic and no campers at this time of the year. I made the 800 km trip in just over 8 hours.
I'll meet Brock this morning at 9:00 and we'll go to my appointment with Dr. Leong at 10:25. I'll post more later.
Bye for now,
Rick
It's 7:36 AM in Vancouver, B.C. I arrived here at my friend Linda Leighton's house yesterday at 5:15. It was a good drive down from P.G. although there was a major spring snow storm in and around Quesnel. I would say there was +/- 3 inches of wet slushy snow on the highway and driving conditions were treacherous to say the least. A good thing I had my snow tires removed and the summer tires put on last week. It was scarey.
Highway 97 south of Quesnel was closed due to and accident and I was forced to make a detour around the accident site. I stopped in Williams Lake and had a short visit with Franco & Colleen Listro. It was then on to Cache Creek for a rest break and a gas fill up, $1.25.9 per litre. I decided to drive the Highway 1 through the Fraser Canyon rather than the Coquihalla Highway. A good choice as there was very little truck traffic and no campers at this time of the year. I made the 800 km trip in just over 8 hours.
I'll meet Brock this morning at 9:00 and we'll go to my appointment with Dr. Leong at 10:25. I'll post more later.
Bye for now,
Rick
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Youch, enough already
Hi everybody,
I had the back molar on the bottom right side of my mouth removed this morning. I had the choice, spend thousands of dollars and many appointments to replace the loss of bone in the root area or spend about $150 and have the tooth extracted. I had this painful infection in the gum area which was not going to get better.
I chose extraction. That was fun and will continue to be for the next few days. The freezing is still in so there is no pain for the moment and the bleeding has stopped. Its fluids only for me today. I've kept the tooth for posterity, it had a gold crown and with gold at a $1,000 an ounce the crown might be worth something, teehee.
The Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic called this morning and I was given another cold dose of reality. My visit to the Clinic next Tuesday is for consultation only. The booking department told me that I have several other appointments scheduled next week to see what's growing inside my mouth and neck but, there will be a delay before Radiation commences. Apparently, there is a waiting list for Radiation Therapy and Prince George is outside of the catchment area for the Fraser Valley Centre . Oh how I love the joys of waiting.
I will plan for a 6 to 8 week trip and keep my fingers crossed that the waiting time is only a matter of weeks and not months.
Let you know what happens next Tuesday.
Bye for now,
Toothless, in Prince George.
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