I've been trying to figure out the best answer to this common, reflexive question, because the answer for the last week or so has been "Not so good" and "please don't ask". Last week we met with the team to discuss the PET/CT and next steps, like how do we make it to the trial …
With Eli's continued pain and not so mysterious neck lump, came more visits to the doctor than I like. Eli's eagerness to go meet with doctors, get tests done, and take pain meds was evidence of the discomfort being caused by whatever is inside his body. Monday, we met with the radiation oncologist, since he …
When things are going well, it's easy to pretend that it will stay that way indefinitely. Life starts to feel more normal. For example, Eli begged me to get him the parts to build one of his inventions. A few pulleys, paracord, and hooks later, he had converted the swingset into a device designed to …
How do you find "measurable disease" when there isn't any? I had postponed writing this post, not trusting my interpretation of Eli's latest scans. There's pretty much always something on his scans that raise questions about whether something indicates the cancer is being active or not. The long and short of it is: There is …
10:03 PM We just finished cycle 6 of the chemo protocol last week. Each cycle is 3 weeks. Unfortunately, he has a fever. Our family has been going through a virus of some sort (Covid test came back negative), but regardless, Eli caught it just when I thought we were out of the woods. He …
The head/neck MRI showed the tumor behind/ below Eli's eye is stable. This is good news. Our team discussed the findings and decided on two more cycles (6 weeks) of chemo, then we'll do more scans. Basically, as long as what we're doing is working, we'll keep doing, unless other toxicities appear. Thursday, we were …
Last week Eli had the week off of chemo and all other medical stuff, so I decided to take care of my own medical housekeeping. I didn't set out to compete with Eli for number of medical appointments in a week, but it was almost a tie. Tuesday: About 2 1/2 years ago I had …
...and it's cancer!" -Elijah Augustine Today we celebrated Peter's birthday. His was my shortest labor and lasted about 45 minutes. It was the only time my water broke at the beginning of labor, but I usually give birth about 45 minutes after my water breaks, so that part was normal. It may be Peter's birthday, …
I was very anxious about Eli's PET/CT and was sure the disease had spread beyond the spot by his eye. He had the PET/CT on Tuesday, but results weren't scheduled to be read until Wednesday. I was in a dark place waiting for the results and I was impatient, refreshing the health app to see …
It's interesting to interact with someone who knows more than you. Eli's doctors are smart and have much more experience than I when it comes to fighting this cancer. I've appreciated their expertise and learning from them. I had been increasingly concerned by the various symptoms and side effects that have popped up the last …
Eli The Boss 