Actually, a really, really quiet week. Adrienne and Daniel are at their dad's house in Santa Barbara but they will be home around dinner time on Thursday. They are having a good time but there isn't a whole lot to do down there. Adrienne says she has a lot of homework, mostly reading, that she hasn't gotten to but hopes to work the next few days.
Adrienne has been training with the Santa Barbara TNT team. Her dad walked with her for 2.25 hours on Saturday and she's off to their track training tonight. She says she'll miss the pilates since they don't do them there. We're very lucky to have such a great group of coaches up here that focus on core strengthening. Adrienne's hips continue to hurt even though her xray last week didn't show any problem. She might need an MRI afterall, but we'd prefer to wait for awhile.
Curt had his skin cancer removed from his nose and looks like he was in a bad car accident. His mom is having her other hip replaced in a couple of weeks. I will sure be glad when everyone is healthy again.
Wednesday, April 13, 2005
Thursday, April 07, 2005
No Hives!
I hope I'm not celebrating too soon, but Adrienne hasn't gotten any hives from her chemo on Monday. She took half the premeds before the infusion and no meds since, and all is well. Except for being tired, she's doing great. She has no hospital appointments next week so she and Daniel will visit their dad while they are off school for spring break. The next chemo is scheduled for April 18.
Curt went to the dermatologist today over some odd looking "things" on his nose. Turns out he has skin cancer in two locations and a number of precancerous growths, which will all be removed next week. He also has inguinal hernias but we'll wait to see if the hernias repair themselves since he has no pain. That's what happens when you marry an old guy.
Curt went to the dermatologist today over some odd looking "things" on his nose. Turns out he has skin cancer in two locations and a number of precancerous growths, which will all be removed next week. He also has inguinal hernias but we'll wait to see if the hernias repair themselves since he has no pain. That's what happens when you marry an old guy.
Monday, April 04, 2005
Good Report from the Doc
Thankfully, Adrienne's scans from last week look really good. The PET was negative. The CT shows some very tiny lymph nodes (less than 5 mm) with no uptake. Uptake indicates active disease, and she shows none. The plan right now is to continue chemo for another two months and then watch and wait. If Adrienne relapses more than a year out, we can even try this chemo again. There are several promising treatments on the horizon but we will wait until they are more proven and the side effects are known, particularly in young people.
Claremont McKenna College it is!!! After all the hard work and nervous waiting, Adrienne has decided that CMC is her choice. With the McKenna Achievement Scholarship and her National Merit Scholarship, they've made the offer hard to refuse. Adrienne loved it during her visit there and felt that she would be happy there. We're all so excited for her.
Daniel has been sick with a cold but is feeling better this afternoon. Curt seems to be over his jetlag, enjoying the baking I did while he was away. Adrienne and Daniel are off to visit their dad in Santa Barbara on Friday, leaving a quiet house. Hmmm.
Claremont McKenna College it is!!! After all the hard work and nervous waiting, Adrienne has decided that CMC is her choice. With the McKenna Achievement Scholarship and her National Merit Scholarship, they've made the offer hard to refuse. Adrienne loved it during her visit there and felt that she would be happy there. We're all so excited for her.
Daniel has been sick with a cold but is feeling better this afternoon. Curt seems to be over his jetlag, enjoying the baking I did while he was away. Adrienne and Daniel are off to visit their dad in Santa Barbara on Friday, leaving a quiet house. Hmmm.
Sunday, April 03, 2005
Claremont McKenna
Sometimes, all the signs point in one direction and it seems to be Claremont McKenna. Adrienne received her acceptance on Friday along with notification that she has been awarded the McKenna Achievement Scholarship. Even with that scholarship and the National Merit scholarship, a private school education is very expensive so we are scrambling to find the funds. Adrienne has worked so hard and has been through so much to achieve this and we all want her to have the best. We are keeping our fingers crossed that her scans last week show that she is in remission so she can go away to school. We'll know tomorrow.
I thought you might like to read Adrienne's main college essay written to the prompt: "Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you."
“We wanted you to get some exercise. We didn’t mean you should train for a marathon!” So said my nurse practitioner when I told her I had signed up with Team In Training to walk the Honolulu marathon. I’ve always been motivated to do the best I can at everything I take on, and Team In Training gave me the perfect opportunity to stay active while supporting a cause about which I’m passionate. I’ve had two bone marrow transplants for Hodgkin’s Disease during high school. My experience has made me think about my life in a way I never thought about before, and I’m trying to improve other patients’ lives.
My involvement with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, especially the research I help fund, has a direct impact on people’s lives. The fundraising is critical because people are still dying from blood-related cancers. My own grandfather suffered a painful death at the age of sixty-six to Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and some of my young friends died because the treatments currently in use didn’t stop their diseases from growing. The treatments that exist today often cure the cancer but kill people later. I must endure long-term effects from my own cancer treatment, and I know that the funds I raise and resulting research will help others avoid what I’ve been through.
I know what it’s like to need help and not get it. After lunch at school recently, a mentally disabled girl was stranded on some stairs in the stampede of students rushing to their classes. Instead of ignoring her like the others did, I stopped and helped her up. A friend who was with me said she admired me and confessed that she would not have stopped if I hadn’t. I’ve been in that situation, and I appreciated it when someone helped me.
I understand how it feels to have people stare because you look different, or to shy away because they think they might catch something. My mom often tells the story, “Days after Adrienne’s first transplant, we were looking at the new babies through a window to the nursery. Adrienne was wearing her mask to protect her from infection. A young mother looked at her in horror and rushed away, covering her baby because she thought he might catch something when the actual purpose of the mask was to protect Adrienne.” Because of instances like this one, I always stop to think about other people’s feelings. I now understand and have compassion for people and the challenges they face.
Cancer doesn’t define me as a person but it has certainly affected my view of the world, the role I’ve chosen to help others, and the way I interact with others. I’m grateful that I’m healthy and don’t need help anymore. Now I can help others in a way I could not have foreseen.
I thought you might like to read Adrienne's main college essay written to the prompt: "Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you."
“We wanted you to get some exercise. We didn’t mean you should train for a marathon!” So said my nurse practitioner when I told her I had signed up with Team In Training to walk the Honolulu marathon. I’ve always been motivated to do the best I can at everything I take on, and Team In Training gave me the perfect opportunity to stay active while supporting a cause about which I’m passionate. I’ve had two bone marrow transplants for Hodgkin’s Disease during high school. My experience has made me think about my life in a way I never thought about before, and I’m trying to improve other patients’ lives.
My involvement with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, especially the research I help fund, has a direct impact on people’s lives. The fundraising is critical because people are still dying from blood-related cancers. My own grandfather suffered a painful death at the age of sixty-six to Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and some of my young friends died because the treatments currently in use didn’t stop their diseases from growing. The treatments that exist today often cure the cancer but kill people later. I must endure long-term effects from my own cancer treatment, and I know that the funds I raise and resulting research will help others avoid what I’ve been through.
I know what it’s like to need help and not get it. After lunch at school recently, a mentally disabled girl was stranded on some stairs in the stampede of students rushing to their classes. Instead of ignoring her like the others did, I stopped and helped her up. A friend who was with me said she admired me and confessed that she would not have stopped if I hadn’t. I’ve been in that situation, and I appreciated it when someone helped me.
I understand how it feels to have people stare because you look different, or to shy away because they think they might catch something. My mom often tells the story, “Days after Adrienne’s first transplant, we were looking at the new babies through a window to the nursery. Adrienne was wearing her mask to protect her from infection. A young mother looked at her in horror and rushed away, covering her baby because she thought he might catch something when the actual purpose of the mask was to protect Adrienne.” Because of instances like this one, I always stop to think about other people’s feelings. I now understand and have compassion for people and the challenges they face.
Cancer doesn’t define me as a person but it has certainly affected my view of the world, the role I’ve chosen to help others, and the way I interact with others. I’m grateful that I’m healthy and don’t need help anymore. Now I can help others in a way I could not have foreseen.
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