I had a second procedure to draw to remove additional fluid from my body yesterday. This was to see how much fluid collected over a 48 hr. period and reassess the concentration of the triglycerides in the fluid. When they drew the 4.2 Ltrs off on Monday, my triglyceride level was over 3,400 - yesterday the triglyceride level dropped to 187 - which is HUGE!!!! This shows what they are doing is working. Dr. Chang was very pleased with the results and said that it may not drop much lower (from my consultation this morning). They are going to keep me on a no food diet for a few weeks to allow the area that is leaking to heal and hopefully have me back on a specific limited diet by Thanksgiving.
God is Great and we know that. He is winning this battle. It has been awesome to see the little "God moments" through this pas week. May we never take anything for granted and know that we have a Father with an army of angels going to battle for us everyday.
Please continue to pray for complete healing from lymphatic leak and Cancer. Pray for Meghan and Adeline for peace and strength. And, pray for those who don't have a support group like this. ALL the notes, messages, visits and well wishes have been such a support and inspiration to me...THANK YOU
We serve an wonderful and glorious Heavenly Father...
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Unwanted Complication and Revisit to the Hospital
Sunday night Meghan and I decided to catch a last second date at the Vanderbilt Emergency Room. It was not what we wanted, but we knew something needed to happen.
For that last two weeks, I have been battling what we thought was a post-op infection. The doctors was dosing me with some heavy antibiotics and it seemed to be working. The area that showed as an infection was reduced to approximately 1/2 in diameter and was showing continued signs of improvement. The weird thing about it was that I continued to feel bad and my appetite continued to decrease - to the point where I at the equivalent of a single slice of a medium pizza and was completely full, which is not me esp. with pizza.
We talked with my physician prior to going to the hospital, and he stated that we are going to bring in the "big boy antibiotics" (Brent term) to wipe the infection out. So, we arrive at the hospital around 7.45 for our fun-filled adventure....
The ER was notified prior to our arrival and they had us through triage and in a room within 20 min. of arriving, which was a blessing (very thankful for a very proactive urological oncology team). We were admitted and finally got to our room around 1.30 Monday morning. Dr. Chang arrived first thing Monday morning with some surprising news...what we thought was an infection is actually a chylous ascites, or a lymphatic leak. One of the areas where a lymph node was removed is leaking lymphatic fluid. The chances of this happening is 1:20,000, which is very rare. Dr. Chang has never had this happen to him in all of his years of practice.
So, to rid my body of this leakage, we have to slow the production of the lymphatic fluid so the area that is leaking can scar over an stop on its own. This could take anywhere from 2 weeks to several months. The main treatment of this is to stop eating all solid foods. There is a direct correlation to the food we eat and the amount of chyle that is created in the lymphatic system. I have been placed on TPN, which is direct IV nutrition. I can have a few clear liquids, but nothing more. Monday, they removed approx. 11 lbs of lymphatic fluid off my body and today. I am a scheduled to have more fluid removed tomorrow
Physically, I feel better than I have since surgery - Mentally, I feel great - Spiritually, I feel refreshed and at peace
A friend of mine, Charles Spencer (Chuck), and I were talking about this and feel there is a lot of spiritual warfare going on with this current battle. I know that God is in control of this and I know that He is going to battle for us. We are going to defeat this and He is going to be victorious in the expansion of His Kingdom.
Thank you for the continued prayers, visits, support, meals and thoughts....
For that last two weeks, I have been battling what we thought was a post-op infection. The doctors was dosing me with some heavy antibiotics and it seemed to be working. The area that showed as an infection was reduced to approximately 1/2 in diameter and was showing continued signs of improvement. The weird thing about it was that I continued to feel bad and my appetite continued to decrease - to the point where I at the equivalent of a single slice of a medium pizza and was completely full, which is not me esp. with pizza.
We talked with my physician prior to going to the hospital, and he stated that we are going to bring in the "big boy antibiotics" (Brent term) to wipe the infection out. So, we arrive at the hospital around 7.45 for our fun-filled adventure....
The ER was notified prior to our arrival and they had us through triage and in a room within 20 min. of arriving, which was a blessing (very thankful for a very proactive urological oncology team). We were admitted and finally got to our room around 1.30 Monday morning. Dr. Chang arrived first thing Monday morning with some surprising news...what we thought was an infection is actually a chylous ascites, or a lymphatic leak. One of the areas where a lymph node was removed is leaking lymphatic fluid. The chances of this happening is 1:20,000, which is very rare. Dr. Chang has never had this happen to him in all of his years of practice.
So, to rid my body of this leakage, we have to slow the production of the lymphatic fluid so the area that is leaking can scar over an stop on its own. This could take anywhere from 2 weeks to several months. The main treatment of this is to stop eating all solid foods. There is a direct correlation to the food we eat and the amount of chyle that is created in the lymphatic system. I have been placed on TPN, which is direct IV nutrition. I can have a few clear liquids, but nothing more. Monday, they removed approx. 11 lbs of lymphatic fluid off my body and today. I am a scheduled to have more fluid removed tomorrow
Physically, I feel better than I have since surgery - Mentally, I feel great - Spiritually, I feel refreshed and at peace
A friend of mine, Charles Spencer (Chuck), and I were talking about this and feel there is a lot of spiritual warfare going on with this current battle. I know that God is in control of this and I know that He is going to battle for us. We are going to defeat this and He is going to be victorious in the expansion of His Kingdom.
Thank you for the continued prayers, visits, support, meals and thoughts....
First Hurdle is cleared...
Now an update on me, final pathology and the current situation:
First I want to say another thank you to ALL of the cards, visits, well-wishes, meals, and "Brent" babysitter. God has truly blessed us with an AMAZING support network through all facets of our lives....
For the last two weeks, I have been recovering at home from my initial surgery. The surgery was successful. They ended up removing more lymph nodes than we initially planned. The final blood work came back as I was going back for surgery, with a new elevated level in my tumor markers. Dr. Chang talked with Meghan and let her know about the elevated marker. There was a 90% chance that the new tumor was in my lymph nodes, which ended up being the case. They expanded the number of nodes they were going to inspect and they found a measurable 10mm tumor in my lymph nodes, which was removed along with the 7 that surrounded it. Dr. Chang stated after the surgery that who ever was guiding our decisions was leading us down the right path. Praise be to God for that...Thank you again for all your guidance and prayers!!!
I was in the hospital until the following Monday. Thank you to those who came during my stay. It's always good to see smiling faces. Recovery at home has had it's peaks and valleys with me realizing that I need to tone it back more often than not - I have often pushed myself too hard.
Pathology - Dr. Chang called and informed us on the final pathology. They found a total of 5 tumors in my lymph nodes that were measurable. The types of tumors showed that surgery was inevitable further solidifying that God has truly guided us down the right path.
Monday, we have our Post-operation appointment with Dr. Chang. We will start the discussions on the next steps in this battle. The two options are observation or two rounds of very intense chemo-therapy.
My heart is heavy with the pathology results and the road ahead, but I know that God is in control of this and HE will continue to guide us and bless us.
My prayer is that we continue to have clear answers presented to us. Pray for Meghan and the beautiful baby in her belly and my sweet little Adeline, who has been so sweet during this time. Pray for complete healing....To God be the glory!!!! We serve an amazing God who is always there!
Thank you again, Brent, Meghan, and Adeline
First I want to say another thank you to ALL of the cards, visits, well-wishes, meals, and "Brent" babysitter. God has truly blessed us with an AMAZING support network through all facets of our lives....
For the last two weeks, I have been recovering at home from my initial surgery. The surgery was successful. They ended up removing more lymph nodes than we initially planned. The final blood work came back as I was going back for surgery, with a new elevated level in my tumor markers. Dr. Chang talked with Meghan and let her know about the elevated marker. There was a 90% chance that the new tumor was in my lymph nodes, which ended up being the case. They expanded the number of nodes they were going to inspect and they found a measurable 10mm tumor in my lymph nodes, which was removed along with the 7 that surrounded it. Dr. Chang stated after the surgery that who ever was guiding our decisions was leading us down the right path. Praise be to God for that...Thank you again for all your guidance and prayers!!!
I was in the hospital until the following Monday. Thank you to those who came during my stay. It's always good to see smiling faces. Recovery at home has had it's peaks and valleys with me realizing that I need to tone it back more often than not - I have often pushed myself too hard.
Pathology - Dr. Chang called and informed us on the final pathology. They found a total of 5 tumors in my lymph nodes that were measurable. The types of tumors showed that surgery was inevitable further solidifying that God has truly guided us down the right path.
Monday, we have our Post-operation appointment with Dr. Chang. We will start the discussions on the next steps in this battle. The two options are observation or two rounds of very intense chemo-therapy.
My heart is heavy with the pathology results and the road ahead, but I know that God is in control of this and HE will continue to guide us and bless us.
My prayer is that we continue to have clear answers presented to us. Pray for Meghan and the beautiful baby in her belly and my sweet little Adeline, who has been so sweet during this time. Pray for complete healing....To God be the glory!!!! We serve an amazing God who is always there!
Thank you again, Brent, Meghan, and Adeline
Confirmation and Vanderbilt Initial Consultation and Next Steps
It is confirmed that I have testicular cancer - WOW - I am thinking to myself - what is next - Meghan and I were just starting to exhale from a roller-coaster ride over the last year and BAM we are hit with this...
Okay God - what's brewing now...
Within a week of my surgery, Meghan and I were at Vanderbilt to discuss options - on the initial pathology, it did not show that the tumor had escaped and we were under the impression that everything was contained within the initial tumor site. But, nothing could be confirmed until the final pathology report came back....so we are sitting on pins and needles waiting to here.
While we waited anxiously for the results, Dr. Marshall was able to schedule a time for us to get established with the physician group at Vandy - the group that would take care of me from here on out. Within 1.5 weeks of my official diagnosis - I was meeting with a urological oncologist and an oncologist for treatment options to fight this nasty disease called Cancer...Meghan's boss and the OB oncologist had also contacted them as well. So - I am introduced to Dr. Chang and Dr. Derleth and I must say that we were quite impressed.
We received a crash course in Testicular Cancer and the treatment options - needless to say our heads were spinning at the end of the day. We were waiting on the final pathology to return and they stated that we would not do anything until that came back. Since initial my surgery was performed at Maury Regional - they sent it off for a second opinion - which happened to be at Vanderbilt (that is a good thing). This way the doctors will have access to the initial and final pathology and the same team will be reviewing my pathology results going forward - the down side is that it is going to take a little longer to get the results back....
After our consultation and we reviewed the treatment options - we sat and waited...
During the wait time - Meghan and I contemplated what option was best for us.....at the beginning, we were both leaning towards observation (see details below) over surgery... We both fervently prayed about it and had several discussions - then one day Meghan did an about face - she said that we should do the surgery and get it over with.... another God moment....I was shocked to hear her do an about face and now we had something new - we sought some wise counsel on this and cannot say how much we appreciated the thoughts and opinions that we received.
I really believe Meghan could have been a salesman as well - she convinced me to schedule the surgery and get it on the books since it was going to take "6-8 weeks" to get the surgery scheduled - or so we thought....on October 3rd, we decided to schedule the surgery with the understanding that we would have several weeks to vet it out see what happened...well - we did not have long to pray and contemplate things. On the following Thursday (10/10) we received a call from Dr. Changs office asking for us to call - I did not get to speak with his nurse until Monday the 14th (our anniversary)...she informs me that Dr. Chang can do my surgery on the 16th/17th -the only thing would be completing the necessary blood-work and pre-op scans....I think to myself - okay God, this is how you are answering my prayers...let's go...THE FIGHT IS ON!!!
Finally the final pathology came back and here is my note from Facebook......
The final pathology came back and the cancer cells have spread into my lymph node vascular system, which means it was not contained within the tumor. It is on a microscopic level, which means we are at a cross-roads.
Two options:
1. We go into observation mode with the understanding that there is a 40% chance the cancer will reoccur within the next two years and I have to go straight to a very intense chemo program for 9 weeks - re-occurrence dropping to approx. 7%.
2. We have a second surgery and remove the lymph nodes on the left side of my torso. If we go the route of surgery, it is a 6 week recovery. after the pathologist reviews the lymph nodes removed during surgery - decision time - if there are not cancer cells - the re-occurrence rate drops to less than 5% - if cancer cells are present - we go through 6 weeks of the same intense chemo treatment with the re-occurrence dropping to 10%.
Right now we have surgery scheduled for 11.5 - with a second CT scan and chest x-ray on 10.31
God is at work here and I understand what HE means now with "the peace that passes all understanding." Prayers are greatly appreciated during this time. We ask that God continue to provide clear answers to the decisions coming down the road.
Okay God - what's brewing now...
Within a week of my surgery, Meghan and I were at Vanderbilt to discuss options - on the initial pathology, it did not show that the tumor had escaped and we were under the impression that everything was contained within the initial tumor site. But, nothing could be confirmed until the final pathology report came back....so we are sitting on pins and needles waiting to here.
While we waited anxiously for the results, Dr. Marshall was able to schedule a time for us to get established with the physician group at Vandy - the group that would take care of me from here on out. Within 1.5 weeks of my official diagnosis - I was meeting with a urological oncologist and an oncologist for treatment options to fight this nasty disease called Cancer...Meghan's boss and the OB oncologist had also contacted them as well. So - I am introduced to Dr. Chang and Dr. Derleth and I must say that we were quite impressed.
We received a crash course in Testicular Cancer and the treatment options - needless to say our heads were spinning at the end of the day. We were waiting on the final pathology to return and they stated that we would not do anything until that came back. Since initial my surgery was performed at Maury Regional - they sent it off for a second opinion - which happened to be at Vanderbilt (that is a good thing). This way the doctors will have access to the initial and final pathology and the same team will be reviewing my pathology results going forward - the down side is that it is going to take a little longer to get the results back....
After our consultation and we reviewed the treatment options - we sat and waited...
During the wait time - Meghan and I contemplated what option was best for us.....at the beginning, we were both leaning towards observation (see details below) over surgery... We both fervently prayed about it and had several discussions - then one day Meghan did an about face - she said that we should do the surgery and get it over with.... another God moment....I was shocked to hear her do an about face and now we had something new - we sought some wise counsel on this and cannot say how much we appreciated the thoughts and opinions that we received.
I really believe Meghan could have been a salesman as well - she convinced me to schedule the surgery and get it on the books since it was going to take "6-8 weeks" to get the surgery scheduled - or so we thought....on October 3rd, we decided to schedule the surgery with the understanding that we would have several weeks to vet it out see what happened...well - we did not have long to pray and contemplate things. On the following Thursday (10/10) we received a call from Dr. Changs office asking for us to call - I did not get to speak with his nurse until Monday the 14th (our anniversary)...she informs me that Dr. Chang can do my surgery on the 16th/17th -the only thing would be completing the necessary blood-work and pre-op scans....I think to myself - okay God, this is how you are answering my prayers...let's go...THE FIGHT IS ON!!!
Finally the final pathology came back and here is my note from Facebook......
The final pathology came back and the cancer cells have spread into my lymph node vascular system, which means it was not contained within the tumor. It is on a microscopic level, which means we are at a cross-roads.
Two options:
1. We go into observation mode with the understanding that there is a 40% chance the cancer will reoccur within the next two years and I have to go straight to a very intense chemo program for 9 weeks - re-occurrence dropping to approx. 7%.
2. We have a second surgery and remove the lymph nodes on the left side of my torso. If we go the route of surgery, it is a 6 week recovery. after the pathologist reviews the lymph nodes removed during surgery - decision time - if there are not cancer cells - the re-occurrence rate drops to less than 5% - if cancer cells are present - we go through 6 weeks of the same intense chemo treatment with the re-occurrence dropping to 10%.
Right now we have surgery scheduled for 11.5 - with a second CT scan and chest x-ray on 10.31
God is at work here and I understand what HE means now with "the peace that passes all understanding." Prayers are greatly appreciated during this time. We ask that God continue to provide clear answers to the decisions coming down the road.
Cancer is diagnosed
I want to use this blog to chronicle what I have gone through as a Christian in my daily walk with God and look back to see how he has been there with my family and me through our journey. The first few notes are going to be a "catch-up" session and then as we progress through 2014 the real-life events will be noted through here.
2013 has been a year to remember. I started this year unemployed and stuck at home meeting dead end after dead end. I could not find a job and it was pretty taxing. See, my previous employer was sold to a large corporation in New York one week after my wife and I closed on our house in Franklin - needless to say, we were excited with the fact that our commute was reduced drastically and in the same breath - we were loosing a lot of our friendships that were developed through our 7 year stent in Cookeville. Little did we know that God was already working and preparing for the end of year events that were to come. With my previous company, I had to travel a lot and missed out on a lot of events with my little girl who was quickly growing up.....So, my analytic self looked at my "time-off" as a time to reconnect with my little girl, which I was okay with....But, God was preparing us for something even greater.......
I looked for months and months for the right job, but nothing ever seemed to completely connect - there was always something missing from the job. When I started my search, the theme that kept resonating was "I want to be able to truly make a difference in someones life" - now how was I going to do that. Towards the end of April, I received a call from an old friend of mine that I had worked with several years ago. They were hiring a new sales rep and needed someone fairly quick - well - I needed a job and needed one fairly quick - so within a week of my initial conversation, I was hired at Aegis Health Group as the VP-Bus. Dev. for the NorthEast. Our company encompassed everything that I was looking for - a smaller, privately held company that wants to grow, where I can make in a difference in our growth, and a company where I CAN make a difference in someones life. Here goes another God moment of - "I heard your prayer, but you were not ready - I am preparing you for something greater." I obviously did not know it at the time, but (once again) God was right. He was preparing me for something greater. Now I am employed and loving life - work is great, I am learning our products, Meghan and I are starting to get back on our feet and enjoy our new home and it's surroundings.
Now we fast forward to September - Meghan and I get back from our yearly trip to Destin with the family - which was AMAZING! The night of September 4th, I notice that a spot that we started to monitor had changed in shape and feel...I asked her to check it - which was the right and wrong thing to do. Meghan, with her medical knowledge, felt this spot and she knew immediately what it was - I on the other hand did not. She was very adamant that I have it checked the next day. So reluctantly, I called my doctor (Dr. Ball) at the end of the day on Thursday and explained what it felt like and he immediately referred me to a urologist friend of our (Dr. Marshall). I talked with "my" urologist and was scheduled for an 8AM visit the following Monday morning. I let my family know that I have an appointment, but still believe that at this time it is nothing. That morning I arrive have my exam, with subsequent blood work and an ultrasound - by 10:30 Monday morning - I had surgery scheduled to remove a tumor from my body - I am sitting there thinking - WHAT.......WHAT - I have a WHAT and I have to have surgery.....I AM IN COMPLETE DISBELIEF!!!! I HAVE CANCER.
So, Friday the 13th (funny huh) - I have surgery to remove the tumor....here is my entry from facebook....
I had surgery on Friday to remove a tumor from by body. The tumor markers revealed that it was more than likely cancer (the doctor was 90% positive it was). We had a follow-up yesterday at 1PM - with a CT scan to follow - the lab expedited the biopsy of the tumor to provide results and it came back as the "more aggressive" or "worse" type of cancer. Knowing this - we started discussions on a second surgery/chemo and the type of treatment. We had the CT scan at 3.20 - at 4.50 the scan was read and Dr. Marshall called back with results that were nothing short of a miracle....The cancer was completely contained and did not spread to any of my lymph nodes!!!! Dr. Marshall was completely surprised by this...the only explanation is answered prayers!!!! God is amazing and we know that he hears our prayers and request. I am still scheduled to see an oncologist at Vanderbilt this week to discuss treatment options. The great thing is this is preventative and not required. This was a HUGE hurdle to cross, and we are very happy with the results (understanding that we are not out of the woods yet). There is still a long road ahead and may still have to face treatment down the road, but this was the best diagnosis we could receive with the type of tumor that was removed.
Please continue to pray for healing and nothing was overlooked. Pray for strength for Meghan and Adeline.
God is amazing and I am grateful that he is my Great Physician!!! Praise be to God!!!!!
2013 has been a year to remember. I started this year unemployed and stuck at home meeting dead end after dead end. I could not find a job and it was pretty taxing. See, my previous employer was sold to a large corporation in New York one week after my wife and I closed on our house in Franklin - needless to say, we were excited with the fact that our commute was reduced drastically and in the same breath - we were loosing a lot of our friendships that were developed through our 7 year stent in Cookeville. Little did we know that God was already working and preparing for the end of year events that were to come. With my previous company, I had to travel a lot and missed out on a lot of events with my little girl who was quickly growing up.....So, my analytic self looked at my "time-off" as a time to reconnect with my little girl, which I was okay with....But, God was preparing us for something even greater.......
I looked for months and months for the right job, but nothing ever seemed to completely connect - there was always something missing from the job. When I started my search, the theme that kept resonating was "I want to be able to truly make a difference in someones life" - now how was I going to do that. Towards the end of April, I received a call from an old friend of mine that I had worked with several years ago. They were hiring a new sales rep and needed someone fairly quick - well - I needed a job and needed one fairly quick - so within a week of my initial conversation, I was hired at Aegis Health Group as the VP-Bus. Dev. for the NorthEast. Our company encompassed everything that I was looking for - a smaller, privately held company that wants to grow, where I can make in a difference in our growth, and a company where I CAN make a difference in someones life. Here goes another God moment of - "I heard your prayer, but you were not ready - I am preparing you for something greater." I obviously did not know it at the time, but (once again) God was right. He was preparing me for something greater. Now I am employed and loving life - work is great, I am learning our products, Meghan and I are starting to get back on our feet and enjoy our new home and it's surroundings.
Now we fast forward to September - Meghan and I get back from our yearly trip to Destin with the family - which was AMAZING! The night of September 4th, I notice that a spot that we started to monitor had changed in shape and feel...I asked her to check it - which was the right and wrong thing to do. Meghan, with her medical knowledge, felt this spot and she knew immediately what it was - I on the other hand did not. She was very adamant that I have it checked the next day. So reluctantly, I called my doctor (Dr. Ball) at the end of the day on Thursday and explained what it felt like and he immediately referred me to a urologist friend of our (Dr. Marshall). I talked with "my" urologist and was scheduled for an 8AM visit the following Monday morning. I let my family know that I have an appointment, but still believe that at this time it is nothing. That morning I arrive have my exam, with subsequent blood work and an ultrasound - by 10:30 Monday morning - I had surgery scheduled to remove a tumor from my body - I am sitting there thinking - WHAT.......WHAT - I have a WHAT and I have to have surgery.....I AM IN COMPLETE DISBELIEF!!!! I HAVE CANCER.
So, Friday the 13th (funny huh) - I have surgery to remove the tumor....here is my entry from facebook....
I had surgery on Friday to remove a tumor from by body. The tumor markers revealed that it was more than likely cancer (the doctor was 90% positive it was). We had a follow-up yesterday at 1PM - with a CT scan to follow - the lab expedited the biopsy of the tumor to provide results and it came back as the "more aggressive" or "worse" type of cancer. Knowing this - we started discussions on a second surgery/chemo and the type of treatment. We had the CT scan at 3.20 - at 4.50 the scan was read and Dr. Marshall called back with results that were nothing short of a miracle....The cancer was completely contained and did not spread to any of my lymph nodes!!!! Dr. Marshall was completely surprised by this...the only explanation is answered prayers!!!! God is amazing and we know that he hears our prayers and request. I am still scheduled to see an oncologist at Vanderbilt this week to discuss treatment options. The great thing is this is preventative and not required. This was a HUGE hurdle to cross, and we are very happy with the results (understanding that we are not out of the woods yet). There is still a long road ahead and may still have to face treatment down the road, but this was the best diagnosis we could receive with the type of tumor that was removed.
Please continue to pray for healing and nothing was overlooked. Pray for strength for Meghan and Adeline.
God is amazing and I am grateful that he is my Great Physician!!! Praise be to God!!!!!
Monday, February 12, 2007
First Time
Here we are. The Hendrickson's...this is the first time that we have tried this...more is to come...
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