Hey, all! Sorry to not update for so long. There has not been a lot to tell up until now. I saw the Doc on Monday and he told me my marker is rising again. It has gone from 56 to 80. So this regimen he has had me on is failing and we have to move to a new regimen ASAP.
Dr. Huh wants the new regimen to be a clinical trial. The problem with that is the medicine for the trial will cost me out of pocket because it is a pharmacy item. Anytime I get my medicine from the pharmacy I have to treat it as any other item and pay a co-pay amount every time I refill for the next treatment. Unfortunately cancer medicine from the pharmacy costs thousands of dollars and it sends my co-pay into the hundreds of dollars. So, Dr. Huh's staff is trying to find a way to fund the prescriptions for me. This is where the prayer request comes. Pray that we can find funding for my cancer medicine so I can participate in this clininal trial.
I am doing okay. Dr. Huh says that the cancer is still stable even though the marker has gone up again. Currently I'm still on the same regimen until we find out if the clinical trial will work out or not. One of the cancer medicines has caused my blood pressure to rise into dangerous territory so he took that medicine out of the regimen. My chemo pills are on hold until I get cleared for funding for those as well. Maybe God is trying to tell us something about this regimen ... GET OFF OF IT. IT'S NOT WORKING!!!! Of course I could be wrong. I am neither an Oncologist or God so it is hard for me to form an accurate oppinion.
As you can see there are many things to pray about concerning my cancer and treatments. In the mean time I do feel okay and the sickness is not a problem with this regimen so that's a blessing. My biggest problem is fatigue and I did pick up someone's cold over Memorial day weekend. Thanks to whoever you are that shared the germs. May God bless your armpits with the fleas of a thousand camels.
Thanks to all of you who pray so faithfully. You are the difference makers in this battle. God bless you all and I'll keep you posted on the clinical trial medicine.
In His care,
Warren and family.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
And so we carry on ...
An update as promised. I met with Dr. Huh yesterday. My weight is fine, blood counts look good as well as all other vitals. The scan showed no change, which was good news. Anytime I find that the treatments have stopped working I wonder if the cancer has had enough time to grow. This time we cought it in time to keep it from growing and I can actually take a week off before I start the next regimen.
Throughout my 2 years of treatment I have either been on a regimen that stops the cancer from growing or one that shrinks the cancer. Starting Monday (5/5) I will start a regimen that incorporates both concepts. The first treatment will be Erbitux (a target medicine that shrinks the tumors) and Avastin (a target medicine that keeps tumors from growning) and Xeloda (a chemotherapy that aids both). Xeloda is a chemo pill that I administer myself at home. The week after that I will only do the Erbitux and Xeloda and it will rotate like that throughout the regimen. I've never been on this regimen before so I don't know what it will do to me. I've been on each of these medicines at one time or another, but never all at the same time. It will be interesting.
I am back to work now. The MetLife disability insurance informed us (after 7 weeks of paper work and no income) that we don't qualify for the program because I have a pre-existing condition that is more than 3 months old. If it had only been 3 months that my cancer had existed then I could qualify. I guess disability is not necessary if you've been sick for a long time. Only in America! The longer you are sick the less chance you have of getting help. Not only did we get denied disability but my office manager told me that our insurance was going to cancel us affective May 1. The good news is that social security cleared us to start recieving benefits to subsidize our income ... in September. So, when you get sick you risk losing your income without any disability and the insurance wants to cancel you as well and of course the government is always a day late and a dollar short. Well, God is the great equalizer of all that kind of nonsense. Just pray that we can go back to normal insurance coverage without any hassels.
I'm thankful that I do feel well enough to start work again. Dr. Huh is skeptical, but he is willing to let me give it a try. Pray that God gives me the strength to prove him wrong. It has been good to be back at the clinic for more than just my own treatments. I have enjoyed seeing some of the patients again, but I have found that the list of patients is just as new as our new facility. Wow, I have a lot of work to do just to learn all of the new faces. Keep it all in your prayers.
Thanks for all your prayers and support,
Warren and family
Throughout my 2 years of treatment I have either been on a regimen that stops the cancer from growing or one that shrinks the cancer. Starting Monday (5/5) I will start a regimen that incorporates both concepts. The first treatment will be Erbitux (a target medicine that shrinks the tumors) and Avastin (a target medicine that keeps tumors from growning) and Xeloda (a chemotherapy that aids both). Xeloda is a chemo pill that I administer myself at home. The week after that I will only do the Erbitux and Xeloda and it will rotate like that throughout the regimen. I've never been on this regimen before so I don't know what it will do to me. I've been on each of these medicines at one time or another, but never all at the same time. It will be interesting.
I am back to work now. The MetLife disability insurance informed us (after 7 weeks of paper work and no income) that we don't qualify for the program because I have a pre-existing condition that is more than 3 months old. If it had only been 3 months that my cancer had existed then I could qualify. I guess disability is not necessary if you've been sick for a long time. Only in America! The longer you are sick the less chance you have of getting help. Not only did we get denied disability but my office manager told me that our insurance was going to cancel us affective May 1. The good news is that social security cleared us to start recieving benefits to subsidize our income ... in September. So, when you get sick you risk losing your income without any disability and the insurance wants to cancel you as well and of course the government is always a day late and a dollar short. Well, God is the great equalizer of all that kind of nonsense. Just pray that we can go back to normal insurance coverage without any hassels.
I'm thankful that I do feel well enough to start work again. Dr. Huh is skeptical, but he is willing to let me give it a try. Pray that God gives me the strength to prove him wrong. It has been good to be back at the clinic for more than just my own treatments. I have enjoyed seeing some of the patients again, but I have found that the list of patients is just as new as our new facility. Wow, I have a lot of work to do just to learn all of the new faces. Keep it all in your prayers.
Thanks for all your prayers and support,
Warren and family
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Here we go again!
The last time I blogged I told you about my marker going up and that it could possibly be an indication of the treatments losing their effectiveness. Well, it seems that is what has happened. The doc had one of the nurses call me today to set up a C/T scan for this week. I asked "did doc get a red flag from my tumor marker?" She said "yes it has gone up". It was 42.6 then it went up to 46 and stayed there for a month and then it went to 55. So clearly it has stopped working and we need to scan, see where the cancer is problematic and react accordingly.
I don't feel any pain in my side where the liver is, but I have struggled to breath and my coughing is worse again. I'm guessing the lungs want to take off again, but I can't say for sure. The scan will tell the story. With that in mind remember to be praying for me on Thursday (4/24) at 11:15. I'll be scanned at that time. Monday I'm scheduled to meet with the doc and discuss the results and where we go from here.
I'm begining to get the impression that I'm facing a very stubborn cancer. Has anyone else out there thought the same thing? Am I alone in this theory?
I appreciate all of you who are praying and those of you who are so faithful to share with your church or prayer group and friends the request to pray for me. Remember, scan on Thursday (4/24) at 11:15 and results Monday (4/28) with what we will be doing next. Pray for Dr. Huh to be given the wisdom of God in regard to my treatments. Pray for us as a family. It is hard to get this kind of news and it is even harder to wait for results and consultation.
Thank you all and God bless,
Warren and family
I don't feel any pain in my side where the liver is, but I have struggled to breath and my coughing is worse again. I'm guessing the lungs want to take off again, but I can't say for sure. The scan will tell the story. With that in mind remember to be praying for me on Thursday (4/24) at 11:15. I'll be scanned at that time. Monday I'm scheduled to meet with the doc and discuss the results and where we go from here.
I'm begining to get the impression that I'm facing a very stubborn cancer. Has anyone else out there thought the same thing? Am I alone in this theory?
I appreciate all of you who are praying and those of you who are so faithful to share with your church or prayer group and friends the request to pray for me. Remember, scan on Thursday (4/24) at 11:15 and results Monday (4/28) with what we will be doing next. Pray for Dr. Huh to be given the wisdom of God in regard to my treatments. Pray for us as a family. It is hard to get this kind of news and it is even harder to wait for results and consultation.
Thank you all and God bless,
Warren and family
Sunday, April 13, 2008
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Happy Birthday Warren!!!! I hope you don't mind us cracking into your blog to wish you a very special Birthday! We love you so much. Mom and Dad said, "To our favorite Son-in-Law Alex, Uhhh, We meant, Warren, We Love You!!! Your card and check are in the mail.
YOU ARE THE BEST!!!!!
HAPPY B-DAY UNCLE WARREN!!!
Love you!!
Dad, Mom, Jim, Dana, Tyler, Will, Alex, Jana, and Ella
YOU ARE THE BEST!!!!!
HAPPY B-DAY UNCLE WARREN!!!
Love you!!
Dad, Mom, Jim, Dana, Tyler, Will, Alex, Jana, and Ella
Friday, April 4, 2008
Keep the prayer wheels turning
I wanted to update everyone on how things are going. I was trying to hold off until I got the results from this week's blood work. But I can't seem to get the info I need from the lab. The nurses say they are waiting for the info themselves.
Here is what I do know. I have been feeling better. I got to go to the MBBC wrestling reunion in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago. We hooked up with Scott and Michelle Ice and drove over together. We had a great time. It was Easter weekend so we had time with family as well as all of the Easter festivities for the children. I slept much of Saturday and part of Sunday, but I did manage to show up for the highlights. Yes, I am feeling better.
This week I had my treatments again and I seem to be doing well again. I still have a few days before I'm out of the woods with sickness and so on. I have been requesting an extra dose of side affect medicine before they disconnect my I.V. and it has really helped. It mostly helps with the sickness, but does nothing for exhaustion and other discomforts. But it is the sickness that really causes a problem and contributes to something that Doc has been bothered by for the past few weeks.
Doc has been unhappy with my weight loss lately. When I'm sick it contributes to the weight loss. When I lose weight I become puny and less able to tolerate the treatments. So, pray that I can hold my weight and continue on. I still have about 10-15 pounds before it becomes critical. I don't think it will come to that but you never know.
The other thing he is watching is my tumor marker. Up until the last treatment we saw the marker plummet in big numbers each time the marker was tested. As of my treatment 2 weeks ago we saw it rise 3.4 points(from 42.6 to 46). The rise in the marker is not significant and we are thankful for that. However, when it goes from plummeting in big numbers to rising just a little we have to wonder if the treatments are beginning to lose effectiveness and we'll have to start again on something else. Remember, we are on a regimen to shrink the tumors and we want to get the full benefit of as many treatments as possible. I think Doc is hoping to get at least 4 more treatments (8 more weeks) before we move on to something else. So, the prayer is that we keep the tumor marker going down, even if it is in smaller intervals, and let the treatments last for as long as the Doc deems necessary.
If the marker goes up 2 more times he will probably stop the regimen and move on to something else.
So, yes I'm feeling better, but I do have some concerns to deal with. Keep us in your prayers and thanks for all of your support.
God bless,
Warren and company.
Here is what I do know. I have been feeling better. I got to go to the MBBC wrestling reunion in St. Louis a couple of weeks ago. We hooked up with Scott and Michelle Ice and drove over together. We had a great time. It was Easter weekend so we had time with family as well as all of the Easter festivities for the children. I slept much of Saturday and part of Sunday, but I did manage to show up for the highlights. Yes, I am feeling better.
This week I had my treatments again and I seem to be doing well again. I still have a few days before I'm out of the woods with sickness and so on. I have been requesting an extra dose of side affect medicine before they disconnect my I.V. and it has really helped. It mostly helps with the sickness, but does nothing for exhaustion and other discomforts. But it is the sickness that really causes a problem and contributes to something that Doc has been bothered by for the past few weeks.
Doc has been unhappy with my weight loss lately. When I'm sick it contributes to the weight loss. When I lose weight I become puny and less able to tolerate the treatments. So, pray that I can hold my weight and continue on. I still have about 10-15 pounds before it becomes critical. I don't think it will come to that but you never know.
The other thing he is watching is my tumor marker. Up until the last treatment we saw the marker plummet in big numbers each time the marker was tested. As of my treatment 2 weeks ago we saw it rise 3.4 points(from 42.6 to 46). The rise in the marker is not significant and we are thankful for that. However, when it goes from plummeting in big numbers to rising just a little we have to wonder if the treatments are beginning to lose effectiveness and we'll have to start again on something else. Remember, we are on a regimen to shrink the tumors and we want to get the full benefit of as many treatments as possible. I think Doc is hoping to get at least 4 more treatments (8 more weeks) before we move on to something else. So, the prayer is that we keep the tumor marker going down, even if it is in smaller intervals, and let the treatments last for as long as the Doc deems necessary.
If the marker goes up 2 more times he will probably stop the regimen and move on to something else.
So, yes I'm feeling better, but I do have some concerns to deal with. Keep us in your prayers and thanks for all of your support.
God bless,
Warren and company.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
God has been good
Sorry to have kept you all waiting on this news, but I had treatments last week and it has taken a while to shake them off. I did get good news from the doc last week. I was talking with the office manager and doc came and handed me a report from the lab. He had circled the tumor marker most recently taken and it had dropped all the way down to 42.6. That is a little more than half of what it was when we started in January which was 89. So, as miserable as these treatments may be they are working. Continue to pray as these are the same treatments that worked so well last year and suddenly stopped. Before we knew what had happened the cancer had begun to grow again. Please continue to pray.
Another challenge is on the rise besides the cancer. Dr. Huh wanted to give me sick leave and continue to pay me my regular salary. Well the corporate office of our medical group found out and they told him that he couldn't do it that way and that he would have to process me through the corporate disability program. So we are processing all of the paper work for disability. As many of you may know disability only pays 60% of salary and it takes 30 days for it to take affect. So we are facing 30 days of no salary and only 60% of salary when we do get paid. Well, that looks pretty grim at first, but when I look back at how God has provided in the past I knew that He would do no less for us now. I went home and told Tana the deal, she began to worry, but I reminded her of what God has been doing for us for many years now and that we can continue to count on Him today. Well, He has already begun to move and we are assured of His hand of provision in these matters. We don't know how long this will last, but I'm praying for a very short term situation.
Dr. Huh and the office manager told me that they never intended for this to happen and that they feel just terrible about it. This was my opportunity to explain to them about how God has always cared for us and He will do no less through this. As long as we are faithful to do all that is asked and required of us He will do all that is needed to provide. I said "please do not spend time worrying about us. Let's spend our time finding ways to solve the problem and searching for the direction in which God is trying to lead us." That put us all at ease and they were able to see that we trust God in every aspect of our lives. I'm tempted to believe that God is not only showing Himself to us, but also to Dr. Huh and his staff.
We thank you all so much for your love and prayers. It is so good to read your responses on the blog. Keep the prayers coming. As you can see, this situation is bigger than we may ever know on this side of glory. God, I believe, has a plan for many through all of this. It's not just about the Brokerings. The next time you pray for us think of how great the picture may be and know that God is using you and your intercession to accomplish things of spiritually epic proportions. It also helps to think that I could be healed and live happily ever after.
I want to thank Scott and Michelle Ice for traveling over 2 hours to visit and take us to dinner last Saturday. It was so encouraging and we had a wonderful and refreshing time. God bless you for your sacrifice and love for us. We needed it.
Love and thanks,
Warren and family
Another challenge is on the rise besides the cancer. Dr. Huh wanted to give me sick leave and continue to pay me my regular salary. Well the corporate office of our medical group found out and they told him that he couldn't do it that way and that he would have to process me through the corporate disability program. So we are processing all of the paper work for disability. As many of you may know disability only pays 60% of salary and it takes 30 days for it to take affect. So we are facing 30 days of no salary and only 60% of salary when we do get paid. Well, that looks pretty grim at first, but when I look back at how God has provided in the past I knew that He would do no less for us now. I went home and told Tana the deal, she began to worry, but I reminded her of what God has been doing for us for many years now and that we can continue to count on Him today. Well, He has already begun to move and we are assured of His hand of provision in these matters. We don't know how long this will last, but I'm praying for a very short term situation.
Dr. Huh and the office manager told me that they never intended for this to happen and that they feel just terrible about it. This was my opportunity to explain to them about how God has always cared for us and He will do no less through this. As long as we are faithful to do all that is asked and required of us He will do all that is needed to provide. I said "please do not spend time worrying about us. Let's spend our time finding ways to solve the problem and searching for the direction in which God is trying to lead us." That put us all at ease and they were able to see that we trust God in every aspect of our lives. I'm tempted to believe that God is not only showing Himself to us, but also to Dr. Huh and his staff.
We thank you all so much for your love and prayers. It is so good to read your responses on the blog. Keep the prayers coming. As you can see, this situation is bigger than we may ever know on this side of glory. God, I believe, has a plan for many through all of this. It's not just about the Brokerings. The next time you pray for us think of how great the picture may be and know that God is using you and your intercession to accomplish things of spiritually epic proportions. It also helps to think that I could be healed and live happily ever after.
I want to thank Scott and Michelle Ice for traveling over 2 hours to visit and take us to dinner last Saturday. It was so encouraging and we had a wonderful and refreshing time. God bless you for your sacrifice and love for us. We needed it.
Love and thanks,
Warren and family
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
A mixed basket
Hey all! I just wanted to update you on the last two treatments/doctor visits. I got my first treatment of this regimen 3 weeks ago. It went well. Normal reactions and I tolerated it as ususal. Two weeks later I showed up for my second treatment and I was denied because my white blood cell count was too low. It should be 3.0 and I was only able to muster up a 2.0. So doc said come back next week and we'll check and maybe your count will go up and we can treat you. I did and the count had only gone up to 2.77. Not quite enough to treat me but we did it anyway. After a short line of questioning he decided that we had no choice. We had to resume treaments or we could be dealing with something worse than a low white blood count.
The questions he asked were: "how's your breathing?" it has become labored again; "how's your pain?" it is coming on again; "are you getting sick with the treatments?: not yet (praise God!): "are you having any other extreme reactions besides the skin?" no (praise God). He said "well, we have not choice. Let's do it" So we did, I feel terrible, but I'll be okay soon.
Pray for the white blood count to rise. It is the backbone of my immune system and if I get sick it could potpone my treatments thus affording the cancer a chance to grow. However, if it doesn't go up I'll have to skip more treatments in the future causing the same scenario just mentioned. Funny how one little glitch can cause so many problems. But God can fix a measley low white blood count. I just need your prayers.
Speaking of prayers, I called the office last week to ask a question. After discussing the situation the nurse said "hey, I have some good news" I said lay it on me sister. She informed me that my tumor marker had gone down from 89 to 55 since the last two treatments. Praise God! It was such good news. I'm sorry to not have informed you earlier. That is why this post is called a mixed basket. There was a little bad news to be concerned about, but also some good news. So we pray with praise on our lips and concern in our hearts.
I want to thank my friends, David P. Martens and Timmy Brahs for coming to visit this past weekend. What an encouragement to know that they would spend the money for the cost of the trip, leave their famiies for a weekend and miss out on some much needed rest only to return to the rigorous grind of their jobs on Monday to come here and lift my spirits. And that they did. I thank God for all of my friends who have stopped in to see me and pray with me. It just means the world to me and my family. When Dave and Tim were preparing to leave Maddie said "daddy, where are they going" I "they have to go home now" she said "but why? Can't they stay here?" They even encouraged my children during their stay here. Thanks guys, we love ya.
I Must rest, I have another treatment tomorrow. Pray for the blood count, pain, and labored breathing. Thank you all for your prayers and reponses. It means the world to us to hear from you and that you are praying.
God bless,
Warren and family
The questions he asked were: "how's your breathing?" it has become labored again; "how's your pain?" it is coming on again; "are you getting sick with the treatments?: not yet (praise God!): "are you having any other extreme reactions besides the skin?" no (praise God). He said "well, we have not choice. Let's do it" So we did, I feel terrible, but I'll be okay soon.
Pray for the white blood count to rise. It is the backbone of my immune system and if I get sick it could potpone my treatments thus affording the cancer a chance to grow. However, if it doesn't go up I'll have to skip more treatments in the future causing the same scenario just mentioned. Funny how one little glitch can cause so many problems. But God can fix a measley low white blood count. I just need your prayers.
Speaking of prayers, I called the office last week to ask a question. After discussing the situation the nurse said "hey, I have some good news" I said lay it on me sister. She informed me that my tumor marker had gone down from 89 to 55 since the last two treatments. Praise God! It was such good news. I'm sorry to not have informed you earlier. That is why this post is called a mixed basket. There was a little bad news to be concerned about, but also some good news. So we pray with praise on our lips and concern in our hearts.
I want to thank my friends, David P. Martens and Timmy Brahs for coming to visit this past weekend. What an encouragement to know that they would spend the money for the cost of the trip, leave their famiies for a weekend and miss out on some much needed rest only to return to the rigorous grind of their jobs on Monday to come here and lift my spirits. And that they did. I thank God for all of my friends who have stopped in to see me and pray with me. It just means the world to me and my family. When Dave and Tim were preparing to leave Maddie said "daddy, where are they going" I "they have to go home now" she said "but why? Can't they stay here?" They even encouraged my children during their stay here. Thanks guys, we love ya.
I Must rest, I have another treatment tomorrow. Pray for the blood count, pain, and labored breathing. Thank you all for your prayers and reponses. It means the world to us to hear from you and that you are praying.
God bless,
Warren and family
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