I felt a little better Sat night and much better Sunday morning. I was released just before lunch today (Sunday) . I was even able to finish my big project for my last master’s class before they discharged me YEPPIE. As Tami wrote, I’m not looking quite as good as I use to but that is to be expected when you start out so darn sexy…LOL The chemo is making my skin break out all over my chest, legs and head…not nice. This round of chemo was much harder on my body than the first round was. We don’t know yet if it is due to one of the drugs or just the combination of all of the drugs. We’ll know soon enough. I’m able to eat (although still not much) and keep it down so that is good. Brad
April 29th, 2007 at 02:07pm
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Hi all, this is Tami! I am finally here in Houston where my heart has been for the past two weeks. It is so nice to put all your body parts back together. They work much better that way. Anyway, thank goodness that Brad was feeling super lousy yesterday so that when I came in the door I didn’t have a chance to really soak in his new look! I was just worried about how sick he finally looked. You know, he hasn’t LOOKED sick through this whole process. Well…that has changed. His look has also changed. He has lost 30 pounds and about the same amount of hair. He still has hair but it is splotchy. It is falling out at a quick rate so maybe by the time I leave on Wed. night I will be with Slick Willy! He felt awful last night but was glad to see me. I spent the night at the hospital which means NO sleep. This morning he still didn’t feel great and the drs. said he couldn’t go home-much to my relief. (I was watching him trying to move thinking what will I do if he falls down!) So…they finally changed his nausea meds to something else and he went to sleep. I went to the apt. to unpack, shower, relax a little,etc. I came back a few hours later to find him feeling some better. Enough to want Chicken Noodle Soup! He ate, napped, napped, napped. Then he woke up feeling pretty good…..wanted to order spagetti….WHAT? He doesn’t usually want spagetti on a GOOD day! Weird. He ate a little and had some Blue Bell Vanilla with M&M’s on top. We actually took a walk down to the lobby just now. The massive headache was gone this morning and now that the nausea is better he feels much better. Not great, but much better. He does have a really low fever that they are watching but not anything more than 99 at this point. Oh, I am going to have to buy him some new shorts this weekend cause while we were walking he couldn’t push the chemo pole and hold up his shorts. We certainly don’t need to give the weekend entertainment here at MDA! All for now, pray hard and love to all, Tami
April 28th, 2007 at 07:17pm
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Today has been one of those days they tell you are coming. It arrived. Headache since I woke up that pain meds just can’t put much of a dent in. The top of my head has a hard but dull ache and there is a place behind my right ear that feels like someone is just sitting there jabbing me. When I try and sit up, I throw up. No food in me so it’s now more like dry heaves where you just can’t catch your breath and but little comes out. The only thing that makes it better is knowing that Tami will be here in about four hours from wen I’m posting this. Dad and Betty left this morning. I had been fine the entire time they were here until this morning. I hated having them see me in such obvious pain but again, you know it is part of it. Here’s hoping tomorrow is a better day. Brad
April 27th, 2007 at 01:56pm
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Slept better last night. Still have this headache that I can’t quite shake. I’m hoping when the current drug runs out around 2pm that it will get better. Thirty minutes later I start the last drug for this round. It is a two hour bag that I get four times over the next two days. It now appears I’ll get out Sat afternoon at the earliest. After taking a shower yesterday afternoon, I was drying my hair with those white towels they have here. I noticed that it appeared the towel was discolored. After closer inspection, I noticed it was much of the hair that had previously been on my head was now in the towel. Oh well, bald is beautiful, right Heath? Bradley
April 26th, 2007 at 11:07am
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Didn’t sleep much. They had to check vitals every 15 minutes for a while, then every thirty minutes for a couple of hours then every hour. The really good news is that I didn’t have a reaction to the rituxim that I did last time. My kidneys weren’t ready to get the next drug so I had to take some other medication before I could start the next one. They’ve just hooked me up to the methotrexate that will last for two hours. Then I get the same drug from another bag for 22 hours straight. Not sure why they don’t just give me a 24 hour bag but was told this is the way it is done. Tomorrow I start the Cytarabine which last for two days. I hope to be out Sat. Brad
April 25th, 2007 at 10:20am
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So I’ve just made it to my new home for the next five days or so. I’m actually next door to the room I was in last time so the area is very familiar to me. My main nurse from last time, Ashley, was here and seemed shocked to see me. She said it seemed like I was just here..not sure if that is good or bad. LOL Unfortunately she is off now until Sat. Hopefully I’ll have at least some of the same nurses….they were all incredible. They make you feel like you are the only patient they have. That isn’t too far from the truth. The way it is set up here, they only have three to four patients each. They really take the time (most of them) to get to know you and what you are going through. Several have taken the time to just come in and sit and visit. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again, this place is the BEST! I’m about to start the rituxin which is what broke me out so bad last time. They said that many people break out the first time but not each time after. I’m hoping I fall into that category. I’ll be taking chemo through Sat morning around 11am. They’ll test my kidneys to see if it is all out of my body before they’ll dismiss me. We have to come back on Sunday for another short infusion of around 30 minutes. I’ll then be back home (sorry, I mean my temp apt) for two weeks waiting on the dropping of my numbers and then the building back up in preparation for the third round. But before that is the BIG day..May 15th when I go through all of the tests again to see what reduction in cancer cells we’ve been able to get. That then determines the remainder of my treatment schedule. Again with the high level of bone marrow involvement I’ve had, they don’t expect me to be clear of cancer but we’re just expecting more than a 50% reduction. For those of you from Farine, don’t send email to my school account for the next week. Something about the firewall here won’t allow me to access my school account. Well, time for chemo. Here’s to another smooth sailing few days. Brad
April 24th, 2007 at 08:34pm
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Felt good again today. Just returned from the hospital where they did my lung function test to make sure that I could handle the next round. The tech doing the test said I had one of the highest lung functions he had seen in some time and was really pleased with the results. I am off all day tomorrow to finish a short paper and my major project for my masters class..then I should be about done with it!!! YEPPIE On a strange note, I had a “fellow” (dr that is working with my main dr and trying to learn) that came in to me today when I was waiting on my main dr. You could tell he didn’t really know much about mantle cell lymphoma other than it wasn’t good. His comment to me? “You have the worst of the worst kind of cancer” REALLY? Ya think I don’t already know that? Thank God there wasn’t some fragile personality in there…they may have just given up. Me thinkst that thou needs to get some bed side manner, young man. I will be admitted around 7pm tomorrow and start chemo immediately. I’ll have chemo Tuesday night, a different drug on Wednesday and then a different drug on Thursday and Friday. I should be discharged on Sat but then have to return on Sunday for another drug but that one is outpatient. I might be able to post tomorrow night but it could be Wednesday morning before my next posting. Brad
April 23rd, 2007 at 06:05pm
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I was told by two of you that I shouldn’t skip any days when posting so ….here is today’s report. My dad and step mom are here and will stay until Tami gets here Friday night. I have blood work tomorrow afternoon with a lung function test but then it appears that I’ve got nothing after that until being admitted on Tuesday night. The only discomfort I have is abdominal but it isn’t bad. My spirits are great and I’m still hanging on to some of my hair..but that battle is, well, being lost. I’ll get more blood count numbers late tomorrow afternoon so I’ll post again around 6pm tomorrow night. Man I miss being at school! Bradley
April 22nd, 2007 at 08:16pm
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I just returned from my Saturday visit and my numbers are all good. The only one that has come down a little from where they want it is my red blood cell count is a little low..but not bad. My white cells are still good and my platelets are doing wonderful in the 181,000 range so far. Today is going to be spent getting my last big project done for my master’s class and to get caught up on some reading for that class. NASCAR is tonight and as long as Tony Stewart doesn’t pull another bone headed move maybe I can enjoy watching Jr. do some good tonight. As you can tell, I feel pretty good today so far. Dad and Betty are coming down tomorrow and Tami should be here on Friday. I heard the tournament was a wonderful success. Many thanks to Aristo for all of his work…I still wish I could have been there with you guys but then I’m sure I would have done something stupid like try to hit some balls and ended up messing myself up. So for now I’ll just concentrate on dealing with the chemo and trying to do what they tell me. Signing off for now Brad
April 21st, 2007 at 10:19am
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I met with my main cancer dr this afternoon and found out some more information. First off, he is very happy with my progress. Everything appears to be heading in the right direction but there aren’t any test to show that yet so that doesn’t mean much yet. I have a full day of tests on Monday to make sure I can handle the second round of treatment and if so, I’ll be admitted Tuesday night to start round two. That will be a shorter four day stay and should be out by the weekend. Once that round is over (May 15th), I’ll have all of the tests repeated to see if the cancer is still around. If ANY cancer cells are still found, I’ll be required to complete all eight rounds of treatment which is Sept 18th OUCH!! Although the doctor feels that it is possible that all of the cancer could be gone by May 15th, he doesn’t feel it is likely with as much bone marrow involvment as I had. As long as there is at least a 50% reduction in cancer cells, they will continue treatment. If there is less than a 50% reduction, then he says it isn’t working and we switch to something more aggressive…??? HUH, more aggressive than what we are doing? I somehow failed to ask what that could possibly be. I’ve posted a new pic at the top of my new hair cut. The hair finally started coming out yesterday so I had it cut very short today. Hope everyone has fun at the tournament tomorrow…man I wish I could be there. Thanks to my sister Cheryl who just spent the last few days with me…painful wasn’t it, sis? I’m by myself this weekend so keep your fingers crossed that there are no reactions….but I feel fine so all should be ok. Bradley
April 19th, 2007 at 07:29pm
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I didn’t write yesterday because I thought I was going to be allowed to sneak home for the weekend and wanted to surprise everyone at the golf tournament. It didn’t happen. My numbers shot up today…so much so that they cancelled my last white cell shot. They kept telling me these shots hurt your back and hips but my pain had been minimal at best. That is until yesterday. About three hours after my shot, my back, hips and legs began to ache to the point within about thirty minutes I had to head home, take one of the few pain pills I’ve ever taken and lay down. I found out today why. Friday my neutrophil I talked about was 160 when they want it over 1000 to let you out in public…it has something to do with the measurement of how your white blood cells are growing in your bone marrow. Monday my number had jumped to 940..pretty good huh? Today they were 11,480! They said at some point your bone marrow just doesn’t have any more room and it is like putting 6 cars beside each other on a two lane road…it doesn’t fit so it hurts. My white cell count that had been around 800 Friday, 900 Monday jumped to 13,500! Needless to say, my body is recovering. Anyway, they are changing my schedule and I thought I was getting the weekend off. Turns out, they want to watch me still because they say I’m going to start coming down fairly quickly and want to make sure I don’t come down too fast or far. So, I’m staying here all weekend. At least we now have cable and I’ve got three weeks more of my master’s class (my final one to graduate..YEH) that can keep me busy. My hair has finally started to come out. So, tomorrow I’m getting most of it shaved off. Not completely down to Mr. clean just yet, but very short. I’ll post pics afterward. Weight remained the same for once..No weight loss for the fist time in 10 days. We are still on schedule to be re-admitted on Tuesday or Wednesday for round two. My dad and step-mom are coming down Sunday to stay with me a few days and then we have some friends that are set up for a day or two each until Tami can get back down. Enough for now…I’m still very upbeat although am certainly dealing with more of a pain level than before. I’m very sorry I can’t make the golf tourney…I was so looking forward to that surprise but they seem to be a little unsure about me making the trip so we aren’t going to mess this up this early by doing anything stupid. Take care and feel free to write. Brad
April 18th, 2007 at 02:56pm
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Just returned from my “fast track” appt where they do all of the blood workup to see if your body is still killing cells or if you are on the rebound starting to increase your white cells, red cells and platelets. I was down very low on Friday and they said they hoped I might start rebounding by today. My numbers are as follows from Friday to today…white cell jumped from 800 to 1,900. Red cell stayed about the same but is just barely low. The big thing is what they call Neutrophil assolute count which tells you if you have to wear the mask and can’t shake hands or go to public places too much if at all. They want that count at 1,000. On Friday I was at 160 which is very low. Today I jumped to 940!! I’m continueing to walk as much as possible and although I get winded easily, it feels very good. The leg cramps have stopped. I have two more white cell shots the next two days and then on Thursday the dr advises me on when he thinks my body is ready for round two of the in hospital big guns. Thanks for your prayers and cards…it keeps us going. Oh, forgot about the weight. I’m down another two pounds today for a total of 26 since last Monday. A little fast maybe but hey, I’ll take it. There is also a new video up but it is showing as the second one on my bar..it is the one with the red/blue shirt. Not sure you can tell, but my face seems to have lost half of the total weight so far. Bradley
April 16th, 2007 at 01:07pm
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About to head to get my while blood cell shot again. I feel pretty good for the most part. The chemo I rec’d yesterday made me a little groggy most of the day (actually, it’s the stuff they give you with it to ease your stomach) but all in all, I just rested more. My blood sugar is back up but that is due to starting back on the steriods yesterday. It was 223 last night but down to 212 this am. In the hospital it got up to 303. They say it is only temporary while on the steriods and I only have today and two more days this round of them. Right now, my schedule shows I start round two in the hospital this Thursday but that must be an error…I’ve written them to check. I should be going back in a week from this coming Tuesday but that is round B which is only a four day stay. Tami is driving back to Dallas today and I’ll miss her greatly..but she needs to get back to make some bucks and to get her sanity back from taking care of me. My sisters are taking turns over the next week and then dad and betty come down for a while before tami heads back in about 2 weeks or so. I’m now down 23 pounds in less than a week. What a plan! I’ll do a video later today but last time it took almost 10 hours to show up on here. Enough for now. Feeling much better than expected but also prepared for more “Hell Tuesdays” if they come. Brad
April 15th, 2007 at 07:27am
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Brad’s being a wimp so this is Tami. Not really, Brad is being a trooper. It is just late and since I am not in treatment of any sort I can’t seem to go to bed as early as he can now! Last night was our first night in the new place. Old place that is. This apt. had to have been built in the 70s. Under the coated countertops I can vaguely see avocado green! Obviously, the builders in the 70s thought people or furniture or something was much bigger than builders today think. This place is really nice and big-lots of big closets, big rooms,etc. Maybe that is because we just came from a 10 by 31 residence in the trailer. This morning I get up at 6 to start getting stuff out of the car. I open the front door and I can’t see a thing. It is pitch black in the hallway. The stairs are dark. The elevator(which Katie will NEVER ride) wouldn’t open up. Hmmmm….I am thinking, man, this place must be really safe if they don’t need lots of lighting. Once I figured out where the stairs were and made it down them, I noticed that there were lights on the first floor. It was already raining so no point bringing stuff in. We drove the 5 minute trip to the hospital…neighborhood traffic only…praise the Lord! Drove the 20 minutes in the parking garage looking for a space that I could fit the bus into and then made it to Brad’s first appt. of the day. His numbers were LOW but that was to be expected. This is day 10 out of chemo and it was the low day, so now the numbers should start going back up. “Numbers” refer to white blood cell count, hemoglobin, neutriphils, and platelets- I think. They say Brad’s are where they are supposed to be so no worries there except for keeping him infection free right now. We actually got mail today…that was fun. I am making a board for us to keep cards and letters on, so if you want to make it on the board-send us a letter!!! I know that Brad and I will read and read the notes just like we do the responses to the blog. I am going to Mom’s to teach again and be “normal” for the next few weeks while Brad is being babysat by his sisters and then his dad and step mom. He will be in good hands since the sisters are nurses. Cheryl comes first and she is a baby nurse(NICU) so she might have issues with his nightly temp. taking event. I would like to see her try her usual method of taking a temp with her baby brother! Then Vickie, she is a CCU nurse, so he will be in good hands there too. Dad and Betty will just spoil him rotten so then I get to come back to a real baby!!! We actually got some time to relax tonight and I got to go to a “SAFE” grocery store so we have some food in the house. You should hear the non-safe grocery story! Let’s just say southwest Houston is not like any place I have ever lived. Well…should go. Brad has another chemo in the morning. Just a 15 minute infusion of the red Kool-aid stuff. Brad was freaking cause after the last infusion, stuff was coming out that was red that shouldn’t be red. They said that was normal. Dr. even said that if he cried, his tears would be red. I am hoping I can make him cry tomorrow. I want a picture of that. Can you imagine that you tube video? Thanks again for keeping up with us. It is going to be another long 5 months but one month is already over. I really can’t believe it. In some ways it feels like 3 years, but in another way it feels like 3 days. Keep praying, writing, blogging and laughing and crying with us. Love to all, tami
April 13th, 2007 at 10:39pm
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The church group that helps people going through cancer find short term housing called this afternoon with an opening. We quickly went to meet them and signed the paperwork. It isn’t fancy or new but it is a very large one bedroom apt that will work very nicely. There is a shuttle to the hospital for a small charge (ok, it is actually a full size trailways bus) and the complex is so large they even have their own small convenience store built in. Tomorrow is a longer day at the hospital but as soon as that is over, we’ll begin moving. There is a phone already in place and as soon as we have that number, I’ll post it. Maybe our cell phones can breathe for a few days. I’ve felt good today..not as good as yesterday but good. So far since Sunday I’ve lost 18 pounds. That is too fast. I’m drinking plenty of fluids but not eating much. Food still doesn’t taste good but is getting better. Tomorrow I find out all of my blood count numbers. This is supposed to be my “worst” day when I might have a transfusion. I don’t see it but we’ll see. Until tomorrow…. Brad and Tami (from our last night in the trailer)
April 12th, 2007 at 05:53pm
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It wasn’t showing up on the video bar so I thought I would try this. Just click it twice and it will start.
April 11th, 2007 at 05:37pm
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Today is SO much better than yesterday. No throwing up yet, plumbing is working (LOL) and my chemo head is not spinning as fast as it has been. I was telling a lady at the hospital today that I felt great! She just laughed and said “compared to what?” Ok, true. I’ve now dropped 11 pounds in two days. This chemo taste bud thing sure puts a damper on Dr. Pepper and snacks. It all taste terrible. The nurse is having me drink Gatorade just to make sure my electrolytes stay stable. We have an extended stay/suite reserved now starting Friday until my next hospitalization that has a shuttle. We hope the church apt people get us in before then but at least we now we have a decent place (we stayed there one night a couple of weeks ago and really liked it) to stay. We continue to be amazed at the kindness of people both here and away. People can be incredible. Tami told me to be sure and mention how perspective changes with the way you (I) feel. Yesterday nothing was coming in place and it all appeared to be falling apart. Today while I’m feeling better, everything seems to be falling into place. Coincidence? Don’t think so. I’m going to record another youtube today…while I’m feeling good so that should be up shortly. Thanks again for all of your support. We send all our Love! Brad and Tami
April 11th, 2007 at 11:56am
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The posting I wrote this morning was just as we were leaving to go to the hospital. As you could tell, I didn’t feel good. I ended up throwing up twice in the car on the way (thank goodness we had more clothes in the back of the car and trash bags in the car). If you don’t want more details, skip this part. The chemo puts most people in a real constipation situation and I’m no different. That along with your while cells coming down which provide you protection and the red cells crashing this week which is your energy, you just feel more and more worn down. I sat in the dr. office today at the hospital throwing up, then sweating, then shaking and then starting it over again. Fun day. I have to keep my eye on the end….it will get a little worse first but it will get better. On the good side, the pain hasn’t been quite as much as I expected..yet. Housing. Things have changed again. As those of you that know me personally know, I’m a big guy. At the time of hospitalization, 6 ft tall and 338 pounds. The trailer is very uncomfortable for me..nothing fits and what does hurts. The shots they are giving me each day make your hips and back hurt (nuepogen?) and when you are my size trying to rest all day on a trailer mattress to begin with, it just makes it worse. We called the church group down here that subsidizes apartments and it appears we can get in one within a couple of weeks. We just have to get a hotel until one comes open. They are a little expensive but not terrible. We have to be out of this trailer on Sat and then if there is no apt yet, we’ll move to a hotel for a few days.
April 10th, 2007 at 07:24pm
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Sorry but today won’t be filled with humor. Yesterday wasn’t a good day, last night was not that good and this morning feels yet worse. I can’t get comfortable in this trailer where I’m bigger than any mattress or couch. Tami is going to look today and see what is out there that is affordable….the church sponsored apts only let you stay three months so we’ll have to do something else. I hate to do it but the trailer just isn’t going to work. Pray that we can find something affordable today so I can get some rest.
April 10th, 2007 at 07:30am
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We are in our temporary trailer just south of Houston. My spirits are still high buy my body is beginning to feel the effects they warned us about. Exhaustion, pain in the legs, upset stomach and such. So far, it isn’t too bad. The picture I just put up is from this morning as I was being discharged. Yes, I have to wear lovely face mask pretty much for the next two weeks but not the silly duck one’s. Katie just wanted us to do that since it was Easter. For those of you trying to access my youtube, it is under ntbradv and not ntbrad. I wasn’t able to upload from the hospital but can from here. We can also rec’v school email again so that is good. Time for a nap so until later, thanks again for your support and we continue to fight. brad
April 8th, 2007 at 01:18pm
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sorry about all of the post this morning but news, news, news. Dr. just came in. I may not get to go home tomorrow. They are a little worried about my fluid retention. They are putting my on some more of that wonderful “pee like a horse” medicine today. The other problem the fluid does is make my heart work harder and my blood pressure fluxuate too much. That is why the dr. says my numbers keep going up and down. Here is the better part of the news. Those nodes in that were so large in the front of my neck (all four of them) and the two that were sticking out of the back of my neck are completely…as in TOTALLY GONE!. Till we get more news which today may be very soon. Brad
April 7th, 2007 at 11:33am
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An hour after posting about my aunt passing away, Tami just called to say her mother had two seizures last night. Good thing we have a strong family. I hate that Tami has to be so far away from her but we’ve got too much that has to be done in the next day or two that I can’t do from the hospital room. Brad
April 7th, 2007 at 11:13am
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So I just rec’d a call from my cousin Bobby that was working on the trailer…his mother just passed away this morning. Vivian was a wonderful woman that had been dealing with heart troubles for many years. Thing is, Bobby was trying to figure out a way to take care of us…Lord, what a family we have. I had to tell him to get to his father and take care of them. We’ll figure something else out. I immediately started looking at the list they give us here and found a trailer park that is a little farther out that rents trailers that are less than a year old by the week. Tami is heading out there now to look it over. Tami will then head to the one we were going to use and see if they have something else coming open next week. It’s never easy, is it? Say a prayer for Bobby and his family. His father, Tracy, has been quite an influence on my life just in the way the man has taken on challenges that would have brought down many a man but seem like nothing but a bump in the road for him. This bump will hit harder and I hope that Tracy can learn what I’ve learned, there is no shame in relying on the others. Vivian, you’ll be missed! Brad
April 7th, 2007 at 10:36am
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I actually slept ok last night in between all of the nurse’s visits. At least I could go back to sleep when they left which doesn’t always happen. My blood sugar was back up again last night to the 250 range so more insulin. Blood pressure seems to be back to normal along with pulse. The dag gone hick ups seem to be causing me more problems than anything else and I don’t mean the kind you hear from kids at school. I mean every five seconds ..hard one’s that last for an hour. The do have medicine for it but since it takes about an hour too, I’m guessing they are sugar pills. Tami just called..her and Katie stayed at a hotel last night. Katie has been up since 3:30 sick so now we aren’t real sure what to do with her. She can’t be around me, doesn’t want to be left alone but Tami has to go set up the trailer as soon as it arrives this morning. She said she was around some of her boyfriend’s family the last few days that were sick…guess she is learning that lesson. If she is around anyone sick, she simply has to cancel a trip to see me but I know how bad we wanted to see each other. Unfortunately, the stakes are too high to take chances. I have chemo here again 9 -12 then I have the two parts of the Hyper CVAD that I haven’t had yet during the day today and then the 9 – 12 midnight again with the last Velcade at midnight. Then, I’m DONE! I go home in the morning. MEDS, MEDS, MEDS. Yesterday they brought me a list of 18 prescriptions that we’ll be leaving here with for the next two weeks until my next hospitalization. Now I don’t have to take all 18 every day but there are some that I have 5 – 10 each per day too. They are having me come back to the hospital everyday now to take two shots. One is one per day and one is only once during the two weeks. The every day shot is $200 and the one time shot is $4,500 AlONE every three weeks. The said that if I come back in the hospital to have the shot it is covered under the hospitalization bill which I have finally reached my out of pocket maximum. We get our RX bill later today so please pray for something we can pay for. We have no idea what to expect. One lady we were behind the other day was expecting to pay a couple of hundred and when they totaled her bill up it was something like 3 or 4 thousand dollars. I’m making videos for youtube but we can’t access youtube from the hospital so I can’t post them until Sunday some time from the RV Park. Thanks again for your prayers and support. We are doing great and ready to keep going. Oh, for the two of you that requested RSS tags ( most won’t know what that is) I’ve followed the directions to have it changed to that but you can let me know if it worked) Brad
April 7th, 2007 at 07:43am
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Dr. just came in and said everything looks great and I may get to leave Sunday morning. That would be a least 24 hours earlier than they expected. There have been some small challenges that I’ll detail here for those of you that are medical people including both of my sisters that are nurses and Teresa from school. My blood pressure which is typically a little lower than most people has been a little bit of a concern. It is staying around 108/60. My pulse dropped last night from it’s regularly high 90 down to 60. With all of the steroids that they have me on, they would have thought my pressure would go up but it has gone down. They said it could be due to the anti nausea medicine they have me on and aren’t worried too much about it. They also said that my weight should be going down. I’m not eating half of my meals but I’ve gained 4 pounds here. They seem to think it has to do with all of the fluids they are pumping into me. Today’s schedule is chemo here in a few minutes for three hours, then again tonight from 9 to midnight. Other than that, it is wait for my Katie bird to get here around lunch. The area on my face and head that had broke out so bad are almost completely gone. The nodes that were swollen in my neck are still swollen BUT HAVE GONE DOWN IN SIZE ALREADY! That’s it for now. Keep writing….I love reading your comments. If you want an email response, just leave me your email in your post and I’ll be happy to…Lord knows I have time. Bradley
April 6th, 2007 at 08:37am
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I’ve handled the chemo drugs very well today. I had CYCLOPHOSPHAMIDE from 9pm last night till midnight. Then at midnight they gave me the 3 second shot of Velcade. From 9am – noon I rec’d my second dose of Cyclophosphamide. I’ve also been given Mesna to protect the kidneys along with something that makes you pee like horse every few minutes. All of the steroids I’ve been receiving have caused my blood sugar to go up which they expected and so I’m now receiving insulin but they said that would stop when the steroids stopped. I will get the next dose of cyclophosphamide at 9 tonight and then again tomorrow at 9 am. The next dose of Velcade comes tomorrow night at midnight. I’ve been up walking around the hospital today and feel really good compared to what I expected. Katie is flying in tomorrow for the weekend and I can’t wait to see her. We miss everyone but KNOW we are in the right place to get taken care of. Bradley
April 5th, 2007 at 05:43pm
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It finally worked without causing the whelps, so now we are on the way to the really toxic drugs. Those should start around 9pm and go until 12. At 12 they infuse him with the expermental drug which we found out today is a 3 second infusion! Then I did some third grade math to figure out that not even a whole minute of this drug infused over 6 months is why we had to move here! WHAT? They have promised us that as soon as we are done at 12 then they will leave us alone until 6 so sleep can happen! I have never been so excited to sleep. t
April 4th, 2007 at 08:32pm
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Hey all, this is Tami. I am not sure what Brad meant about my bed being so comfortable here. Sleep was a little crazy last night. We slept for a few hours before the chemo began then someone was constantly in here. His night nurse was a gentleman that could have been doing stand up comedy. He was hilarious. Although it felt a little silly to be laughing at 1, 2, 3, 4 and then 6 this morning and every thirty minutes between! The minor setback occurred this morning when they bumped up the dosage of the Rituxan. They know that most people have some sort of reaction so they slowly put it into your system and can monitor the progress. At the 50 ml level he was doing fine, they bumped it to 100 ml and after an hour of that he started to break out in whelps all over the trunk of his body. They quickly came in and pulled the plug on that amount. They gave Benadryl through the CVC and it went down quickly. Nurse said that usually you have one reaction and it can vary from patient to patient. When he went through this list of possible reactions, it sure sounds like Brad got one of the best ones to get! The team of drs. came in, took a look and said we are ready to go again. I feel so much comfort in being here. Since this is ALL these people do they are very involved, educated and totally care about Brad (and me) during this whole process. For those of you keeping up with the Beemer to Black Bus issue! I drove it through the parking garage last night for the first time. It was a little freaky cause I was sure the top of it was going to hit the concrete beams but once I found out it wasn’t I was ok. Then came time to park. Realized I probably shouldn’t try a right hand straight in place at this time. Quickly I found a left hand at an angle spot which was perfect! Having the entire car full of boxes that we are moving into the trailer on Friday, it looks like we are camping here at MDA. Thanks for all who are sending notes and messages. Like Brad said, we read them over and over again each day. It sure helps to know we aren’t alone in this scary thing. Pray hard and love to all, tami
April 4th, 2007 at 10:27am
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We are now in our home for the next week. Room G974 at MD Anderson in Houston. I got to admit, if I didn’t realize how sick I really was, this would be kinda neat. We start chemo prep drugs around 10 pm and the real stuff around midnight. They said they have to check my vitals every fifteen minutes the first hour, every thirty minutes the next hour and then hourly for the next six hours. Sounds like the first night won’t be very restful. If you want to call, we can’t even have cell phones on while staying on this floor but you can call the room direct. The number here is 713-834-8936. Tami or I should answer unless we are out walking. They really challenge you to get out and walk the hospital as much as you can stand. They would like three miles a day!! I’m still waiting on the results of my blood clot test so I’ll have to post those results later. My uric acid that was double the desired rate (typical for lymphoma patients) has been reduced by 1/2 after five days of meds and is back in the normal range. That’s it for now…chemo shortly. Oh, Tami does have a very nice murphy bed in here that has more cushion than the bed I’m in so she’ll be just fine. Till tomorrow Brad
April 3rd, 2007 at 08:21pm
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We were just told we have a room beginning tonight on the 9th floor which is the main lymphoma floor. The room does have a murphy bed that comes out of the wall (much nicer than you are imagining I’m sure) and we should begin chemo tonight. Today was filled with more test. Gave blood twice, had a dopler scan for a blood clot that we are still awaiting results on and did a fine needle aspiration on several lymph nodes. That last one was something I agreed to for research and wasn’t to help me. About 1/2 way through it, I was wondering why I offered to do that one. They ended up using 6 needles on my throat and neck. Each one they push back and forth (in and out) for about 30 seconds trying to get enough cells. Most of the time it wasn’t too bad but one of them hurt like &*(%!@ Well, we are off to admissions to get our room assignment. Back later. Brad
April 3rd, 2007 at 05:23pm
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We were just called and told tomorrow at 11am. That really means we’ll probably be admitted around 5pm or so but we’ll see. Changes are coming faster now. Beginning yesterday afternoon, the pain levels increased quite a bit. It still isn’t really, really bad..just bad. My forehead, face and neck are really breaking out. One doc says it is tiny staff infections and one doc said it could be from the internal tumors. Either way, we hope that just a few days of chemo will kill it all. The other thing that is changing is the nodes in my neck are beginning to grow faster to the point where you can’t help but see them as a swollen area on both sides of my neck in the front. They aren’t painful, just increasing in size. The one on the back of my neck that has been there for more than two months hasn’t grown a bit. Well, as you can tell, we are very eager to get started. We were able to see Norma and Bill today and talked with Syndi. It sure does help to visit with folks going through the same thing you are. You wish they weren’t having to go through it, but it helps to be able to visit with people that understand. Trailer is coming Friday. I’ve posted my new address at the top of this page. I normally only do email but snail mail might be a good friend. I have a feeling I’ll be so bored when out of the hospital that I’ll look forward to even reading junk mail…but feel free to send a real letter (if anyone remembers what those are) if you have time. I heard the blood drive at school today went off very well. Thanks to everyone involved. We continue to be amazed at the outpouring of love that is sent our way. Brad
April 2nd, 2007 at 04:31pm
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I’ve rec’d a couple of request to post something here that I posted on my myspace page when I was first diagnosed. I was also asked if I still feel the same way I did then. The answer? More so now than ever. I know many of you aren’t myspace nuts and so didn’t see this…so, here is what they’ve been asking me to post here. God is good, all the time…and all the time, God is good. When I tell people that it is ok….God will take care of me, I think many of them are confused. Mostly it is people that either aren’t Christians or they profess to be but really have no concept of the word. When I say God will take care of me, that doesn’t mean that I know 100% for sure that he’ll heal me. His Word never says that. It does say that he’ll never leave us nor foresake us (see second half of Hebrews 13:5) When I say God will take care of us, I simply mean that we’ll feel His love and the love of others he sends our way. Christianity was never promised to be a bed of roses, quite the opposite in fact…you’ll be tested and tried. But His love will embrace us and help us fight the good fight. How people that don’t have that faith ever make it through something like this is beyond me. To rely on my own strength for this seems rather silly. In His love. Brad WOW! How God has shown this to be true just through this first month is nothing short of MASSIVE!
April 1st, 2007 at 12:27pm
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My niece, Randi Hartin, has created a web site for people who are interested to sign up for a walk to raise awareness for Leukemia and Lymphoma which will be held on Oct 21st at SMU in Dallas. I certainly plan on making it and walking along side anyone that can join us. If you want more information or would like to join our team, go to the link below. The team name is Git-R-Done. For those of you that don’t understand that one, remember that I’ll be living in a trailer park and maybe you’ll get it…uh, git-r. http://register.lightthenight.org/LTNRegistration/app?page=TeamView&service=page&urlKey=teambrad
April 1st, 2007 at 08:04am
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Today we are trying to finish packing everything I have to take with me to Houston and everything that Tami has to take to her Mom’s to live there when she gets back in two weeks. Tami will stay with me during this hospital stay for a week and then the first week we are in the RV park (sounds nicer than the trailer park). Then I’ll have different family members and friends taking turns staying with me a couple of days at a time. (if that duty sounds fun, I’m sure we can sign you up!) The Dr. is pretty insistent that I’m not alone since there is a good chance I’ll develop at least one of the problems associated with this chemo and have to be brought back in. We got the sports car traded in yesterday. We went from a small bullet to a bus as Tami calls it. We really wanted a CRV they had ordered for us (2003) but it didn’t get here in time so we had to pick from what they had. Since we were only willing to go down in price from what they gave us on trade, we ended up with a 2001 Ford Expedition. Very nice car but it is big. The nice thing is it is very comfortable for me to spread out in for those trips and we were able to get a three year warranty and still come out several thousand ahead. That will help. Tami will be driving that down tonight and I’ll be driving my 89 chevy pickup that should fit in just fine at the trailer….uh, RV Park. Oh yeah, about the cancer and how I’m feeling. We moved some clothes last night to Tami’s mother’s house. I was shocked to find that just picking up a few clothes that were on hangers really caused me a couple of hours of fairly high level pain in my gut. (the dr’s word, not mine) It is so difficult to feel useless. I had to sit there last night and watch Tami bring the clothes in. That would normally be fun to do if it wasn’t for the circumstances. The pain made it difficult to sleep last night but I just kept thinking that a few days after we start this chemo, that should already be going away if the treatment is working. Well, back to packing and some of our school work since I need to get a couple of weeks ahead in my master’s class. Lastly, to all my friends and family that came to the dinner at Farine Thursday night…WOW! When it was all counted, the final amount was approximately $6,000!!! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. That will buy a lot of pink flamingos for my trailer lot!! Bradley
April 1st, 2007 at 07:49am
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