Today is Brandon’s first chemo session. He’s understandably nervous, yet hopeful it will provide some relief from the symptoms he’s been living with for about 3 months now. He could use prayers that he tolerates the medication without harsh side effects or complications.
We are hoping and praying this will turn things around for Brandon. He could sure use a break!
Today is Brandon’s and Kristen’s wedding anniversary. They celebrated their anniversary last year in his hospital room. They are celebrating at home together this year. It would be nice if they could go out on a dinner date, but at least they are together and have each other.
Avery was riding in the car on Friday and (out of the blue) made prayer hands and said, “God, please make my daddy better. Amen.” God may never hear a sweeter or more sincere prayer. She loves her daddy.
Brandon continues to have bearable and unbearable days. He had a couple of pretty bad days this week. Then there are days when he’s able to draw on what little energy he has and get out of the house, which happened yesterday when he rode with Kristen to pick up Avery. They even stopped by Big Boy to get lunch, although “lunch” for Brandon is a bite or two of solid food when he feels up to it. We can’t wait for the day when he can eat a real meal again. It’s been way too long!
Brandon met with the GI oncology doctor this afternoon and talked at length about the treatment protocol they would normally use for someone with peritoneal mesothelioma not resectable by surgery versus what they can use for Brandon with his kidney situation. He won’t be able to tolerate the “normal” chemo protocol, if you can call it normal given the fact that only 150 people in the United States are afflicted with this disease each year. They did review Brandon’s molecular/genetic profiling results and determined that he doesn’t have the rare tumor types that can be specifically targeted with immunotherapy options available right now. There is one more test they want to run on his tumor tissue to determine if there is a type they didn’t originally test for that can be treated with targeted therapy. But the current plan is to get started with a chemotherapy regimen in hopes of shrinking the tumor that is causing him not to be able to eat and slow or stop other tumors from forming. He will have chemo once a week for two weeks, then he will have a week off. If this treatment protocol shrinks the tumor and/or stops progression, it’s an option for long-term treatment. The oncologist said he has patients who have controlled their tumors in this way for years, and the type of chemo he will be using is one that can be tolerated long term.
His oncologist is going to consult with the oncologist Brandon saw when he went to M. D. Anderson to see if he has any other ideas/options for treatment or if he has a clinical trial open now that Brandon could participate in. He will also continue to monitor new trials and immunotherapy options that may become available in the near future, so although chemo could be a long-term option, it’s not necessarily the only option and it doesn’t mean they won’t continue to explore other treatments.
His first chemo session is scheduled for next Wednesday. We will keep everyone posted.
Brandon summoned up enough strength to make it to a haircut appointment on Saturday. It seems like a long time since he was able to do things like this without a second thought, like most of us do. He also made it to church again on Sunday morning, but he said he was exhausted afterward. Still, getting out of the house two days in a row is something else he hasn’t done in a while.
He has an appointment this afternoon with a medical oncologist to talk about treatment options going forward. It’s been two weeks since the surgery date, and now it’s time to move on to the next phase. Please say an extra prayer for him today. And thanks again for continuing to check in on him and for keeping him in your thoughts.
Brandon was able to get out of the house and go to church yesterday. It took every ounce of energy he had, but he did it. Since coming home from the hospital, he is pushing himself to spend more time sitting up and making an effort to get up and move around the house more. It’s not easy for him, and he’s a long way from feeling good, but he’s not giving in.
Brandon came home this afternoon and was able to spend some good time with Avery. She was happy to have her daddy home. He’s still not feeling too great, but at least he’s home where the hospital staff isn’t coming in every 30 minutes to wake him up.
He wants to thank everyone who has taken the time to send cards, gift cards, food, and most of all, thoughts and prayers!
Brandon didn’t come home today but is scheduled to come home tomorrow. Hopefully in the morning. He is ready. He is getting to the point where he could get some good sleep if they weren’t coming in every 30 minutes to check on him.
Seriously, thank you so much for continuing to check in on him. Your support means so much!
Brandon was able to get up and move around today. They took the NG tube out of his nose/throat last night, and they took some more of his tubes and IVs away today, which enabled him to be a little more mobile. He walked a lap around his hospital floor a few times today, and he sat in the chair for a couple of hours. He’s still having some pain and the uncomfortable full feeling in his stomach, but he’s taking steps toward going home.
If you’d asked last week, we would have told you that we weren’t expecting today to be one of the best days. But we expected Brandon to be recovering from an intensive, major surgery. And we expected to see improvement in the coming days and weeks. What we didn’t expect was to be facing a whole new battle in this war. Brandon didn’t have the best of days today. He’s in pain from the surgery. And he’s mentally exhausted from every hurdle that keeps coming his way.
We are still looking into our treatment options. What we do know is that the we need to have a treatment plan in place that can begin in two weeks, even if that plan changes course down the road.
So many of you have reached out to offer help in so many ways, and we truly appreciate it. Brandon does still check in and reads every comment. Thank you for your continued prayers and support.