Earl officially received his first tattoo today. The tattoo process didn't quite have the appearance of a professional tattoo artist in a tattoo parlor, but rather a more primitive look of a convict in a prison yard. No fancy tattoo tools here . . . just a bottle of ink and a needle. And while he did get 3 dots, they weren't exactly in the infamous "Mi Vida Loca"/"My Crazy Life" style . . . one dot is on his right side, one dot is on his left side and one dot is in the middle of his chest.
He is now ready for radiation.
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Dad + Mom + 3 Girls (24 - not pictured, 18, 16) + 8 Boys (16, 15, 13, 13, 11, 11, 11, 2)
Where there is great love, there are always miracles.
Why a blog?
We originally started this blog in Feb of 2009 when E. was diagnosed with Stage IV Esophageal Cancer so friends and family could follow along on the journey. Along the way, Peanut (E3) was born and E.'s dad (E1) had his own cancer struggles. E. passed away in Dec of 2012 after a valiant and courageous battle.
Because the purpose of this blog was always about E., I've left much of the other family out of it. Now though, I'm using it to share my mom's recent health struggles. I may begin to share more about the rest of our wonderful children as well (his girls - 19 and 17; my boys - 17, 16, 14, 13, 12, 12, and 12, and our Peanut - 3). And I may share more about me too. We shall see.
E's Cancer History (Stage IV Esophageal Cancer):
* Feb 10, 2009 - endoscopy/biopsy - first heard the word "cancer"
* Feb 2009 - CT - showed no evidence of disease spreading (ha! wrong!)
* Feb 16, 2009 - endoscopic ultrasound - staged at T3N1cM1a - Stage IVa esophageal adenocarcinoma
* March and April 2009 - two rounds of chemo (Cisplatin and 5-FU) and 28 sessions of radiation
* May 2009 - PET/CT - "unremarkable"
* May 2009 - endoscopic ultrasound/biopsies - tumor in esophagus no longer apparent, but celiac lymph nodes still positive
* June 2009 - endoscopy/endoscopic ultrasound/biopsies - T3N1M1b; mass at GE junction; malignant gastric polyps
* June 2009 - PET/CT - positive supraclavicular lymph node - now staged as Stage IVb
* June 2009 - Fine needle aspiration/biopsy - supraclavicular lymph node positive
* July and August 2009 - four rounds of chemo (Taxotere, Oxaliplatin, Avastin and Xeloda)
* Sept 2009 - PET/CT - "No Evidence of Disease"
* Sept, Oct, and Nov 2009 - six rounds of chemo (Taxotere, Oxaliplatin, Avastin and Xeloda)
* Dec 2009 - PET/CT - N.E.D.
* Mar 2010 - PET/CT - N.E.D.
* Mar 2010 - Endoscopy/ biopsies - normal; biopsies clean
* July 2010 - PET/CT - N.E.D.
* July 2010 - endoscopy/biopsies - unremarkable EUS; biopsies clean
* Aug 2010 - After some headaches and disorientation, a CT and MRI confirmed two brain tumors (mets from EC)
* Aug 24, 2010 - brain surgery
* Sept 2010 - Oct 2010 - three Cyberknife treatments
* Nov 2010 - PET/CT - clear
* Nov 2010 - MRI of brain - stable
* Jan 2011 - EEG - "abnormal" - seizure activity
* Mar 2011 - MRI of brain - showed "changes," but nothing definitive
* Mar 2011 - PET/CT - clear
* June 2011 - PET/CT - clear
* June 2011 - MRI of brain - stable
* Dec 2011 - PET/CT - clear
* Dec 2011 - MRI of brain - more "changes"
* Jan 2012 - MRI of brain - stable
* Mar 2012 - MRI of brain - stable
* June 2012 - PET/CT - clear
* June 2012 - MRI of brain - stable
* Sept 2012 - MRI of brain - stable
* November 2012 - endoscopy/biopsies - mass in duodenal bulb
* November 2012 - MRI/MRCP of abdomen - lesions in liver - enlarged lymph nodes
* November 2012 - endoscopic ultrasound
* December 2012 - MRI of brain - stable
* December 2012 - PET/CT - mets to liver, pancreas and lymph nodes
* December 2012 - hospice
* Dec 11, 2012 - passed away
About Me
E.
The Family in 2011
Dad + Mom + 3 Girls (24 - not pictured, 18, 16) + 8 Boys (16, 15, 13, 13, 11, 11, 11, 2)
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