Kim finished her 3rd round of Chemo today. She will report to the Syracuse hospital within 48 hours for that “make-your-joints-hurt-but-boost-your–immune-system" shot. If the pattern holds true, next week will be her queasy, tired time. I am always amazed at her strength and example. I think she is a hero. She is doing well and she looks great.
A lot has happened since the last update. Three weeks ago she was just beginning her 2nd round. She happened to have a reaction on day 2 and they needed to stop the treatment for a while. When they re-started it, they did it at turtle pace which seemed to work OK. It was not a pleasant experience for her but she was able to get through it.
This cycle went better. The medication she took before and during day 2 worked so there was no adverse reaction and they did not need to stop the treatment. However, the best news came at the beginning of this series. Because she is participating in a study group, she needs to see doctors and complete forms before they can start the Chemo each round. They also check the progress through a series of different test at different times. This time they did a CAT scan. We were hoping for good news and we got it. The tumor is shrinking and the cancerous fluids are subsiding.
Kim makes the most of life between sessions. She has celebrated the baptism of grandson, J.J, she enjoyed the traditional annual family hayrack ride, she goes into work as much as possible, she looks forward to the sister’s night together, she stays in touch with the daily harvest report, she attends community and school events, she is among the locals who line the streets and wave flags to welcome a fallen soldier home to his final resting spot, she helps Liz look for a larger place to live, she spends as much time as she can with grand-daughter, Hailey. AND she is taking care of herself, going in for blood work every Monday and getting rest too. She packs a lot into living.
Kim will have her next session (#4) the first week of November. This works out well as she hopes to be back up to full speed to enjoy the Thanksgiving week and a family wedding before starting the whole thing over again.
It is still a tough, life threatening battle, but she is strong in good spirits and fighting a good fight!
Jan Snyder
