Just a quick update on Dad.  He is still doing well just very tired.  We are going to leave for a while so he can rest.  He just had a visit from family and he put his best face forward.

The plan is for him to have a procedure tomorrow to try and remove most of the tumor blocking his airway to his left lung.  Pending the results of the procedure they will then re-evaluate him for radiation/chemo on the rest of the lung tumor.

Will post more later…

As those of you that visited Wednesday can see Dad is doing quite a bit better.  He is off of the vacuum sealed oxygen mask and back to a regular old nasal cannula so he can talk all he wants now.  His oxygen levels are higher even with less oxygen applied suggesting his lungs are functioning better.   If he continues this way he will even be graduating from the ICU to a room tomorrow.

We did have a discovery of a blood clot in his leg this afternoon but the nurses seemed unconcerned and are treating him for it.  Keep those prayers coming…

P.S. That is his buddy Ziggy that was with him during his first cancers ten years ago.  If you look close his shirt says Guardian Angel and Dad treats him as such.

We have been down a very rocky road with Dad the last 24 hrs.  Not long after we arrived in Houston Dad was acting lethargic and ill.   I checked his temperature and it was 102.2 and after verifying with another thermometer we headed straight to the E.R. around 9:00 pm Tuesday.  Upon arrival his heart rate was 140 bpm and his blood oxygen concentration was only 82%.  Curiously, they didn’t find much of a fever but started him on antibiotics anyway due to his cough.

After a night of ups and downs and a battery of test we learned that Dad does in fact have pneumonia of the left lung and that his primary tumor has grown enough in the past few weeks to now completely obstruct air flow to the left lung.   Dad is basically running on one lung and can’t infuse his blood with enough oxygen without the heavy use of concentrated oxygen.  Once his oxygen levels are up he returns to being Dad and feels great, when it’s low he feels sick, confused, and is combative.

Unfortunately, the prognosis is not good and he is now in the ICU and the best minds in the field are now looking to just sustain Dad and his comfort rather than looking to completely control the cancer.   The few glimmers of hope include the powerful antibiotics they are giving him to cure the pneumonia, possibly evaluate him as a candidate for the use of a stint to manually reopen an airway into the left lung, and even radiation if he manages to beat the odds and become strong enough for treatment.  None of these will cure the cancers but just might give us all a little more time with one of the best men on this Earth.

P.S. A moment I will never forget for as long as I live occurred a couple hours ago as we wheeled a fresh-from-cancer-surgery Mom into Dad’s ICU room so they could see each other at least one last time before Dad gets any worse.  Remember, the majority of Dad’s major downturn today happened after Mother had already been taken back and she was under for surgery.  Traci and I told Mom all the details as soon as we could and all each wanted to do was see each other.   The 43+ years of Love was never shown stronger than when I gently awoke Dad to show him his special guest.  The outstretched arms and sounds of just longing to be close reminded me what this old world is really all about.  I’m not the least bit ashamed to say I cried and am extremely proud of both my Parents.

Keeps those thoughts and prayers coming!

Here is Mom and Dad enjoying the one of the last nights home for a week or so.  If you know my parents you know how big of a deal it is that there is a dog in the house let alone in bed with them.  JJ couldn’t be more happy than to be lying next to his master.

We will be leaving Tuesday and remaining in Houston until Friday at least.  We’ll be at the same Four Points Sheraton on 59 if any of you want to visit.  Stay tuned you all…

The last few days have been mainly positive with a few little problems.  First is Dad has his very first bedsore from sitting down 18 hours a day.  We called in a home health nurse, sweet young lady named Amanda, to help with the care of the wound.  I can now add bedsores to the list of things I know how to handle.

He has also still had a low-grade fever that shows itself in the evening hours.  Every night for the past 4 nights he has had a fever of 99.5 to 100.5 which completely disappears by morning.  We’ll be back at M.D. Anderson Tuesday for Mom and will swing him by the E.R. if this little fever continues its pattern.  His strength has slowly improved each day but he is still unable to walk without assistance.

Feel free to call or stop by while we’re in town.

Here is Mom trying to be a barber before we head back to Houston tomorrow.  She’s in a good mood and Dad is too relative to yesterday.  Dad’s slight fever has ended and he even just got himself a shower.  So fingers are crossed that we might just be on a bit of an upswing.  Follow the “schedule” pages on their respective blogs for an idea of when they will be in town.

Thanks for everything already folks! – Ross

We made it back it town yesterday and am somewhat enjoying a day or two in Sulphur before heading back to M.D. Anderson for more appointments.   Dad was originally excited to be back until he realized this house is not even close to being handicap accessible.   He started his homecoming with having to climb steps to get in his front door, something he hasn’t done in over a month.  That was very hard for him and re-injured or aggravated the same problems with his back and hip area.  He has since gotten pretty discouraged with how weak he has become and how dependent he is on others again.  I finished part of the wheelchair retrofitting today by building the first of two ramps that are needed to get him out of the house without leaving his chair.

On top of that, I have detected a bit of a low-grade fever of 99.5 – 100.5 with him tonight.   If this fever gets any worse we will be headed back to Houston tomorrow get back to his hospital a day early.  Stay tuned…

Dad finished radiation for the third time in ten years at M.D. Anderson (throat, nose, and lung cancer) and got to ring the bell again.  Here he is with his new favorite radiation therapist clapping as he celebrates his last treatments.  He will be resting for at least a couple weeks before chemo can start but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.

Here’s Mom and Dad enjoying or new view of their hospitals from the hotel we will be at through the weekend.  We moved out of Kenneth’s today grateful for the generosity he’s shown but are much closer now as we are overlooking the medical center itself.  Instead of a 40 minute drive each way, we just have a 10 minute drive.

The hotel is the Four Points by Sheraton Southwest off 59.  We are in room 723 so if you’re in town feel free to stop by and say hi.

Tomorrow looks to be a busy day as Dad has radiation in the morning followed by Mom’s pre-op and we have Traci and the kids coming in town to be here for Mother’s surgery Friday.  I’ll keep you guys posted.

Pain was at its worst today.  It’s hard seeing your strong tough Father whimper in pain.  If it wasn’t for the back pain he’d be 1000% better.  We did see the pain specialist today and he received yet more prescriptions so let’s hope they help.  We are learning that the problem looks to be a combination of muscle strains and nerve damage to the spinal cord from the cancer in the spine.  I was even called back from the radiation waiting room to the actual machine that most caregivers and family never get to see in order to help him off the table.  I actually got to witness Dad suffer through the worst pain in his life he said – yippee.

We are getting help from family tomorrow as Mom and Dad have appointments that overlap and no matter how hard I try I can’t be at two places at once.  The help is much appreciated!