Concessions

We've been determined not to be defined by this cancer. We're working to maintain as near a normal schedule as possible. However, the best laid plans....

We're now scheduling surgery for October 26. Judy will need a pre-op visit on October 22. Our thinking was, "Fly in mid morning on the 22nd, be there a couple of hours, then catch an early evening flight home." Judy was hoping to work a couple of hours before the flight.

I just got an e-mail from our contact at M. D. Anderson and she said that if appointments began at 11:00, not to plan on a flight home any earlier than 7:00. She suggested waiting until Friday, or staying in Houston until the surgery Monday. So much for maintaining a normal routine.

We're also facing challenges in getting from Lubbock to Houston economically. I'm going with her for the surgery. All flights from Lubbock to Houston are expensive on Sunday because of the Texas Tech/Texas A.&M. football game. There are no rapid reward seats available on any flight that day. So much for economically getting to Houston. We're now trying to decide if we should drive again, but we are not sure how Judy would fare on a nearly 10 hour drive home following surgery. We might drive down and fly her home. Oh well, minor details in the march to get her cancer free and a long-term survivor. We can handle this.

Surgery delayed

Yesterday Judy spoke with the physician's assistant to her surgeon. They were discussing a date for the additional surgery. When Judy mentioned she was extremely bruised, that raised a flag for the P.A. We sent pictures of the bruise and today the surgeon decided to wait 4 weeks to allow time for healing to occur. That means the earliest we could schedule surgery for the lumpectomy is Oct. 26. We'll talk with the doctor tomorrow and set a tentative time for the surgery.

There is no problem with waiting. This cancer has probably been there for quite some time and we "know where it lives." We will get it, but in due time.

Soon (definition of "soon" open to my interpretation) I will post the chronology and a brief description of our journey to date. Thank you for your interest in my precious wife.

Update as of September 28

Last Wednesday Judy had another biopsy--this one under MRI. Today we received the pathologists report. The node they saw at M.D. Anderson has turned out to be residual cancer. It's not a big cancer, but it's cancer. Judy is a candidate for another lumpectomy. The surgeon is considering when to operate. The earliest date possible is October 19, but due to the bruising from her biopsy, we might have to wait 6 weeks before the surgery.

We know they will be able to remove the remaining cancer and, following this other surgery, she will be cancer free. Statistics tell us that 88 out of 100 women who have successful lumpectomies are still cancer free 10 years later. With the addition of radiation or chemotherapy, or a combination of both, the number of women cancer free 10 years later increases by 2 to 4. We want the best possible odds working in our favor, so will do whatever we can to gain the advantage.

We feel tremendously blessed to have discovered this additional cancer. We don't know if the cancer would have been discovered had we not gone to Houston. Doesn't matter. God has provided through several doctors, both in Lubbock and Houston. We're going to lick this thing, we just have to walk through the process of getting it removed and getting the additional therapy for Judy. As of this moment it appears our trip to China for Christmas is still a go. We know this could change, but are still hopeful of spending Christmas with our kids.

Thanks for your prayers and support. Soon I'll post the chronology of the cancer, in case you want all the details.

In the Tumbler

This blog is created to share information about our bout with cancer. The cancer is in Judy's body but we've got cancer. I'll try to keep it updated so you can follow along and pray with insight.

You might wonder about the name of my blog--Tumbler 2. The 2 is simple--just plain tumbler was taken, so, the need for "2." But why "Tumbler?" Reasonable question.

As I have been "marinating" in the book of James [Time out. I probably need to explain why I'm using the term "marinating." We have a friend from Romania named Titi Bulzan. He has mastered English and the art of transferring meanings. When we cook, we often marinate our meat so it will absorb the flavor of the marinating liquid. Titi considers spending time in the study of a topic to be similar to marinating meat. I love his term and have borrowed it--have adopted it for my own use. Time in] about the testing and trials working to make us complete, it seemed that James was referring to the way God chips, sands, grinds, buffs and polishes us to make us into the person He has planned for us to be. The best picture of this process comes from a church member in Tulsa who was a rock hound. He would find ugly pieces of various kinds of rocks, put them into a tumbler with some grit so they would rub against each other. The completed product was a thing of beauty. My analogy of the tumbler helps me understand what God is up to in my life. The cancer that has come into our lives has us in the tumbler with the big grit.

Tonight I'm just getting this blog established and tomorrow I'll detail our journey to date.