It's just one thing after another.....

Friday, July 16, 2010

It's just one thing after another.....

Dick is currently in the hospital. He was admitted last night after we went to the ER because he was complaining of extreme shortness of breath. They discovered he had multiple bloodclots in his lungs. The doctors say it's not related to the brain tumor or radiation treatment in June. But it IS one more problem that can be associated with Cancer....who knew? He is on oxygen to help with the breathing. He's also on blood thinners. At this point we're not sure how long he will be in the (new) hospital in West Chester but he is in good spirits. He's much better than he was yesterday. Your continued thoughts and prayers are most needed and appreciated!

2 comments:

Laura said...: Praying for a quick and successful treatment and hoping you get out of that hospital soon (if you're not out already)! Good to hear you're in good spirits...keep thinking about that beautiful grandson of yours.; July 18, 2010 at 11:24 PM
pastorjenn said...: Psalm 29:11 - The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace.

Peace and strength is my prayer for you! Keep your spirits up and if you see that therapist Troy around the hospital - have him run and get you some ice cream!

Blessings
Jenn Lucas; July 19, 2010 at 2:30 PM

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About Dick

This section provides background on how my cancer was discovered and a few key dates associated with the 2-year journey.

In mid-August 2008, I was taking a shower when I coughed up a small amount of blood. I would probably not have gone to the doctor for that alone, but I already had an appointment for allergy problems. I mentioned it to the doctor at the end of my exam. He thought it was probably nothing, but recommended that I go for a chest x-ray.

An HOUR after the x-ray, he called to say that there was a mass and I should schedule a CT scan immediately.

That led to a visit to the pulmonary doctor, who did a bronchoscopy and a PET scan. On Sept. 10th, he diagnosed me with "non-small cell" lung cancer. The tumor is somewhat larger than a golf ball.

For perspective, I have NEVER smoked. Only 15% of those with lung cancer are non-smokers, and less than half of those are men. Needless to say, I am in the minority in terms of people that get lung cancer. Never the less, it is very real and must be treated aggressively.

On Sept. 29th I had surgery to remove the upper right lobe of my lung, as well as three lymph nodes. The surgery took 2+ hours. I was in the hospital for four days.

On Wednesday October 1 we learned that the pathology report was not good. In addition to the cancer in the upper right lobe of my lung, there was also cancer in at least one lymph node. The pathology clarified that the cancer is adenocarcinoma. While lung cancer is normally associated with smoking, about 10% of the people with this particular type of cancer are non-smokers.

Following surgery, I had chemotherapy from Nov 2008 - Jan 2009, then radiation in Feb & Mar 2009. Scans from May 2009 - Feb 2010 were "clean" with no cancer. On June 2, 2010, an MRI showed a brain tumor. The older updates to this blog track the progress during recovery from surgery, as well as initial chemo and radiation treatments. The more recent entries provide updates on the 2010 brain tumor and treatments.

Dick Clark - Cincinnati

Friday, July 16, 2010