tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83365296999723803632024-03-21T16:50:34.741-07:00Matthew & Crystal Budge Family Cancer Update SiteUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger27125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-58738574433402294952010-03-15T16:18:00.000-07:002009-05-04T09:15:54.845-07:00Welcome<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9bPfNvd50fGQrmz4xuPFLcxXfAlxxNTeqP6df6sWq5I0kHEc248BobXpH2m9dLXED3fxMqQ9HuS_w1-XfrooWH3QqvZVt1ulwefSCEhIatg7vzTAXz5ZN4tJFffAbXSRHQk5qblCy7SU/s1600-h/BudgeFamily3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5184468535544197826" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; cursor: pointer; text-align: center;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9bPfNvd50fGQrmz4xuPFLcxXfAlxxNTeqP6df6sWq5I0kHEc248BobXpH2m9dLXED3fxMqQ9HuS_w1-XfrooWH3QqvZVt1ulwefSCEhIatg7vzTAXz5ZN4tJFffAbXSRHQk5qblCy7SU/s400/BudgeFamily3.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center">Matthew Neil Budge<br />1972 - 2008 </div><br />Matthew Neil Budge (age 36) passed away Wednesday evening, September 24th at his home in Lehi, UT, after a seven month battle with <a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/03/neuroendocrine-carcinoma-by-c-howell.html">neuroendocrine carcinoma</a>.<br /><br />Matt and Crystal invite you to "join us on <a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/03/matt-says.html">our journey of faith</a>" and would like all of you to know <a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/03/how-we-have-been-helped.html">how you have helped</a>. Matt and Crystal would also like to say <a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/04/friends-and-family.html">Thank you</a> to all of you.<br /><br />Matt was a dynamic, happy, and kind person. He is a wonderful father, husband, brother, son, and friend. His diagnosis of cancer came as a shock to all of us. We want to show our love and support to them. The purpose of this site is:<br /><br /><p></p><ol><li>To post how his family is doing</li><li>To provide a medium where others can share <em>encouragement and love</em></li><li>To provide a convenient way for donations to reach the family</li></ol>You can leave a note of support for the family in the <a href="https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8336529699972380363&postID=5873857443340229495">comments section</a>. <style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com148tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-92081533083985197232009-05-04T09:12:00.000-07:002009-05-04T09:22:37.444-07:00Update May 4, 2009<div>Dear Friends and Family,<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div>Thank you again for your profound support, faith, prayers, and kindness. Many of you have expressed an interest in continuing to follow our family and to this end I have created a private blog which you are welcome to view. Please just leave your email in the box below and I will send you an invitation.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div>The children and I have moved into our own home and are hard at work building a new life. I am working on a teaching license and Master's degree while I teach math to middle grade students and transition to full-provider role in our family. The children are hard at work finishing up their first full year of public school, and are taking good care of me. We know Matt watches over us daily and we try to make him proud.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div>Your generousity has made this process so much easier. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.<br /><br /></div> <div> </div> <div>Love,</div> <div>Crystal and children</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-72999833783745110592008-11-03T04:59:00.000-08:002008-11-03T05:00:16.082-08:002 November 2008Thank you to all. Your cards, letters, calls, visits, gifts, and especially your prayers have blessed our family profoundly. At school, other children have reached out to ours with love and kindness. Teachers have been sensitive and compassionate. Our neighborhood and church ward have been generous with food, with babysitting, with playdates, and with ongoing offers of support and availability. Family and friends across the country and even further have called and written to share their hearts, their memories, and their faith. We are amazed at the reach one life can have. It is true that we do not understand our own influence. You probably underestimate your own. The thoughtfulness of each of you has touched our hearts and we want you to know that your kindness to us, and to others, is never wasted. When you feel to reach out and bless another life- do it! We have learned that such efforts are received in gratitude, not annoyance, as a blessing, not a burden.<br /><br />This past month or so has been a time of many firsts, and we hurtle toward others. The first wedding anniversary I spent on a mini-retreat in Park City, thinking and crying and writing and praying. The first Halloween was complete with cute costumes and a gluttonous take in candy, but eight-year-old Bekah returned to say, “Halloween doesn’t feel like Halloween. We did these things, but I don’t feel happy.” It was a hard day for me too. The hardest, actually, which was unexpected. Matt loves Halloween and would always be a sucker for new Halloween baskets, way too many treats, way too many houses to trick-or-treat. We missed his fun and his enthusiasm sorely. The first Monday Family Home Evening, and every one since, began at the ce metery where we rearranged flowers and listened to a special goodbye message Matt recorded, sharing his love with each of us and emphasizing his testimony and his continued presence. At parent teacher conference I received a little folder of work from Rachel. Our first grader had written that her favorite thing her mom does for her is, “when you take me to the semetary.”<br /><br />We slowly feel our way into the rest of our life. At times I have felt to cry- come back, come back… but more often my prayers are simply- don’t leave me, don’t ever leave me. Matt is here. His love and influence are warm and calming. He has not and could not cease to care and to exert all possible effort for our benefit. What a strength it is to know that this day and every day for the rest of my life he will love me. He will never forget, not for a single day.<br /><br />Sari gave a presentation in class recently that she was very nervous about. She practiced late the night before and was ready to go in the morning. When I asked her about it after school she told me her Daddy was there to listen to her at night, and that he was there for her speech. She knew he would be there for her. She said she knew that now, he would always be there. He won’t miss a thing.<br /><br />Thank you again for your love, your service, and your prayers. I believe God is bringing about a miracle in this story, and you are part of it.<br /><br />Crystal (and with gratitude, from Matt)Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-32657983324714776212008-09-25T14:50:00.000-07:002008-09-25T15:56:01.122-07:00September 25, 2008Dear Friends and Family,<br /><br />Matthew Neil Budge passed away peacefully last night, Wednesday September 24, at 10:20pm. He was attended by his parents, his aunt (a nurse), and me.<br /><br />I have realized for a while that this particular entry would fall to me. The time to think has not helped at all in knowing what to say. Do I say goodbye or do I ask for help to staunch the bleeding of this mortal wound? They say the heart will heal, with time. There may come a point when this interior pain moves from stabbing, to throbbing, to aching, to intermittent, to an occasional twinge. I hope so. I have a feeling my heart will heal into a new one entirely. The old one goes with Matt.<br /><br />And yet… the sun came up this morning and the mountains flushed rose. Their flanks are a riot of orange, greens, and reds. Autumn makes itself known today in color and light and that wonderful brisk hint of chill that is more of a smell than a feeling. This has been my favorite time of year since Matt and I were married twelve Octobers ago and made our first home in the shadows of these very mountains, rich with fall. What years they have been! That first spring brought our son Nathanael, ten weeks premature and determined to make his mark on the world. His dad could hold that baby in his cupped hands. The following year we welcomed Sariah in the summertime and her sunshine blessed our life. Her dad said having a daughter made him want to be a better man. Another year brought Bekah in February, our sweetheart just before Valentine’s. Her dad aptly named her Joy. Rachel joined us in the chill of winter. Her dad named her Dawn for the light that crested the mountains the Sabbath morning of her birth, and for her mama. In gratitude we welcomed Hannah just after Thanksgiving, the fulfillment of the Lord’s promises and the apple of her Daddy’s eye. A year ago last spring came Caleb, known to us in a dream years prior. His dad had dreamed our family and knew Caleb was coming, last to join us. At his birth the doctors said I would have no more children. One year later, to the day, the doctors said Matt would not live out the year.<br /><br />Today feels a little like Christmas. I woke this morning between two wiggly daughters, with two more in the room and two sons joining shortly. We talked and cried and laughed and snuggled and had cold cereal with grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins… in our PJs. Today feels like a holiday where the time is not measured 2 o clock, 3 o clock, time for homework, time for bed… somehow holiday time is not measured at all. Today we eat and sleep and talk and plan and play and remember. It seems Matt is simply resting somewhere after lunch while the children run outside and I catch up on the computer. There is a sense of peace and a strong presence of love. He is not far.<br /><br />Soon I will need to face the coming decades of my life. But not yet. For now we cling to the warmth of family and the love of our Matthew. Of the few things I know, one is that our marriage did not end last night with his breathing. We are sealed, bonded in an eternal unit unbreakable by the frailties of mortality. He loves me, and with a broken heart, I surely love him. Our children belong to us through ties this world cannot touch. As certainly as the sun rose this morning to touch the mountains and my heart, we will rise one morning reunited past time and into eternity, in joy and inseparable.<br /><br />Thank you all for your love, your kindness, and especially your prayers. We have witnessed many miracles and I am profoundly grateful for your faith that has made them possible. Please join us Sunday evening for a viewing 6-8pm, and Monday morning 8:30-9:30am, with a 10am funeral at the Lehi 34th ward chapel, and grave dedication following at the Lehi City Cemetery, Utah. Your continued faith, prayers, support and love mean more than I can say. Please pray for our children.<br /><br />With love,<br /><br />Crystal Budge (and Matt)<br /><br /><em></em><br /><em>The Lehi 34th Ward Chapel is located at 1631 E 900 N, Lehi, Utah, 84043.</em>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-11098794929916763712008-08-27T04:41:00.000-07:002008-08-27T04:43:58.996-07:00Update 8/26/2008Dear Friends and Family,<br /><br />It has been a long time since we've provided an update on our situation. Mostly that has been because I've been in the hospital for most of the last three weeks.<br /><br />As I mentioned in a previous update, we had reached "best response" with the current chemo we had been using. The protocol is to treat two more times past this best response period, so my final chemo of this type was administered on July 28 – 30. We're not sure why, but this particular round really hit me hard and when I went in for a follow up visit on August 5, I had to lay on the exam table because I was too tired to sit up in a chair. We had also had a CT scan on August 4 to determine if the cancer was growing or staying relatively neutral in size. Unfortunately, it showed that the cancer was slightly more prevalent in the liver, although it didn't appear that the liver itself was any bigger. However, external exams by a couple of different doctors, plus my own opinion, didn't agree. It appeared to us that it was definitely getting bigger.<br /><br />Anyway, once my blood counts came back while I was waiting to see the doctor on my August 5 appointment, it showed that I was severely anemic and needed a blood transfusion. By that time in the afternoon, the only way I could get an immediate transfusion was to be admitted to the hospital, so that is what they did. In the hospital, however, they began to discover a number of interesting things, primarily that my electrolytes – the chemicals that balance out the way your nerves work – were extremely low. The two they were most concerned about were potassium and magnesium. Imbalances in either off these electrolytes can be very serious and can also cause dizziness, disorientation, and a number of other side effects. My magnesium levels, for instance, were so low that I was in the range where they worry about major seizures occurring. So I spent a couple of days more in the hospital while they boosted my electrolyte balances and we discussed what to do about treating the cancer from this point on. <br /><br />Wanting to be aggressive and give myself the best chance of beating this disease, I was interested in moving to the next agent, and Crystal agreed. Our physician concurred and suggested we give ourselves the best chance by moving to the next agent as soon as possible, so early Thursday morning they started the next agent. Since I was in the hospital they saw no reason not to start it around 1 am in the morning. By Friday, with my electrolytes back in balance and with the extra blood I felt positively energetic so they discharged me from the hospital with a number of supplements to keep my electrolytes up and we went home. <br /><br />Friday and Saturday we had a number of family members visit and we watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics as well as the first few events on Saturday. Already, though, I was exhibiting some strange behavior. First, I developed a fixation with the 7th Harry Potter book and became convinced that I had to read it immediately. Even though I had difficulty because of more dizziness and an inability to focus on the page, I skimmed over every single page (starting about 290 where I had gotten to previously) by the next morning. I'm not sure that what I did qualified as actually reading the book, but it satisfied my obsession. All day Saturday, however, I spent sitting in various locations throughout the house with a relatively vacant expression on my face, and when anyone asked me a question I simply couldn't answer – I couldn't come up with words that made any sense to me or to them. Needless to say, this was very frustrating to Crystal and everyone else who was trying to help me recover from the hospital and expected me to be coherent. The worst was Saturday night when I could not go to sleep because I was certain that there was no way Crystal could finish her lesson for church the next day (she teaches the 8 year olds), if she didn't print off the lesson immediately. I lay in bed for about two hours before I got up to print off the lesson for her and discovered that I couldn't – I couldn't even think clearly enough to remember how to get to the church's website. At that point I began to panic completely, woke Crystal up, explained my concerns about her lesson, and asked her to please come take care of it so that I could rest. To her credit she realized that I wasn't being rational and simply got up, printed it off, and reassured me that everything was well in hand. <br /><br />This kind of fixation and panic over something relatively minor should have been a major clue that something was really wrong, but of course, I wasn't thinking clearly, so that didn't occur to me. A few hours later, however, Crystal reached over to see how I was doing and discovered that I had developed a fever (depending on which thermometer we used, it was either 102.7 or 104). Either way, it was serious. Crystal called the after hours hot line for the cancer office and was told to bring me to the ER. My brother, who is an internal medicine doctor and had been visiting, agreed with that course of action so the two of them loaded me up in the car and took me back to the hospital. This was Sunday, August 10.<br /><br />Once there we found out that my white blood cell count had dwindled to practically zero, so I literally had no immune system at all. The fever was what is called a neutropenic fever and is caused by the fact that I was completely unprotected against any infection. In fact, either before or after I arrived at the hospital I picked up a staph infection in my blood and I've been on antibiotics for the last two weeks to get rid of it. Luckily, it wasn't one of the serious strains of staph, but it was still a somewhat dangerous version. <br /><br />In addition to my immune system being compromised, they found that my electrolyte imbalances were completely out of whack again, and that I was even more anemic than before. Apparently, the mixture of the two chemo agents so close together was simply more than my body could handle, even though the agents don't normally interact and compound each other's negative effects, they did in my case and threw my entire system out of line. At many points during the first few days I was in bad enough shape that I could easily have died from one of the many complications. <br /><br />By the time I was doing well enough to leave the hospital on Wednesday, August 20, we had a difficult choice to make. Should we continue with the new chemo, which only gave us a 20% chance of the cancer even responding to the chemo, or should we accept that this cancer is incurable (it has a 97% mortality rate in the first year after diagnosis, and that assumes you are being treated) and stay away from the chemo – which should also help me stay away from the hospital? As you can imagine, it was a very difficult choice to make. Either way, they weren't going to let me try the new chemo for at least another couple of weeks simply because they needed to make sure that I had recovered enough to handle the effects of another dose.<br /><br />Given the odds that the new chemo would work (not very good), and my desire to have a better quality of life and be able to interact with my family – especially the children – without the problems of having side effects such as being incoherent and disoriented by the chemo, we decided to go off treatment and transition to hospice care at home. Plus, I don't want my electrolyte balance out of whack any more – it is rather disconcerting to not be able to think clearly or express yourself. Plus, I would really like to stay out of the hospital if at all possible. <br /><br />I don't know how much time that leaves me (most doctors give me 2 months, give or take a few weeks). Some days I feel almost normal mentally, although physically I continue to be completely fatigued and unable to do many of the things you would consider normal. Other days, I don't feel so great in any way, although I haven't been delirious or incoherent like I was before going into the hospital this last time. I expect, however that I still have a few months, and I'm using them as best as I can to spend time with my family. Crystal is also encouraging me to write and/or dictate letters to each of the children for important events in their lives, and I've done some of that as well. I need to spend more time on that in particular since, with 6 kids, I need to make sure that they all get letters from me. I want to remain a part of their life even if I am going to die. <br /><br />I want to thank all of you who have stuck with us through this trial. Until this happened I had no idea how many friends Crystal and I had made, and I love you all for your kindness, generosity and love. I'm not sure when this will come to its close for me, but that really isn't the most important thing. What is more important is that Crystal will be left to bear the burden of raising 6 children by herself. Luckily, she'll have the help of family and new friends we've made here in Utah, but that will in no way make up for me being gone. Please remember her and our children in your prayers. I love her so much, and the children too, that it is breaking my heart to know that I will have to leave them and that I can't do anything about it. My only consolation is knowing that the Lord will help take care of them, perhaps through your efforts or the efforts of others we haven't met yet. Either way, thank you all for all you have done, and again, please keep my wife and children in your thoughts and prayers. <br /><br />With Love,<br /><br />Matt BudgeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-76640159917699843872008-07-31T12:31:00.000-07:002008-07-31T12:32:09.510-07:00Update 7-31-2008Although this is late, I wanted to get a quick update out to everyone. We continue to have mixed news. I completed what should be my final round of this first type of chemo yesterday, and I'm feeling a little better in regards to nausea and fatigue, although I'm starting to experience additional bloating (edema) in my legs. Also, my liver function tests are starting to get a little higher. I haven't had a chance to check with my doctor to see the relevance of these elevations, although they are not super high. Previous elevations have been considered within a "normal" range, although these are slightly higher than those others had been. Depending on the results and his feedback, we may need to move to a second agent relatively soon, but we'll know more in the next few weeks.<br /><br />On the positive front, my red blood cell count and hemoglobin counts are much higher, which means that the new blood cell booster is beginning to work – and also accounts for having less fatigue.<br /><br />On a much more positive account, we've been able to take advantage of some opportunities to visit family. We spent a week out in Colorado visiting Crystal's family. We have been blessed with wonderful in-laws on both sides and I was treated like a king while I was there. A good thing too, since I wasn't really able to do much more than lie around and provide good company (I hope). Crystal's sister Sarah kept me plied with her wonderful fruit and yogurt smoothies, probably part of the reason I gained weight, although it was well worth it. And we got to meet her and husband Jon's newest addition, and Crystal's namesake, Grace Crystal. What a sweet baby. Basically, she just sat around and cooed whenever she wasn't hungry or needed attending to. My only disappointment for the entire trip was that I simply wasn't able to make our annual trip to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. As the name implies, it's built into the side of the mountain, so the trek can be a little grueling, and I simply wasn't up to it. It's tough to have to give up family traditions, even little ones, simply because of health. Especially since I like feeding the giraffes almost as much as the kids enjoy it.<br /><br />We followed up the trip to Colorado with some rest and then a day trip to Paris, ID – just north of Bear Lake – for the annual Budge family reunion. Every year around the 24th of July the extended Budge clan – my dad and his siblings and as many of their children as possible – get together in Paris. With as many of us as there are now, we rarely get better than 50% showing, but it is so fun to see everyone who is able to come. This year my cousin Rich even called in from Iraq. His wife, Heather Ann, and their kids attended in person. Even though the visit and drive were difficult on me – it was just long – I was so glad to see everyone. You develop deep relationships with cousins and aunts and uncles that you draw on, even if you don't see each other more than once or twice a year – and you don't realize how much you miss everyone until you see them again. My thanks especially go out to all those who have helped us out by helping my parents get this basement apartment arranged and available to us. We could not have done it without all of you.<br /><br />So, in all, although we don't have much to report on the medical front – next CT scan is a few weeks down the road – we did have some eventful weeks that were a tremendous blessing to our family.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-57160191544867324052008-07-07T13:05:00.000-07:002008-07-07T13:09:07.215-07:00July 7, 2008 UpdateThis last week has been a mixed bag of success and disappointment. Obviously, we continue to be disappointed that the results of the last CT scan showed that I may have reached "best response" on the current chemo regimen. The standard response at this point is to go two rounds of chemo past this "best response" point, so I had another round of chemo starting last Monday. This time around the fatigue really hit hard, but the nausea seems to be a lot less – I'm very grateful for small blessings.<br /><br />As part of every chemo treatment they take my blood to determine the levels of blood cells as well as my liver functions – how well the liver is responding to treatment. This last time around – Monday's blood draw – we had good news on all the blood functions, including the red blood cell count which is back above the threshold level. Although given my level of fatigue, it may have dipped down again since then. I'll be going in next Monday for another blood draw to determine if it has gone back down or stayed in the acceptable range. The disappointing portion of this blood draw was the liver function tests which showed that they are starting to move back up. So far, they're still within an acceptable range, except the LST, which could be an indication of further breakdown of the tumor, so it may not be all bad. But it's still worrisome when things have been stable for a few months and then start to move even a little upwards. Like I said, however, we'll get another reading on Monday which should help us determine what direction we are trending.<br /><br />But, like I said, the last few weeks have been a mixed bag – and you've heard the disappointing news first. Some of the good news is that the blood transfusion I received two weeks ago really made a huge difference. I was even able to take my family to the local amusement park thanks to the increased energy. Granted, it was at a much slower pace than I usually have done amusement parks, but these are the kinds of things I've always loved doing with my kids – so it was very nice to have enough of a break to provide that kind of experience.<br /><br />Perhaps the highlight of the whole week, however, was a special opportunity provided by our new next door neighbor, Randy Jensen. As part of working with him in a church assignment I discovered that he is a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Those who know me well know that I've always enjoyed singing and have always hoped that at some time in the future I might be able to have the opportunity to sing with the choir. Of course, I'll need some serious work in terms of voice lessons and music theory, but I've always thought I'd have plenty of time to work those in. When Randy discovered how I felt, he not only arranged for us to get tickets for a special concert coming up at the end of July, but he also set me up to be a guest singer with the choir during their Thursday rehearsal.<br /><br />I'm not sure I can even begin to describe what a special experience this was. For starters, the director of the choir is Mac Wilberg – who was also my director when I was at BYU and participated in the BYU Men's Chorus. Dr. Wilberg is a masterful conductor and it was a thrill to sit under his direction once again. Of course, he didn't remember me specifically – with almost 300 members in the Men's Chorus each year, I didn't expect him to, but I was impressed that he guessed correctly about the time I would have been in the choir.<br /><br />Perhaps the most poignant part of the whole experience was the choice of songs. The choir was preparing for their Sunday morning broadcast, "Music and the Spoken Word". This week's theme was, "Songs of the Land," – a collection of uniquely American folk songs and spirituals appropriate for the week after the 4th of July. It was hard not to be in tears as we sang, "Deep River, my home is over Jordan" and "When the Saints Go Marching In". So many of the songs were about pain and suffering and the eventual overcoming of the Saints through the goodness and love of Jesus Christ that it was hard not to feel like there was a personal message in the selection for me. My situation is not nearly as tragic or painful as that suffered by so many, especially those broken apart by slavery and other human cruelty, but I am so grateful for their willingness to put to music their faith and hope. What a legacy to leave us who so little deserve their consideration. Crystal also said that she didn't have a dry eye for the entire two hour rehearsal from the time they came to escort me to sit with the choir until I returned to the front row seats of the concert hall where she had viewed the rehearsal.<br /><br />The final, unexpected treat of the evening was when I found out that the choir hosts had actually taken a number of pictures and were going to pass them along to my email. So, I've actually gotten a few pictures of my bald head singing with the choir. At one point in the program they actually introduced the two of us who were guest singers and the final comment was that with my new hairdo I would fit right in with many of the men (including Dr. Wilberg). Not quite – most of them still have eyebrows, even if they don't have much hair – but it was a nice show of solidarity.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie0mVbDxxsYqG44aw489x1APU-IZiHoczYnKmHKnkKCP-KIPjh6jYk30HrJuB_EC0hZAxk9NtSEPdRz7WUdXL-5_90E3bZPjzwE38k8dx2pLsd68OCypQki7v0wt41Ms6BjCx0abkriMs/s1600-h/a-July3.2008.DRG._008.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie0mVbDxxsYqG44aw489x1APU-IZiHoczYnKmHKnkKCP-KIPjh6jYk30HrJuB_EC0hZAxk9NtSEPdRz7WUdXL-5_90E3bZPjzwE38k8dx2pLsd68OCypQki7v0wt41Ms6BjCx0abkriMs/s400/a-July3.2008.DRG._008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220366559988402578" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVXQd1e-8ALpjLNvQKWf_ZBG5_cKF7YfqkxzR_UiUstKx2X5FcVF7xJKDiGvyjHgWKQ1sCL6uK6vnvcYzwYsLyKql5N_ux7zsmxisXG0tRy0NEOdiD4OmAgT8OtmGFcpkxrAiH27uB5gA/s1600-h/a-July3.2008.DRG._037.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVXQd1e-8ALpjLNvQKWf_ZBG5_cKF7YfqkxzR_UiUstKx2X5FcVF7xJKDiGvyjHgWKQ1sCL6uK6vnvcYzwYsLyKql5N_ux7zsmxisXG0tRy0NEOdiD4OmAgT8OtmGFcpkxrAiH27uB5gA/s400/a-July3.2008.DRG._037.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5220366563747095266" border="0" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-84453540707141278592008-06-27T14:18:00.000-07:002008-06-27T14:19:36.710-07:00June 26 UpdateI've had a pretty busy week so far – on top of fatigue that has been incredible. But, we've figured out what the main cause for the fatigue is and I've been able to get some help with that – more in a minute.<br /><br />First, as many of you know, I was scheduled for a new CT scan on Monday so we could see how the cancer is progressing and responding to chemo. We met with our doctor on Tuesday to go over the results and unfortunately found that the results were a mixed bag of good and bad news. The good news is that the cancer has not progressed or grown, but the bad news is that it also hasn't reduced any from the initial reduction we reported on six weeks ago. As difficult as it was to learn that there hasn't been any further reduction, our doctor reassured us that this was not necessarily a bad thing. Based on some of the pain I'd been experiencing, he had thought that the tumors had begun to grow again, and he was quite relieved to discover that it had not grown. In fact, he said that if there had actually been a reduction he would have been giddy. Apparently, the maximum effectiveness with chemotherapy is usually reached after 4 – 6 treatments, so my response is what was expected. Any additional reduction would have been beyond the normal response expectation. <br /><br />The plan at this point is to continue with two more chemo treatments to make sure we get the maximum effectiveness from this type of chemo. After that, I'll need some time to recover from being on chemo. Some of you will remember that the key to administering chemotherapy is to poison the cancer for as long as possible without killing the patient. And, true to expectations, each round of chemo has been progressively more difficult, so two more rounds would probably be about as much as I could handle anyway. So, I'll get a few months of respite from chemo while I recover from the effects of the last months' worth of treatment. Hopefully, we won't see any growth from the cancer during this period – if we don't, then once the cancer starts up again we'll be able to use the same type of chemo to knock it out. If, on the other hand, the tumors start to grow relatively quickly, that would indicate that they have become resistant to my current chemo treatment and I'll need to move to a different type of agent. Then it will be a race to get me to a point when I can handle a new chemo therapy before the tumors grow too much. Obviously, we're hoping for a long period when the cancer doesn't grow at all so that I can get back to relatively normal health before needing to go back on chemo. Besides, with enough time, my hair might actually grow back. <br /><br />As for the increased fatigue and more difficulty I've been experiencing with each new round of chemo – a lot of it can be attributed to the effect that the chemo is having on my blood cells. The chemo I am taking targets fast growing cells and blood cells are some of the fast growing type of cells that tend to be hardest hit by the chemo. We've dealt with the effect on white blood cells by getting a shot which stimulates the blood marrow. However, my red blood cell count has continued to go down with every week. Since the red cells are the ones that carry oxygen to the rest of my body, it's no wonder that I have been having fatigue. This last appointment my levels were so low that the doctor was actually surprised that I had enough energy for the visit. <br /><br />The solution? A transfusion of two units of packed red blood cells and a shot which stimulates the growth of my own red blood cells. The good news is that the transfusion was yesterday and I'm already experiencing much more energy. The shot was given on Tuesday and although it takes a little longer to kick in, it should be helping by today or tomorrow. It's nice to have a little more energy back. Of course, the bad news is that I'll have to give up my plans for competing in the Tour de France this year, since both the shot and the transfusion are exactly the type of "doping" that gets cyclists banned from competition. I know that's a disappointment to most of you who were looking forward to me competing this year, but sometimes that's how life goes. <br /><br />MattUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-11948423237796400772008-06-14T14:28:00.000-07:002008-06-14T14:29:54.590-07:00Update 6/14/2008June 14 Update<br /><br />Dear Friends and Family –<br /><br />Once again the time has escaped me and I find I am sending out one of these updates much later than I had anticipated. For the most part, that is actually good news. My test results continue to come back in the normal range for my liver and kidney functions, indicating that my system is handling the chemo just fine. Also, this is a pretty good indication that the chemo is actually working and continuing to cause the tumors to shrink. In fact, my during my most recent physician appointment on Wednesday, June 11, our secondary physician, Jane McPherson (quality of life and pain management) believed that she had noticed a significant decrease in the size of the liver, which would be a tremendous relief.<br /><br />Up until the last few days I’ve been in more pain than since the first few weeks (nothing compares with the first few weeks), so we’ve been wondering what’s going on. It’s a relief to have the tests coming back positive, so we’re hopeful that this is simply a continuing indication that the cancer is being killed off and the pain is just my liver trying to process the dead and dying material. I’ve got a follow up CT scan scheduled for a week from Monday to see if the tumors continue to shrink, and if they do, then we really will be continuing to experience more miracles. We’ve changed my pain management so that I’m actually taking less pain meds, but getting a continuous release of the dose. I don’t tend to get the “buzz” from my meds any more, but the pain is much better controlled, and since I really don’t want to get “buzzed”, this is a good thing. <br /><br />The chemo itself continues to be a mixed bag. Just when I begin to think I’ve figured out how to manage the fatigue, I seem to be hit with another round, which is my major excuse for not keeping up with the blog. Plus, I’m trying to spend more time with my family and children, not to mention help Crystal move into this wonderful basement apartment my parents have provided us, so we’re keeping busy. I also had the opportunity to participate on a men’s cancer retreat through a group called <a href="http://www.reelrecovery.org/">www.ReelRecovery.org</a>. They organized a combination fly-fishing / cancer support group for men currently suffering or recovering from cancer. It was a wonderful experience, and I’d encourage any of you who might want to help organizations that help men with cancer to check them out. They’ve promised to send pictures and other memorabilia from the retreat, so as soon as I receive those, I’ll make another posting so you all get a play-by-play review of the retreat. It was nice to get away for a while and focus only on fishing and learning from others – not on the fact that I’m in a daily struggle for my life. <br /><br />More than anything, however, I continue to be amazed and grateful at the time I’ve been given. Although we are still dealing with so many unknowns regarding my treatment and the eventual outcome, I feel like I’ve been given an extra lease on life. I’m not in such great shape that I’m going to take up skydiving or most of the other activities that people talk and sing about doing when they realize they might not have very long to live, but I am grateful for the extra time I am getting to spend with my family. To plagiarize a corny line from “Star Wars”, “A death sentence is not an easy thing to live with”. Nevertheless, I’m discovering that it’s much better than the alternative. Besides, every week, every day brings good things along with the difficult – the trick has been to learn to focus on the good and minimize, as much as possible, the bad. I continue to work on accomplishing that goal. <br /><br />With Love,<br /><br />MattMatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16093604914726987402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-24210475599029793092008-05-21T14:47:00.000-07:002008-05-21T14:55:39.495-07:00May 20, 2008 Update<div align="left">As I mentioned in the last update, we were scheduled for a CT scan on May 14 – which occurred as planned. We didn't receive the results until yesterday, and they are relatively positive. As we expected, the CT scan shows a significant decrease in the size of the tumors throughout the liver. The two largest tumors show approximately a 70% decrease in volume – so we are pleased with the results of the chemo. My blood levels are about the same as they have been – red blood cell count is low and white blood cell count is high (thanks to the Neulasta shot I get at the end of every chemo session which promotes the growth of white blood cells). I will get the liver function result today or tomorrow, and I'll send out a quick note as soon as we know how those match up.<br /><br />Since I started another round shortly after discussing the CT scan with my doctor yesterday, having a positive report was a great incentive to be willing to move to the chemo session and actually go through with it. My hat is off to everyone who is on chemo and willingly goes forward with it.<br /><br />Speaking of hats – I went ahead and buzzed off most of my hair about a week and a half ago. Crystal doesn't approve of my new look, and I'm not really sure I do either. I just couldn't stand the hair being so thin, but I'm not sure that "effectively bald" is really an improvement. On the bright side, as Crystal remarked, my new haircut looks great with a hat. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to find my hats in the things we've unpacked so far, so my selection is limited to a new camouflage hat that my dad was able to donate to the cause. I'm looking forward to finally uncovering all the other hats I've kept over the years – but mostly never worn because I don't much care for hats. A variety of head gear will be good to have.<br /><br />Unpacking will move forward with greater speed at this point because we had the final inspection on the basement this morning. Other than two minor items which should be relatively easy to fix, we passed the inspection, which means that my family can now move into the basement apartment my parents have put together for us. With a place for everything, we can now begin to unload our stuff. We moved everything from the storage unit to the garage on Saturday in preparation, and Crystal and I (mostly Crystal, I'm afraid, given that I just started another round of chemo) will be unpacking over the next few weeks and moving us in. As part of moving in, we also now have a working washer and dryer – so we won't be crowding my mom out of her laundry room any longer. Both my mom and Crystal are thrilled with this development.<br /><br />We've also managed a few positive family outings over the last week or so, including going to the library and a couple of school activities for our children as well as their cousin's dance recital. Probably the most memorable was taking the kids to Highland Glen Park to go fishing. We had six lines (Crystal plus 5 children) and we could not keep the lines in the water because of the amount of fish we were catching. At one point I managed to get all six lines in the water at the same time, but that was only because I refused to take the fish off Crystal's and Rachel's lines until I finally got Hannah's line back in the water. Obviously, we all had a great time. We kept a number of the fish, but tried to return as many of the small ones as we could. Everyone caught at least two fish, and some of the kids caught three. This was with only about two hours of fishing – since I wasn't up to much more. As you can see from the pictures I've included, it was a productive day of fishing. You can also see my fabulous new haircut (with hat) in the pictures. For a good view of my new haircut without the hat – just check out Dr. Evil from the Austin Powers movies (except my head is not quite so shiny). Back to the fish – they also tasted pretty good once we got them home, filleted and fried.<br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyh14sffH8hhBMT46tfgs5pruG8UX-wxJ_9j9gLe_o1Dha1Y9e3WBSZUn25d920B_OJqLmI5q8junSq-uEWjeLSVbhoCLBRvIaxn1f0U636ILDyZHdojw6qXxC5gTxCYiQFSArawYIWnI/s1600-h/DSCF8463%5B1%5D.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202951283031801170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyh14sffH8hhBMT46tfgs5pruG8UX-wxJ_9j9gLe_o1Dha1Y9e3WBSZUn25d920B_OJqLmI5q8junSq-uEWjeLSVbhoCLBRvIaxn1f0U636ILDyZHdojw6qXxC5gTxCYiQFSArawYIWnI/s400/DSCF8463%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" /></a> Bekah shows offer her largest catch</div><div align="center"><br /></div><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RmJPN11zEqdZI6p8VVRFbv1ek7lIdT7clcybYckXwOjxLLwV4y9FgNfJMBAcHx7_LaI9K5VA6pYFA5tJ1whwtmZJFsBfIDr2cV9WZN4lH-vAzvgTsOGiuk_dBy5_6ZzHzMMIC0zI25Y/s1600-h/DSCF8464%5B1%5D.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202951291621735778" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RmJPN11zEqdZI6p8VVRFbv1ek7lIdT7clcybYckXwOjxLLwV4y9FgNfJMBAcHx7_LaI9K5VA6pYFA5tJ1whwtmZJFsBfIDr2cV9WZN4lH-vAzvgTsOGiuk_dBy5_6ZzHzMMIC0zI25Y/s400/DSCF8464%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" /></a> Hannah and Daddy bringing in a "fighter"</p><p align="center"><br /></p><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicWMZebe538n2giBaGTBvWf3qF8fELMo_Xa1Qu6_s7z8zF6KAWxytK2f64oiAjYFB_DuLm8nGfnMiGlVF10ekjaw9_FFg0psaTcFZHOJLHvMZcxuN1TahPtt5oR2fcZmMsEiL81XsDsa8/s1600-h/DSCF8467%5B1%5D.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202951300211670386" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicWMZebe538n2giBaGTBvWf3qF8fELMo_Xa1Qu6_s7z8zF6KAWxytK2f64oiAjYFB_DuLm8nGfnMiGlVF10ekjaw9_FFg0psaTcFZHOJLHvMZcxuN1TahPtt5oR2fcZmMsEiL81XsDsa8/s400/DSCF8467%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" /></a> Caleb was a little suspicious of our catch</p><p align="center"><br /></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UaVTzQyFv5Hwe95K129DblBE8zg40K0mpYbtLem8tl5D34v0tgpc8945bmT2jRTHnsdG8R03YCRDbK9yKMY08a6Oop7_9-GZ9MkvtFoHaCskpjw_iYGP2vjOWkIBS69O7vvSa2AVMy0/s1600-h/DSCF8470%5B1%5D.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202951308801604994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UaVTzQyFv5Hwe95K129DblBE8zg40K0mpYbtLem8tl5D34v0tgpc8945bmT2jRTHnsdG8R03YCRDbK9yKMY08a6Oop7_9-GZ9MkvtFoHaCskpjw_iYGP2vjOWkIBS69O7vvSa2AVMy0/s400/DSCF8470%5B1%5D.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"></a>Our final catch</p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-51025907751610079642008-05-06T09:52:00.001-07:002008-05-06T09:58:38.802-07:00Update 5/6/2008<p class="MsoNormal">One of the things I have been warned about regarding chemo is that each progressive session of chemo will be more difficult than the last.<span style=""> </span>With my third chemo session starting last Monday (April 28), I entered that week wondering exactly what they meant by "more difficult".<span style=""> </span>By last Thursday around lunch time, I had determined that, apparently, I was the exception to this rule, since I was feeling pretty good.<span style=""> </span>Sometime between <st1:time minute="0" hour="12">noon</st1:time> and <st1:time minute="0" hour="16">4 pm</st1:time> the effects of the chemo hit me like a ton of bricks and I realized that my assessment had been premature.<span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, until this morning, it's been pretty much a steady downhill road since Thursday. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">On Sunday we received a call from our good friends, Brian and Sue Torppey in <st1:state><st1:place>New Jersey</st1:place></st1:State>, wondering how things were going.<span style=""> </span>They were very patient but somewhat insistent on finding out how I was doing since they hadn't had an update from me since April 23.<span style=""> </span>It wasn't until they called that I realized just how long it had been since I had updated the blog – I hope you will all forgive me any additional concern I caused by not keeping you updated.<span style=""> </span>I've really appreciated knowing that so many of our friends are pulling for us, and I'll try to do better to keep you<span style=""> </span>all informed as to how we are doing.<span style=""> </span>Please feel free, also, to reach out any time if you'd like to get a more current update than whatever was in the last blog posting.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">As for how I've been doing – it's a mixed bag.<span style=""> </span>I've had significant fatigue, although it is slightly less than the last time.<span style=""> </span>However, the nausea I experienced this time around was significantly greater and longer lasting.<span style=""> </span>It's difficult to know how much of this was due to the chemo since half our family had the stomach flu at the same time, so some of it may have been due to that.<span style=""> </span>The nausea itself is a unique experience – kind of like a low-grade headache that makes everything uncomfortable but doesn't prevent you from actually doing anything (as long as you take the anti-nausea meds).<span style=""> </span>Eating has been a pain because nothing tastes good (one of the effects of chemo is to kill your taste buds).<span style=""> </span>But thanks to the different meds I've been given, I've still been able to eat. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Another difference this time around is that I'm experiencing more pain.<span style=""> </span>My doctor suggested that this may actually be a good thing:<span style=""> </span>the tumors in my liver are very poorly defined, which means that if they are being broken down by the chemo that is probably causing them to bleed.<span style=""> </span>The increased blood in my liver may be causing increased pressure on the liver casing, resulting in the increase of pain.<span style=""> </span>They ran all my blood work (liver function tests, blood cell counts, etc…) again just before starting chemo on the 28th.<span style=""> </span>Other than my red blood cell count, which is still way down, the rest of the tests came back in the normal or very near normal range.<span style=""> </span>This is the best indication we have that things are progressing well and that whatever effect the chemo is having on the tumors, the rest of my liver and entire system is managing to function normally.<span style=""> </span>On balance, then, the news is positive, but it will be difficult to say for sure until the <st1:street><st1:address>next CT</st1:address></st1:Street> scan, which is finally scheduled for next week.<span style=""> </span>Once we have those results in hand, we'll have a much better read on how effective the chemo is actually being in getting rid of the tumors. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">On the family front, other than the stomach flu (which appears to have run its course), everyone is in good health.<span style=""> </span>Caleb has been on a tear for the last month or so.<span style=""> </span>He becomes much more capable every day, but he still isn't capable (or trustworthy) enough for us to give him the full run of the house – especially with all the tools and equipment currently being used to finish the basement.<span style=""> </span>In the last week or so, however, he finally mastered the stairs, so he's had a little more freedom.<span style=""> </span>Also, the weather finally warmed up enough that he has been able to go outside with his older siblings and hasn't been confined to the house.<span style=""> </span>The rest of the kids are settling into a familiar routine which has helped reduce the amount of anxiety for everyone.<span style=""> </span>This whole situation is so surreal – we're just in a holding pattern waiting to see how things turn out – that it's difficult to achieve a semblance of normalcy, even for the kids.<span style=""> </span>But we're trying. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The basement apartment that my folks are putting together is progressing incredibly fast.<span style=""> </span>The kitchen tile is in, the cabinets are almost done, and the appliances are being delivered today.<span style=""> </span>The carpet comes tomorrow, the finish work will be completed over the next week or so, and the kitchen countertops will be in by next week.<span style=""> </span>If all goes well, we should be able to completely move in by the middle of May – an amazing feat given all that has had to be done – and a wonderful testament to the amount of work so many friends and family have put in to help us out.<span style=""> </span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-4591241299283060432008-04-24T07:02:00.001-07:002008-04-24T07:02:44.365-07:00Update 4/23/2008OK. So I got the final portion of my blood tests from last Thursday's blood draw yesterday. So far so good. A couple of the liver function tests are still elevated, but they are the less important markers. My bilirubin count is back into the normal range, which you can see since my skin is less yellow than it has been in a good while. The other markers are all in normal range, so I'll be interested to ask my doctor on Monday how serious the elevated numbers are - and what they might indicate. Since he didn't call me the day after the blood test - and he said he would if there was anything we needed to discuss - I suspect that the slightly elevated markers may not be as important an indicator given that some of the stronger markers are back in normal range. <br /><br />On the immune front, my white blood cell count, including the neutrophils, are all in the high normal range. At the end of the last chemo treatment they gave me a shot which is designed to increase the white blood cell production, and it appears to have worked. So my paranoia about getting sick and not being able to fight it off appears to be unjustified, at least for this time around. My blood did have a few lower values, especially the red blood cell count. This explains a lot of my fatigue. With my red cell count so low, that means that I don't have as much oxygen available to my system, so I end up being quite tired. This is especially true if I have to exert myself by climbing the stairs or similar exercise. Luckily, they also have a shot which will stimulate the growth off red blood cells. Unfortunately, they won't administer it until my counts are significantly lower than they are now. Of course, I don't know the side effects of that shot, so I might very well be better off dealing with fatigue and low red cell counts rather than getting the shot. <br /><br />Interestingly enough, my blood sugar was also very low, even though I had just finished eating within half an hour before having the blood draw. I hope this is not an indication that some of the tumor is still very much alive and draining my blood of the available energy. As you can imagine, I am anxious to hear my physician's take on the low blood sugar. <br /><br />I"m also feeling tremendously better - I'd rate it at about 70% of my normal before I developed cancer. Of course, that's just today, and I've noticed that my abilities can differ widely from day to day. Also, I'm almost due for another chemo treatment, and you expect to feel at your best just before you get the next dose. The goal is to let you get as close to completely better before each chemo dose so that your body has enough strength to withstand the poison of the chemo while at the same time giving enough chemo to kill the tumor. We'll really know how well it's working sometime in May when I get the follow-up CT scan and we see how much of the tumors have been destroyed. <br /><br />Finally, we continue to receive letters and emails from many of you wishing us well. Many of these letters have included financial support as well, for which we are tremendously thankful. We are so grateful for this outpouring of love and support. It seems as if we are running out of ways to say "thank you" long before we can possibly express our gratitude to all of you. You have all been very kind and generous. <br /><br />I'm scheduled to begin the third round of chemo on Monday and will let you all know how that is going - unless I am too wiped out to write. :) <br /><br />MattUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-70066931169113159212008-04-17T13:17:00.000-07:002008-04-17T13:25:42.949-07:00Lease UpdateDear Friends of Matt Budge:<br /> <br />Many of you have expressed a continuing interest in the status of Matt Budge's lease. I apologize for not sending an update sooner, but I've been waiting until I had more definitive news to share. I thought that was going to happen more than a week ago, but communication with Western Rim/The Mansions has proven to be difficult and slow. At long last, I was able to finally have some meaningful dialogue with them and reach a resolution. Fortunately, they have agreed to waive most of the fees associated with the Budges having to terminate their lease four months early. To do so, the Budges will have to pay a $1630 "reletting" fee, a $50 carpet cleaning fee, and about $20 to replace one window blind. I was pleased that the cleaning/repair costs were so low, which they should have been given that the apartment was in great shape (particularly after members of the Budges' church cleaned the place from top to bottom). Still, I didn't know what to expect from the apartment management. <br /> <br />After applying certain credits, the total "walk away" cost on the lease will be $1514.00, which is great news, particularly considering that the apartment complex orginally was saying it would cost nearly $9,000. Thanks to all of you for your part in helping to bring about this result. I know that many of you contacted the apartment management/ownership to urge them to release Matt from further financial obligations under the lease. I also feel to commend Western Rim/The Mansions for ultimately showing some compassion and generosity by agreeing to waive most of the fees. From a legal standpoint, they didn't have to do that. Naturally, I'm disappointed that they would not waive the reletting fee, particularly given that within about 3 or 4 days of the Budges giving notice of their intent to move, the apartment was already released with new tenants scheduled to move-in on May 1. Since the Budges are paid-up through April, that means that the company will not have missed a beat in receiving full rental income on that apartment. In light of the following language in the lease agreement, the reletting fee seems particularly unnecessary under the circumstances: "The reletting charge … cover[s] only part of our damages; that is, our time, effort, and expense in finding and processing a replacement. These damages are uncertain and difficult to ascertain – particularly those relating to make ready, inconvenience, paperwork, advertising, showing apartments, utilities for showing, checking prospects, overhead, marketing costs, and locator-service fees." I would be surprised if the company incurred any of these costs.<br /> <br />You may be aware of the 98.7 KLUV Radio listener who offered to donate $9K to the Budges. Unfortunately, that did not ultimately materialize. I have been in regular contact with her and have kept her apprised of the status of the lease. She pledged to pay whatever was ultimately due on the lease and then to give the remainder of the $9K directly to the Budges for other medical/family expenses. She only asked that I provide a final statement from The Mansions confirming that the Budges were released from any further financial obligations under the lease. It is that final statement that I have been trying to get for the past couple of weeks so I could meet with the donor and make final payment arrangements. However, a couple days ago I received a voicemail message from the donor stating that she would no longer be able to help the Budges. She alluded to a health issue, but not much else was said in the voicemail. I have attempted to call her back to assure her that there are no hard feelings about her rescinded offer and to make sure she is okay. Thus far I've only been able to get her answering machine. <br /><br /> <br /><br />On the issue of donations, I've seen or heard reports to the effect that "donations are pouring in" for the Budges as a result of the media attention. There has certainly been a HUGE outpouring of support and love for the Budges (and a wide variety of other sentiments directed at The Mansions/Western Rim), but I don't think that has translated into any significant amount of monetary donations. It may be that some who were inclined to help in that way held back when they heard of the $9K donation. There's no way to know. Because there was no indication that that donation would ultimately fall through, I made no effort to have others standing by to help out under that scenario. When people have contacted me about helping, I've told them the lease expenses were handled and invited them to donate to Matt's medical expenses if they felt so inclined. There is a donation mechanism set-up on Matt's blogspot (matthewbudge.blogspot.com), and last I heard, a small number of donations had been made there. To the Budges, of course, this was never about receiving donations. They would have been content to remain anonymous and quietly do their best with the help of family and close friends. <br /><br /> <br /><br />Finally, let me convey some good news to you on Matt's medical front. He has just completed his second full round of chemotherapy and his liver (and other organs) continue to respond well to the treatment. This good response allows his doctors to continue to pursue an aggressive treatment plan. Matt has also gained back some of his lost weight. The Budges consider these to be small but mighty miracles in their lives and are so grateful for the thoughts, prayers, and well-wishes on their behalf. Anyone desiring more detailed updates on Matt's medical condition is welcome to visit the "updates" section of the blogspot noted above.<br /><br /> <br /><br />Thanks again to each of you for all you've done to help Matt and his family. It is appreciated more than you know.<br /><br /> <br />--Steve BuysUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-28262808327108893622008-04-17T13:03:00.000-07:002008-04-17T13:05:45.106-07:00April 17, 2008 UpdateToday officially marks the tenth day after the start of my last chemo treatment. The guidelines for finally starting to feel normal after the start of this particular chemo are 7-10 days out. Based on how I'm feeling today, I apparently start to feel better on the tenth day – which is the reason there hasn't been an update in the last while.<br /><br />Also, other than lying around feeling sick and tired, there really hasn't been much to report about my condition. I've lost about half my hair – but wonder of wonders – it fell out pretty evenly, so now it's just thinner, but still looks relatively good. Not that I had the most handsome coif to begin with, but at this point I'm pretty grateful for small favors. I'll probably have to go bald after the next chemo. I've always claimed that if I ever started going bald, I'd just shave everything off. But, I have to admit that the reality is much more disturbing than I had anticipated, although I'm not quite to the point of considering the virtues of a comb-over. What's worse, I've always HATED hats. Oh well, I'm learning to deal with lots of things I don't particularly like, so I guess hats will be added to that list. <br /><br />As far as my condition – I go in later today for blood work. I should know by the end of the appointment how my immune markers are doing. Since blood cells and lymphocytes are some of the fast growing cells in the body that end up being wiped out by the chemo, everyone is concerned about me getting any illness since I may not be able to fight it off. I've never been prone to hypochondria before, but after being diagnosed with cancer and dealing with all the implications of chemo treatments, I'm definitely developing a paranoid streak. Especially since, in addition to being wiped out from the chemo, I've also had a mild bronchitis and cough for the last week. They gave me antibiotics, which have helped, but it will be comforting to finally get a look at my immune markers after the blood work today. (I'm assuming that my developing paranoia is not justified.) <br /><br />The rest of the blood work – the liver markers they look at to see how well the chemo is working – won't be available until late Friday or Monday, and I won't have a follow-up CT scan until the middle of May. So we won't really know how well the chemo is working until then. <br /><br />As for my family – we're beginning to settle in here in Utah. My parents, our new ward and various friends and relatives have really gone all out to make a place for us. Much of the basement needs to be finished so that we can have our own place here, so everyone has been working hard to make that happen. We're especially grateful for everyone who has volunteered their help with the work. My Aunt Lynn and her husband Don, for instance, came over to visit one afternoon and stayed for hours helping to get the insulation in with my dad and my brother-in-law Jason. There have been so many people willing to help in just this way – thanks to all of you who are helping.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-5780923423883363902008-04-09T15:56:00.000-07:002008-04-09T16:02:07.210-07:00Journey of Faith UpdateIn the latest update (<a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/04/492008-update.html">4/9/2008</a>), I mentioned that we had already seen miracles as a result of the faith and prayers offered on our behalf. I wanted to give you more information on the nature of this miracle we have experienced.<br /><br />Upon receiving our full diagnosis on March 13, we learned not only that this particular type of cancer was fast growing and had a very low remission rate, but we also discovered that I was already in first stage liver failure as a result of the progression of the cancer. At the time, I didn't realize how serious that was since I was focused on the cancer itself. However, in reviewing our doctor's notes, Crystal came across an interesting statistic that we were told at the time, but that I had forgotten. It appears that the response rate to the type of chemotherapy I have been given is between 40% and 60%. In other words, only 40% - 60% of patients with my type of cancer will see a reduction in the tumor. The remaining 40% - 60% will die of either liver failure or kidney failure within 2 – 3 weeks. When explaining our options, Dr. Yao mentioned that we had one shot at this – I didn't realize how true that is. Given that we are almost a month out and that my liver and kidney functions are close to, if not completely normal, I can't help but realize that the fact that I am still alive is one of the miracles we have sought and has come in answer to many prayers and priesthood blessings. Although not the full miracle we continue to pray for, that I will be completely healed, I must admit that I am extremely grateful for the blessing I've been given of this extra time.<br /><br />I am convinced that your faith and prayers on our behalf have granted this miracle to our family. I know that days of fasting and prayer in our behalf were organized by our home ward (the McKinney 4<sup>th</sup> ward in Texas), our ward when we lived in New Jersey (Scotch Plains II), the ward in which I grew up in Clovis, CA (Clovis II), and my parent's ward in Utah (Lehi 34<sup>th</sup>).In addition, many family members and friends have organized fast days to pray for us. As Jesus admonished his disciples in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 17, <a href="http://scriptures.lds.org/matt/17/21#21">certain miracles</a> require fasting and prayer to be granted, and we are certain that all your efforts have combined to bring about this miracle. If you want to know more please click on <a href="http://mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/the-commandments/observe-the-law-of-the-fast">this link about fasting.</a><br /><br />I am also convinced that through the power of priesthood blessings I have been given the strength to overcome this first dangerous step and begin the healing process. For those who are not as familiar with our faith, we believe that the power which Christ gave his disciples to heal the sick by the laying on of hands has been restored in these days. This power is called the <a href="http://mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/the-restoration-of-truth/the-restoration-of-the-priesthood">Priesthood of God</a> and can be exercised by those who have been found worthy to do so, and have received this authority. I have received a number of priesthood blessings since being diagnosed and in each one I was blessed with the strength to overcome this illness and indications that it was not yet my time to leave this life. I don't know if these blessings will extend to a complete recovery from this cancer, but I do know that it is in large part due to the power of these priesthood blessings that I experienced the miracle of getting past this first dangerous hurdle and experience the miracle of still being able to be with my family and loved ones on this mortal side of eternity.<br /><br />-MattUnknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-62526593880864769762008-04-09T15:37:00.000-07:002008-04-09T15:58:26.353-07:004/9/2008 UpdateI'm finishing up this week's final dose of chemo. The current schedule is one dose each day for three days and then three weeks off to allow the chemo to work and for my system to handle it and then get better enough to handle the next three doses of chemo. So far, I'm not as tired as I have been, although that's because I've been on the upswing. The worst time frame for this type of chemo is between 7 – 10 days out from the start of dosing, so we'll have to see how I feel by next week.<br /><br />We had some really good news on the blood work and liver functions. We came in for lab work last Friday and when we got the results on Monday we discovered that all my liver functions have come within normal range or close to it. Considering that at diagnosis on March 13, I was in first stage liver failure that is a huge change. Basically, this means that the cancer is being killed by the chemo, although we won't know how much reduction in cancer I have until my next CT scan, which should be in about another month. Also, the liver counts indicate that the rest of my liver, the healthy part, is able to handle the load from my normal metabolic processes. Since I am also able to eat, and I've also gained back about 6 lbs of my weight loss, the healthy portions of the liver are doing a pretty good job of getting me back on track. We still have a long way to go, and the chances of complete remission are still slim, but we've had our first miracle already. Please visit the "<a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/04/journey-of-faith-update.html">Journey of Faith Update</a>" section to learn more about the nature of this first miracle, and thank you for your faith and prayers on our behalf.<br /><br />My blood counts on Friday were still low, so we were unsure if we would be able to continue with chemo on Monday. Luckily, however, they reran the blood counts and found that over the weekend my white blood cells and other immune cells had come back up enough to make the next round of chemo. They are also going to give me a shot at the end of today that will encourage the growth of the immune cells. I'm grateful for that, especially since I've started to develop a viral lung infection with a shallow cough. I'm pretty sure it's viral since a couple of the kids seem to have the same thing, and I haven't had a fever to go along with it. With some rest, it should resolve itself, especially with an extra boost from the shot to keep my immune cells elevated. I'll let you know how it's going in the next update.<br /><br />One final note, it looks like I will be losing my hair. More and more comes out each morning. So far, the hair loss has been fairly even, and since I like to keep my hair short anyway, you can't tell yet that it's falling out. One of Crystal's friends had offered to do a family portrait for us and was willing to accommodate us when we called her yesterday in a panic and explained that we may not have much time left to get the portrait done before I was bald. So, we should have some updated pictures for the site in a few days.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-89186445034291569032008-04-05T05:14:00.000-07:002008-04-05T05:20:48.077-07:00Update 4/4/2008Matt and Crystal and family have arrived safe and sound in Utah and expect their belongings to arrive tonight or tomorrow. It is good to be together as a family. Unfortunately, the children have all contracted some form of strep throat, bronchitis and/or a viral infection. The first ones started getting sick on Monday, but Nathanael and Hannah appear to be the only ones still sick. Poor Caleb had a double ear infection and simply sat listless for the entire plane ride. It made it easy for Grandma and Grandpa to take care of him, but the change in air pressure must have been really rough. He's been much better since getting antibiotics, as is everyone else, but their sickness means that we've had to impose a mini-quarantine to make sure Matt doesn't get sick while his immune system is compromised. It's been tough not being able to snuggle the kids, but we've gotten pretty good at blowing hugs and kisses across the room. We are all in the same house, and we are all getting the care we need. We can't describe how grateful we are for those things. <br /><br />Matt had his first appointment with the physician group in Utah today. It was for a simple blood draw to make sure that his markers are high enough to administer the second round of chemotherapy. The blood stick didn't bleed very long at all, which is an improvement over last week when they needed two gauze strips before it stopped bleeding. Based on that, we're guessing that Matt's platelet count at least is back up to a relatively normal level, so we're hoping the rest of the markers are as well. If so, bring on the second round.<br /><br />Matt writes: As I look back over the last few weeks I realized that there is a story about my treatment that many of you would enjoy. I can look back on it now and laugh, since the worst is over, and it was unique enough that I may not be facing it again. Besides, the story is about how I learned what it was like to be pregnant. It's a perspective not many men get, and I for one can't look back on it without laughing. <br /><br />In the week before we rushed to MD Anderson certain that there was something more seriously wrong than we had initially thought, I began to feel my belt tightening. We were on vacation at the time, and I had already lost 20 lbs through hard work trying to get in better shape, but I figured that I simply had eaten too much. Looking back now, I realize that I didn't really eat that much, and it should have been more than offset by the extra amount of exercise I was getting. I finally realized that something was seriously wrong when, in the early morning before we were getting ready to leave, I was in so much pain that I could hardly bend over. One of the reasons we beat such a hasty path down to MD Anderson was because of this experience, and when we received the diagnosis, and subsequent treatment, we were glad for the warning that this pain gave us. <br /><br />It turned out that the reason my belt had begun tightening was because my liver had grown so much that it had begun to exert pressure on the return veins from my legs. Over the course of the next two weeks, I found that I could hardly eat or drink as the liver began to compress my stomach. During my initial stay in the hospital, they continued to pump me full of fluids via IV drip. And I continued to try to drink as much as possible – a much more difficult feat than you can imagine, since most of the fluid continued to stay with me. You've all heard the jokes about people who store various drinks (usually alcoholic) in their legs – the reality is much worse than you can imagine, although a lot of the fluid I was retaining was also in my abdomen. As I compared notes with Crystal, we both began to realize that the complaints I had, from not being able to bend over, to waddling slightly whenever I could walk, sounded a lot like pregnancy. Of course, I had all sorts of pain to go along with it, which I hope most pregnant women don't have. In all, I gained more than 30 lbs from my pre-vacation weight, with no end in sight. <br /><br />My brother Philip, who is an MD, explained it this way: The kidneys are basically stupid organs. They are designed to retain fluid based on the amount of blood flowing through the heart. If the blood flow through the heart is reduced – say, because you've just been slashed by a saber-tooth tiger and need to stop blood flow to the wound so you don't bleed to death – then the kidneys prevent fluid from escaping to give you the best chance. However, the kidneys had no way of knowing, in my case, that the reason there was less blood flow to the heart was because it was all stuck in my legs and unable to get past the liver. My kidneys thought I was bleeding to death, so they kept retaining fluid to prevent that. <br /><br />Then, on Monday, March 24, I began to flush the fluid out. Apparently, the chemo had enough effect in reducing the liver that the blood was able to get to my heart in large quantities, which finally convinced my stupid kidneys that I wasn't bleeding to death. By Friday, 5 days later, I had lost 45 lbs – which is more than most women lose in pregnancy. What a world of difference that made, although my legs were pretty much putty after having been inflated to that degree. Just imagine what a latex balloon looks like after being over inflated and then imagine that your legs are that balloon and then try to walk on them. I could hardly move. So, in the course of about three weeks I gained and lost so much weight that Crystal is convinced that I now know, as much as it is possible, what it is like to be pregnant. All of you women have my deepest sympathies – but thank you for putting up with it. I'm glad that my mother did and that Crystal was willing to so we could have our wonderful children. <br /><br />One last note – you may have noticed that I gained 30 lbs, but lost 45 lbs. We've determined that I probably did actually lose weight on vacation. Plus, I spent about a week hardly being able to eat or drink anything. Add in the effects of the chemo, and I'm actually pleased that I only lost 15 lbs net weight. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to gain any more back, although I've stabilized. Crystal is force feeding me about every 2 hours, and I've taken to drinking super-concentrated nutritious shakes to increase the calories. Never in my life have I had to worry about gaining weight – that always came naturally. In so many ways, this whole experience is simply surreal.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-32296522633235153062008-04-01T08:21:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:54:37.039-07:00Lease Situation In HandWe appreciate all the comments, advice, and feedback from all who have been following this situation. At this point, however it gets resolved, due to the generosity of others it looks like Matt and Crystal will not have to worry about the lease.<br /><br />The response from many people has been overwhelming and unexpected. We would like to thank those that have taken it as an opportunity to support the Budges at a time when they are dealing with so much already. We thank you.<br /><br />For those of you who missed what was happening, the original story can be seen <a href="http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa080328_jh_cancerlease.d5c1dfc.html">here</a> and the followup story <a href="http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dws/wfaa/latestnews/stories/wfaa080331_jh_budgesamaritan.1c84cc23.html">here</a>.<br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-42333441433964107532008-03-31T10:35:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:54:11.829-07:00Update 3/31/08Matt has finished another round of chemotherapy and, although very fatigued, continues to hold his own. The doctors say his blood markers look good and are hopeful that he will continue to respond positively. <br /><br />At the same time, he and Crystal are getting their family packed to move. The kids are going to be with the Budge grandparents and family in Utah. Crystal and Matt will follow when he is well enough to do so. The Chapin grandparents are driving their belongings to Utah in the meantime. The complex where they live is not helping the situation but both Matt and Crystal know that things will work out. This has only added to the logistics of moving, treatment, and day-to-day life.<br /><br />It has been a very busy time. <br /><br />Both Matt and Crystal truly feel that 'the windows of heaven' have been opened on their behalf by so many people who have expressed their support and love in a variety of ways. There have been so many blessings poured out. They thank you for your goodness and for being such a strength to them during all that they are going through.<br /><style type="text/css">h2.date-header{display:none;}.post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-16673341284538946492008-03-23T09:14:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:53:32.734-07:00Update 3/23/2008:Matt had a follow-up appointment with Dr. Yao in Houston on Thursday, March 20. Most of the lab markers for his liver function and kidney function were either positive or trending in the correct direction after his first dose of chemo, so Dr. Yao ordered the final two treatments of the first round, which Matt took on Friday and Saturday. This time, however, the chemo was administered on an outpatient basis. Due to the aggressive nature of the cancer and the extent to which it has progressed, the chemo each day was administered over an 8 hour period rather than the usual 3-4 hours, so they made for long days. Those days were pleasantly shortened due to an unexpected visit from Matt's brother Philip who came down to provide moral support and medical insights. Phil is an intern at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, and was a tremendous help to both Matt and Crystal in understanding the implications of this type of cancer and what we should be expecting in terms of how this treatment will progress. <br /><br />Matt will be undergoing lab work and follow-up visits on Thursday of this week to see how well he's tolerating these last two doses and to schedule the second round of chemo. We'll let you know more as soon as we have more details. <br /><style type="text/css">h2.date-header{display:none;}.post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-54951881066252834422008-03-19T17:00:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:56:42.672-07:00How is Matt Doing?Matt had his first round of chemotherapy on Thursday, March 13th. The chemo was pretty aggressive to match the advancing tumor growth and the doctors monitored him closely during the weekend for improvements. The good news is that he has made it successfuly through this round. They were concerned that the chemo would shut down his kidneys (tumorlysis syndrome) but he is holding his own against the treatment. He is scheduled for two more sessions of chemo this week.<br /><br />The many prayers of all concerned have been felt by the family. They are so grateful for all the love they have felt from family, friends, the hospital staff, and the church members who have been serving them on such short acquaintance.<br /><br />Both Matt and Crystal would like to express their gratitude for your prayers, fasting, and support. Crystal will be posting how they are all doing to me (Charity Howell) as often as she can to keep you all updated. They feel incredibly blessed to have so many good people willing to go out of their way to help.<br /><br />Once again, thank you all for your love and support. Your prayers are so very appreciated.<br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>C. Howellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02709223008410204412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-19886528310395210472008-03-15T17:32:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:13:46.480-07:00How we have been helped...We want to thank all of you so much for the help you have rendered us and wanted to give you some idea how you are helping us.<br /><br />Our doctors have told us to expect an initial treatment period of 9 months given the aggressive nature and difficulty to treat this type of cancer. If everything goes well, that would be followed by up to 6 months of recovery before Matt would be completely well. With this long term expectation we realized that we would need help so that Crystal could take care of the children and still be available to help Matt with his treatments and other care.<br /><br />Obviously, if things do not go well, our family will really need a place to regroup.<br /><br />Matt's parents have offered us such a haven in their home in Lehi, UT. Your donations are helping us cover the initial cost of this move, including transportation of our possessions, air fare for our family to get to Utah and sundry other moving related expenses.<br /><br />To put it more personally, you have made it possible for us to have more days together as a family. We cannot express how precious that time has become.<br /><br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-48457707328332731332008-03-15T12:07:00.000-07:002008-04-02T06:15:05.883-07:00Friends and Family,We are so grateful for all the help you have been to us in this situation. Like many of you, we were stunned by the overwhelming attention our lease issue has brought, and we have been humbled by how many people have been willing to serve on our behalf. We have been especially touched by the many offers of financial support, both before and after our lease situation was known, and want to especially thank those who have made it possible that we don't need to worry about the lease.<br /><br />In addition, we could not have managed in the last few weeks without all the support of friends and family who have helped watch our children while I received treatments, especially Matt's mom assisted by her own "fairy godmother" (Crystal's sister Sarah) who has been the children's primary support over the last three weeks. We also want to thank the members of our church ward in McKinney who have done so much to support; from helping with the children to packing and loading our worldly goods to be moved to Utah. And, of course, we want to thank Crystal's parents and brothers who will be making the run from Texas to Utah to deliver our stuff.<br /><br />When we first found out about the cancer we felt the assurance of the Lord that we would have ministering angels attend us through this trial. We consider all of you who have helped and are helping to be among those ministering angels, and are so grateful to you and to the Lord for sending you to us.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Matt and Crystal<br /><br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-17847223521322055122008-03-14T17:47:00.000-07:002008-03-18T06:06:34.935-07:00Neuroendocrine Carcinoma by C. Howell<div align="left">THE NEUROENDOCRINE SYSTEM: The endocrine system is a communication system where hormones act to regulate physiological events. The nervous system performs the same functions using electrical impulses. The neuroendocrine system is the combination of those two systems, or more specifically, the various interfaces between the two systems. A GEP-NET is a tumor of any such interface. </div><div align="left"><br /></div><div align="left"><hr /></div><div align="left"><br />CATEGORIES: The majority of GEP-NETs fall into two nearly distinct categories:<br /><br />1. Carcinoids<br />(approx 2/3 of GEP-NETs) – [Also known as neuroendocrine tumors (NETs)]<br /><br /></div><div align="left">2. Pancreatic endocrine tumors (PETs).<br />(approx 1/3 of GEP-NETs) – [Also known as endocrine pancreatic tumors (EPTs), islet cell tumors, and, most recently, <u>neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC)</u>] </div><div align="left"><br /></div><div align="left"><hr /></div><div align="left"><br />ORIGIN: NECs are assumed to originate from within the pancreas islets of Langerhans – or from endocrine pancreatic precursor cells – though they may originate outside of the pancreas.<br /></div><div align="left"><br />NECs are not referred to as 'pancreatic cancer'. The term pancreatic cancer almost always refers to adenopancreatic cancer (aka exocrine pancreatic cancers). Adenopancreatic cancers are not a neuroendocrine cancer.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br /><hr /></div><div align="left"><br />INCIDENCE: Incidence of NECs is estimated at one new case per 100,000 people per year. The total incidence of GEP-NETs in the United States would be about 9,000 new cases per year. </div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br /><hr /></div><div align="left"><br />METASTATIC SITES: The most common metastatic sites are the liver, the lymph nodes, and the bones. Liver metastases are so frequent and so well-fed that for many patients, they dominate the course of the cancer. The terms metastatic and malignant are often used interchangeably </div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br /><hr /></div><div align="left"><br />TREATMENT: Surgery is the only therapy that can cure GEP-NETs. However, the typical delay in diagnosis, giving the tumor the opportunity to metastasize, makes most GEP-NETs ineligible for surgery (non-resectable).<br /><br /></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">There is no established standard therapy for the liver metastasis of pancreatic endocrine tumors. The most common nonsurgical therapy for all GEP-NETs is chemotherapy, although chemotherapy is not particularly long-lasting for NECs.<br /><br /></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">When chemotherapy fails, the most common therapy, in the United States, is more chemotherapy, with a different set of agents. Some studies have shown that the benefit from one agent is not highly predictive of the benefit from another agent, except that the long-term benefit of any agent is likely to be low.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><br />Source: Information taken from public domain.</div><br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;} h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;} </style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8336529699972380363.post-27531890147178894002008-03-14T17:46:00.000-07:002008-04-09T15:58:59.290-07:00Our Journey of FaithCrystal and I have been overwhelmed and awed by the love and concern shown to us. Those of you who know me know that I don't cry very easily, but I have been unable to contain my emotions over how much love I am feeling for myself and for my family. I know many of you want to help as much as possible and I can't even tell you how much that means to me. Right now, we are unsure what our needs are. We are trying to work with others, including the wonderful people at my employer TXU Energy, to understand those needs- spiritual, financial, and general support. Charity and Daniel have been kind enough to work on a donation capability through this site that we will need as events progress. We sincerely appreciate the offers that have been made so far.<br /><br />That having been said, what I want most is to use this forum to testify of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/the-restoration-of-truth/god-is-your-loving-heavenly-father">God lives</a> and I know that <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/jesus-christ-our-savior/jesus-christ">Christ is our Savior</a>. I know with Job that "though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/heavenly-father-s-plan-of-salvation/resurrection-and-judgment">in my flesh shall I see God</a>." If even one of the many people I love looks at this site and is strengthened in their testimony of God and of Jesus Christ through my experiences, then I will consider those experiences well worth the price.<br /><br />I ask you to pray for us. We expect a miracle, although the odds are not good. But regardless of what miracle the Lord blesses us with, I wish to spend the rest of my days testifying of His Son and His glorious gospel so that my children and my friends may know to what source they may look for peace and love and joy.<br /><br />For those who are not members of our faith and may not understand completely what I am trying to express, please feel free to leave your comments and to ask questions. If I am unable to answer them, I am sure that those who hold this testimony with me will be willing to address your questions. I have been <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/heavenly-father-s-plan-of-salvation/god-has-a-plan-for-your-life">more richly blessed in my 36 years</a> than most people who live 100 and it is due entirely to <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/jesus-christ-our-savior/the-gospel-of-jesus-christ%20">the gospel of Jesus Christ</a> and <a href="http://www.mormon.org/mormonorg/eng/basic-beliefs/the-restoration-of-truth/how-can-i-know-this-is-true">my testimony</a> of the divine nature of the Son of God.<br /><br />-Matt<br /><a href="http://matthewbudge.blogspot.com/2008/04/journey-of-faith-update.html"><br />Journey of Faith Update</a><br /><style type="text/css">#blog-pager-older-link{display:none;}h2.date-header{display:none;} #blog-pager-newer-link{Display:none;} .post-footer{display:none;}</style>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com