March 27, 2009

A LITTLE COMPLICATION:

O.K., so I don’t want to make a big deal out of this, but I always get in trouble with people when they find out something happened that I didn’t tell them about. So in the interest of full disclosure, we had a little scare yesterday.

Evan woke up with a very sore arm and a painful lump on the inside of his right arm, just below the crease of his elbow. The lump was about an inch and a half long and seemed to follow the path of the most prominent vein on his arm.

We got in to see Evan’s primary care doctor around 11:00 am. Dr. Riessen was quite sure that it was either a blood clot or some kind of infection. They tested Evan’s blood and sure enough, it was really thick. Evan’s blood has been very stable for the last several months, so this just came out of nowhere. Evan’s INR (which measures the viscosity of the blood) has been hovering between 2.4 and 2.7 for months, which is perfect! But yesterday it had dropped to 1.2 - way too thick!

So they sent us over to the hospital for an ultrasound, which took forever!!! Finally, around 3:00 pm, they confirmed that Evan did indeed have a blood clot in his arm. They decided it wasn’t bad enough to require hospitalization (which Evan was happy about), but I’ll be giving him shots twice a day for the next four days in addition to the blood thinner he takes orally. We’ll go back in on Monday to make sure Evan’s INR is back up where it needs to be, and hopefully that will be it.

I have to admit, I was pretty rattled yesterday! It seems like every time I start to think life is going to calm down a little bit, something happens to remind me how fast life can change. It’s a good thing to remember, but a little disturbing at the same time. I’m doing much better today, and Evan was as calm as can be through the whole thing. “No big deal,” he says.

Thanks for listening!
Margot

March 23, 2009

GREAT NEWS!

Dear Friends and Family,

We got great news today! First of all, the tumor actually shrunk a little bit. Three months ago, the tumor measured 2.0 x 1.1 x 0.9 cm. Today it measured 1.9 x 1.0 x 0.7 cm. That probably doesn’t sound like much, but when you realize how resistant to treatment this type of cancer normally is, it really is a miracle that the tumor has been reduced as much as it has and is still shrinking after more than a year on the same chemo drug. The doctor was amazed!

Also, the tumor was not nearly as bright and white on the MRI image today as it was three months ago. This would suggest that the drug (Avastin) which Evan receives with his chemo is working to cut off the blood supply to the tumor. In other words, the cancer cells are less active and unable to reproduce as easily. Again, the doctor was impressed!

And finally - the best news of all is that starting next week Evan will have three weeks between treatments instead of two. The dose will stay the same, but Evan will have an extra week to recover. I’m really hoping that will go a long way to improve his quality of life.

So that’s the plan for the next three months. We’ll go back for another MRI at the end of June and see how the tumor reacts to the reduction in treatment. Thanks again for all your prayers and support! We appreciate you all so much!

With love and gratitude,
Margot

March 17, 2009

MRI Next Week!

Dear Friends & Family,

I know it’s been ages since I wrote last - sorry about that! We haven’t had anything noteworthy to report though, so you haven’t missed anything. I guess we’ve been operating under the “no news is good news” rule.

Evan has continued receiving chemo treatments every other week, with the usual crummy side-effects. Unfortunately, the nausea has been hitting him harder and faster these days. He starts feeling sick as soon as they start the I.V. now, and he rarely makes it through the treatment without getting sick. It was a little better when he could at least make it home before it got really bad, but those days are over.

Evan has one more chemo treatment tomorrow (Wednesday), before his MRI which is scheduled for next Monday (March 23^rd). Unless Dr. Choucair voices strong objections on Monday, we’ve decided it’s time for a break. Depending on what the doctor recommends, we are planning to either stop treatment for a few months or, at the very least, move to some type of once-a-month maintenance chemo.

Hopefully, all the chemo Evan has received up to this point will have been enough to put the tumor into a dormant stage and keep it there. Our biggest hope is that Evan will be able to live with little or no chemo, and that the tumor will not start growing again for a very long time!

We are so grateful for all your prayers and support. We can never adequately express how much your love and friendship means to us. We feel so blessed! Thanks again, and we’ll let you know how things go next week.

Love,
Margot

January 5, 2009

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We hope everyone had a happy holiday! Ours was wonderful. We had two whole weeks that were 100% carpool, homework, and medical appointment free! It was nothing short of heavenly!

Today, it was back to business-as-usual though. The kids went back to school, and it was MRI day for Evan. He had the scan first thing this morning and we met with the neuro-oncologist this afternoon to get the results. We got good news and great news!

The good news is that the tumor showed no sign of new growth. It didn't shrink, but as long as it's not growing - it's good news!

The great news is that if the next MRI (in March) comes back again with no new growth, the doctor is planning to take Evan off the rigorous treatment schedule and put him on what they call "maintenance chemo." The chemo drug and dose will remain the same, but he will only have to go in for treatment once every three or four weeks!

In March, Evan will have been on the heavy treatment schedule for a full year. The doctor is hopeful that this will have been enough time to put the tumor into a dormant stage, and that it will remain dormant even on the lighter treatment schedule.

The thought of having three weeks between treatments, instead of just one, was enough to put a huge smile on our faces! It made us feel like we might actually be on the home stretch with this thing!

Thanks for all your prayers and support. This would be so much harder without all of you behind us!

Love,
Margot

December 13, 2008

MERRY CHRISTMAS!















Dear Friends & Family,

We hope this holiday season finds you all healthy and happy! We send each of you our warmest wishes and most heartfelt thanks for all the love and support you have extended to our family throughout this year!

As soon as the Christmas season began, we started remembering all of the amazing acts of kindness that we received during the Christmas season last year. We still don't feel like we've said thank you enough for all the sacrifice and generosity that we received. We are still blown away thinking about it 12 months later. To all of you who did anything for us last Christmas, or since, (big or small, in person or in secret) thank you, thank you, thank you - again!

Thankfully, we are in a much better place this year, and hoping to be more on the giving end rather than the receiving end of Christmas kindness this year!

EVAN - is still plugging along with chemo treatments every other week. The nausea has been a lot worse in the last few months, but he's determined to hang in there until January. His next MRI is scheduled for January 5th, and after that I think we will strongly consider switching to a three-week schedule.

We had a little trouble with his blood thinning medication over the last 6 weeks and that has been frustrating, but as of last week it seems to have stabilized. Basically, the Coumidin wasn't keeping his blood thin enough, and he was at risk for blood clots again. Week after week they would raise the dose, but we'd come back a week later and there would be no improvement. Finally, after 6 weeks of raising the dose, it thinned to a safe range, phew! That's the kind of stuff that makes me crazy!

MARGOT - was released from the R.S. Presidency at church after three years, and is now having fun teaching the 8-year-old children in Primary. A dream job landed in her lap recently, doing part-time computer work from home for a marketing firm in Salt Lake City. It's as if it was custom made for our needs and circumstances - a huge blessing! And of course, she stays busy keeping track of doctor appointments, picking up prescriptions, and fighting with the insurance company!

RYAN - (age 13) is now taller than his mother! He has been extremely busy earning straight A's in 8th grade, playing flag football, serving as President of the Deacon's Quorum at church, playing the Trumpet in the Junior High School Band, and playing X-BOX whenever he gets the chance. In his spare time he loves teasing his sister!

LINDSAY - (age 6) loves Kindergarten, and learning to read! This year she learned to jump-rope, lost her first two teeth, and went horseback riding for her birthday. She loves taking gymnastics, playing with her friends, and singing her own made-up songs. In her spare time she enjoys annoying her brother!

As we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, we give thanks for the countless blessings we receive everyday because of his life, his teachings, his sacrifice, and his love for us. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

With much love and gratitude,
Evan, Margot, Ryan, & Lindsay Gardiner



Here's what we've been up to, since I wrote last:

TRIP TO SOUTHERN UTAH!

In October we got to take a little family trip to Southern Utah. The kids had three days off from school and we were in desperate need of a change in scenery (thanks Mom & Dad, for making it possible!). We stayed at a great little resort in Brian Head and had a wonderful time! The kids spent lots of time in the hotel pool, we went for walks, took a day trip to Bryce Canyon, went horseback riding, celebrated two birthdays, and just generally relaxed and hung out together. Here are some pictures from our fun weekend!


Cedar Breaks National Monument was breathtaking at sunset!















On the second day of our trip, we celebrated Lindsay's 6th Birthday! She got to blow out her candles on a "birthday muffin" and open her presents in our hotel room.





















Later that day, we went horseback riding at Bryce Canyon. Evan wasn't feeling well enough to go with us, but at the end of the day he had the last laugh - watching the rest of us walk around bow-legged with sore tail-bones.











































During one of our walks, we found a great pond for throwing rocks!

Evan & Ryan had fun showing off their muscles.

































Lindsay had fun showing off for the camera!




















On the last day of our trip, we celebrated Evan's 40th birthday! A great milestone!















It was a great get-away! We can't wait to do it again!


HALLOWEEN!

Halloween was a big hit at our house this year! Lindsay was a "girl-pirate," as she called it. As for Ryan, he just wanted to be creepy - I think he succeeded!

October 15, 2008

Latest MRI Results!

Hi Everyone!

We got some unexpected good news today! Evan had his MRI yesterday and it looks like the tumor has shrunk again!

I have to make one disclaimer though. Our doctor got called away on a family emergency and won’t be back for a few days, so I don’t have personal confirmation from him about this. However, we were too impatient to wait through the weekend to get the results - so we talked Evan’s primary care physician into printing out the radiologist’s MRI report, so we could read it ourselves. Since I knew that many of you were anxious to hear something as well, I thought I would go ahead and tell you what it looks like to us.

Two months ago, the tumor measured 2.3 x 1.3 x 1.9

Yesterday, the tumor measured 2.3 x 1.3 x 1.4

If my math skills aren’t too rusty, that’s roughly a 25% reduction (in mass) since the last MRI.

When Evan was originally diagnosed, 14 months ago, the tumor measured 4.4 x 3.9 x 2.7

So basically, from its original size, the tumor has now been reduced by 90%!!!

Considering how aggressive this form of cancer is, these results are no small miracle! They are surely the product of all your prayers!!! Thank you so much for keeping us in your thoughts, through all this time!

We had been told that this chemo would be most effective during the first few months of treatment and then just level off. So, when the last MRI came back with no change, we thought maybe we had seen the last reduction we would ever get. We had even made plans to take a break from treatment if this MRI came back again with no change. Obviously, as Evan put it, “We can’t quit now!” We definitely needed some strong motivation to face another four months of this, and I think we got it!

As a side note - in my August update, I mentioned that we were thinking about switching to a 3 week chemo schedule instead of the every-other-week schedule we were already on. But then we discovered that Evan’s chemo dose would have to increase if we switched. He would have longer to recover, but the higher dose would probably make him sicker in the short term. We decided that wasn’t an option, so we are still on the every-other-week schedule (just in case anyone was confused).

Thanks again for all your support! We’ll keep you posted!

With love and gratitude,

Margot