11/19/2024
I apologize for the lack of updates lately. Work has been keeping us busy when we are not busy being caregivers!
Evan received his 2nd and final stem cell transplant on November 1st. He was discharged on November 15th to the apartment closeby again. This round has been somewhat easier on him…he didn’t have the massive nausea. The mouth sores kept him in bed and not eating for a few days, but we are way past that and moving forward! He did have some other issues this time around that kept the nurses busy. Three bouts of ventricular tachycardia…with the last one causing the rapid response team to be called since they could not get him to convert to normal rhythm like he had previously. They ended up doing it chemically, with Adenosine. That was scary to watch!!😳 He has had 2 more episodes since being discharged (he was supposed to be discharged a day sooner, but an episode kept him under observation). Today was an MRI to check why he may have had a dilated pupil on Saturday. He is already scheduled to get his Trifusion line removed next Tuesday, barring anything else!!
We are essentially shutting this donation site down. We have been so blessed by all of you who donated. You have helped us get through this time with very little hardship and we plan to pay it all forward with education and awareness. We thank you all for the cards, the rides, the fellowship, the hugs, the texts, and most importantly, the prayers. Your petitions on our behalf were felt beyond what we could do on our own!! We love each and every one of you!!
10/11/24
Sorry for the lack of updates! It’s been a whirlwind. Mark stayed with Evan the first 2 weeks of his transplant, and I took over on Saturday. It’s been a bit crazy!
Evan was scheduled for 3-4 days of stem cell collection, but being the over-achiever that he is, he gave 11 million on the first day!!! That was all he needed, so he had several days of rest after that before checking in to the hospital.
Transplant started on October 27th and they refer to that day as your 2ND BIRTHDAY. Mainly because your body is basically starting over from scratch. He did fairly well with minimal side effects. Nausea, vomiting, and mouth sores. As of today, the nausea is still present, but not horrible, and the mouth sores are almost gone!. He has maintained his weight which is awesome as well.
Today, October 11th, he gets discharged from the hospital and we move into an apartment (partially funded by a hospital charity) called Tbe Twice Blessed House. If you are interested in knowing where, google The Case Building in Dallas. Pretty neat complex with painting/graffiti on the side. We stay here until the 26th when we get to repeat the transplant process again!!
Thank you all for the donations, cards, calls, texts, and nost of all….prayers! They have gotten us through some very trying times so far! We love you all!❤️
9/17/24
Day One of stem cell collection has begun!!!
We have spent the last few days here in Dallas at the Gene & Jerry Jones Hope Lodge and have met some great people from all over. The accommodations have been great. Lots of places to just chill out and relax, work a puzzle, read a book….they fed us the first night (Thursday) and it looks like volunteers are coming tonight as well for another meal. It really takes the pressure off.
Evan has been battling some nausea the last couple of days. We think it’s connected to the shots he is getting daily to boost his stem cells. Other than that, he’s been doing pretty well. Been eating fairly good and keeping his weight. He will do about 3 days of collection and then go into the Pickens hospital on the 21st to do his high dose chemo and stem cell transplant.
9/11/24
You’ve no doubt heard the saying “Not all heroes wear capes,” and I whole-heartedly agree. This young man has been through so much in the last 2 years and he continues to fight without complaint. He inspires and humbles me every day. He ends up being the one to comfort us, encourage us, and has just made this whole process easier to endure.
He and I leave for Dallas tomorrow for the next and prayerfully, final phase. Evan will be undergoing stem cell harvesting, intense high dose chemo, and subsequent stem cell transplant. He will be in the hospital or near the hospital through the end of November. This will be his hardest fight yet, so we once again need your prayers for this battle. This treatment will completely obliterate his immune system….to the point where he will be required to get all his childhood vaccinations again. Mark and I will be splitting caretaker duties throughout, trying to maintain our business at the same time. I will be having surgery on Sept 19th and could possibly be out of commission for up to 2 weeks (hopefully not).
If anyone would like to visit Evan during this time or send an encouraging card, text, phone call….please send me a message. I know Dallas is a drive for most, but he would love to see you!! Most of all, keep those prayers coming!! It has been the driving force in our lives and the only thing getting us through this!! Pray for minimal side effects, strength for us all, and stamina to keep up the fight!!💜💜💜💜💜
Romans 8:28
“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose”
8/22/24
Evan has been home for 2 weeks now. We went to Dallas on Friday for his bone marrow biopsy. That was painful for him. First time I have seen him really have an issue with anything they have been doing to him so far. ☹️ We were hoping to start the stem cell replacement process, but his doctor is recommending one more round of chemo, so we will be back at the hospital on Monday. Evan has been coping very well with the treatments, thanks to the many prayers from friends and family. ❤️ Our prayer now is that he tolerates another round as well as the last two, and he continues this healing journey with as few side effects as possible!!
8/3/24
This week of chemo has been pretty similar to the last one, with one exception: nausea and vomiting.🥺 He was hardly able to keep anything down yesterday, but so far, so good today. Should be going home sometime tomorrow (Sunday)
While it was for the most part uneventful for Evan, the same cannot be said for Mom. I ended up in the ER next door with severe abdominal pains, related to some ongoing issues I’ve been dealing with in between all of Evan’s appointments. It is now to the point that I have to focus on this or I won’t be able to take care of anyone! Mark drove up yesterday to take over the last few days, and we had some wonderful friend drive up from Tyler to pick me up and take me home, so the guys would have a vehicle to come home in. I went to the ER once again today to try to get different pain medications while I wait for an MRI.
Next up for Evan will be lots of testing to see if his cancer is in remission enough for them to proceed with the bone marrow check and subsequent stem cell replacement. We expect to be pretty busy preparing for a long stay in Dallas. I just pray my issue can be taken care of within the next 3-6 weeks so that I can take care of him.
Prayers, as always, are appreciated!!!
7/26/24
It has been a thankfully uneventful (as far as side effects go) 2 weeks at home after the week in the hospital. Unfortunately, Evan’s beloved grandpa, Papa G, passed away on July 12th while we were still in Dallas, but he was able to attend the memorial on the 20th. Papa G was always Evan’s biggest supporter and prayer warriors. We will miss his enthusiasm every time we visited.
We had to shave Evan’s head on Monday morning. He had been pulling out big clumps the night before, so it was time. He looks much better bald this go-around! LOL
The plan is to head back up on Monday the 29th (in 3 days) for another week-long stay of high-dose chemo. Please pray that this week goes just as smoothly as the first one. Your prayers got him through it this last time and we have been so fortunate so far! After this cycle, he will get images to see where we are and then we will be prepping for his stem cell harvest and subsequent chemo with replacement procedure. Sounds like he and I will be spending about a month in Dallas for that (as he cannot be more than 50 miles from the hospital after the transplant). That will be a new and interesting venture for us. They have guest apartments available, but they run from $50-$75 per night, and we are responsible for our own meals. So as you can imagine, we will be needing the funds to be able to do all this. I know our God will provide. Mark will be holding down the fort at home and hopefully working (plus visiting I hope). It’s going to be hard on us all.
As usual, we covet your prayers most of all. We love our friends and family who have volunteered, called, donated, and above all have PRAYED us through this!!!
7/12/24
We are on the last day of treatment for this cycle!! We have been here since Monday (July 8) afternoon, and treatment started that night at 9pm. Treatments have been following that same schedule every night. Evan has had very minimal side effects. Just a couple of bouts of mild nausea first thing in the morning, and one of his 3 chemo drugs makes his blood pressure lower dramatically. But so far, so good. We are looking forward to going home on Sunday. While we have been here, Evan’s grandfather, (Mark’s dad) Papa G, passed away unexpectedly, so we are mourning his loss. Being away from family during this time has been difficult, but we are ok. The staff here has been amazing and we have had a couple of visits with the chaplains that have helped.
Thank you to everyone back home who has been praying for Evan’s treatments. We definitely feel them and the minimal side effects have been a testimony to the power of prayer!! Your generous donations have allowed me to do what I need to do to take care of him (and myself) while we’ve been here, and will be helpful in the coming weeks as well. We thank you all so very much. God Bless!!!
7/3/24
We’ve had a little bump in the road today. We were all packed last night and ready to head to Dallas today, but I (Mom) woke up with a fever, Mark and Evan both feeling pretty cruddy as well. So a phone call to Dallas was made, we all went to urgent care and tested positive for Covid. 1st time since it reared its ugly head. Why we’ve avoided it all this time only to come down with it now, I will never know. We know God has a plan. So we will continue to lean on Him. Our next targeted date for going to Dallas is Monday, July 8th. Thank you to those who brought us medication and food today!!
6/28/2024
It’s been 7 months since Evan’s last chemo treatment. He opted to not do the 4th cycle of treatments back in November and after today’s visit with Dr. Berryman @ Baylor Oncology in Dallas, it sounds like it was a good choice.
Dr. Berryman said that the cancer was not responsive enough to the chemo to put Evan into remission, so it would not have mattered. Back in March, he got bloodwork and images, and things were not looking good. So here is where we are today….
On Wednesday, July 3rd, we will be taking him back to Dallas to be admitted to the Oncology hospital where he will undergo high dose chemo (VIP) for 6 days, going home for 2 1/2 weeks, returning to Dallas for another round of the same treatment, home for another 2 1/2 weeks, and hopefully at that point, they will take a bone marrow sample after checking bloodwork to see if he is responding to the chemo. If all is good, they will harvest stem cells, freeze them, he will be admitted for 14 days where he will have 3 days of high dose chemo and then have 1/2 of the stem cells infused back into his body. He will return home for about 6 weeks and then return for another 14 days for the 3 day chemo and the rest of the stem cells.
It’s a lot to take in and process, but all three of us were surprisingly calm and felt it will be the right thing to do. Obviously, it is going to be rough and we will have a lot of traveling between now and mid-October, as we are determined Evan will never be there alone. We are once again asking for any assistance anyone can provide. We still have a small amount of funds in an account from all the donations from the first fight.
Again, we thank you the most for your prayers. We could not do this without them. We love and appreciate you all!
11/29/23
Yesterday was supposed to be his last day of chemo, but due to a stomach virus, it was postponed to today. We also saw the oncologist since PET scan was done on Monday. Doc was pleased with progress but since PET still shows nodules (not entirely gone), and AFP tumor marker is at 21 (not zero), he is recommending one more cycle of BEP.☹️ Evan is not happy with this, and is not entirely sold on the idea. This would put him at hopefully being completely done by 12/20 with follow-up PET scan on lungs and MRI on brain to make sure nothing has spread. We are encouraged by the decrease in size of the current lung nodules, but not very encouraged by one more cycle.
We have been so blessed by friends and family with meals these last few weeks. It has taken the pressure off Mark and I so that we can finish up this last push with our business (Medicare Annual Enrollment). Thank you to everyone who has prayed, cooked a meal, driven Evan to appointments, donated, and checked in with us. You are our family and we couldn’t do this without you!!
11/9/23
Two cycles are done!! Had a bout of nausea for a few days, but finished out this last week strong. Had a bit of a set-back last Tuesday. After treatment, he was complaining of neck pain around the port site. We should have called it in, but I thought nothing of it. When he went this Tuesday, they examined it and were worried it might be a blood clot in his port line. After an ultrasound yesterday, it was confirmed. So he was given a prescription for Eliquis and started his first dose this morning. This evening he is already feeling some relief!!
We want to thank again the volunteers who have driven him to treatment, the many many prayers and concerns, and the support we have been given. We cannot ever express our gratitude enough.
We are unsure of what will come next. We don’t know if his last cycle will commence on this coming Monday or if things will be postponed. Evan has expressed that hopes for a week break like last time, just to recoup some weight and strength he has lost this round. Will update when we have more!!!
10/27/23
First week of Cycle #2 is done!! Evan has had a rough week with nausea and mouth sores rearing their ugly heads. I am happy to say that as of today, both are much better! The mouth sores are all but gone, and he has been able to eat today. He was able to drive himself to treatment on Monday & Tuesday, and we have been blessed to have precious volunteers that have offered and taken him this week. The prayers, texts, and donations have been a blessing. We could not ask for a better support system from friends, family, and church members. He has 2 more Tuesday treatments left in this cycle. This next Tuesday is a visit with the doctor and probably more blood draws and another pulmonary function test. We thank you all for your continued support!
10/19/23
One cycle down! Evan was supposed to start his 2nd cycle on 10/16, but due to low neutrophils and white cell count, they postponed until this coming Monday. There is good news though!! While he was in the hospital 2 weeks ago with “chemo fever” they did a repeat CT scan and it showed all 3 lung nodules have decreased in size!! Hallelujah! On Monday, when they took blood, they also checked his AFP tumor marker and it has decreased more than 90% from 6659 to 692! That is almost to where he was this time last year. This is fantastic news. It means that while we have had some set-backs, he is improving!! This last Wednesday, he was starting to pull clumps of hair out and so he allowed me to use the clippers and buzz him. 😫 We continue to thank everyone who has called, texted, given hugs, donations, and sent prayers and cards. We love each and every one of you and pray for you all. God Bless!
10/5/23
What a difference a day makes!!! We made a trip to the ER per Evan’s oncologist for a fever of 101.1 and very troubling blood pressure. After almost 12 hours in the ER, 2 separate antibacterial medications, nausea meds, pain meds, blood cultures, CT scans, x-rays, and blood pressure meds, we were transferred to Christus in Tyler. Five hours later, more antibacterial meds, more testing, and a lot of praying people, he was finally moved to a room. Taking last dose of antibacterial and waiting for blood cultures to come back before we will know what is happening. So many different opinions and suppositions. This is all new territory for us. They are pretty much going with the assumption that he has “chemo fever”….can’t be predicted, can’t be prevented, and can’t really be treated.☹️ Evan is so ready to get out of here!!
10/4/23
Had the first really bad day today. Yesterday was Evan’s 1 hour Bleomycin day. Last night, he had a slight fever, but this morning when I checked on him at 7:30, his fever had spiked to 100.5, he was nauseous, and had suffered with a bad headache all night. His oncologist said any fever over 100.5 had to be reported, so I called it in. Doc said we could give 1 Tylenol pill for the headache, but he was calling in an antibiotic. Doc thinks he is also dehydrated, so we are pushing the liquids. All other symptoms have eased up this evening, except for the headache. Pray that the nausea stays away, because we have been advised not to give either one of the 2 nausea meds we have while he is on the antibiotic. Sheesh….this is a roller coaster!! Still praising God through it all!🙌
9/27/23
We are on Day 3 of treatments, and things are going smoothly! Evan has had no side effects so far thanks to everyone’s prayers!! He is actually driving himself to treatment tomorrow! He has tomorrow and Friday left for this week and then he will return on Tuesday for about an hour. Praying that he continues to feel good. He’s eating good…probably better than he has in a while! LOL! Thank you to everyone who has donated, called, texted, prayed, volunteered in any way, shape, or form. We love you guys so much!!
9/21/23
We are so blessed by your donations! Evan will be starting his chemo treatments on Monday, September 25 in Palestine, Texas. We have been told to expect him to be there for 6 hours Monday-Friday, then returning for the next 2 Tuesdays, before starting all over again the next Monday. If we continue with their schedule as planned, he should be finished with chemo the day before Thanksgiving. What a Thanksgiving that will be, as I am sure we will all be very grateful to be done!! I will update again after his first treatment on Monday. God bless!
9/18/23
Evan is getting his chemo port placed today. Prayers for the doctor and nurses present and for peace for Evan and us (his parents). We cannot say thank you enough to those who have donated either privately or here.
Evan, our 21 year-old son, woke up on August 19, 2022 complaining of pain that he had been having for approximately 2 weeks. A trip to urgent care resulted in the doctor doing an ultrasound and being concerned enough to refer him to a Urologist immediately. Fast forward 7 days later, and the ultrasound says his right testicle has to be removed as it was completely necrotic and swollen the size of an avocado. Pre-testing, scans, x-rays, and surgery followed within the next 3 days. The surgeon came out to let us know that our next stop would be “MD Anderson.” He assured us that he would send it off for pathology, but between what he saw and the CT scan results, they were pretty sure it was malignant and had spread to his retroperitoneal lymph nodes (in the abdomen) and his lungs. On September 30, Evan had a PET scan that showed the 3 nodes in the chest area (2 in the lungs and one in the thoracic region), but nothing was affected in the abdomen. This made him STAGE 1S, which is very low risk. With his tumor markers so low, we decided to not do high-dose chemotherapy immediately, and instead try to research and do alternative treatments that were not so aggressive. Up until this point, we had been cash pay for everything we had done. Thankfully we were able to get an insurance plan for him to handle some of the cost, however, we are still having out-of-pocket costs for travel, lodging, losing work time, and still doing alternative treatments. On his last check-up, on August 14, the scans showed that the 3 nodes had TRIPLED in size, so with much prayer Evan has made the decision to go forward with the chemotherapy treatments. He is now considered STAGE 3B (there is only one more stage). These treatments will be 3 rounds of 21 day treatments. They will be done in Palestine, a 30 minute drive. He should be starting sometime in September. We will be having continuing out-of-pocket costs during this treatment. We have always felt like we were in a good place financially until this happened. We are only sharing this for those who have asked how they can help. Prayers are always our 1st answer. We serve a God who has this whole situation in the palm of His hand, and so we have assurance that things will work according to His plan. Secondly on our list of things we could use help with, is the extra expenses. I hated even putting an amount as a goal, but they would not let me continue without a number. We do not expect to reach that, but every cent will go to Evan’s care. Thank you so much and God Bless!