WE HAVE AN ACTION PLAN!

The doctors came in early this evening with a plan of action. Richard is starting an antifungal medication tonight and will continue it for 5 days. He will come home tomorrow because he can take the meds at home. This medication should take care of the histoplasmosis. Next Thursday (June 7th), he will be readmitted for chemo. Thankfully, that is my last day of school so I can come with Richard and stay with him until he has to go home. Dr. Andreadis said that if he has chemo next Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, he would be due to come back for Round 6 on June 27th...However, the doctor said he'll just have him come back Monday, July 2nd! So, his strongest week will be the week of our wedding!

I'm so glad they got this figured out and he'll be able to come home for a few days. It will give him a break from the monotony of the hospital. He isn't feeling sick either right now, which is not how he usually leaves the hospital.

Thanks for your prayers!

Daphne

NO SURGERY!

We have more good news! Richard does not have to have the surgery today! Last night, his doctor came in and said that the sample they took from the bronchoscopy last Friday started to grow a type of fungus called histoplasmosis, a fungus that produces spores that can be inhaled when they get into the air. As of last night, the results were not conclusive enough to cancel the surgery, but this morning, the infectious disease specialist who is working with Rich checked it in the lab again and enough has grown to be conclusive! I do not have any info. on the next plan of action in terms of treatment or when chemo. will start. All I know is that they will put him on some type of antifungal medicines. They are working up a "plan of action" this afternoon. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers! We weren't looking forward to another surgery, regardless of how minor it may be.
Daphne

Surgery Tomorrow (Thursday)

It has been confirmed by the thorasic surgeons that he will have the operation tomorrow. We do not have a time yet. They will make a small incision near his neck and pull as much of the lymph node as they can for more tests. They will need to wait for the results from the lab. Unfortunately, the doctors told Richard that if it turns out to be a fungus of some type, he will probably have to start antifungal meds for a little while (they didn't say how long) before he starts chemo. So I cannot, at this point, say how long he will be in the hospital. It depends what they find after the operation and when he starts chemo. I doubt he'll come home this week anymore...but again, we can't count on much of anything happening at a certain time. (Except, we can count on the fact that they will wake him up at ridiculous hours to take his weight, temperature, and blood pressure!) I can excuse the blood pressure wake up calls...that's more important.

At this point, our house will be in move in condition after this weekend. I will probably start to move in after school is over the end of next week. I'll get everything "up and running" so after the wedding, Richard will be able to easily join me in our lovely home. Everything is set to happen with the wedding on June 28th, as long as Richard is feeling well and/or not in the hospital with mold or fungus. He stated that he will feel fine that day. I'm not sure how he can guarantee that, but one thing I know is that when he sets his mind to something, he does it!

Thank you all for your continued thoughts, prayers, visits, gifts, phone calls, favors, meals, random acts of kindness, etc. We couldn't be getting through all this without you!
THANKS MORE THAN WE CAN SAY!!!!
(I especially owe my sister and brother-in-law for their help with the house...we're working up a big tab. Resurfacing our whole house's drywall, installing a microwave, assisting with plumbing, trim, caulking, plastic removing, vacuuming, painting, waiting at the house for things, snacks at the hospital, getting the mail...the list goes on and on! Thanks guys! Our house WOULD NOT be where it is without you!)

Please pray that Richard's surgery is successful tomorrow, they can diagnose the problem, and we can move on with treatment soon!

STILL at HUP...

On Friday, Rich had the bronchoscopy so that his doctors could see if they could find what is going on with this slightly enlarged lymph node next to his bronchial tube. Unfortunately, the biopsy was inconclusive. However, none of the results are consistent with cancer. There are several things they mentioned that would lead them to believe it's not cancer, one being that the doctors have never seen new cancer grow while someone is getting treatment. What they have found so far is not consistent with cancer at all.

His cough remains and he has had slight fevers on and off for the past couple days. Friday night he had a very high fever along with a reaction to a lot of medication. For about 2 hours, he was hallucinating and saying many things that didn't make any sense...it was quite a show. About 2 hours later, he was feeling fine and had a bowl of Aunt Paula's beef stew. This is such a roller coaster! He doesn't feel sick, which is frustrating for him because he feels like he's sitting around wasting time. Holiday weekends at hospitals are not very eventful.

Today (or possibly tomorrow if the OR is too booked), they want to do a mediastinoscopy, a minor surgical procedure where they will remove the lymph node. This will not fix the problem, but it will give them more information about the lymph node itself to determine the problem. The doctors seem to think it may be some type of bacterial mold that he breathed in at some point, maybe even a long time ago. He even added that these types of airborne bacteria and molds are common in agricultural areas...good old Lancaster County. Now, with his immune system compromised, it started to cause a problem. Once they take it out for a biopsy, they will (hopefully) have a better idea what it is (infection, bacteria, mold, etc.) so they can treat it with antibiotics or antifungal medication.

The doctors also think he should be able to start chemo. tomorrow if he has the surgery today since it isn't a very invasive procedure. However, so far now, they told us chemo. would start Friday evening...then it was pushed to Sunday morning because he had fevers...we're not counting on anything at this point. At the very earliest, he'll come home on Saturday. It looks like we'll be spending most evenings in Phila. this week again. This is treatment 5 of 8 (if we can ever get it started)...still counting down. I just keep in my mind that the biggest problem, the cancer, is gone! We're still celebrating! We keep teasing him - he got rid of cancer, now he has a mold...if it's not one thing it's another. However, I think molds are better than cancer! Please keep praying that they can diagnose this problem and we can move on!

PET/CT SCAN RESULTS

Richard got his PET/CT scan results earlier today: THE MASS IN HIS CHEST IS GONE! THERE IS NO CANCER! :) :) :) We are SO HAPPY, excited and THANKFUL!
There is only one lymph node near his bronchial tube that showed up larger, one that was not large before. The doctors are fairly certain that it is an infection rather than cancer because Dr. Andreadis said he, nor his colleagues have never seen new cancer grow when a person is having treatment. They are doing a bronchoscopy tomorrow where they will take a camera into his bronchial tube and pull a tissue sample for a biopsy to determine what it is. Dr. Andreadis is 95% sure it's an infection, especially because he has had a slight fever. This will delay his chemo treatment this round; he will have to after the procedure. I'm sure if it is an infection, which this time, we hope it is, he will have to be on antibiotics. Hopefully, he can do them at home like he did before.
Richard will continue through his full 8 treatments to make sure any microscopic cancer is absolutely gone.

KEEP PRAYING and THANKS FOR YOUR UNENDING PRAYERS AND SUPPORT!!!
I will post more details as I receive them!
Daphne

Back at HUP - Round 5

Richard was admitted back to HUP last night for round 5 of treatment. He should start chemo. today. This is a Cycle A, where he will get 6 bags of chemo, 12 hours apart. As long as he starts sometime today, he should be able to come home on Sunday (if all goes according to plan). Today, Peter is spending the day with him at HUP. I won't be able to stay with him until Friday night, due to work. This is his last treatment before I'm finished with our school year though. So, for all of his remaining treatments, I'll be able to be with him at the hospital.

Our house is still looking more and more like a home everyday. Painting is finished, except for a second coat on the kitchen walls. Our fridge will be delivered next weekend. That's really the last essential item we needed. I can't believe how much our house has changed since we bought it, and how much work we were able to get done. Richard is going to start moving his stuff over after he gets home from this treatment and feels better because he will only get home from treatment 6 about 1 1/2 weeks before the wedding. He wants to do next to nothing during that time so his body is completely resting. He said, "I'm not taking any chances!"

Thanks for all of your support. We appreciate it so much. Keep the prayers coming. I will post the results of his PET/CT scan as soon as I find out!

Daphne

Getting Ready To Go Again

Richard had a fairly good weekend. He has been getting really tired each evening around 7 or 8 p.m. He just doesn't enjoy not having the strength he used to have. His counts were fine the end of this week. Richard will go in for his PET scan and CT scan on Tuesday at HUP. That's an outpatient test. He will wait for his call on Wednesday for a bed to be admitted. We will take him down Wed. evening. Unfortunately, I won't be able to stay with him on Wed. or Thurs. night, but I can stay Friday and Saturday. ....rules at work...
Hopefully, if he starts chemo. by Thursday (which he should), he should be able come home on Sunday, the 27th. (Birthday gift for me - Richie comes home!) This will be a Cycle A - 6 bags of chemo., each 12 hours apart. He doesn't have to wait for any drugs to flush out this time.

Our house is really coming together, room by room. We're almost done painting! Richard put in our toilet upstairs and vanity top, and then he and his dad hung our mirror, light fixture, and towel racks. It looks great! Richard was excited to do some plumbing, even if it was easy stuff. Tomorrow, I will finish painting all of the rooms with carpet on the floor, so all of the carpet shield plastic will be removed tomorrow! Richard was concerned our house wouldn't get done it time when he first went into the hospital, but now, he's seeing that everything's coming together and he's relaxing and getting excited.

Thanks, still, for all of your prayers and support. Richard needs strength to continue through these next treatments. It's still uphill, but he's doing it - one day at a time.
Love,
Daphne

A Poem...

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and its turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns.
And many a failure turns about
When they might have won,
had they stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victors cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far;
So stick to the fight when your hardest hit,
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit!

~Author Unknown

Feeling Fair...Crazy Counts

Richard has been feeling fairly well lately. However, his counts were very low, so today, he sat at Lancaster General outpatient oncology and got 2 bags of red blood cells and 1 bag of platelets. He was just about finished when I last spoke with him. It took about 7 hours total. He is feeling good so far, and the transfusions seem to be a success at this point. That's about it in terms of updates I have for you! We anticipate a return to HUP for Round 5 toward the middle or end of next week, although Richard is still waiting to hear back from his doctor's office.

Daphne

Days of Fatigue Drag On

This week, Richard's side effects have been very diverse. He feels extremely tired some parts of some days, and other parts of the day he feels fine. He never knows what to expect when he wakes up, or even throughout the day. Thanks for all of your comments of encouragement! They are greatly appreciated! One day at a time...

Daphne

Post-Treatment 4

Richard had his Neulasta shot on Monday. Monday afternoon, he felt fairly well. Since Monday night, however, he's been feeling very weak, nauseous, and "wasted" (as he puts it). He's really not enjoying this part of it all. He wishes to be back on his feet again in his "good days." I just keep encouraging him to "keep on going" so he can get his life back.

We are really getting anxious to move in to our house. June 28th can't come soon enough for us. The painting is coming along well - several people have been helping various evenings. It's all really coming together and starting to look like a home. There will be some things we will need to do after we move in (curtains, light fixtures, pictures, etc.), but we will have the "messy" things out of the way. The most important thing to us is it's our house that we worked for, and we'll be there together.

Please keep praying for Richard's health and overall wellness. He's toughing it out, but some days, it just gets to him. Thanks for your love and support! You all keep us going one day at a time.
Love, Daphne

HUP Treatment 4 Pics

Richard is home safely! We're halfway done!
Days of sleeping and recovery from chemo. are ahead.
Here are some pics from the past few days:

"I'm cute, even on yellow chemo."

Even at HUP, we appreciate time together.

Aunt Paula's dinner on Thursday evening!

HUP Graffiti (...just kidding...dry erase)

...covering up the ugly board...who's way works

best?

...The teacher's way, of course!

Peter and Gabrielle, Thursday night

Heading for Home

Hello everybody! Richard's Methotrexate level is down to 0.05 today, so he will be able to go home. He has to get 2 units of red blood cells today before he goes home. They infuse over 2 1/2 hours each so he will be here until later on today. Tomorrow, he will go to LGH to get his Neulasta shot, and Thursday, he will go and get a dose of Ara-C in his Omaya port.

He is feeling very tired - the doctors said the Ara-C (Cytarabine) is what is making him so tired, along with the low red blood cell count. He feels a bit nauseous, but nothing the meds haven't been able to handle. He's looking forward to going home and sleeping it off. He's already talking about what he wants to do during his "up" days again! Right now, though, all he wants to do is rest.

Thanks for your prayers!
Love, Daphne

At HUP

Rich arrived at HUP on Wednesday evening around 7 p.m. Floor 7 nurses informed me that when they found out a bed was needed for "Richard Taraborelli," they made sure they had one available "before floor 6 got him first." :)

It took them until 3:00 p.m. on Thursday to finally get the chemo. started, but his stay here at HUP has been uneventful since then. (That's what we want!) We had to move rooms once, but we moved to a room on the same floor, and back away from the nurses station. It's a lot quieter back here. They needed the room up front for someone who needed to be right near the nurse's station.

Richard is finished with his 24 hours of Methotrexate, and finished bag 2 of 4 of Ara-C this morning. He will get another bag of Ara-C around 4:00 this afternoon and one more at 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning. He can go home when the Methotrexate is at a level of .05 in his blood. It will depend on how fast his body flushes it out, which means I'm making him drink, drink, drink!

Thursday and Friday he took a lot of walks around the hospital, but today he's feeling a little more tired. He's taking a nap already this morning. We're still thankful that his main side effect from all this chemo. is just fatigue. He's certainly glad not to have the horrible nausea.

That's really all I can say for now. He has to finish his Ara-C bags and wait for the Methotrexate level to come down; then, he can go home!

Love, Daphne

Tomorrow's Admittance

Richard will be heading back to HUP tomorrow. He will wait for a phone call from the hospital telling him that they have a bed available. We will take him down tomorrow evening. He and I are both glad that I will be able to stay with him. It certainly helps him stay cheerful when he has those he loves to talk to and spend time with him. We are praying for tumor shrinkage and a successful, smooth Treatment 4!

Thanks for your love and prayers,
Daphne