Life has been an emotional rollercoaster for my family these last 7 weeks, with periods of joy, tremendous stress, sorrow, hope, solemn remembrance, fear, encouragement, and gratitude.
The Oncology Team gave us encouraging news in early September. As a result of the CT scans and a subsequent concurrence by the members of the Baylor College of Medicine Tumor Review Board (of which Dad’s oncologist and urologist are both members), Dad’s tumor and metastasized lymph nodes had shrunk (though neither of the members of the Oncology Team to which we spoke provided an answer to Mom’s question: to what are they comparing the results of the recent CT scans: the CT scans from the ER in Arizona in March, the PET scans prior to the first TURBT in April, or some other means of measurement?) Dad could now cease chemo/immuno treatments, and he could move on to the next step in his cancer journey: surgical removal of his bladder (radical cystectomy).
We remembered all those who
were killed in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. We shared the sorrow for those families that
we know personally who suffered the loss of a loved one on that tragic day 25
years ago. We honored our first
responders, who put themselves in harm’s way every day to protect and
serve. And we paid tribute to those heroes of
September 11 who lost their lives saving others or who have succumbed to
illnesses attributed to their efforts that day.
 |
| We attended the 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony held in Livingston... |
 |
| ...and our hearts were touched to see this flag display on an I-69 overpass enroute to Dad's treatment later that morning. |
Dad is a huge fan and has been engrossed in University of Texas (UT) football. But I guess you can surmise that by the array of team gear, from shirts, baseball caps, and even cowboy boots, that Mom/I purchased for him for his birthday.
 |
| It required a major withdrawal from my cheese bank, but seeing Dad so happy with his team gear, was priceless. I can't take credit for purchasing the stuffed BEVO--that was a gift from friend Willi. |
 |
| For Dad's birthday dinner, Mom served up some Italian food at the convertible dinette/seating bench Dad built for Mom last year. |
 |
| Rotate that cake and balloons one-turn to the left and you will see a remarkable likeness to yours truly, the Rambling RV Rat! |
We enjoyed lightheartedness and constant laughter by viewing the movie, Wile E. Coyote VS Acme at the Lufkin Cinemark Theater. The film has a “cameo” appearance from just about every Warner Brothers cartoon character, from Foghorn Leghorn to Porky Pig, from Yosemite Sam to Tweety Bird and Sylvester. The film evoked many fond memories of Saturday morning cartoons. (Mom always said that watching Warner Brothers cartoons introduced her to classical music!). A definite Rambling RV Rat 5-cheese award-winning film!
We attended the Texas State Forest Festival in Lufkin, one of the festivals highlighted in the exhibit at the Bullock Texas State Museum when we visited Austin. This was a comparatively small event, but we enjoyed the musical entertainment, the petting zoo, and the animal performances, though I kept my distance from the big cat! Since we don't eat fast foods, fried foods, or foods that are generally sold at festivals, we stopped to eat at Napoli's Italian Restaurant in downtown Lufkin. Though it is in the basement of an older office building, it has lovely decor, excellent service, and the best Italian food we have experienced yet within Texas.
 |
| Chicken piccata and chicken parmigiana at Napoli's! Delizioso! |
We were ecstatic that the
lovebugs ended their flying frenzy of fornication and that the Meteorologist in
the sky finally produced some weather with low-humidity and tolerable
temperatures.
We even had a rainbow!
We still volunteer at the Mannafest Food Pantry, with Dad helping in a reduced capacity. And he remains active with his Masonic Lodge while Mom continues to assemble care packages once monthly with the FAITH (Families and Individuals Thanking Heroes) Military Support Group. We played pickleball several times with our group at the Coldspring Methodist Church. They are such a nice bunch of folks who welcome all skill sets to join in the fun and fellowship.
We were blessed to be visited by/spend time with some wonderful friends. Though we may not be blood relations, the RV community is our true “family”.
 |
| Tia Juanita Fish Camp is a new restaurant in town, and we have enjoyed it immensely. This dish is called "The Ricky" and can easily feed 2-3 people. |
 |
| Of course, some of my good friends are furry or feathered! |
Halloween is fast
approaching!
We were happy to participate with our line dance group in performances that brought smiles and good cheer to the residents at two area nursing facilities. 
I love seeing all the Halloween yard ornaments. 
I picked out what I think is a perfect Halloween costume for my Mom and Dad. What do you think?
Mom has been screaming and howling, but it isn't because of Halloween. On top of worrying about Dad’s health and being his home healthcare aide post TURBT procedures, she has been stressed to the max dealing with medical billing issues. For instance, Dad’s 10 chemo- and 5 immuno- therapy treatments that failed to shrink the bladder tumor cost over $1 million. Our faith-based plan paid one-third of the cost, at a rate 40% higher than what Medicare would pay out. Yet, Baylor-CHI (Catholic Healthcare Initiatives)-St. Luke’s is balance billing us! Thankfully, Mom had familiarized herself with the processes and nuances of our faith-based plan. She contacted the Patient Advocacy Group associated with our plan, and they will handle negotiating the bill down. Hopefully, they will reach agreement with the provider for a zero balance. It is quite evident how more than half of all U.S. bankruptcies are attributed to medical debt.
Making matters worse, we felt
confused and deflated after a meeting with Dad’s urologist. We left his office quite apprehensive and
with more unanswered questions than when we arrived. Apparently, prior to the radical cystectomy,
Dad would be required to undergo another TURBT (transurethral resection of
bladder tissue) procedure to confirm the size of the tumor. Despite the Oncology Team telling us that the
tumor and lymph nodes shrunk in response to the chemo/immuno treatments, the
urologist said he couldn’t make any definitive determinations until after the
TURBT.
Sadly, the results of the TURBT, which occurred in mid-October, were disappointing and discouraging. The treatments failed to cause any measurable shrinkage of the bladder tumor. (Clearly, the Oncology Team painted a more optimistic picture than the reality of the results, although Dad’s quality of life improved vastly from receiving treatments). Therefore, the bladder will be removed surgically along with the cancerous pelvic lymph nodes. We don’t know whether the affected peritoneal lymph nodes will be removed. The urologist said there will be many “game day decisions.” However, Dad has decided not to pursue a neobladder. Instead, he will get a more traditional ileal conduit. After further research and following the bladder cancer journey of NFL player Deion Sanders, Dad learned that the neobladder comes with higher risk factors/complications and longer recovery time. The neobladder requires training the surrounding muscles and comes with the possible need to self-catharize (that thought has Dad completely traumatized!). Not to mention that Dad could suffer from long-term incontinence because of the neobladder not functioning properly (Deion Sanders is 16 months post-neobladder creation. Yet, he still suffers from incontinence. At least he parlayed that into a spokesperson gig for Depends!).
With surgery occurring on Monday,
October 26, I am calling on my army of prayer warriors! My family is so appreciative of the public and private outpouring of support!
 |
| Beneath a poster of Bryan Cranston's character Walter White/Heisenburg (Breaking Bad), Dad was doing his best impersonation. "SAY MY NAME!" |
