Summer time goes by fast.
- stephanieriordan23
- Aug 19, 2024
- 3 min read
And we've have had a lot of fun. Tom has done a great job with the kids helping them swim without floaties and they have loved going to the pool multiple days a week. We met up with our church crew Tom and I grew up with for fourth July at the McLemores Lakehouse which was such a sweet blessing. Then Tom and I had a nice getaway in mid July with Bryan and fam to Aspen. Even though my pain was starting to ramp up, it was so nice being in such a beautiful place with my big bro and his sweet family. I was able to talk with my 9 and 11 year old nephew about everything I was going through and why I was bald now. It was a very sweet moment together, that I will forever cherish. And we got to see Tom’s bestie, Chris, while in Colorado. We are currently road tripping to South Carolina to visit Tom’s dad and Pam who moved about 20 minutes away from Hilton Head in the spring. We are excited to have a fun place to go visit, the kiddos love their Pap and Lolli.
I have now finished 3 full cycles of my new IV chemo, Trodelvy. My cancer marker and signatera numbers have been down and up. The signatera number that looks at the circulating tumor DNA in my blood has recently increased dramatically, I got the award for the highest my oncologist has ever seen it. I hate how much I put my hope in these numbers to determine if treatment is working or not. The signatera test is a new test that is being used and therefore we can not fully rely on it. It is possible that it counts the dead cells that are trying to be filtered out of my body and why my last one went up so much at the end of July. My next lab draw for the Signatera test will be on August 30th. Then I will have my next PET scan the first week of September which will really determine if my current treatment is working.
In July my back pain started to increase dramatically requiring me to start to take pain medication. The Saturday evening after my July 26th infusion was a nightmare of pain. None of the medication helped decrease pain and I could not sleep at all that night due to the uncontrollable back pain I was experiencing. I ended up in the ER to help control the pain. That following week I met with a pain management specialist who has me on a new regimen with steroids and long lasting pain meds. She also made me feel better about the pain I was experiencing after chemo. She explained the chemo is going in attacking all my spots in my bones which causes a lot of inflammation. My past two infusions have been so much better with very minimal pain for the Sunday and Monday after infusion.
We are excited for our week in South Carolina and a stop in the smokey mountains on the way back home. The kids will start back at First McKinney’s mom day out program the first week of September which they are super excited about. They have been asking all summer when “church school” starts because they miss it so much.
Prayers Answered
Hair loss was hard the first few days but better than anticipated. I am bald at home and the kids could care less. Avery tells me I am bald head is beautiful at night.
Tom has been a rock, taking the kids to the pool on his own so I could have some quiet time
Friends and family fully loving and supporting us in so many ways
Meeting with pain management doctor who validated what I was feeling
Prayer Request
Continued minimal side effects with this chemo, thank you Lord for the new pain regimen
Prayers for good scan results, I do not have the exact date yet but will be the within the first half of September
Continued prayers for strength for our family as we navigate this crazy journey
To trust my God given instinct on how I am feeling and not place my hope in the numbers
Ways to support us
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