Hello From Lynda:

I’m hoping Amy will post this blog for me.  Maybe God has slowed me down so I can catch up on some of this modern technology. 

 

First, I’d like to say that our family has been saddened by the sudden death of the Rev. Dennis Buttery.  Dennis had posted two encouraging blogs on my Health Updates.  Dennis and I had many good times together as we attended a one room school named Moccasin.  He married a good friend – Wanda.  (Wanda is my Aunt Vonda’s twin sister).  Dennis was an outstanding speaker and leader for the Georgia Church.  Please pray for the family during this difficult time.

 

I continue to be astounded by all the kindness and offers of help that have been extended to me and my family.  I thank God for blessing me with exceptional friends and family.  I’ve had the assurance that you would understand if I became discouraged and you’d share my laughter when I tried to find some humor in this serious cancer journey.  Thank you for the scriptures which reminded me of God’s promises.  Thank you for the cards, food, calls, and prayers.  Your prayers kept me from fear and discouragement.  They gave me peace and strength as I waited for surgery and the final prognosis.  I’m thankful that words like aggressive and invasive were no problem for my God.  My prognosis is very good.  Praise God for His healing power.  I ask that you continue to remember me as I follow up on other doctor appointments, have drain tubes removed, and regain my strength. 

 

I have a few tidbits of information I’m still wondering about:

 

1.       On Monday (before scheduled surgery on Tuesday) they took me to the nuclear medicine section and gave me four very painful shots in each breast (that’s 8 total).  Now why would you try to repair something you were going to cut off the next day?  (Be informed about nuclear stuff)

2.       After surgery, I tried to raise my arms to eat, I told Amy, “I gave consent for my boobs to be removed, but I didn’t know they were going to cut my arms half off.”  (Remember to ask questions before signing consents)

3.       I wasted a lot of time one day trying to get the telephone to change TV stations.  (Stay focused – the TV remote works much better)

4.       How do you spell mastectomy?  (I always have to ask)

 

I’ll close my blog with this thought.  Karlene and Steve Garrett sent me this story in a card.  I had read it before, but it took on new meaning for me during the past few weeks.

 

One night a man had a dream.  He dreamt he was walking along the beach with the Lord.  Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.  For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand:  one belonging to him, and the other to the Lord.

 

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand.  He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints.   He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life. 

 

This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it.

 

“Lord, You said that once I decided to follow You, You’d walk with me all the way.  But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints.  I don’t understand why when I needed You most You would leave me.”

 

The Lord replied, “My son, My precious child, I love you and would never leave you.  During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

 

I can assure you that this is very true.  I thank God for carrying me through the past few weeks.  When problems come your way, trust in God and He will carry you.  We love you and pray that God will bless you for your many acts of kindness.  Also, a special thanks to Pastor Steven Friese and Pastor Van Scott.  I knew their prayers were with me and I knew they were just a phone call away.   We love ya – Lynda, John and family

 

P.S. Please pray for three other people who are very ill with cancer.

 

1.       Kathy Smith (John’s cousin)

2.       Linda Crow (Chris Crow’s mother.  Chris is married to my niece Melissa Barbre-Crow)

3.       Judy Crum (Lisa Wolff’s aunt.  Lisa is married to my nephew Clinton)

 

Blessings Continue:

 

Mom was released from the hospital at noon yesterday.  She had an oncology appointment at 1:00, that she insisted on walking to herself.  We received another answer to prayer........no chemotherapy!  The oncologist (and his assistant who was from Evansville) explained that there was cancer in the left breast that was contained in the lobe.  Therefore, the mastectomy took care of that.  The right breast contained invasive cancer, but it was caught early (stage 1) and did not appear to be very invasive.  Therefore, the benefits of chemotherapy did NOT outweigh the risks.  It was a blessing that they completed a double mastectomy.  Mom's cancer is receptor negative, which means it is NOT estrogen fed.  If it were, there would be other treatment options such as a chemo pill, etc.  However, there are few options for receptor negative breast cancer so it was another blessing that this was caught early.  Mom will have to return to the Mayo Clinic every 6 months for the next five years for ultrasounds of the chest wall, etc.  She also has an appointment on December 1st to investigate some issues with her uterus that, "...are not normal."  Hopefully this is nothing.

 

With the great news, mom instructed that we get her home to her grandkids.  Therefore, we left Rochester at 2:30 p.m. and arrived home at about 3:00 a.m. (would have been earlier with better chauffeurs).  Needless to say, she was in a lot of pain and can hopefully rest today.  She is the strongest woman that I have ever witnessed.  She did not complain once the entire ride home.  She is only taking one Tylenol.  I can honestly say that she has not complained throughout this entire process (even post surgery) which is a testament to her faith.  Please pray that the drain tubes will come out quickly as they appear to be very painful.  Hopefully she will feel like writing the next post herself.........they are much more humorous!!  We are thankful for safe travel...........it's good to be home!!

Cancer In Both Breasts....Full Report At 1:00

 

Good morning!  I'm happy to report that mom's nausea is better.  She can only tolerate Tylenol, so I pray the ride home is bearable.  Though my plane is scheduled to leave today, I'm ditching it to help bring mom home.  I'm certain Eric will have a hard time explaining this to the kids as they have been counting down the days until I return.  However, I can't imagine leaving mom and dad at this time (mom also added that my nursing skills could use more practice).  We will meet with the oncologist at 1:00 for a full pathology report.  However, the doctor reported this morning that there was cancer in both breasts.  Mom had a mammogram (clear) in February and another in October.......the cancer grew fast between this time so ladies, please keep your mammogram appointments and don't put them off.  I will post the report this afternoon before we start home.

 

As we leave we feel blessed.  God has been mom's strength, provider and healer.  The doctor's have also shown great bedside manner, along with great skill.  Most who visit Rochester have a common link.  They are here because a loved one is sick.  We praise God that mom came through this step of the experience with a hopeful outlook.  Being around the clinic is very humbling.  There are many here from all around the world with incurable problems.  One lady I visited with said, "Having cancer makes you grateful for all of your other blessings in life."  If you are my friend, slap me the next time you hear me complain........about anything!!!  Will talk more this afternoon........

The Comedian Has Hit Bottom...

 

The update will come from me today as mom is very sick.  She began getting sick late last night and it continues today.  We are hoping it is just the pain medication that has made her so nauseated.  On a good note, she has not had any pain meds for several hours.  However, she cannot sit up today, which is a big set-back from yesterday.  She was supposed to be released to the hotel today, but they will be keeping her in the hospital overnight.  This will give dad and I some more practice 'nursing' as we are now in charge of her drain tubes.  It's a beautiful day in Rochester, in the 50s and sunny.  Rochester amazes me......everyone here is SOO friendly!  I'm also overwhelmed with how busy this place is.  I feel like I'm back in college.....non-stop action, late nights, Jimmy John's to eat and a Starbuck's to go!!  We are still awaiting her pathology report.  The doctor said that it may not be ready until we meet with the oncologist on Friday.  If you are queasy, stop reading, but I find the updates from the doctor fascinating.  He explained that they take the breasts off, freeze them and slice them like a loaf a bread.  Then they look at each slice, stopping to further examine/test any abnormal looking cells.  Since mom's breasts were full of cysts, it is a long and tedious process.  Therefore, we are still hoping for good news from the reports.  Instead of being anxious, we're trying to be thankful that they are so thorough.  Pray that mom's nausea will pass so she can rest and regain her strength.  Her IV infiltrated so they had to pull it.  The oral anti-nausea meds aren't working as well.  However, mom is as funny as always.  My favorite quote from today is from her conversation with the nurse, "Where is the high that narcotics are supposed to give you?  All I feel are lows."  This has definitely been the longest day for her yet.......I knew we were in for a long day when I got in trouble for chewing gum and she was telling me to hurry and answer my phone.....when the IV pump went off!!  Thanks for your continued concern & Love you all....

Hello From Lynda Part II

 

God still works miracles!  At 3:25 yesterday I was in surgery.  At 3:25 today I'm up walking, talking and eating a big meal (with my make-up on & wearing my own robe).  Thank you so much for all of your prayers, love and concern.  The doctor has been in to see me twice, but still does not have the pathology results.  Surgery really wasn't too bad.  I was able to sleep through the whole thing!  I'll write more tomorrow...

God Continues to Bless Us!

 After a long day of waiting, dad and I just met with Dr. Sterioff.  He cautioned us that his final report would not be ready until tomorrow, as his team is still completing tests.  However, he stated that mom's surgery went very well.  He removed the left breast first.  This was supposed to be the good one, but Dr. Sterioff stated that it had Atypical Ductal Hyperphasia (ADH).  He explained to us that, "...it was turning into cancer."  He took a lymph node and it tested negative.  Dr. Sterioff then removed the cancerous breast and removed five lymph nodes, all of which tested negative......praise Jesus!  This is truly an answer to prayer.  Mom is still in recovery.  It is anticipated that we can see her around 6:30 p.m.  I know the days ahead will be hard, but I know she will be relieved to hear the good news.  Thanks again for your concern and prayers! You've kept her spirits high!  Keep us in your prayers and I will update you with the doctor's 'official' report tomorrow.  As you can imagine, we are overjoyed with the news!

She's Still Positive!

Over the weekend, mom and dad had a safe trip back to Mayo Clinic.  After meeting with her surgeon (Dr. Sterioff) this morning, mom  called and reported that she really likes him.  I can tell that she feels very comfortable in his experienced care.  I’m thankful for this blessing as she continues to sound really positive, confident and determined to fight.  Dr. Sterioff feels that the cancer was caught early and is not very invasive……..yeah!  His report contained positive news and some not-so-positive news.  However, the bottom line is that he will not know for certain until he completes the surgery and gets all of the test results back.  Therefore, I will update you with the facts at that time since most is speculation at this point.  She is going into the hospital this afternoon for some tests, but will be released to spend the night with dad at the hotel.  She will be admitted again tomorrow morning.  She is scheduled to meet with an oncologist at 12:45 on Friday, November 6^th and possibly be released at that time to heal.  I will fly to Rochester early in the morning.  Her double mastectomy will most likely be around noon.  Please continue to pray for our entire family and we all adjust!