Pre-Op workup

Today I went in for my pre-op visit number 1 before my cyst surgery. I met with the chief resident who will be in on the case along with Dr. Groll. I had to fill out some paperwork, go over the consent for removal of right ovarian cyst and possibly the right ovary, have a pap smear and then pick up some meds. Because of my ulcerative colitis they want me to do a dreaded bowel prep (I think this blog is way to fixated on bowels..) in order to clear out the colon in case of any adhesions they might find. Then I decided to go to the gym and do some weights for the first time in a month. I went to move the seat of one piece of equipment and the 2 pieces slammed together on my middle finger nail bed. A bit of a scream came out, then instant nausea, clammy feelings and felt like I was going to pass out. I kinda drifted to the locker room and hugged the toilet for a while.
Obviously I am not meant to work out!

Hopefully this weekend is less exciting around here. Dan has his CT-Scan on Tuesday and I have my pre-op visit number 2 (with anesthesia) that same afternoon. Not sure when we will get CT-Scan information. Dan is scheduled to follow up I think on Thursday or Friday with Dr. Wood, but maybe they will call us before then with results.

Happy Easter Everyone!

Ah Easter, time for chocolate bunnies, hard boiled eggs and large amounts of ham. What a funny holiday. Kathy has been in town all weekend, and like most good visitors she has slaved in the kitchen the whole time while we watched TV and played computer games. Dan's counts are low so we don't really leave the house except to walk the dogs and since its 30 degrees out we don't really take long walks.



Well I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday, here are some pictures from the weekend.

Air Force Boards, part 2

Dan got the result today of the AF boards. They placed him as a C3 for 1 year. In other words, he cant get deployed for a year (gosh, so sad..) Course he still has 2 years or so on his PhD program so doesn't really matter. Good news is he is still a member of the AF and our 30year plan is still in place.

april fools

Dan's CT-Scan is scheduled for April 1st, 2008. Nothing much more to report, just wanted you guys to know the date.

is it over......

Is today the last day Dan has to sit in that chemo chair for 5 hours? The last time he goes home with an IV in his arm? Is this weekend the last time I get to give him a WBC booster shot? (gotta admit I kinda like this part) Our world changed so much last December, the day the word cancer became a daily thought. Every song that comes on about love lost or sappy soap opera goodbyes that have seem to dominate Days of Our Lives of late have hit to close to home, my fear that I would loose Dan to this. Everyone says testicular cancer is curable, no problem, what a great cancer to get, etc doesn't have testicular cancer or have a husband with testicular cancer. I am confident that we beat this thing and in 3 weeks I guess we find out with his CT-Scan. But these months have been hard. I am proud of how Dan has gotten through it all, shocked by the number of people who have taken the time to write a good old fashioned get well card and thankful to the Air Force for their treatment and Dan's commanders for their constant checking in on his condition and his well being. The main treatments are done now. Dan has a short 15 minute chemo session the next two Mondays to receive his Bleomycin. A week or two later he gets a repeat Chest/Abdomen/Pelvis CT-Scan and appointments with Dr. Wood and Dr. Lewis. The goal for the next couple weeks is keep the chemo side effects to a minimum and avoid infections and enjoy Kathy's visit over the Easter weekend. We should know soon enough if Dan is in remission. Hopefully it is and we start moving forward with our small family. I have my surgery scheduled for April 22nd to remove the cyst on my right ovary. Assuming that goes well I assume I start the IVF treatments soon after. We are still moving forward with Korea adoption, as soon as Dan is cleared I will talk with my social worker and see where we stand.

Thanks again to everyone who reads this blog.

Derm Appointment

Folliculitis is what Dan's Dermatologist said is wrong with his poor head. It's all inflamed and tender on the back of his head. It is usually caused by bacteria, Staphylococcus being the most common cause. It can also be caused by yeast or fungus. Folliculitis caused by a fungus is most often seen in people who have trouble fighting infections because they have an impaired immune system. So it was probally caused from his low immune system and made worse by having to wear winter caps in the cold and rubbing on the pillow at night. The doc gave Dan medicated shampoo and lotion to put on for the next week or so until the infection clears up. His head actually looks pretty good today, the doc should have seen it about 4 days ago! (it was really hard to get a good picture of his head, but you get the idea)

Also pre-Cycle 3 lab work is up on the link

Cycle 3

Cycle 3 is upon us. So far its going smooth, side effects are being controlled and Dan has decent energy and eating levels. His labs were all within normal range, except his WBC's which are through the roof, and I will be updating his lab sheet later today. Tomorrow Dan has a Dermatology appointment, his poor head has a rash and alot of acne from the steroids or other medicine and his oncology doc wants them to check it out. His nodes in his neck are fairly swollen because of this so they are being careful. In a couple weeks when the cycle is over Dan will get a CT-Scan and/or PET-Scan to see what affect the 9 week of chemo had on his cancer. At that point we will know if he needs further medicine, surgery or nothing.

So we are holding steady and looking forward to Friday when the meat of Cycle 3 is behind us.

Snow!

Quite a large snow storm hit Ohio over the weekend. Anywhere from 1-2 feet depending on where you live. This doesn't stop Bosley, who is very content to just sit in the snow all day long. Most of the roads and sidewalks are plowed now so its not to bad getting around. Tomorrow starts Cycle 3 for Dan. My parents sent us beautiful roses this weekend (poor flower guy had to drive around in the snow!) to remind us of our rose garden we had when we lived in Florida and to keep our spirits high. Thanks mom and dad! They really are beautiful roses.

Return to active duty...again?

This marks the second time that I have met the MEB. This is a very complex and in depth process that encompasses multiple Air Force regulations documents. Just to clarify a bit on the parts that are important to Ali and I:

The MEB is a board used by the Air Force to determine if selected personnel should be retained on active duty, or retired/separated due to physical (or mental) problems. The primary question the MEB considers when making this determination "can the troop continue to perform his/her job function given the physical condition now and in the future?" This question is asked from the perspective of impact to the Air Force, and not so much to the person. Persons who cannot perform their job function, cannot change to a job function with lesser physical requirements, or whose medical condition will worsen in the future are likely to be retired or separated. All of the circumstances and details vary on a case by case basis.

An important factor in answering the above question is whether the person is still worldwide deployable. The Air Force is an expeditionary force, with a high overseas operations tempo. Those who cannot deploy worldwide are at risk to be separated through the MEB process.

The process itself begins with a doctor's recommendation to meet the MEB. This happened to me for my foot problems, and in the case of TC it is a requirement to meet the MEB. The first board that meets is the local MEB at the troop's base hospital, if the hospital is large enough to support such a function. The board is chaired, typically, by the medical group commander (or appointed designee), and several doctors. The board may choose to return the troop to active duty, or forward the case to Randolph AFB in Texas for the informal Physical Evaluation Board (PEB) review.

The local board at WPAFB has elected to recommend that I return to active duty. They have also recommended that I be placed on a physical profile. In this situation, my case will go to a Standards Committee at Randolph. This committee is primarily responsible for assigning the type of profile I will have, but it may also refer me to the informal board (which does happen). So, even though I have a "return to active duty" determination, this does not mean I am necessarily retained...there is still a chance that I may meet another MEB.

The profile that I will be on follows the Air Force Code C system. This system has three levels:

• C1: Airmen eligible for permanent and temporary-duty assignment to global Defense Department installations with medical treatment facilities. Generally, approvals are for conditions that are stable and found as a result of a medical review and not likely to worsen suddenly.

• C2: Airmen eligible for permanent and TDY assignments to continental U.S. installations. They could also be deployable or assignable to overseas bases or nonfixed facilities if appropriate care is available. This is generally approved for temporary or mild conditions requiring follow-up but clinically inactive and managed without frequent visits or unique medication regimen or prescriptions.

• C3: Airmen who are TDY nondeployable and assignment-limited to an installation based on medical need and availability of care. Approval authority is the Medical Standards Branch. The member’s commander may request waivers to send a member on deployment or permanent assignment.

My case worker has stated that my case is classified as unstable, at least now and in the near future. Therefore, C1 is most certainly ruled out. I will likely be either C2 or C3, but I don't have any indication which. She also indicated that a ruling of C3 increases the likelihood that my case will meet the PEB, because it removes my ability to deploy worldwide.

My case manager was unable to provide me with a date that the Standards Committee will meet, but indicated that it will likely be in the next month or so.

Air Force Medical Boards

Not much going on this round of chemo. We are on week 3 of cycle 2 so Dan is feeling pretty good and has been going into work for half-days this week. Yesterday his friend Adam Pohl defended his thesis and Dan got to go in and see that. The other big news from this week was Dan met with the AF Medical Evaluation Board (MEB). This is a board that decides if your medical problems are too much to keep you on active duty and they medically discharge you or not. Right now there is no reason why they would discharge Dan, hopefully. His doctor submitted Dan's treatment plan and projected outcome for the board to review. I am not sure when they will make their decision but probably sometime during this next month. They may wait until his last cycle is done. I don't really know enough about the process to give you any more details, perhaps Dan will fill in some.

Next week we start the final cycle of Chemo. We have a couple movies saved up for watching during the treatments. Hopefully it goes fairly smooth again.