Mission Moment for TNT

Saturday morning at 6 AM I had the privilege to speak to a large group of runners that are preparing for 1/2 and full marathons with Team In Training for the Leukemia/Lymphoma society.

I was asked to share my story and also my brother-in- law Jim's story. I was able to share some stories about Jim in his life and passed his picture around so people could put a face to his name.

I was also happy to share my story and hope that it was of encouragement. They made Chris and I feel very welcome and we hope to have more opportunities to share these stories with others.

Thanks for having us come out TNT!

Father & Son Video Part 2

Ok, if you missed the video in the previous post, click on the link in yesterday's post and watch it first. These two videos are so inspiring for anyone and will make you realize that you CAN do all things through Him. This video is the story of Team Hoyt.

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=4e7679f8a731d6cce58a

Incredible video about the relationship between a father and son.... and God's relationship with us.

A son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a marathon with me?'
The father who, despite having a heart condition, says 'Yes'. They went on to complete the marathon together.
Father and son went on to join other marathons, the father always saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going through the race together.

One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's join the Ironman together.' To which, his father said 'Yes' to.

For those that don't know, the Ironman is the toughest triathlon ever. The race encompasses three endurance events of a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed by a 112 mile (180.2 kilometer) bike ride, and ending with a 26.2 mile (42.195 kilometer) marathon along the coast of the Big Island .

Father and son went on to complete the race together. View this
http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=8cf08faca5dd9ea45513

Last Test~again.

Tomorrow, I will try again to get this last test done. I have a stress test in the morning and am once again on a "no caffeine" for 24 hours rule. If you are a coffee ( or any kind of) caffeine drinker, you know what this feels like. I will be glad to get this over with :)

It is the treadmill part of the test and I am feeling really good while running, going further and at a faster pace so I don't anticipate any problems but please do keep this last test in prayer for me, as we are praying that all is ok with my heart so I can keep running.

As far as my oncologist, I see him in 3 months~ yeah! I will have another CT scan and Muga( (heart) before that visit. Still unsure about doing the Zometa again in July, will need to talk with Dr. A on that. Chris and I are also praying that the muga scan will show improvement when I have that done in a few months.

Thanks for the continued support~ have a great weekend!
Elayne

The previous post

The other day I wrote about the effects that the Zometa had on me last week and I received a couple of comments from people urging me to talk with my doctor and consider continuing the treatments.I will definitely talk to Dr. A about it as well as pray about continuing.

Because one of the comments was from someone I do not know but truly appreciated her encouragement, it made me think about others that may be facing all of this and decisions about what medications to take or not to take. We are all so different and some things work well for one person and not well for another. With that said, I would never want to discourage someone else that may be following my journey because I had a bad experience. I typically do not tolerate medications well. I think the Zometa itself is a very promising drug for people with metastatic cancer in their bones.

I have had cancer now for almost 10 years and one thing I have learned is to listen to your body and that sometimes we have to go through some tough treatments but we are ultimately the one 's that have to make the final decisions on what to do. I have said yes to some and I have also said no to others. My cousin Robin told me "There are no right or wrong answers here". You just have to make the best decisions you can based on the information you have at the time and PRAY DILIGENTLY!
Ann & Diane~ thank you both for your words of encouragement. Ann, I left you a message in the comments from the last post.

Well, that didn't work!

As I wrote in the previous post I had a Zometa ( for strengthening the bones) treatment on Thursday which is administered by IV. I was not supposed to have any side effects but.... I had many if not all the "uncommon" side effects.
Around 7 pm I began to feel very fatigued, almost lethargic. Then at 2 AM I woke up feeling horrible. Best way I can describe it is like having a bad case of the flu after being hit by a bus. This was not fun and lasted all day yesterday, and until 5 am this morning when I woke up feeling bad again. Today I feel better but still weak and my body still hurts. The nurse has me alternating Tylenol and Advil every 4 hours.
So... it appears I will not be taking the Zometa anymore. Some of the more serious side effects are that it can damage your kidneys and deteriorate your jaw bone. Based on how sensitive I am to meds and the reaction I had after one treatment I just don't feel I can take that chance with this medication.
I was unable to finish the 2nd part of my stress test yesterday as well as having to miss the "mission moment" with Team In Training this morning where I was supposed to speak to a group of runners preparing for 1/2 and full marathons to share my story and Jim's. Both will be rescheduled soon.
Have a good weekend and Happy Fathers Day to all the Dad's!

Going over test results with Doctor A

Today's visit with my oncologist went well. He went over all the test results with us and like the nurse said last week everything looks good! No signs of spread or new areas affected.
I know some of you have asked or may be wondering since the tests came back not showing any new cancer and the rib and spine are showing healing "do you still have cancer"? The answer is yes ( I asked today too :).
We will continue on as we have been with the hormone treatment which includes taking tamoxifen daily and keeping me in a medical menopause. I was supposed to get a Lupron injection today ( this is how they put you in menopause) but the doctor felt like I had enough so the injections have stopped.
I did however go ahead and get my first Zometa treatment which is given by IV in about 15 minutes. This strengthens the bones, helps with pain from the damage the cancer did to the bones but also they have done studies that show it helps with the metastasis of the cancer in the bones. In other words may help stop or slow the cancer from spreading in the bones.
Our hope and prayers are that we have "put this cancer to sleep" for a very long time. What we do know is that God can heal ~ I will wait for the Lord to help us.. My only hope is in Him.
Isaiah 8:17
Tomorrow I have my last test of 6 at the cardiologist which is the treadmill part of the stress test. I will see him on Monday for those results. I return to the oncologist in 3 months for some scans, blood work and to meet with him. Otherwise, I go once a month for Zometa treatments.
Please pray that this last test goes well and there are no side effects from the Zometa I received today.
Thanks everyone~ Elayne

Race For The Cure!

Saturday was the Race For The Cure. We had a fantastic time and a great race. Chris, Cindy and myself all ran the 5k race (3.1 miles) together. Kevin was kind enough to get up EARLY with us and come take pictures. These first pics are of us arriving and jogging to warm up before the race.
It was cloudy so the heat was not bad until the very end when the clouds broke ~ then it was hot. After the race they had all the Survivors line up and go on stage for survivor recognition and to remember those that have lost this battle.
I was able to run this race in a personal best time and together we raised $715 in less than 4 weeks! Thanks everyone for the support, prayers and encouragement!

15,000 people & Ronald MCDonald getting ready to start.

After the race and the survivor ceremony.

Crossing the Finish Line!

Me, Chris & Cindy crossing the finish line in 31 minutes which was a personal best time for me at 10 minute miles! Cindy and Chris were patient to slow their pace down for me :)

O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me. Psalm 30;2

Ok, first things first... All the Glory goes to God ~ He is an awesome God and has answered our prayers!

I just received my test results and they are ALL good! The rib and spine are showing healing, the nodules and pleural effusion on the lung are gone. My tumor markers are normal, no new lesions or growths and lymph nodes are clear. These were the results read to me by the nurse over the phone. I still go see my oncologist on the 12th to discuss in further detail. If anything changes from that visit I will let you all know. For now, this is great news!

Thank you all for the prayers, support and encouragement these last 10 months. I realize this will be on going for the rest of my life and ask for continued prayer support. I still have 2 tests to go with the cardiologist. Tomorrow and then next week.

I feel good and strong and hope to have a GREAT race on Saturday! I would love to hear from all of you. Some of you say your having trouble posting a comment on the blog. You may have to just sign up with an account, then you can post comments on any one's blog by Google. It's free and easy. You can always e-mail me too.

I look forward to what God has planned for me. Jer 29:11 (NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Your job right now is to rest,heal and get better.....

These are the words I am fortunate enough to hear from my husband. However MANY women also fighting breast cancer do not have this option along with good insurance, family, friends, church and community support. I thought about this as I was sitting in the waiting room with a friend this morning at the cancer center waiting for my PET scan and seeing the faces of so many people all in this same situation.
Many are not able to see a counselor to help them work through the decisions, fears and anxieties of going through a cancer diagnosis and treatments. Some do not even have the resources to get to their treatments, purchase wigs when they loose their hair or get their needed medications. Some are single parents trying to raise kids alone while going through this and holding down a job. God has blessed many of us that these are not the situations we face. Some do not even know God.
In 5 days I will run the Race For The Cure for these women and all women fighting breast cancer. Please help and remember what they and their families are going through. Please keep them in prayer and if you would like, make a donation of ANY amount. The money raised goes directly to women in need right here in my surrounding communities.
Thanks to all of you that have already made donations and sent encouragement and prayers, I appreciate it! Below is the link to my Race page, it is also located on my blog above the map if you have trouble with this link.
http://race.komennorthtexas.org/site/TR?pg=personal&fr_id=1020&px=1217796

RUNNING 4 LIFE ~ Elayne