I had my chemo treatment this morning. I reacted to the medication during the infusion. This medication can cause pain in the sinus area of the face if there is a reaction (I don't know why), that is what I experienced today. It also causes a bad headache that feels like a sinus headache that won't go away. I had/have that too. The good news is that I will still be able to take the medicine but they will slow the rate that they give the drug to me, that is supposed to reduce the symptoms. So it will just take a little longer to get the chemo infusion, but that's okay. The most important thing is that I can continue with the treatment.
I am not feeling well today, the treatment hit me pretty hard. I think it is the cumulative effect that is happening now in my body with the addition of each chemo treatment. I am feeling some nausea, though the three different anti-nausea medicines are helping some. I am drinking a lot of water like a good compliant patient and anticipate being up a number of times in the night, which is the desired effect (pls see "Starting New Chemo Medication Dec.31" post).
I have known and felt your prayer for me throughout the day. It feels like a warm blanket of peace and grace wrapped all around me. I am deeply thankful for that. Ron and I had a great talk about the Lord with a guy at chemo today too, that was really encouraging. He is a catholic christian with six kids and is really trusting in Jesus throughout his fight against cancer.
I am so thankful for each of you and am praying for a blessed and abundant New Year for you. I am praying that all that you have given to us in 2008 will be pressed down, shaken together and running over in your lives in 2009...exponential fruitfulness from your faithful sowing into our lives!
Happy New Year! love the Musch fam
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Bill's surgery went well, thank you so much for praying!
I wanted to let you all know how much I appreciate your prayers for my brother, Bill. A number of you have contacted me to let me know you are praying...I am so very grateful to you.
Bill's surgery went well today. It was shorter than they expected and they were able to remove all of the tumor. Thank you, Lord! There were no lymph nodes involved, which is always good news! He will be in the hospital for about 5 days, please continue to keep him and his dear family in your prayers. I don't know yet when the info from the biopsy will be returned but I would imagine sometime next week.
Thank you again so very much.
Bill's surgery went well today. It was shorter than they expected and they were able to remove all of the tumor. Thank you, Lord! There were no lymph nodes involved, which is always good news! He will be in the hospital for about 5 days, please continue to keep him and his dear family in your prayers. I don't know yet when the info from the biopsy will be returned but I would imagine sometime next week.
Thank you again so very much.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
My brother, Bill, is having surgery on Dec. 31, please pray for him
I am so very grateful for your steadfast prayer for me. There is someone very dear to me that I want to ask you to include when you pray for me. It is my brother, Bill.
He has been diagnosed with a rare tumor that is between his liver and his stomach. He is having surgery to remove it at 9AM on Wednesday, December 31. They know it is a Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST). After the surgery, we should know if it is malignant or not. They expect the surgery to take 2-3 hours.
I know that his wife, his son, daughter and two step-daughters would also appreciate your prayer. My other two brothers and sister will be at the hospital during the surgery, I will be having chemo at that time. You can imagine that this is a lot for our family to handle. Knowing you are praying is a great comfort and encouragement. Again, I lack the ability to express how deeply grateful I am for your prayer. May God multiply abundantly back to you in every way for all that you are giving in prayer. Thank you.
He has been diagnosed with a rare tumor that is between his liver and his stomach. He is having surgery to remove it at 9AM on Wednesday, December 31. They know it is a Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST). After the surgery, we should know if it is malignant or not. They expect the surgery to take 2-3 hours.
I know that his wife, his son, daughter and two step-daughters would also appreciate your prayer. My other two brothers and sister will be at the hospital during the surgery, I will be having chemo at that time. You can imagine that this is a lot for our family to handle. Knowing you are praying is a great comfort and encouragement. Again, I lack the ability to express how deeply grateful I am for your prayer. May God multiply abundantly back to you in every way for all that you are giving in prayer. Thank you.
My Fingers are Still Numb
Some have asked about the status on my fingers and thumbs. They are still numb, though there are times when some of them are painful. I thought that perhaps any feeling was good, but I was told today during my oncology appointment that the pain is not good news. On the other hand, I was also told that nerves can come back up to a year out from treatment. So the good news is we have time to see God restore the feeling back to normal!
I can honestly say that I am not worried about my fingers. There is such a deep rest that God knows and will take care of me. The feeling I have reminds me of times when I have looked out over a lake early in the morning when the water looks like glass because the water is perfectly and deeply calm. Only God can give that kind of peace in the midst of such circumstances. I do know though that He responds to our prayers, that He calls us to partner with Him through prayer in what He is doing on this earth and in our lives. Your prayers, I am convinced, are being answered by God and are profoundly effecting my life. Thank you for such a precious gift.
with a deeply thankful heart,
Leslyn
I can honestly say that I am not worried about my fingers. There is such a deep rest that God knows and will take care of me. The feeling I have reminds me of times when I have looked out over a lake early in the morning when the water looks like glass because the water is perfectly and deeply calm. Only God can give that kind of peace in the midst of such circumstances. I do know though that He responds to our prayers, that He calls us to partner with Him through prayer in what He is doing on this earth and in our lives. Your prayers, I am convinced, are being answered by God and are profoundly effecting my life. Thank you for such a precious gift.
with a deeply thankful heart,
Leslyn
Starting New Chemo Medication on Wed., Dec 31
Tomorrow I begin a new chemo medication called Cytoxan. I have 4 treatments of this drug, given every two weeks for a total of 8 weeks. In two months I will be finished with chemotherapy. Knowing that really helps me to keep pushing forward, even though, honestly, I am dreading tomorrow.
This medication is supposed to make me very sick to my stomach again. Of the three medications that they are giving me during chemo, the first one I took was supposed to be the hardest, the one I just finished was supposed to be the easiest (if that was easy, yikes) and this one is supposed to be in the middle. Harder than the one I just took, but easier than the first one. I must say, the thought that Cytoxan is supposed to be harder than the one I just finished gives me pause... The Lord knows how much I can handle though and I know that He will not give me more than I can bear, so in that I am finding rest and strength to tackle what is before me.
Apparently, this drug, if looked at under a microscope is very spiky. So much so that if the drug stays any length of time in the bladder, it will cause the bladder to bleed. So I am supposed to drink a lot of water and drink a lot just before going to bed tomorrow night so that I wake up during the night. I think my eyes are going to start floating soon!
The most concerning side-effect of the medicine (if the bladder thing was not enough) is that when given with Herceptin (the drug I have infused every week) it can cause permanent heart damage. Would you please pray especially for protection for my heart. Needless to say, I want to come through this with a healthy and strong heart. I am asking the Lord for a full restoration of my health by the time I get to the end of this journey of fighting cancer. I am asking that my heart would be wholly protected throughout my treatment.
I am so grateful for your prayers! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Thank you too for praying for me during Christmas. I know that you were because I did well and was able to enjoy time with family. It was really great.
This medication is supposed to make me very sick to my stomach again. Of the three medications that they are giving me during chemo, the first one I took was supposed to be the hardest, the one I just finished was supposed to be the easiest (if that was easy, yikes) and this one is supposed to be in the middle. Harder than the one I just took, but easier than the first one. I must say, the thought that Cytoxan is supposed to be harder than the one I just finished gives me pause... The Lord knows how much I can handle though and I know that He will not give me more than I can bear, so in that I am finding rest and strength to tackle what is before me.
Apparently, this drug, if looked at under a microscope is very spiky. So much so that if the drug stays any length of time in the bladder, it will cause the bladder to bleed. So I am supposed to drink a lot of water and drink a lot just before going to bed tomorrow night so that I wake up during the night. I think my eyes are going to start floating soon!
The most concerning side-effect of the medicine (if the bladder thing was not enough) is that when given with Herceptin (the drug I have infused every week) it can cause permanent heart damage. Would you please pray especially for protection for my heart. Needless to say, I want to come through this with a healthy and strong heart. I am asking the Lord for a full restoration of my health by the time I get to the end of this journey of fighting cancer. I am asking that my heart would be wholly protected throughout my treatment.
I am so grateful for your prayers! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Thank you too for praying for me during Christmas. I know that you were because I did well and was able to enjoy time with family. It was really great.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Thank you for my birthday blessings and encouragement
Thank you to all of you who sent me your birthday blessings and encouragement yesterday. I was extremely touched by the love and kindness that you showered on me. You all are such a blessing to me. with much love, Leslyn
2/3 Through with Chemo!
With my last Taxol treatment last Thursday, I hit the 2/3 point in my chemo therapy! I have 8 treatments down and 4 to go (8 more weeks). They cut my last Taxol treatment down by 25% for which I am very grateful because I have had pretty severe bone pain since that treatment. I can only imagine what it would be like if I had had a full dose!
My fingers are still numb and I find I drop things a lot, but the burning and itching seems to be getting better so I am grateful for that.
My red blood cells continue to be low, basically causing me to be anemic and really tired, but the great news is that my liver and pancreas levels have come up to normal. So we are making progress. Please keep praying, your prayers are prevailing!
The final bit of good news is that my physical therapist is really pleased with my progress. I have regained almost all of the range of motion in my left arm. I will continue with the stretches and exercises she gave me over the next few months and then go back to see her after I have recovered from radiation therapy. Radiation effects the cells, skin and muscle, so I may need some more physical therapy later, but for now I am moving well. Again, thank you for your faithful prayers for me, I know my progress is a direct result of God's gracious intervention.
My fingers are still numb and I find I drop things a lot, but the burning and itching seems to be getting better so I am grateful for that.
My red blood cells continue to be low, basically causing me to be anemic and really tired, but the great news is that my liver and pancreas levels have come up to normal. So we are making progress. Please keep praying, your prayers are prevailing!
The final bit of good news is that my physical therapist is really pleased with my progress. I have regained almost all of the range of motion in my left arm. I will continue with the stretches and exercises she gave me over the next few months and then go back to see her after I have recovered from radiation therapy. Radiation effects the cells, skin and muscle, so I may need some more physical therapy later, but for now I am moving well. Again, thank you for your faithful prayers for me, I know my progress is a direct result of God's gracious intervention.
Infection Is All Cleared Up!
Thank you so much for praying re: the infection. I can't remember when an infection has cleared up so quickly and easily. I even had a bonus, I didn't realize until about three days into the antibiotic that I had a sinus infection too until it started draining and cleared right up from the antibiotics. So I got a "two-fer"-- two fer the price of one!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
The toxicity levels in my body are getting high
I found out today that my body is getting pretty toxic from the Taxol treatments. For the past 5 days the tips of my fingers and thumbs have been numb and have stayed that way. Before, the numbness would come and go, so this is a significant change. Peripheral neuropathy (numbness in the hands and feet) is one of the side effects of Taxol.
Please pray that the numbness goes away because sometimes it can be permanent. I continue to have itching and burning sensations that come and go in my hands and feet as well. Imagine the worst possible case of poison oak under the skin of your hands and feet and you can imagine what it feels like. It is very intense. It lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to most of the day. I have also developed a bladder infection. Kathleen put me on antibiotics today to try and clear it up. I am so grateful she did because it has gotten worse as the day has gone on, so hopefully I will feel better in a couple of days. Please pray for the healing of this infection, I don't respond real well to antibiotics so I really need God's supernatural intervention and healing.
Because of the numbness, infection, anemia and overall not-doing-real-well, they have decided to reduce the amount of Taxol they are going to give me on Thursday. It is a delicate balance they try to find between attacking cancer cells that might be lurking in my body and not overloading my system with too many toxins. They said that the amount they are reducing it by will not diminish the overall effectiveness of my treatment, which is good news! I really do need your prayer for healing, grace, strength and a supernatural ability for my body to process the toxins from the chemo.
My next chemo treatment is Thursday at 9:30AM. It is my last 5 hour Taxol treatment. The next chemo drug I will be taking has a shorter infusion time, so I am grateful for that. I will tell you more about that drug later...
Please pray that the numbness goes away because sometimes it can be permanent. I continue to have itching and burning sensations that come and go in my hands and feet as well. Imagine the worst possible case of poison oak under the skin of your hands and feet and you can imagine what it feels like. It is very intense. It lasts anywhere from 30 minutes to most of the day. I have also developed a bladder infection. Kathleen put me on antibiotics today to try and clear it up. I am so grateful she did because it has gotten worse as the day has gone on, so hopefully I will feel better in a couple of days. Please pray for the healing of this infection, I don't respond real well to antibiotics so I really need God's supernatural intervention and healing.
Because of the numbness, infection, anemia and overall not-doing-real-well, they have decided to reduce the amount of Taxol they are going to give me on Thursday. It is a delicate balance they try to find between attacking cancer cells that might be lurking in my body and not overloading my system with too many toxins. They said that the amount they are reducing it by will not diminish the overall effectiveness of my treatment, which is good news! I really do need your prayer for healing, grace, strength and a supernatural ability for my body to process the toxins from the chemo.
My next chemo treatment is Thursday at 9:30AM. It is my last 5 hour Taxol treatment. The next chemo drug I will be taking has a shorter infusion time, so I am grateful for that. I will tell you more about that drug later...
I like my radiation oncologist a lot
Thanks so much for praying for my appointment with the radiation oncologist, it went really well and went a long way to making me feel better about the whole thing. They have come a long way in the last few years with radiation treatment, there are not as many severe side effects as there used to be, which was, I think, the source of some of my fear. She is a great doctor and I feel very confident that she is the right doctor for me. Ron and I had a great conversation with her about the true meaning of Christmas, she brought it up when she found out we had been missionaries and are pastors. God is amazing. She is a beautiful and brilliant Iranian woman, please pray that she finds Jesus, the true meaning of Christmas that she is seeking.
I will be having 6 weeks of radiation. I will go daily, Monday through Friday, with the weekends off. It looks like we will begin treatment in early March. We still have to firm up the dates. I will meet with her again at the end of my chemo treatment to start all of the preliminary appointments that I will need to have before the treatment begins. I guess there are some tests and a bunch of measurements that they have to do before they actually start the radiation treatments. My next appointment is not until February, so I have some time yet.
One big relief is that they don't have to radiate under my arm. They are just going to radiate my chest wall muscles and lymph nodes and the lymph nodes in my neck. I will give more details about how to pray for all of that as we get closer, in the mean time, I am just going to enjoy the fact that it is still two months away.
I will be having 6 weeks of radiation. I will go daily, Monday through Friday, with the weekends off. It looks like we will begin treatment in early March. We still have to firm up the dates. I will meet with her again at the end of my chemo treatment to start all of the preliminary appointments that I will need to have before the treatment begins. I guess there are some tests and a bunch of measurements that they have to do before they actually start the radiation treatments. My next appointment is not until February, so I have some time yet.
One big relief is that they don't have to radiate under my arm. They are just going to radiate my chest wall muscles and lymph nodes and the lymph nodes in my neck. I will give more details about how to pray for all of that as we get closer, in the mean time, I am just going to enjoy the fact that it is still two months away.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Seeing the Radiation Oncologist Today
I have an appointment with the Radiation Oncologist today at 3:00pm. I don't really know what to expect, though I think we are deciding on how long radiation will take and they will hopefully give me an overview of what will be happening with this process. I think one of the biggest issues we will decide is whether or not to radiate my left under arm. I know they are going to radiate my chest wall and neck. The lymph nodes under my arm are a big deal because I don't have many left and apparently it can negatively impact my left arm and hand. I will know more, I am sure, by this afternoon.
I don't expect to actually begin radiation until March, but I understand that there are a number of things they need to do before they begin, so hence the appointment now. Please pray for wisdom as we go to this appointment. I must admit that radiation scares me a bit, but I am trusting in God's presence, wisdom and goodness in this even as He has been faithful to me until now.
I don't expect to actually begin radiation until March, but I understand that there are a number of things they need to do before they begin, so hence the appointment now. Please pray for wisdom as we go to this appointment. I must admit that radiation scares me a bit, but I am trusting in God's presence, wisdom and goodness in this even as He has been faithful to me until now.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Chemo #7 down
Just got home from chemo # 7. I am feeling pretty drained and tired so am writing to you from bed. I bet I will sleep great tonight though!!
The next week, as my body processes the chemo, neulasta and herceptin, will be very challenging with the bone/muscle pain and I would so appreciate your prayer.
I thought I would include a picture of my bald head. I was thinking that if there is a storm this Christmas, Santa could use my glowing white head to guide his way and give Rudolph the night off!!
I pray God's peace guards your heart and mind this Christmas season and that your eyes are set unwaveringly on our beautiful Savior, Jesus, who came to set us free and give us life abundantly and filled with His love.
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