JULY 14, 2011

Yesterday, we visited the eye specialist we were referred to. He basically confirmed the diagnosis of Neurotrophic Keratitis. Gary's cornea is rough, but the outer layer is still intact. He is producing a small amount of tears so we have a few options on how to approach the treatment. We opted to go a middle-of-the-road so to speak treatment for two weeks and see how he responds. If at any time, his eyes give him severe pain, as they did two weeks ago, we are to go into to the doctor right away.

Gary will continue with the hourly eye drops, but was switched to a preservative free kind. He will use a steroid drop 3 times a day for 7 days. The doctor also recommended Gary taking Omega-3 capsules 3 times a day, as they have seen it work for inflammation.

Because the trigeminal nerve was damaged, we are limited on some options to stop the progression of this, but the doctor assured there were many other things that they can do, if his eye gets worse. The danger right now, is Gary is at high risk for infection of the cornea. We will have to watch out for signs of that.

The blessing is that it is only his right eye and his left eye is 20/20, but he feels frustrated to still be battling health issues caused by the cancer. We appreciate your prayers for him.

We also ask you to pray especially for our son-in-law, Andy Wileman. The last-ditch treatment option is not working. At this time, they are not sure what or if there is anything more they can do. They will contact their doctor at MD Anderson this week and go from there. You can read more about it on Andy's blog. Appreciate your prayers for our daughter, Becky and the kids as well.

JULY 1, 2011

September 2010, I posted about Gary having a problem with his right eye. We were concerned he was losing his sight. The conclusion of the test were, due to the damage the lymphoma did to the trigeminal nerve, he probably was not tearing as often as he needed to be and therefore, the doctor prescribed eye drops.

Off and on since then, there have been days that Gary's eyes were so painful he could not stand to keep them open. This week, was a bad week. He spent a good portion of it in bed with an eye mask on, being in so much pain, he lost his appetite.

Wednesday evening, I contacted our eye doctor, Manolito Reyes, to see if I should take Gary to ER or wait to see him in the morning. He was out of the country and referred us to another doctor, so we made the decision to wait until morning.

On a side note ... I had asked you to pray for Dr. Reyes, as he had been diagnosed with stomach cancer last September. I am happy to say, after going through treatment, he is cancer free at this time. I know he appreciates your prayers for him!

Yesterday, we saw Dr. Ronquilla. He confirmed that Gary is seeing 30% less in his right eye since September 2010. He also gave a name to what is going on with him. Neurotrophic keratitis. You can go HERE for a more detailed explanation.

Basically, the damage the cancer did to Gary's trigeminal nerves on the the right side of his face are affecting that eye. The trigeminal nerve is what supplies the lubricant necessary for the cornea. Because this is not happening, all the pollutants, irritants and bacteria are not being "washed" away from Gary's cornea, therefore causing damage.

We are being referred to a specialist for this and will know more of what we can do to slow down the progression at that time, but for now, I would like to ask you to pray for Gary. He not only preaches every week, but has several classes in Baptist College of Leadership, and this coming week he will be teaching every day at the Missionary Training School for Asian Baptist Clearinghouse. His left eye is fine, but will also hurt some days ... probably due to compensating for the right eye not seeing properly.

And while you are praying for Gary, please remember our son-in-law, Andy Wileman and our son, Brian in your prayers.

Andy (see his blog HERE) is still battling stage 4 Melanoma, and Brian is serving in Afghanistan. Appreciate your prayers not only for healing for Andy and a safe return for Brian, but also for our daughter Rebecca as she cares for Andy while working a full time job, our daughter-in-law, Kristina, as she waits for her husband to return, and for me as I care for Gary and take as much work load from him as I can.