APRIL 27, 2012

This month marks the 3 year anniversary of Gary's stem cell transplant.  At this time, 3 years ago, we could see the 'light at the end of the tunnel' as far as his treatment went, but there was still uncertainty of Gary beating the cancer. We have 2 more years before the doctors will officially declare him "Cancer free." 

So many things have happened in 3 years!.  We were able to return to the Philippines to continue the work that God had called us to do, but the recovery process has been slow.

The cancer did so much damage to the nerves in Gary's left arm and eye.  He struggles to do common, every day things and deals with severe pain that will be with him the rest of his life.

BUT...

He has been able to keep up with a full schedule of preaching and training ...

Celebrate another birthday ...

With brother Perry

Comfort his daughter during the loss of her husband ...

See HERE

Golf with his son, who recently returned from Afghanistan ....

 

And be around to spend time TOGETHER with our children and grandchildren ...

 For which, we are very thankful!

SEPTEMBER 11, 2011

Three years ago today, as Gary was resting in the hotel room after having a biopsy performed on the nerve in his brachial plexus, we received the phone call that Gary had a rare cancer of the nerves called Neurolymphomatosis.

Upon arriving at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, Gary was in severe pain, had lost the use of his left arm and hand, could not open his left eyelid, was seeing double due to his left eye wandering to the left, and was beginning to have pain in his right leg as well.

At that time, we had no idea what the future would hold for Gary. It is hard to believe that three years has past since that phone call. Now, 2 years post stem cell transplant, he is free of active cancer.

AUGUST 3, 2011

Gary had his follow-up visit with the eye specialist this week concerning his Neurotrophic keratitis (NV). Gary thought he was able to see better with the eye chart and the doctor confirmed there was a slight improvement. His cornea is still rough ... no improvement there.

The doctor tested both eyes to measure tear production using Schirmer's test. He first placed a topical anesthetic into the eyes to prevent tearing due to the irritation of the paper strips. (Although, Gary can not feel anything touching his right eye.) The use of the anesthetic ensures that only basal tear secretion is being measured. The strips were placed in both eyes and Gary was instructed keep them closed for 5 minutes, like this...

Well, not exactly like this, but you get the idea. The paper strips were then removed and the amount of moisture was measured. A normal measurement for Gary's age would at 10mm. Gary's right eye was just over a 2, which confirms the severity of the NV. The doctor was surprised to see Gary's left eye was slightly under the normal level as well. He said this could be due to the medications Gary is on, so will wait till next month to see if it improves.

For the next month, Gary will continue what he has been doing, using the Cellufresh preservative free drops, this time in both eyes, every 2 hours and Lipolin gel in his right eye at bedtime. In addition, Gary will start using Restasis, a topical cyclosporine, in both eyes every 12 hours.

The Restasis stings for a few minutes but that should go away in a week, however, it is also making him nauseous and whether it is because of the drops, or the NV itself, his eyes are painful today. Appreciate your prayers for him.

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.

MARCH 13, 2011

This week, Gary celebrated another birthday! This makes 2 post stem cell transplant birthdays! We are so thankful that God has given him another year to serve here in the Philippines. On his birthday, we had a few missionary friends over for a wonderful evening of fellowship and laughter. Gary spent that morning playing golf and was excited that he has broke 100 for the 2nd time since his cancer.

This Sunday, at Bethel Baptist Church, Quezon City, the members surprised Gary with a birthday celebration.

They presented him with a cake .....

Cards and gifts from the church members .....A hand drawn portrait by Pablo Barros .....Special number from the ladies .....Recited Scripture from Dolly Daquioag .....Special song composed and written just for Gary by Jamie Barros .....A "Shout Out" from the men ..... Special rendition of "Happy Birthday" by the Barros' brothers .....And along with a video of our Bible Club Children and members singing and greeting Gary, they put together a video, complete with greetings from our children and grandchildren in the States. I cannot get it to upload on this post, so go HERE to see it. They featured two of our precious babies at Bethel.

I would like to thank our children, grandchildren, family and friends and especially our Bethel Family for making this a week one for Gary to remember and cherish for years to come.

NOVEMBER 29, 2010

Thanksgiving is past, but in our house, we are still giving thanks to God for His blessings on our life.

A little over a week ago, I had to accompany our one and only granddaughter to the dermatologist to have a mole removed and sent away for testing. Having Gary go through his journey with cancer and at present, dealing with our son-in-law, Andy with 4th stage Melanoma, this was a very disconcerting event in our lives.

I held onto the promise that God would not give me anything I could not handle, and made sure I told Him that I would NOT be able to handle Brianna having cancer too. Today, we received word that her test was negative and I do not have to say how relieved we all were!

This evening, I was thinking about all that has gone on in our life in the past 3 years.

Thanksgiving 2008, Gary had spent several months receiving treatment for his cancer and was supposed to start the process for his stem cell transplant after the holiday. His father had prayed a very special prayer that day, thanking God for bringing Gary through his journey with cancer. We did not know at the time, we would have some rough times ahead. That weekend the tumor in his brain manifested itself, causing him excruciating pain. I remembered praying to God, that if he was not going to survive the cancer, to go ahead and take him now and spare him the suffering. He would suffer for another 6 weeks until he had the GAMMA procedure.

Thanksgiving 2009, we were busy with preparations to return to the Philippines the first week of December. After spending an unplanned 2 years in the States, we were excited and anxious to return to the land and people we love. It was a very special time for us as a family. There were many times that year, we did not expect Gary to live, and to have him alive and free of cancer was a wonderful blessing for our family.

Thanksgiving 2010 ... Gary, Sandra and I are once again in the States, helping care for our grandchildren while our daughter and son-in-law travel to Houston for his treatments. Andy was present for Thanksgiving, just having arrived the night before from Houston. He is far from being finished with his journey and continues to need your prayers. You can go HERE for updates. So ... can I still "Give Thanks" when we are still dealing with CANCER? Yes, I can.

Giving thanks to God is not an optional thing for a believer. Thankfulness should flow naturally from the Christian who realizes the great gift of salvation offered through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus Christ suffered the penalty for what He did not deserve (all my sin), then freely offered to me the reward (eternal life) that I did not deserve. What an awesome God!

"Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing. Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him; bless His name. For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting, And His faithfulness to all generations." --Psalm 100

SEPTEMBER 16, 2010

I am sure that as time goes by, and Gary continues to have good reports, I will relax about whether or not his cancer is back. For now, everything is still so fresh and I tend to look at every ache and pain he has, as something more than just the usual ache and pain. This week, we had a little scare.

Gary's right eye bothers him all the time. It tears up and at times, is painful. Wednesday, Gary went to see our eye doctor because he felt like he was not seeing well. We were shocked to find out that Gary has not been seeing from his right eye at all. His left must have been compensating for it. Everything on the eye chart was blurry for him, even after lenses were applied. That was disconcerting to say the least. Upon some further testing, Dr. Reyes told Gary that he saw something with his optic nerve and would like him to do some more test.

So, today we traveled to a different hospital for Dr. Reyes to conduct those test. I never did get all the names of the test he was doing. After he reviewed the results, Dr. Reyes brought us into the room and with a very relieved smile explained that there was indeed a slight swelling of the optic nerve in the right eye, but it was still in the normal range. As a swelling could have indicated Gary's brain tumor had returned, this was a big relief! The doctor said Gary will see him in 2 weeks after using a different kind of eye drops to see if the blurriness was caused by the drops Gary was using.

Dr. Reyes was relieved and rejoicing with us. As we were leaving the room, Gary commented, "You were concerned yesterday...", at which Dr. Reyes asked us to go to a private room and proceeded to tell us that part of his demeanor yesterday, was not all to do with Gary, but that he had just found out that he had stage 2, possibly 3 stomach cancer.

My heart just sank. After talking more about what his options are, we then spent time in prayer for him and his family. And now, I am asking you to pray for him as well. We have known Manolito Reyes for 10 years now and he is a fine man and faithful member of Sumulong Baptist Church, lead by our friend and fellow missionary, Lance Gotcher. Pray for him to know what and where he should receive treatment and for his doctors to have wisdom how best to treat him.

Before Gary went for the test today, he taught his class in our Novaliches campus. I went with him as we would be going from there to the hospital. As I sat listening to him teach, I was struck by the thought, "Why God, would you bring the cancer back now." In my opinion, Gary is such a wonderful teacher and loves being involved in training Filipinos to do ministry. After we received the good report today, my thought was, "Why God, would you give us a scare like this?" and then after hearing the news of Dr. Reyes, my immediate thought was, "Hmmmm, maybe all this was not about us."

Maybe it was about Gary choosing THIS week to see the doctor. The very DAY that Dr. Reyes had received devastating news. When I look back on Gary's journey with cancer, I KNOW God orchestrated events and people to come into our life when we needed it, so maybe, that's what all this was about.

I know you are continuing to pray for Gary and words can't describe my gratitude. I know you will pray for Manolito as well. I am sure he would say, "Maraming, Maraming Salamat po sa lahat!"

SEPTEMBER 11, 2010

SEPTEMBER 11 ... to most Americans, this will forever be remember as the day over 3000 people perished in a terrorist attack in 2001. To Gary and I, we have another memory connected with this date. September 11, 2008, we were in a hotel room in Rochester, MN., awaiting a phone call. The news came that Gary had a rare cancer of the nerves. Neurolymphomatosis.

After 3 years of being unwell and a year of his body rapidly deteriorating, we finally had a diagnosis. We were stunned! Through all the test and doctors leading up to us going to Mayo Clinic, he had been repeatedly told, he had no cancer cells in his body. I guess that was true to a certain extent, since it was in his nerves and not in a place most doctors would see.

When I think back to how Gary was on this day 2 years ago, I am amazed that not only is he alive and back in the Philippines doing what he loves to do, but how much his body has recovered from the damage the cancer had on his nerves.

Two years ago:

* Gary had lost the use of his left arm and hand. The muscles had atrophied and his arm was just skin and bones. His hand was in constant pain. He could not dress himself or do the simplest of task.

* His left eye would wander and cause him to see double. His eyelid would not stay open, so he had reached a point where it was hard to read and had to wear a patch so his eye would not be constantly straining to do a task it could not do.

* And, his right leg was giving him pain. Enough to wake him up 3-4 times a night. He started to limp when he walked.

Today:

*Gary has the use of his arm back and his hand has made significant improvements. Although still weak, he rarely needs help to dress or do things things.

* His left eye is normal.

* His right leg is normal.

* He still battles severe pain in his left hand and will probably do so for the rest of his life. He relies on heavy narcotics to bring the pain down from a level 10 (unbearable) to a level 3. It never goes away completely.

* The right side of his face is still numb from the damage the cancer did to it and his right eye still gives him pain, but all in all, he is so much better than he was even 6 months ago!

He is able to do most of what he wants to do, he just has to pace himself and rest when he needs to. He preaches every Sunday and teaches in our Bible college two days a week. Yesterday, he went golfing with us Dad. He had to ride in a cart instead of walk, but was able to finish the 18 holes and felt good afterward.

I mention all of this as a testament to the healing power of God and the answer to the faithful prayers that were lifted up for Gary daily. We never took it for granted and were and still are, so very grateful!

ANDY WILEMAN

September 24, 2009, our son-in-law, Andy Wileman was diagnosed with Clark level 4 melanoma. He had surgery to cut out the cancer in his right forearm and lymph nodes removed. Doctors declared him to be free from any active cancer and we rejoiced.

For the past year, Andy has been checked every 3 months, and continued to be free of active cancer. Until now. This past week, Andy had a PET scan done to confirm what the doctor suspected. The cancer has returned in his lymph nodes. The good news is, as far as they can tell, it has not spread to other areas of his body.

Andy needs your prayers! He will see a surgeon this week to remove all lymph nodes and then possibly consult further with doctors at MD Anderson for further treatment options. Andy is a policeman for city of Collinsville. He will have to take off work for the surgery and possible treatment, which will be a burden on them financially as well.

As a wife of a surviving cancer patient, I also want you to include our daughter Rebecca in your prayers. Many times, we focus on the person who is ill, and rightly so, but the caregivers need the prayer too! Rebecca is a communications officer for Owasso Police, which is stressful in itself. Now, she is dealing with a husband whose cancer has returned. This week, she developed singles as a result of all the stress. She told me, she thought she was handling it okay, but her body must not have been. *smile*.

Our grandchildren need your prayer as well. Andy may be their step-father, but they are very close to him. They feel the uncertainty that the word CANCER brings into their life and they know what it can do.

Gary and I know what the prayers of many did for us during his journey with cancer and we are so grateful to know you all will lift Andy, Rebecca and the kids up in your prayers as well. We thank you in advance!