Grove

Praises and Good news-- Janet Update!

The fam waiting-- minus me (taking the pic) and Hudson who wasn't invited, ha!
So we met with the Oncologist this morning and we got some things mixed up so Janet is not staring Chemo today like we had thought, she will start it next Tuesday. She is going in to have a port placed to have her chemo through this afternoon at 2:30. Please be praying that that goes smoothly and without a hitch!

The Oncologist was very optimistic. He told us that she does have stage three Ovarian Cancer (O.C. from here on out), and that isn't unusual because normally it isn't caught until stage three. The average age for O.C. is 61 and he said he would do a BRCA mutation test to see if it is genetic but that we may never know why she got it. He said that her "performance status is good and that she will have a good response rate" which basically means that since she is young and in good physical shape she will have a better response to the chemo than if she wasn't. The other good news is that is isn't GI cancer, because he said if it were, we would be in a much worse situation because of the way that it has spread. I guess it is normal for O.C. to spread through the abdomen, but that it is not good when it is other types of cancer that do that. So that is something else to be thankful for!

The plan for now is for her to have three rounds of chemo. The first round will be next Tuesday starting at 8:30 am. It will last around 5-6 hours. She will then wait three weeks before her next round and they will be checking blood levels in the mean time to make sure she is where they want her to be and that her body is responding correctly (checking that the CA 125 levels are dropping, which are currently 288 and should be less than 30). She will have surgery, hopefully, in 8-9 weeks and they will go in and "clean up" all of of the cancer. The doctor explained to us that by having the chemo first it will kill off some of the cancer cells and then when he goes in he can clean up the ones that were resistant to chemo.

We asked him about the prognosis and he said that O.C. has resistant clones to chemo, it is kind of stubborn, but he said there is a rule of 75s.

75% of the time it is caught in stage 3,
75% of that time the chemo gets it,
75% of that time there may be a relapse 10-15 years later.

Janet has really lost her appetite over the past few weeks and the doctor said that it is because of the O.C. and that she should be feeling much better after the second round of chemo (in a month or so). She will lose her hair sometime between the 1st and 2nd round of chemo, and that is not something that concerns her at all, she is just wanting to fight at this point! The two drugs that she will be given are Taxol and Carboplatin to start because they are the only ones proven to benefit O.C.

The biggest blessing is one of the last things that the doctor said to us...
That there is "no reason to not expect a complete response".

She is fighting, and she has a BIG God fighting on her side. We know that the battle is just beginning but we also know who has already won.

Thank you so much for the prayers, I will continue to update as we find more out!

Comments

  1. So glad to read this encouraging update! Continuing to pray for your family.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am taking the same stuff (Taxol and Carboplatin)in the same 21 day cycle; difference is I have mine by IV because I was diagnosed Stage 1C. I am glad she has a few days before her first treatment so she will have a little time to read up on possible chemotherapy side effects.Once she gets through this first treatment she will know what to do ahead of time to help manage those temporary side effects both before and after treatment. I just finished my 2nd treatment Friday, 2 more to go.
    I am glad she has such a wonderful support system :) I've been praying all day for her.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Lakes Family in Arizona is praying for Janet that God will give her peace and healing.

    God Bless

    Jeff Lakes

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Jenna - I will add Janet to my prayers. I found your blog through others. My mom has stage 1C OC and just finished her 4th round. Based on Janet's outlook I am sure that she will do great! Prayers your way.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow.......we are praying for her. It's just hard to swallow so I will just let God handle it. We love Janet so much and we hate that she has to go thru this. However, we do know God has something good for her so we will just wait to see what it is.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Some tears here as I am praising and praying!
    Aunt Jean

    ReplyDelete
  7. hey jenna,
    i work with tony and just wanted to let you know that our office and my family is praying for janet! i am so sorry she has to go through this, but her fighter attitude is very admirable. hope you continue to receive good news and God works in big ways!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Janet is in perfect hands with this physician. He is the Hope finder and our God is the Hope maker! :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. We are lifting Janet up. Thank you for the update.

    Matt and Julie Hewitt
    Ormond Beach, FL

    ReplyDelete
  10. We are praying for you! love ya The Sears' family

    ReplyDelete
  11. The Moore Family is praying and we love all of you!

    ReplyDelete
  12. It is a blessing to pray for you all and I will be doing it constantly!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Daisy keep the faith, and be strong the "Regency" awaits your return
    Love, Jade ;)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Janet is a fighter so I'm sure she is going to pull through this just fine. Thoughts and prayers to all of you.
    Cindy Fish

    ReplyDelete
  15. Bailey told me the other day. I'm so sorry to hear this. God is the ultimate healer and His plan is absolutely perfect. I'm praying for Janet and your family. May God be glorified in all of this.
    Liz Wedgewood.

    ReplyDelete
  16. We love you Janet! Tim and I pray for you continually and lift you to the Lord.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts