Done!!!

Celebrate everyone!

Bridget finished her last chemo this past Tuesday. She had a couple days of upset stomach but handled it like a pro. She is done!

She sees the doc again on August 11 for a check and then will see him every three months after that. Probably will have a CT scan in 6 months to see how things are going and check to make sure no re-occurances.

We have appealed SSI, have not heard anything as yet. So maybe they are redeliberating. Pray, keep your fingers crossed,, whatever works- that they say yes this time. THAT would be a huge miracle.

I will keep this blog updated from time to time but not every two weeks as I have done- when you work all day on the computer- the LAST thing you want to do is come home and jump on again.--- or at least its the LAST thing I want to do.

So, until next time---- thank you thank you thank you!!!
We so appreciate the support.

Denise

Two

We are down to one more treatment!!!
Bridget had treatment on the 30th, did well, except during the "red" chemo. Apparently the last few times, she has a funny taste when she receives the "red" chemo. I can't remember the name of the "red'" drug. Anyhoo, she had one urp session, but did fine the rest of the chemo.
Her labs continue good. Hemoglobin is at 13. something, her potassium is fine and her WBC is ok too. So she continues to respond to the chemo. After her sessions are done, then she will have to see the doc every three months for the next two years. If she does not relapse in 5 years, she is considered cured- so continued prayers for the next 5 years would be greatly appreciated, as they have all along.

She received her WBC booster shot the next day, and again had lots of bone pain, but the upside is.... this was her last WBC shot. So no more bone pain.

I have set up a donation account for Bridget at US bank. It is under her name and can be accessed at any US bank in any city. Just tell them you are looking for a donation account for Bridget Sullivan, should you want to donate.

I heard and saw NOTHING in response to the editorial I sent in to the Montana Standard. I sent it in to let others know that there is a donation account set up. I have seen other small notices in the Standard for other people that have a serious illness, notifying that donation accounts are set up, but nothing in the two attempts to contact the Mt Standard. I will be calling them today (I think they are closed tho?) or Monday and asking why.
I am also going to be printing up flyers and posting them at businesses around Butte.
We appealed SSI to reconsider Bridgets condition, have not heard a thing yet, but it has only been a few days.

So, we are down to the last chemo, set for 7-14-09. I won't be blogging as much after that last one, but probably will continue to blog at least every few months.

Thank you for EVERYTHING you have done, your prayers, love and support are most appreciated.

Denise

Countdown - three

Well, here I am again, late as usual. Better late than never right?

Bridget had her chemo last Tuesday. Did well. We had the anti nausea meds confirmed NOT to use Zofran (the one that doesn't work) and to use Compazine midway through the treatment and the two other anti nausea meds that DO work. So smooth sailing, no queasy's.
She did have more pain this time from the shot given after chemo- the one to boost her WBC's, but with Tylenol was able to manage.

We are down to two treatments June 30 and July 14th!!!!!
She can have her port removed after that if she wants to---- she does.
She does not have to have the WBC shot after her last treatment, he feels she will be able to build up White Blood Cells on her own.
Then starts the being vigilant about her health care from now on. She will have MD appts every three months with Hueftle.

So, I am pushing her to start applying for jobs! She is going to have to get a job and get some health insurance if offered. She will have bills to pay off. The bills from this journey as well as her old school loans, and any new MD bills in the future. There was an article about kids moving back in with parents and regressing- it's not going to happen here. (I know you are reading these posts Bridget) ---this is a HUGE HINT to you!! . I hope she has learned a lot of things from this journey and Responsibility is a major life lesson, but one that we all need to take on.

That said, I am home today. Writing appeal letters to SSI and Medicaid, following up with St. James on any write off they will allow, calling the bank to set up an account for her (Everyone else does it, I figure why not us), submitting an editorial to the paper on uninsured health care and how important it is to get a public option (Mr. Baucus) onto the table, and calling some people I know that can help me set up a fundraiser for additional expenses.
Speaking of fundraisers- if anyone has a special talent/product/etc that they would like to donate to a fundraiser (Baked goods, wood working projects, donated hours cleaning houses, car washes----Hey I just thought of that one- and THAT would be a GREAT thing for Zach and his friend to do!!!!) ---- please feel free to let me know, I will take any donations available.

We have two to go, all labs are great, and I can see the finish line at the end of the journey.
Again, I have to thank EVERYONE for their LOVE and SUPPORT and PRAYERS, I need to let you know--- I could not have gotten through this without all of the above. Thank you SO SO much, from the bottom of my heart.


Denise

Great news!!

I tried to think of a really catchy title, but I guess in this case- simple says so much.

Bridget had her PET scan yesterday, and her ninth chemo session today!.
Her labs remain very good, hemoglobin is 14.3, and I forgot to look at her potassium. All other labs are normal. Her PET scan showed 'essentially normal", which means the chemo did it's job and Bridget is golden!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She will have three more chemo sessions after todays. Her last one will be July 14th. She will not need radiation, she won't need stem cell transplants. She is free of the lymphoma. Of course, she will have to be vigilant about her health and make MD appts when scheduled.

She was so overjoyed to get the news that she cried - tears of joy as commonly known. Me- I was so relieved to hear the great news!!! She will go for her Neulasta shot tomorrow.

Right now, she is sleeping. The antinausea meds are working, we'll see how she is when she gets up. She tolerated the chemo today great- slept through most of it. The nurses and Dr. Hueftle were happy for her. Sherrie and Roxie (who have been giving her the chemo in Patient Service Center) were ecstatic!!

Thank you for all the prayers and positive thoughts- don't quit now- keep it up please!!!

And now, knowing that SSi turned us down, and she is not eligible for Medicaid, and apparently not even for unemployment benefits! (OUR system is So messed up!) I am not going to appeal.
We turned in paperwork to have St. James write off some or all? of the bill..Have not heard on that. I turned in some medicines paid for to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to get reimbursed for that, and am waiting to see what they will/will not allow. I will be contacting Survivors and Thrivers (a Cancer group here in Butte) to see if they can help as well. I'll also contact the American Cancer Society to see what help they can give.

However, I need to ask for more help! This has been an expensive journey, our bills (when all is said and done) will be over $125,000. I don't have that kind of money, Bridget will be YEARS before she has the ability to make that kind of money. I hate begging but I have to- because I am drowning (in debt and stress from worrying about this debt). I hate begging because everyday I see SO many other people who need money just as much as I do. I hate begging because I think Butte (not to mention my family) has already given me so much. I hate begging but... I need help. I hate begging because I was raised not to- but I am pretty much forced to.

I need help not only monetarily, but in setting up fundraisers, appeals to the community of Butte, getting an account set up in case someone wants to make donations, etc. etc. etc. As most of you know, I live in Butte, and work in Helena which means 12 hour days. Which leaves the weekends. As far as I know, my bank is not open on weekends, neither is the paper. I happen to think Bridget's story would make a GREAT article on the current state of healthcare- and it's a HOT topic!! But I can't get the Standard to reply back to my inquiry on an article.

Any help is GREATLY appreciated! If you are wondering why I can't do this myself- well, let me tell you, when you are spending a lot of time worrying, and getting more stressed, you spend a lot of energy and sometimes it gets overwhelming. I am overwhelmed.

Now, before you get all down in the dumps about my situation, let me remind you- I am TRULY blessed to have ALL of you in my life, and I am TRULY grateful/relieved/ecstatic/over the moon about Bridget beating this cancer!! A miracle occured, in such a short time and WE feel blessed!!

Let the celebration commence!!!!!!!!!

Denise

Bummed

Hey all-
I am on time today!
Bridget had chemo today, labs continue good. Hemoglobin is 14.2, she is pink still. The only thing out of normal was her potassium was a little low- 3.4, so I'll beef her up with bananas. She took her Compazine before we took off for the hospital- so no nausea before OR after chemo today!
Apparently, she is tasting the first Chemo med- slight funky taste, different than the saline that she notices if she does not have gum on hand. Nothing to make her overly nauseated, but still noticeable.
She did get sleepy but less so today.
So here is the plan- this was treatment 7, she has one more and then on June 1, the PET scan.
If the PET scan shows negative, she will have a few more rounds of chemo. (Unspecified on length of time) and be done.
IF the PET scan shows stuff, she goes out to Seattle for stem cell transplant.
Initially, he talked chemo, then radiation, then stem cell. However, with her being Stage 4b, the Standard of Care is no radiation. It is figured that would lead to more/different cancers down the road. So standard of Care is stem cell.
I left at noon to get Wendy's chili, went home to grab some stuff, and picked up the mail.
Here is the bummed part-
We got the decision from SSA today- denied. They don't find her qualified for disability. They realize her illness is severe and limiting but not disabling over a one year period- so she does not get benefits. Lots of nice prose.... yadda yadda and we can appeal. Quite depressing.
Bridget (looking on the "bright" side) then indicated- well, if I need a stem cell transplant- SSA has to give me assistance.

As for me, I am praying for complete healing. I guess we'll figure out how to pay the HUGE bills later.

Well, chat later.

Denise

I'm late, again!!

Good grief!

Time flies when we are having fun. (or something like that). Apologies again for the delay in posting. This is an update from 1.5 weeks ago. (This next Tuesday will be another round of chemo)

Labs continue good- in fact Bridge's Hemoglobin is up to 14.5! So she is no longer a ghost, but nice and pink. All other labs remain normal! Her Chest Xray looked even better to us than the Xray she had done in March. Nodes appear even smaller!!! She was a little worried- as the night sweats returned- however- they have stopped and we (including Doc) attribute it to hormones. These wonderful things can go a bit wonky with chemo- which means more tears, more anxiety, some sleepless nights, etc.

She had her chemo- the anti nausea meds worked great again!! However, before the chemo even got started, she threw up- she calls it anticipatory nausea. So, now the plan is to have a Compazine before we go to the hospital. Hopefully, that will help. She tolerated the meds without any problem afterward. That was a good day.

Next day, she had her White Blood cell booster- and then had the bone pain afterward, but that is manageable.

So, we have the month of May to get through- equals two chemo sessions and then a PET scan to see what the next step is. That will be June 1.

As to Social Security/Medicaid, her records went through SS review, and were forwarded on to QA committee- SS cannot tell me a decision (yay or nay), because her file is in QA. We will only know when that committee makes a decision. How long/?? ONLY another month- How will we know- most likely a letter. But If I don't hear/get anything by week 5, then give them a call.
Now you know why government is messed up (That would be government in general- no political statements here). They require more paperwork than GOD, and take more time than GOD to make a decision. If denied by SSA, then and ONLY then can we do the same process through Medicaid (the state government). SO the clock starts ticking all over again. When we first applied for SSA benefits, it stated they take between 90-120 days to make a decision- they weren't kidding, the 120 days is up end of May. Same timeline for Medicaid- yes, the clock starts ticking when SSA decides. So we may be well done with treatment and know nothing. In the meantime, the bills pile up- Bridget figures she owes the hospital 9 of her First born children- maybe she can borrow some from the total loser OCTOMOM. (who by the way, has no trouble whatsoever getting benefits from the government to have more and more and more kids (can we say free medical care to the toon of 9 or so million, plus a new house, lots of attention,.... on and on and on, I am SURE you get my drift).

Bridget is excited (NOT) that it will probably be nice on Chemo day. The last three or so treatments the days have been nice. However, its the time after that that sucks beans. I will be excited if it does anything but SNOW on chemo day. I don't mind the daily drive to Helena to work, however, when it takes more than 1.5 hours to get there and I have to white knuckle it all the way and it's MAY tomorrow- I am so over the snow. I know its good for plants, prevents fires in the summer and generally is good for the planet, but when winter extends into Spring and it seems like its never ending, it gets old.

Ah well, I can see I am tired and frustrated by a lot of things. I probably am boring you to tears now, so I will close.
I can't promise to get these blogs more timely- but I can promise to TRY harder to get them timely. Keep your fingers crossed. ....

Denise

Latest update

Ok, I am late, apologies. It is hard to get the school kid off the computer after I get home- plus, after working 8 hours on the computer at work, sometimes I REALLY don't feel like getting on the darn thing when I get home. Enough about my tardiness. Like I said, apologies.

Bridget had chemo Tuesday. We saw the doc after labs were drawn- they are all still great, all normal!! Yay Bridge! We did talk to him about different anti nausea meds because the last two chemo's ended right away with the urp ups. So he ordered different meds- they worked great- no nausea, no urp ups!!! However, she pretty much slept the entire chemo time- and that is OK. Luckily, I brought cross stitch and nursing magazines to read. So I got caught up on some articles, and have some cross stitching done.

She woke up long enough to put in an order for a Subway sandwich. I took a nice four block walk to Subway, which helped stretch my muscles. And it was nice enough to take a walk YAY spring- is it finally almost here???

So got her home- she went to bed, I worked some, went to the store, took Zach up to get his truck- its working.....Put some elk steaks on the grill- apparently forgot how to cook on the grill, because they were on the charred and tough to eat side----oh well, I do get better with age..... or maybe not....

Bridget woke up long enough to watch a little of the Biggest Loser, and ......Go back to bed. It was all the meds- but as long as she did not throw up... we'll take Sleepy over Urpy (as the eighth dwarf, should now be named).

PET scan will be done after 8 rounds of chemo- so it is scheduled for June 1. The PET scan will show us whether chemo is the treatment of choice or whether we need to add in radiation.

So, today- or last noc- all that sleep and the Decadron she gets to calm reactions to chemo meds- made her emotional and unable to sleep. So I got a call at work. Tears, I can't sleep, I haven't slept, my hearts pounding.... I looked up reactions to Decadron- most likely that is what it is. She called the Cancer nurses and talked to them- yep for sure that is most likely what it is. They expect that the drug will wear off tonight and she will be able to sleep. So keep your fingers crossed.

Uncle tommy gave us a really good helpful hint about aspargus puree having potential cancer fighting properties. I showed her the article, but.... she STILL is not convinced that asparagus has ANY good properties, let alone asparagus puree!!! I think it is left over from being fed Baby food veggies from the Gerber jar... I didn't have the heart to tell her, she actually LOVED all the GREEN puree veggies, it was the Carrots and Sweet potatoes she spit back at me..... Oh well... some like asparagus and some don't.
But Thanks Uncle Tommy for trying. I think its like you and the mushroom phobia....... ;)

Well, enough blathering on from me.

Thank you for staying tuned and the positive thoughts and prayers! I know I have said it before, but will say it again---- We appreciate them!!

Denise