Dennis Status

We received the final report on Tuesday 27 May that Dennis has colon-rectal cancer that has metastasized to his liver. His PET scan shows there is only cancer in his liver which is a good thing. We are beginning aggressive treatments to address this.

Today we were able to successfully place a port-a-cath into Dennis's upper chest wall at the Delray Community Hopital.The port is about the size of a quarter, only thicker, and will show only as a bump underneath the skin. There are several benefits to having a port:
No need to find a vein every time you receive chemo. A special needle fits right into the port, so all you feel is the stick—not the poking, prodding, and false tries in your arm.
The medication goes right into the main blood supply entering the heart, so it can be sent quickly and efficiently to all parts of the body.
Some types of chemotherapy can be very uncomfortable if injected into a vein just under your skin. The port avoids this potential discomfort.
Getting blood for blood tests can usually be done through the port, decreasing the number of times you need to have a vein "stuck."

We are waiting to hear from the Oncologist as to when we will begin the Chemotherapy.

Many thanks to everyone for all your prayers. It means alot at this time.

If anyone can pull this off we KNOW Dennis can.

Photos from Palos Park

This is the blog I'll be using to post up updates about the West Family. Here are the photos from the Palos Park trip for everyone to enjoy:

http://s214.photobucket.com/albums/cc240/marykaywest/Palos%20Park%202008/