DAW & Son

Things have been moving along pretty well at the Woodruff's.  We took our son, Daniel, to Governor's School for the Agricultural Sciences at the University of Tennessee-Martin this past Sunday.  I've attached this picture for you to see.  Denny is doing well and he was so happy and proud of Dan this day.  I thought this was a great picture of the two of them together.

Denny has been feeling pretty well.  Other than dealing with continued bleeding issues, he seems to be enjoying a fairly normal life.  He had a doctor appointment yesterday to check his blood.  Since he is on a blood thinner to manage the clot in his neck, the doc wants to keep a close eye on things.  It appears he will need to be on blood thinners for a couple more months.  The clot in his neck was substantial and will take a long time to dissolve.  That being said, the blood thinners are causing him to have the bleeding problem.  The Nurse Practitioner that he saw yesterday said that the thinner is causing the tumor to bleed.  She said they will keep a close eye on the bleeding problem but the clot was large and takes precedence.  It needs to be dissolved so it doesn't break off and cause a pulmonary embolism.  They will continue to monitor the situation.

He is scheduled for his third round of chemo on June 10th.  Unfortunately, he will have to go to this one by himself as I will be working in my new job by then.  I have had the good fortune to be hired by Vanderbilt.  (I'm so glad I was offered the job as it was quite an adventure to be interviewing while all of this has been going on!)  We are both very happy about this as this will provide greater benefits for our family.  Denny has health insurance through his job but the coverage still requires us to pick up 10% of the costs.  Cancer is an extremely expensive disease so this new job is Godsend for us.

We hope that all of our readers are enjoying the lazy, crazy days of summer.  Each season brings it's own flavor and we intend to enjoy each one.  Thanks for checking in.  We'll keep you posted on Denny's progress.

Roll Out The Red Carpet

Yesterday, Denny had his 2nd Chemo treatment.  The labs came back fine so he was able to continue treatment.  We also met with Dr. Murphy.  She had only met Denny a week ago and she greeted him with a hug and "How are you doing?"  I finally got to meet her and really liked her.  She is a very caring person yet refreshingly straight forward with her information.  She introduced us to her staff and told us to call if we need anything. I was encouraged by this because sometimes it is difficult to get past the "gatekeepers".

We were so amazed at the care he received.  The chemo rooms were private suites that had lights that could be dimmed.  Each room had a TV and a comfortable recliner for the caregiver as well.  The décor was done in soft earth tones with nice artwork and different colored woods.  It was very soothing and not that cold, clinical feeling you get in a hospital.

 Healthcare in the south moves at a slower pace than in the Midwest but we appreciated the genuine caring attitudes we encountered.  In St. Louis, they move faster and the chemo is given in "Pods".  The walls are white.  The floors are white.  There is no privacy from the 5 other people in the room.  Caregivers sit on a regular chair; not very comfortable, I must say.  We were truly given the Red Carpet treatment yesterday.

Dr. Murphy looked Denny over and answered our questions.  She told us that the chemo is working.  The tumor appears to be shrinking.  Due to the reduction in some of the symptoms, Denny's headaches are going away and his vision is better. (An MRI will be done at the end of the third cycle.) We are very thankful for this improvement!

Denny also met with Dr. Netterville for the first time.  There was some concern about the amount of blood coming from his nose at different intervals.  It is complicated by the blood thinner he is on.  Dr. Netterville is the Director of Head and Neck Surgery at Vanderbilt and is an international leading authority of treating head and neck cancer. Denny is in great hands.

Yesterday was wonderful.  The chemo is working. The facilities are wonderful.  The doctors are extraordinary.  Life is good.  Our hearts are a little lighter today.

The picture above is Denny wearing his Superman hat.  His cousin, Glenda, gave it to him over the weekend in response to the previous blog post.  He was so tickled by the hat that he chose to wear it to his treatment.  Thank you, Glenda! [P.S. Denny is only wearing a Chicago T-shirt because it was probably free.  haha!  Go CARDINALS!)

This is all I have for now.  Denny will be going back to Dr. Murphy in 9 days for a follow up.  She wants to keep an eye on his blood counts and make sure he is tolerating the blood thinners and chemo well.  I will post again as soon as more information becomes available.  Thank you for checking in!

Headline From the Daily Planet: "Superman is NOT Clark Kent!"

That's right.  Superman is NOT Clark Kent.  He is Denny Woodruff.  The man is out of the hospital less than 24 hours and he left for work at 6:15am as usual today.  Why I'm surprised is a mystery.  He has always had the strength of 10 men; unfortunately, Cancer is his Kryptonite.  Superman managed to find a way around that so Denny will too.

I thought I would fill you in on the latest news.  This may be lengthy so get comfortable.

As you know, Denny was discharged from the hospital yesterday.  While he was there, he noticed his hair was starting to fall out.  Last night, he asked me to get the clippers and give him a haircut.  It was a bittersweet moment as we both knew it would be the last time he would have hair on his head.  However, we didn't dwell on this.  It is only hair.  You do not have to have hair on your head to live.  He says we will save money on shampoo.

Today, I spent quite a bit of time on the phone trying to get answers for the future.  Is Denny having treatment on Monday or not?  Is it going to be in St. Louis or Nashville?  It is a little frustrating to be hanging in limbo.  Denny and I always deal with the situation better when we have the facts and information.  Waiting is the hardest part.

Here is the conclusion to the day:

Denny has been officially handed off to Dr. Barbara Murphy at Vanderbilt; who will now become the primary on his case.  Dr. Adkins and the rest of the St. Louis crew will move to an advisory capacity.  Dr. Adkins and Dr. Murphy had an extensive conversation discussing Denny's case.  Dr. Adkins felt that since Denny is no longer in a curative capacity but more of a maintenance situation, it would be better to be treated locally due to the complications that he has experienced.  We know for sure Denny will never be cured of this cancer.  Our hope is that it can be contained for as long as possible.  The 6 hour road trips every 3 weeks are very wearing, expensive and unnecessary.  He is scheduled to go in Monday for labs so we will see.  He can't get chemo while on blood thinners so the decision will be based on what the labs reveal.

Dr. Adkins has worked with Dr. Murphy before and has great respect for her in the oncology community.  Dr. Murphy is the Director of Head and Neck Cancer Research at Vanderbilt.  He feels Denny is in good hands.

What will the future bring?  We are uncertain.  Denny will continue the Taxol chemo regimen until further notice.  Dr. Adkins had a patient go through this therapy and she lived for over 2 years.  Dr. Murphy is less positive.  Her comment was, "Taxol is only effective until the third cycle." (A cycle is 9 weeks.)  Both doctors agree that, by nature, this cancer is a malignant wild card.  What works for one patient doesn't necessarily work for another.  That is why he is excluded from all clinical trials, bone marrow and stem cell transplants.  This cancer's track record is unknown and it's reaction unpredictable.  However, Denny has outlived every statistic so we remain hopeful that the Taxol will work.

I asked Toni (Clinical Nurse & Assistant) at Dr. Adkins office if this means Denny is terminal.  She said, "No."  Their definition of terminal is someone with less than 6 months to live; not under active treatment and preparing for hospice.  Denny is not at that point.  Toni also pointed out that new generations of chemotherapy are being introduced every week and that maybe one of these will be the one that works.  The new generation chemotherapies are also used long term because their toxicity to the body's organs is minimal.  That was another concern we had. 

Time is precious.  He is still continuing to be positive and is not giving up.  He is just changing the plan a little bit.  Denny has begun to consider retiring.  He wants to be able to do things he wants to do; spend time with his kids, golf, and relax at the farm.  I support him in whatever decision he makes.  This is his life and he has the right to make the best decisions for himself.  My superman needs to hand off his cape to someone else.  This is his gift - Time.  Time to enjoy and bask in life's simple pleasures.  Time to just BE.

As Dorothy Said

Denny is home.  The doctor released him today.  I could see him just soaking everything in as we drove up the driveway.  As Dorothy said when she clicked her ruby slippers together, "There's no place like home."

His neck swelling has gone down quite a bit.  The blood cultures came back and show no bacteria in the blood.  Dr. Murphy's opinion is it was more blood clot than infection.  He will remain on antibiotics, steroids and blood thinners until everything is back to normal. 

The question remains as to whether he will be getting his second chemo treatment on Monday.  We will be getting the answer to that in the next day or so.  I'll keep you posted.

Our sincerest thanks to Pastor Mark Youngman for his hospital visit with Denny.  It was much appreciated.  We would also like to thank all of you for the cards, texts, emails, and prayers for Denny.  Those words of encouragement make his days even richer.  Thanks for checking in.

Hurry Up and Wait

Denny is still at Vanderbilt.  Today, he is just resting and getting pain medicine and antibiotics.  I wish I had something new to report but it has just been, "hurry up and wait".   We are waiting on those blood cultures to show something.  The redness and warmth in Denny's neck has calmed down.  He is still on pain killer because the swelling is still there.  His voice still sounds funny but not quite as bad as yesterday. 

As soon as new information comes in, I will post it here.  Thanks so much for checking in.

Simple Gifts

At 7:30am, I called Dr. Adkins office, chasing Denny's records.  I wanted to confirm that they had been sent to Dr. Murphy at Vanderbilt.  I also wanted to let them know what Denny's status was; that he had been admitted to Vanderbilt with a blood clot and infection.

At 7:41am, Denny texted me, " Had a good night and feel much better this morning. :)"  I thought, "Great!  Maybe we have gotten ahead of this thing."  I told him I would come to the hospital between 9 and 10am.  However, with phone calls going back and forth between me and St. Louis, I was delayed.  I finally got to the hospital a little before 11am. 

This is what I saw: Denny's neck had swelled even more since the evening before.  He was feeling "better" because they had him on Dilaudid.  As soon as he started talking, I knew something was very wrong.  His voice was slurred and in the wrong pitch. It was higher and nasally-sounding.  He said he had eaten breakfast and was feeling good.  I stepped out in the hallway and flagged down the nurse.  I requested that she call the doctor.  I wanted to know what was going on.

A short time later, the doctor came into the room and spoke with us.  She said they had doubled up the strong antibiotics to cover all possibilities.  They still have no idea what type of infection he has.  The blood cultures should be back in 48 -72 hours.  That should be tomorrow.

An ENT doc came in late this afternoon and ran a scope down Denny's right nostril into his throat.  It appears the infection is pressing on the left side of his voice box but his airways are clear.  Denny has also developed Thrush on the back of his tongue; probably due to being bombed with maximum strength antibiotics. 

I left around 6pm to come home. Denny is still in the hospital.  All the activity had ceased for the day so he was just resting.  No more docs were going to come in tonight.  I came home to take care of some bills and fix supper.  It feels like some kind of crazy time warp, bouncing between two completely different environments but we are managing.

Tomorrow, Dana is taking me back to the hospital since we had 2 cars there.  She is going to visit with her dad for awhile and then take the car home.  That way I won't have to try to find another driver when Denny is discharged because he is convinced he will be driving himself home.  I don't think the hospital will be on board with this but he remains unconvinced.  Stubborn man!

Denny appreciates all the cards, emails and prayers being sent his way.  These simple gifts mean the world to him.  Thank you so much.  As always, thanks for checking in.  I'll keep posting as soon as the information becomes available.

'Tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be fair,
'Tis a gift to wake and breathe the morning air.
And each day we walk on the path that we choose,
'Tis a gift we pray we never shall lose."
                                 (Lyrics to "Simple Gifts")

Phoenix Rising

I just got in from the hospital.  So much has happened since my last post.  Have a seat and I'll fill you in...

I got to the hospital about 5pm.  Nashville rush hour traffic was a mess. Denny had been put in a private room in the ER (thanks to the efforts of Dr. Murphy).  He looked miserable; laying on the bed with the left side of his neck swollen and red.  He had just come in from seeing Dr. Murphy; after a very lengthy conversation regarding his case.  St. Louis had not sent down the records yet so she was basically flying blind. 

They checked him in through the ER and he was waiting for the CAT scan when I got there.  They had already taken a blood panel.  Blood was actually taken from both arms to see where and what kind of possible infection it could be. 

He was so discouraged and it showed in the misery on his face.  I took his hand in mine, held it tight and said, "This is just one more battle in the war.  Keep fighting.  You can do this."  I think that, just for a moment, fear of the unknown overwhelmed him.  Just hearing me voice that fear took the elephant out of the room (so to speak) and like a phoenix rising, I saw his incredible strength return once again. 

The nurse administered some morphine since his pain level was 8 out of 10.  We waited about an hour for it to kick in.  Finally, she gave him something stronger which helped a little better.  About 10pm, the results of the CAT scan came back.  It showed a clot AND an infection. 

The blood panel will take another day or so before the infection is identified 100%.  However, from the look of the scan, the doctors suspect it is staph and are treating it with heavy doses of antibiotic. The clot is being treated with blood thinners.  Denny has been admitted to Vanderbilt Hospital.   We are not sure for how long; hopefully, just for the night.

Denny, (if you are reading this) I know you are fighting this battle on 2 fronts; physical and mental.  Someday, we will look back on this blog and say, "Wow!  What strength you have!"  Until then, we will eat this elephant one bite at a time.  Stay strong!

Thanks for checking in.  I will post updates as soon as I can.

Bacteremia

Denny met with Dr. Murphy for the first time today at 2:30pm.  It was timely because his neck has swelled and is very red.  He was thinking "blood clot".  She listened to his history and is sending him down to the ER at Vanderbilt, right now as I am typing.  I am home; getting ready to head down there.  She feels he has developed a massive infection and is afraid it is getting away from us.  I asked her if it could be sepsis or bacteremia.  She said, "Bacteremia".  Please refer to the previous post for definition.  I'm sorry this is so short but I need to get on the road.  Denny is scheduled for a CAT scan which will tell if it is a clot or infection.  If it is infection, he will be scheduled for a blood panel and be seen by an infectious disease doc.  I will post as soon as I can.

Infection Rejection

We just rolled in the driveway and home never looked so good.  We want to send a "shout out" to my sister for her wonderful hospitality and the chicken & dumplings.  Thank you!

Here is the news.  Denny's port was removed.  It was infected and there was a lot of fluid in the cavity. The medical personnel were VERY disgusted with Vanderbilt.  The comment was: "We treat people here for things like this; even if we didn't put the port in.  You can't leave someone in this condition.  He could have gotten septic.  You got here just in time."

There were 2 new terms.  I had to look them up but I could tell it wasn't good.  The words were "Sepsis" and "Bacteremia". This is what they meant by "septic".

SEPSIS: Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening complication of an infection. Sepsis occurs when chemicals released into the bloodstream to fight the infection trigger inflammation throughout the body. This inflammation can trigger a cascade of changes that can damage multiple organ systems, causing them to fail. **

BACTEREMIA:"Blood poisoning" is not a medical term. But as the term is usually used, it refers to the presence of bacteria in the blood (bacteremia) — and not a poisonous substance in the blood. However, bacteremia is a serious illness and requires prompt medical attention. **

** Source: Mayo Clinic Website: www.mayoclinic.com

About an hour down the road, Denny said he was already feeling better.  He has a prescription for a heavy duty antibiotic.  Now, he just has to get the area completely healed.  They are pretty sure it will not be healed in time for the May 20th chemo treatment.  Therefore, at 8am on May 20th, he will have a PICC line inserted into one of the bigger veins in his upper arm.  The chemo for the second treatment will be handled through this.  By the 3rd treatment, they will probably re-install the port to use from that point onward.

The other good news is Denny has a new oncologist, Dr. Barbara Murphy, through The Vanderbilt Clinic who has agreed to take on his case to coordinate with St. Louis.  Dr. Adkin's (the St. Louis chemo doc) clinical assistant, Toni, has personally met Dr. Murphy and says Denny is in good hands.  There will be no problems coordinating treatment issues between these two docs.

Denny and I are looking forward to relaxing the rest of the evening.  On the way home, we discussed how good it was that we did not take the Vanderbilt surgeon's advice of "Let nature take its course."  Denny might now be fighting a life threatening infection along with cancer.  One battle is enough.

That is all for now.  As always, thanks for the love, prayers, and cards of encouragement.  He could not fight this battle without them.  Thanks for checking in... 

The Wheels On Our Car Go 'Round and 'Round

Well, the port is still giving Denny trouble.  It is still leaking reddish tinted fluid; enough to soak through the bandage and stain his shirt. "Let nature take it's course" is not an option.  I called back to the docs in St. Louis to give them this report.  They were not happy with Vanderbilt at all.  As a result, Denny and I will be headed to St. Louis tomorrow.  He will be seen by an interventional radiologist at the Center for Advanced Medicine on Wednesday at 1pm. That doctor will make a determination if the port needs to come out and be re-done.  If that is the case, they will have to schedule a surgery.  I'm not sure if we will be able to get back home by Wednesday.  So, here we go again! 

We also wanted to thank our neighbors, The Stahl family, for the beautiful quilt they gave Denny that is part of the quilting ministry at Gladeville Baptist church.  It will go wonderfully with the prayer shawl creatively made by the "knitwits" ministry at our church, Gladeville Methodist.  It is hard to feel sad when surrounded by so much encouragement.  Thank you so much!

As usual, I will post updates to this blog as soon as they come available.  Thanks for checking in.

Running Ragged

Since we hit the door Saturday morning, we have been running ragged.  Denny went back to work on Monday as usual. We spent the next couple of days waiting to see the doctor.  If you saw my last post, you will see that the Doctor wouldn't help him.  Which brings us to Friday.

Denny was at Vanderbilt bright and early getting an ultrasound.  We thought there was a possibility of a blood clot.  The area around the port was red, swollen, and sensitive to the touch.  An ultrasound was done and it was clear.  The surgeon said that unless a clot or infection developed, they were going to let nature take its course.  I guess Denny is supposed to let this port keep him in pain and weeping fluid.  Needless to say, I searching for another oncologist to interface with St. Louis.  This situation is completely unacceptable.  I've found a candidate that I am going to contact Monday.

While all of that was going on, I had to leave the house at 5:30am; drive to Alabama to pack up Dana and bring her home from college.  Her boyfriend, Justin, went with me and was a tremendous help.  Between the 2 of us, we had her packed up and ready to go in 2.5 hours.  She had one more final to get through before we could leave.  By 6pm, we were on the road for home. 

Denny was already in bed asleep when we got in the door.  I was so exhausted, I don't even remember my head hitting the pillow.  Things should slow down a little now that we are all in the same place.  We are looking forward to summer.....together!

(I took this picture of Denny when he started his first chemo treatment at the Center for Advanced Medicine on April 26th.)

There is Always a Way...

Sometimes I get really aggravated with this medical part of this situation.  Don't even get me started on the insurance angle.  That is a whole other story!  We just have to remember there is always a way to get things fixed; just not always easy. 

Denny is still having problems with that port.  It is weeping a clear fluid.  He put a new dressing on when he left for work this morning.  Then later in the day had to go to the nurse at work and have it re-dressed. 

I called Dr. Smith (the Vanderbilt Oncologist that is on-board here in Tennessee) to see if I could get Denny in today to have it looked at.  The appointment was set for 3pm.  Denny went to the office and Dr. Smith wouldn't touch it; didn't even take the bandage off to look at the incision  He didn't want the liability as he wasn't the one who put it in.  This is really getting frustrating.  Dr. Smith has seen Denny several times since 2010 so this scenario is not new.  What does he expect us to do?  Drive back to St. Louis to get treatment?

Since Denny is prone to staph infections, we are trying to get this thing under control to avoid further complications.  The St. Louis docs are saying "get in and get it looked at down there, now! We are pushing the issue so the doctor finally made arrangements for Denny to see a surgeon at Vanderbilt.  Now, he has to wait until Friday.  I think we are going to look for a different Oncologist.  Denny needs someone who will help when he needs it.

The side effects of the chemo are starting to evolve.  Denny is feeling tired and has been having a bit of a dizzy spell every now and then; nothing major.  The worst effect to surface is aching in his bones. He couldn't take ibuprofen since the port is still bleeding and it would thin his blood.  I called back to St. Louis to see if there was anything he could take for pain.  St. Louis docs called in Vicodin.  That seems to help immensely.  At least now he can get a little sleep!

Therefore, our short-term plans are: 1). keep re-dressing the bandage until he can get into the surgeon on Friday; 2)start looking for a different Oncologist that specializes in head & neck cancers through Vanderbilt.

I will post updates as they occur.  Thanks for checking in.