An Update on Kevin.

Kevin had his first definitive scan since starting the immunotherapy treatment.  He had a preliminary scan right before Thanksgiving.  Though the results seemed positive, they told us it was too early to tell.  This last Thursday, he had a scan.  Typically, we do not hear the results until his appointment with the oncologist on Friday.  However, the nurse called us 30 minutes after the scan to tell us things looked stable.  The cancer had not spread, nor had it shrunk.  In the cancer world, in our world, that is a huge win.  Another gift of time.  Precious time. 

To give a rundown of the last few months in the world of Kevin, it has been very good, relatively speaking.  The side affects are quite minimal versus the chemotherapy.  In December, he developed a pretty severe cough that would not go away.  After trying a few different things, unsuccessfully, the oncologist put him on a high dose prednisone.  Kevin was not happy about that at all.  In this patient centered world of treatment, they took him off at his request.  After a few more weeks of VERY bad coughing, they put him back on.  Needless to say, Kevin was not happy about it.  Who can blame him? 

The prednisone subsequently caused him to be an insulin dependent diabetic.  For several weeks, he had to take insulin shots each day to control the high blood sugar.  Fortunately, once they were able to taper him off the prednisone, they were able to taper him off the insulin as well.

All that said, he will be the first to tell you that his quality of life has improved dramatically.  There are days that it is easy to forget he is sick.  There are an equal number of days, where it is clear that he is sick and has been through a tremendous amount.  We continue to take one step at a time.  Personally, I admire how hard he has fought for each and every day.  We just continue the course and wait to see where it takes us.  Your continued thoughts and prayers are appreciated!