15 sessions and counting

Today was the beginning of Todd's treatments. His appointments will be Monday-Friday for the next 3 weeks. I had to laugh because when he got home today he said "it's a good thing I'm not shy because I had to get naked from the chest down in front of 3 women!" I'm thinking to myself "Honey, you've never been pregnant before!". You tend to lose all modesty after giving birth to babies... am I wrong ladies? So I kind of had to let out a little chuckle on that note.

Moving onto his actual treatment. They laid him down on a "table-like" bed where he got tattoed again on his abdomen and sides. The tatt's are actual cross-hairs and the other markings on his abdomen look almost like a roadmap. Before they started he said they had to reposition him several times to line the cross-hair's up with the radiation machine. While under the machine you have to lay totally still when it shoots the radiation on top of you (stomach) and then underneath you (back). Todd said that the actual treatment took less than 5 minutes and said it's just like getting an x-ray. The positioning is what takes the most time because you have to be perfectly positioned the same way everytime so the radiation hits the exact same spots everytime.

We were forewarned that he may have some bouts of nausea, so Dr. Seider did give him a prescription for Compazine which is a pretty nasty antiemetic. He has to take that every day before his treatment and then as needed. I asked him how he felt when he was done today and he seemed to feel pretty good. He wasn't feeling nauseated or tired.

Brynn and Kael are still fascinated by daddy's new body markings. I'm just waiting for her to get a hold of the markers and start marking herself (or Kael) all over! I can just hear it now, "Mommy, I look like daddy!" Thank goodness for washable markers and bathtubs! She already likes to give Grandpa Larry tattoes when he falls asleep on the couch! I guess we have an aspiring tattoo artist among us.

The second time around...

Todd had his PET scan this morning. This time was much better than the last. He didn't get sick this time with the GoLYTELY! For fear that he might get sick again, the poor thing didn't eat much yesterday. Not eating much helped him alot. Needless to say, he was starving after the scan! The nurse from Dr. Seider's office said that he could expect to start his treatments as early as Wednesday or Thursday of this week. I told him that we'd have to have a graduation/radiation party at the end of the summer!

Dr. Weber, Hillcrest Atrium

Not only does Todd have testicular cancer, he just recently had ear surgery as well. Nearly a year ago he was getting terrible ear infections in his right ear that wouldn't go away, not even with antibiotics. It was also discovered that his hearing in that ear left much to be desired. Long story short, we ended up at the Hillcrest branch of the Cleveland Clinic with Dr. Weber. It was found that Todd had a cholesteatoma on his eardrum. The cholesteatoma is basically a cystlike sac of dead skin cells that secrete an enzyme which in turn causes damage to the hearing bones within the ear. Todd has had a significant amount of hearing loss in that ear (for those of you who know him, it's now confirmed that he has a reason to talk loudly:) ). On April 28, he had some pretty invasive ear sugery. The incision goes from the top of the ear all the way down and behind. It looks as though they just flopped his ear over and went in from behind. The whole procedure was outpatient and lasted 3 hours. One might think that the two might be related, the cholesteatoma and the testicular tumor, however they are not.

Today he had a follow-up visit with Dr. Weber. Everything seems to be healing well and they believe they cut out all of the infection. He will go back in August to have his hearing reexamined and then he will have some rehabilitation in that ear. I'm not exactly sure how they are going to do that because I didn't go to this appointment with him so I'm only going on what he told me. It does sound kind of crazy though!

So I guess you could say we have had a rather hectic last couple of months! As Todd would say, "I turned 30 and things started falling apart!"

Laughter's the best medicine

After the initial shock set in of Todd's diagnosis, we have tried using humor to help us cope. Jokes, one-liner's and nicknames help to keep us upbeat, but yet I feel as though it seems as though we are not taking this as serious as we should. Lying in bed last night it hit me. Todd & I both joked about his having to drink the bowel prep. I even mentioned something about it in the previous blog, but when it actually came true last night, I felt really terrible. I love my husband more than anything and, yes, I felt oodles of sympathy for him last night when he got sick. I think what I'm getting at is that despite the ups and downs of this roller coaster ride, we can still laugh. It might be painful, but we still have the ability to laugh and enjoy life.

Fast forward to the morning- Todd drank the GoLYTELY like he was supposed to. Even when his gut told him enough was enough he followed the instructions to drink the whole gallon. He arrived at the hospital to be prepped for the PET scan. He had his IV dose of radioactive material (to light him up like a Christmas tree) when he learned that there was some difficulties with the machine. Long story short, next Sunday he has to repeat the GoLYTELY! However, next Sunday, he will be eating supper a little earlier and will likely only drink 1/2 the gallon. For those of you who have ever had a bowel prep it's likely you can understand.

Just another day

Todd had stopped by the Center yesterday afternoon to get "tattooed" and to have his mold made. The "tattoo's" are the basically landmarks so that each time he goes in the tech's know exactly where to aim. The mold is just from his waist to his knee's and he has to use that each time he goes in to correctly postition him. He still is not very happy about having to drink the GoLYTLEY. (Ha, Ha) I'm sure that come Sunday night as he's racing to the bathroom I will be reminded of the speech from my nursing school graduation, aptly titled LPNS: Lots of Pain, No Sympathy! Sorry Todd! I still have much love for you!

Four weeks after his treatments, which should end in July, he will have to go back to Dr. Seider to check everything out and then once a year for five years. I think that come August we will both be more than ready for vacation!

As for the kids, Kael is to young to fully understand what is going on, but Brynn does have some questions. This morning she was just asking about Todd's tattoo's , she thinks they are bandaids. Since he doesn't look ill on the outside, it's much easier to explain to her. Honestly, to look at him, you really wouldn't have a clue he has cancer. He really is taking it all very well and i think part of it has to do with Lance Armstrong. The week that he was off from his surgery he found Lance Armstrong's website and did alot of reading, after that he has taken this all in stride. We are so fortunate that he doesn't have the fight that so many others have.

Cancer Treatment Center

Yesterday we met with Dr. Seider of the Cancer Treatment Center to discuss the radiation therapy. He was very short and sweet and cut right to the point. Treatment will last only 3 weeks and will be 5 days a week. From looking at the pathology reports he wasn't so concerned about the questionable lymph node, however, he did order a PET scan to clear the air. ( A PET scan is a type of nuclear imaging similar to a CT scan.) Todd has an appointment Monday morning at Wooster Hospital for the scan. Unlike the CT scan, he will have to drink a bowel prep which leaves him with little enthusiasm! Once he get's the images from the PET scan, Dr. Seider will then program it into his equipment and map out the treatment. Todd will be notified when the plan is set and that is when he will begin his treatment. Side effects from the treatment include fatigue and nausea, which he will be getting a prescription to help with the nausea. Radiation burns shouldn't be a problem because treatment is relatively low rad. We were also told that there was a slight chance of sterility. The treatment will not be anywhere near the testicle, but there is always a chance that the radiation could bounce and end up there. Needless to say we had to discuss the issue of spermbanking. Our thoughts are that we are lucky enough to have two beautiful children, if it's God's will for us to have another than so be it. If not we will be more than happy with the two we have right now.