Rochelle's Journey (Part I)

Our lives were turned upside down, yet again, when Rochelle was diagnosed on April 30, 2013.  We knew we had to face her diagnosis head on just like we did with Mom’s multiple diagnoses but it was very unsettling.  We thought the worst was behind us with losing Mom and we were still trying to accept the fact that Mom was really gone.  We could not understand why we were facing another battle but we knew we had to trust God and we had faith that He would see us through Rochelle’s journey with Hodgkins Lymphoma.  We were reassured by her doctors and we were so thankful the cancer was caught very early.  We found some peace with Mom’s death when Rochelle was diagnosed.  We felt as if her early death was purposeful.  We also felt maybe this was one of our answers to the many “whys” we asked ourselves during Mom’s terminal illness.  Maybe Mom’s death was part of God’s plan to allow Rochelle’s cancer to be caught early so she would have the opportunity to help Scott raise their beautiful daughters? Maybe this has nothing to do with it?  We may never know the real answer(s) to our questions on this earth but I am confident we will find out when we stand before God.

During Rochelle’s treatment, she kept a journal so she could keep people updated on her journey.  It is very clear from her journal and through talking with Rochelle during her journey that Mom’s positive attitude made a big impact on the way she handled the challenge of being diagnosed and the fear of the unknowns with cancer.  Rochelle’s positive attitude during her treatment mirrored that of Mom’s positive outlook during her battles.  

Once again, God graced us with incredible strength when we needed it yet again.  Despite the fact Rochelle had a great prognosis, it was so hard to see my sister, my best friend, get diagnosed with cancer and go through cancer treatments.  No time is a good time for cancer diagnosis but all of the emotions from losing Mom were still so fresh.  It was disheartening to see my sister endure the multiple appointments, diagnostic tests, play the waiting game, chemotherapy, losing her hair and physically feeling uncomfortable and scared.  

My brother-in-law Scott has so many similar traits as my Dad.  There is no denying the love between Rochelle and Scott.  Scott has always been her rock but he definitely and he was her pillar of strength during her treatment.  Scott has always been a wonderful man but his unending love for his family was very evident during Rochelle’s ordeal.  Scott was the caretaker, “Mr. Mom,” the cheerleader, the chef and many other roles.  God knew what he was doing when he brought Rochelle and Scott together that fateful night at the bowling alley in Crete, Nebraska. 

Once again we found ourselves in another scary situation but thankfully God’s healing hands comforted Rochelle and we are so blessed she is in remission!

I would like to share another story and example of how God puts people in our lives for certain reasons.  Dr. Reed was Mom’s oncologist for nearly 20 years and Dr. Tarantolo was Rochelle’s oncologist beginning in 2013. Dr. Reed and Dr. Tarantolo, along with a few other physicians,  published the following study in 2003: Occult tumor cells detected in autologous blood stem cell harvests have no impact on 5 year outcomes for breast cancer patients with 4-9 positive nodes treated with adjuvant high-dose therapy and stem cell transplantation. Bone Marrow Transpl, 31:571-574, 2003.   I believe this is the same clinical study Mom took part in back in 1994.  Mom was one of the few to survive for a long period following the clinical trial.  During one of Rochelle’s conversations with Dr. Tarantolo, the researchers concluded years later science showed that Mom survived because she carried the BRCA2 mutated gene.  Talk about coming full circle!  The gene that was responsible for her deadly cancer saved her life nearly 20 years ago.   This is the scientific explanation but of course we believe God allowed Mom more time on earth to help raise Rochelle and I and to help pave the way for what was to come in our lives after her passing.  It was also neat to see how two doctors ended up working on the same study ultimately treated both Mom and Rochelle 20 years apart!  Coincidence?  Absolutely not!

The song, "Never Once" by One Sonic Society is a great reminder that God never abandons us.  He is with us through all of our trials and triumphs.  The timing of Rochelle's illness was very unsettling but we knew we were not walking alone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUSBUtjWaDo

Standing on this mountain top
Looking just how far we've come
Knowing that for every step
You were with us
Kneeling on this battleground
Seeing just how much You've done
Knowing every victory
Was Your power in us

Scars and struggles on the way
But with joy our hearts can say
Yes, our hearts can say
Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
You are faithful, God, You are faithful

Never once did we ever walk alone
Never once did You leave us on our own
You are faithful, God, You are faithful.
 

Every step we are breathing in Your grace
Evermore we'll be breathing out Your praise
You are faithful, God, You are faithful
It's true, You are faithful, God You are faithful

Below are portions of Rochelle’s entries from her Caring Bridge website.  As you will see, Mom’s positive energy she exhibited on this earth shine through Rochelle’s beautiful writing during her journey with Hodgkins Lymphoma.  Rochelle was able to find positives in the negative situation she was dealing with.  Her spiritual strength, physical strength and mental strength helped get her through this difficult time in our lives.  She continued to rely on God to light the way during her diagnosis and treatment.  She also relied on her athletic ability and drive to train for a half marathon (13.1 miles). 

My Story(April 30, 2013)

On April 30th 2013 I was given news that I wasn't expecting to hear: "You have a diagnosis of Hodgkins Lymphoma."  Initially I was so mad.  Not mad at God, but mad for the fact that I just had lost my mother to breast cancer a few months before.  

My mom SAVED MY LIFE!  She paid the ultimate sacrifice for my sister, her grandkids and myself so that we could take the preventative measures to get tested and have preventative examinations performed.  They staged my cancer as 1A, which is the best diagnosis I could have received.  I had a PET scan to determine whether or not the cancer had spread. 

To get prepared for chemotherapy, I had to have and ECHO and a pulmonary function test because chemotherapy is hard on the body.  I also had a bone marrow biopsy, which involves aspirating bone marrow through my hip with a large needle (no sedation).   My bone marrow results were negative! After four of my treatments, I will have another CT PET scan and the cancer should be gone.  The standard of practice is to do another 4 treatments for preventative measures.  I will receive chemo every other Friday.

Dr. Tarantolo is my Oncologist and is awesome!  I have a receptor called CD 20 which is favorable for me and my treatment, because they can give me an additional chemo drug.  Only 20% of the patients with Hodgkins have this receptor.  This disease has a 95% curable rate!!     

May 18, 2013 (1^st Treatment Done)

 

The day before my first treatment I chopped my hair off.  I knew I was going to lose my hair so I decided to cut it off and to try out some bangs.  It was a very emotional experience for me.
I made it through my first treatment and I feel great!   I actually have a lot of energy.  The first day was the longest because they have to do test doses of the chemo drugs to make sure that I wouldn't have a reaction.  I was at the treatment center for 10 hours yesterday.  During a portion of the first part of the treatment I started to have an adverse reaction to the Rituxan therefore they gave me steroids and Benadryl through my port and it helped instantly, except it made me extremely tired and I was saying things to my sister that were not making much sense.  We had a good chuckle about it. 
The infusion center has a wonderful staff and a state of the art facility.  Due to the length of the treatment and the thoughtfulness of the staff, I decided to share our story about my mom and how I found out my diagnosis.  Our story brought them to tears. 

Now that I am undergoing treatment, I have to be on a lot of medications.  I went from taking no medications, to six different ones!   I am on a schedule of medications to prevent nausea, pneumonia, shingles, kidney stones, and gout! 

Thanks for all of your wonderful support and comments.  It really does help to know that I have a lot of prayers and great friends and family standing behind me.  I plan on running the Omaha Half Marathon in September.  I think I have a few people convinced to do it with me.  If anyone else wants to do it with me, please let me know!

May 24, 2013 (Second Treatment in the Books)

 

Today I finished my second treatment!  I made it through week one without any problems.  I was able to work my three 12 hour shifts.  I feel completely normal and hopefully it continues that way. It was nice coming back to work.  I truly believe that continuing as I did before I was diagnosed is the best thing and going to work is actually great therapy!

This week Scott was able to go to my treatments with me.  The entirety of the treatment lasted only 4 hours instead of 10!  It is amazing the number of patients that come in and out of the cancer treatment center.  I see some older people but unfortunately a majority of patients are younger people.  

Each week I get my labs drawn to determine whether or not I can have treatment.  If my labs get too low, I have to get an injection called Neupogen which stimulates my bone marrow help generate my white blood count. Chemo kills both good and bad cells therefore it can damage the bone marrow if the levels get too low.  Before I started chemo, my white blood count was 10.6 (normal).  This week they dropped to 4.6 (low end of normal).  It is expected that around day 10 of treatment, my numbers will drop to their lowest point.  

I have to mention that I am so positively overwhelmed with everyone's thoughts, prayers, and generosity.  I want to thank the staff at Gretna Public Schools for everything you all have done.  The other day I came home, and Scott showed me the number of gift cards to restaurants we were given.  AMAZING is all that I have to say.  Also, thank you to those teachers that filled in for Scott when he had to be with me during my various appointments.  Thank you also to the staff and my neighbors who set up a Meal Train.  I am speechless!  You all have been so accommodating and giving, I cannot even begin to thank you all enough!  The track athletes that made it to state dedicated their t- shirts to me by putting on the backs of the shirts "Running for Ro!" 

God works in mysterious ways.  Right after I was diagnosed, I went to the Nissan dealership to get an oil changed as well as some general maintenance.  They asked how my week was going and I proceeded to tell them about my diagnosis and how my cancer was discovered.  I knew I was in trouble when they asked me whether or not I had an extended warranty—naturally, I did not. I was told the maintenance was going to cost approximately $1,200!  The man excused himself and returned shortly with some great news. “We can't do this for free, but we can do it for $50!  I immediately started to cry in both shock and excitement and hugged him.

That same day, I decided to go get a pedicure.  The owner of the spa Kathy knows me quite well.  She was asking how I was feeling and I was talking to her about my diagnosis.  When I went to pay, I was told another woman in the spa overheard my story and she paid for my pedicure. 
All of these experiences so far just proves that there are a lot of good people out there in this world.

May 31, 2013 (Done With 3^rd Treatment)

Treatment number three was uneventful.  My white blood cells dropped to 3.4. (5 to 11 is normal)  I got an injection called Neupogen the day before I received chemo.  The drug works overnight and today my white count went up to 7.1! 

I have felt great through my treatment.  I feel as normal as I did before I was diagnosed.  I think the thing that I have learned the most is patience.  When I had to get my labs drawn, it felt like forever until I could find out the results.  Being the patient is makes me see things differently and makes be more aware what patients really go through.  I have gone through the same testing and waiting just like them. 

So far, I have not noticed any hair loss.  When I start to notice hair loss, I am going to go with the “GI Jane” look.  It will be hard, but I know it is short term and my hair will eventually grow back.

June 8, 2013 (It Was a Hairy Situation)

The big topic of the week is my hair.  I started noticing my hair was falling out around day 17, especially when I was in the shower and when I would brush my hair.  I wanted to be able to get through this work week with my hair, so I could have some time to get use to my new hairdo.  I know that it is just hair, but hair is part of our identity, especially for a woman. 

I was lucky to have a co-worker who is going through chemo treatments help mentor me and give me advice.  I was able to try on different styles of wigs anything from short and medium lengths, a white tensile one (they made me try on), to super long ones like the Kardashians.  I found the perfect one.  Each wig has a name and I chose “Courtney.”  It is longer than my hair was prior to chopping it off, but I feel like me and very comfortable in it.  I also have a variety of fun and colorful scarves to wear.

Today after my treatment, I decided to get my hair buzzed.  The clinical cosmetologist had my back facing the mirror so I couldn’t see her take all of my locks of hair off.  As she used the clippers, my head felt much lighter and cooler.  As she was doing it, I was reading Scott’s face and he was doing nothing but smiling.  He said, “You look hot Mama!”  He also said how I looked just like my Mom. 

I have best husband in the whole wide world!  I turned around and looked at my new self in the mirror.  I was pleasantly surprised!  

I wore “Courtney” with confidence. When I got home, Anisten said, "Mom!  I like your hair!

Kardyn is so young, where she cannot tell a difference.

I had my labs drawn again today and they are almost bottomed out.  I have to take extra precautions such as good hand washing and avoiding sick people if possible.  I have to call my doctor immediately if a start running a temperature because I am more prone to get an infection now that I am immunosuppressed from the chemo treatments.  I had to pick up Neupogen injections (which I have to give to myself in the stomach) to boost my white blood cell count, and on Monday I have to and get my labs drawn again to check my white blood cell count.  The past couple of days I have felt a little tired, and it is due to my counts being low.

This past week I have been trying to get prepared for the Omaha Half Marathon in September.  I ran a total of 7 miles this week.  I am not doing it for time, but rather doing it to achieve a goal....to finish.  I do have a couple of people committed to do it with me, and I am so excited! 

I want to conclude by saying I have the best co-workers and doctors in the whole entire world.  They surprised me with a goodie back with an overwhelming amount of gifts such as cash, gift cards to my favorite places such as Target, Applebees, and Maurices.  I also received body spray from Victoria’s Secret, lip gloss, colorful socks to wear to work, bags of my favorite candy, magazines.  They are also so thoughtful and included things for the girls to keep them occupied.  Thank you so much!

June 14, 2013 (5^th Week Done)

This week I needed to get my white blood cell and neutrophil counts up.  I had to get four doses of Neupogen to boost my counts.  I experienced the most common side effect terrible joint and muscle pain.  This means that the medication is working by boosting my bone marrow to generate more white blood cells.  This week my white blood cells were 30! (Normal is 5 to 10). My Neutrophil count was 18! (Normal is 1.0 to 8.0).  It definitely worked and I was able to get my chemo as scheduled!  I have been battling a bad sore throat and ear ache this week.  Normally I would ignore it, but since my counts are low, they put me on an antibiotic and I am much better.  Aside from feeling a little fatigued, I feel great and I am actually able to get some miles in on the running trails.  It is good therapy.

I have to share a funny story.  I had one of my head scarves on and a patient that just came up from recovery was barely opening his eyes and was looking around the room and said, "I see that we have a pirate in the room."  I was laughing so hard and thought that maybe I should carry an eye patch in my pocket to sport the look, or maybe not because we do have a lot of confused patients and I would be a true hallucination!

I met with Dr. Tarantolo today and he felt in my left axilla and said that he couldn't feel my lymph nodes like he could before!  For once it is great to hear some positive news.  So all of your thoughts and prayers are working!  Keep it up!!!  He is so confident that I will be cancer free after all of this is said and done!

Getting around in the mornings has been so easy with my buzz cut.  Some people ask if I regret cutting and buzzing it off and the answer is no.  I do not think that I could stand slowly losing my hair. My hair was very thick andI think it would have been upsetting to see parts of my scalp and my hair look thin.  I made the right decision. 

June 21, 2013 (6^th Week of Treatment Done and Finished with Rituxin!!!)

 
There is light at the end of the tunnel!  I am completely finished with my 6 Rituxin treatments and next week I will be done with 2 cycles (4 treatments) of chemotherapy.  As usual, my counts are low again, but to be expected.  I will get my labs drawn on Wednesday and probably get Neupogen to boost my white blood cell counts before my next treatment on Friday.

Today, my good friend and co-worker Rachel kept me company during my treatment today.  It is amazing how fast time passes when you are in good company.  She brought me an amazing breakfast from Panera and she surprised me with an awesome frame with photographs of my family that she took before I started treatment.

As usual, everyone has been so amazing!  Thanks for all of the cards and care packages that I received from people in the mail.  Thank you also to all of the people who have prepared and delivered meals to our home.  You all are truly amazing and so thoughtful!  It really does mean so much to know I have so many people thinking of me and my family.  Soon this will all be behind us and we can move on. 

I cannot believe how fast a year goes by.  Tomorrow our youngest daughter Kardyn turns one!  Last weekend we were able to celebrate with many family and friends. 

June 28, 2013 (Half Way Done!!  Woot!! Woot!!)

It is FRIDAY and today is extra special because I am half way done with my chemo treatments!!!  I cannot believe that it has been two months since I began this crazy ride.  Surprisingly, it has gone fast!  The one thing that I keep wondering and asking is if (and when) chemo is supposed to slow me down.  So far it hasn't slowed me down one bit.  I feel just as normal as I did before I was diagnosed.  Today I met with Danielle who is Dr. Tarantolo's Nurse Practitioner and she said the reason why I have so much energy is because I have kept such a positive attitude and I have continued to keep active by running.  I will not let cancer run my life, and I will continue to fight on and push through. 

Since I am half way done with treatment, the protocol is to have another CT PET scan done.  Dr. Tarantolo is pretty confident that my cancer should be ALL GONE!!  Regardless if my test is positive or negative, I will have to undergo 2 more cycles/4 chemo treatments. 

Thanks again to my dear friend Rachel Best Breitkreutz for joining me again at my treatment this week.  She brought bagels from Panera, and they were fabulous!  Thank you also to my friend Rachel Ideus for being my running buddy this past Wednesday.  Like she said, the running part was just a bonus.  We were able to catch up and allow life to slow down a little. 

Thanks everyone for all of the support.  I am blessed beyond belief and am so thankful for everyone I know in my life.”