Update on Dad

So for all of you who have been asking how my dad is, here is the latest. He's been recovering wonderfully from his surgery. He's looking and feeling better. So, the big news is that they found 2 types of cancer in his thryroid. The 1st on is called papillary, basically it is the most common, easiest to cure kind of thyroid cancer around. The 2nd one is called anaplastic, it is the least common, no cure for kind of cancer. With the diagnosis of anaplastic, most people are given from 1-3 years before the cancer completely takes over and there's nothing else to do. The only problem they've really had with the diagnosis is they weren't sure if what he has on his lungs is part of the anaplastic cancer, or from something else. The biopsy that they did do on his lungs was not good enough for a definite anwer. So he had another CT scan on his lungs to see what's going on with the nodules they found. They told us that if there was a significant amount of change with the lungs, they knew that it was the anaplastic cancer that was affecting the lungs. We had been waiting for the results on the CT scan. The outcome of the results would determine the course of treatment that he would follow. If the anaplastic cancer isn't affecting the lungs, then they can start radiation treatment for the thyroid cancer. If it is affecting the lungs, they can't use radiation, because you cannot radiate the lungs. They would have to use other kinds of drugs that can work on both the thryoid and lungs at the same time. So, Tuesday dad went in to Dr. Dixon to get the results of the CT scan. It's not great news. They have confirmed that it is anaplastic thryoid cancer that has moved to dad's lungs. With this diagnosis they have started him on some very new, experimental pills. They are basically the radiation medicine, but in pill form. He's going to take these for the next six weeks and then do another CT scan on his lungs to see if it's having any effect on them. So for now, we sit back and wait yet again to see what happens. Dad is bound and determined to enjoy every day that he feels good. For him that means lots of fishing, an Alaskan cruise in a couple of weeks, and lots of good times with his friends and family. We love him so much and all hope and pray that this medicine will help him feel better. We really appreciate all of the love and support from everyone out there. Anyone willing to put his name in any temple is sure appreciated. Every little thing helps! If you have any ?'s, don't be afraid to ask. I'll get back to you as quickly as I can. Thank you again for your love and prayers.

Quick update

Dad was able to come home on Friday. He and mom came up to the farm on Saturday and ate dinner with us and visited for awhile. He wasn't sure if he was feeling up to coming to visit, that is till he heard that I was making my homemade honey barbeque pork ribs! ;) Those are his Favorites! Anyway, he's feeling better. The scar on his throat is not very pretty. It looks like a small rope right now. Mom kept teasing him that she was going to color it gold and hang some bling from it. Too funny! Anyway, he'll get his stitches out tomorrow and we'll hopefully have some results from everything in the next couple of days. I'll update with the fun things soon. Lots of pictures! So anyway, so far things are going pretty well for now. When I learn anything new, I'll be sure to let you all know. Thank you all so much for the prayers and love!! They are all heard and felt! We really appreciate it!!!

Another update on Dad.....

Okay, it's been awhile, I know. But it's been getting busier and busier. Plus the cord for my laptop died and I'm still waiting for my new one to arrive. Needless to say, I'm next door "borrowing" my neighbor's computer for a little bit. (Thanks Mandy!!) So dad went down to the Huntsmans Institute on Sunday. Monday morning he had surgery so they could remove the thyroid, yes, the whole thing. It was beging to attach itself to his voicebox. Weird, I know, but it really was affecting him and how well he could talk. He was really becoming hoarse. He's feeling much better now and says that it's a lot easier to talk. It's not as hard for him as it was. He's sounding much better. He was supposed to be released on Wednesday, but his scar was still draining too much. As of right now, they were still waiting to have someone come back in and check it to see if it's getting better or if he'll have to stay another day or two. Also, his back is starting to hurt pretty bad where they took the biopsy from his lungs. He's supposed to be getting an x-ray of his back to see what's going on there. The Drs. are still fairly positive that his thyroid will come back positive with cancer cells. They are also pretty sure that is what all the nodules on his lungs are from. As far as I know, we should have some definite answers about it tomorrow sometime. I do know for sure that dad, mom and amanda are all gettting stir crazy down there and mom is enjoying the traffic and road rage around S.L.C. a little too much! ;) If you haven't heard the whole story of how this all began, just scroll down and you can read all about it. I will update some more next week when we get home from camping. I hope everyone has a Wonderful and safe 4th of July weekend!!