Hi From Australia
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Dear Lynn, I am so sorry for your family’s loss, but so glad he did not suffer at the end. I’m so happy to hear that you were able to have a Christmas together.
Your family is in my thoughts and prayers, Keep in touch.
CatherineLynn,
I am glad that Greg was able to have a great day with those he loved and also that he did not linger on and was relatively pain free. You and your family are in my thoughts and prayers.
Love & Hugs,
DarlaDear Lynn, Again, I am so very sorry but know that Greg fought a great battle with grace, dignity and yes, humor. I am truly happy that he got to see his boys as I felt that is what he was waiting for. Take care of yourself now and drop in to visit us if you need us or just to say hello! Sending you love from across the waters.
Hi All ,
Just letting you know that my beautiful husband passed away peacefully in hospital on the 29th December 2016. His ability to accept the knocks he was dealt, and grab what life experiences he could with both hands, was an inspiration to us all. He made sure he had a great Christmas Day with his 2 boys, Daughter in Law and myself but at 5pm that day he said he had to lie down for a nap. From then on , he went into a state of semi consciousness and because both his liver and kidney functions were declining, he deteriorated from there. Two positives- he was not in pain and his passing was not drawn out.
Thanks all of you, for your support to me during Greg’s illness and God bless those still fighting this disease and your loved ones. We are all individuals and this disease is not always a fast looming death sentence. Some people have had treatments that have made a significant impact on the length of their survival rates and quality of life. Don’t ever give up hope! There will be a Cancer Free World one day- lets hope it’s just around the corner.
Love
Lynn
Ps. Will add a little post to the Remembrance Section soon.Hi Lynn,
I’m not sure what gregs INR level was when he had the internal bleeding or what he is specifically taking it for but generally INR targets are between 2 and 3 (sometimes higher if there’s been a heart valve replacement. I would be getting on to the doctors asap as once warfarin is stopped the INR drops within days and it may just be a case of his INR being too high (blood being too thin) at the time and may require a lower warfarin dose. Unfortunately with Cholangiocarcinoma being a liver disease this means some patients also cannot synthesize clotting factors as easily meaning it makes the INR go up easily too!
Hope this information helps.
Have a wonderful Christmas and best wishes to your family.
Lynn…..you are in excellent hands with the health care team. Eliminating the Warfarin makes a lot of sense not only in weighing the risks of blood clots for the reasons mentioned, but also in regards to bleeding due to esophageal varices caused by possible portal hypertension. which most often is a byproduct of late stage disease.
What a precious time this is for all of you. Being together this Christmas has incredible, everlasting meaning for all.
My heart and soul is with you,
Hugs
MarionDear Lynn, I am so very sorry to read what the 2 of you are going through. The strength you both are having is phenomenal. My biggest wish is for Greg to see his boys for Christmas. It sounds like you have great Doctors and your Hospice set up is really wonderful. I am also hoping that the trials ease up and it becomes more comfortable for Greg. I can’t say to stay strong as I don’t see how anyone human could be any stronger. Bless you both and know that way across the miles you are being thought of often.
Its been a rough week and a half since we saw Gregs Oncologist. The doc suspected that the cancer has spread to the brain thus causing Gregs lack of Co-ordination. He prescribed steroids to reduce swelling & to help him with ” normal ” body functions. These meds with the addition of a blood transfusion have made a remarkable difference ( albeit a temporary one). He’s so focused on fighting this crap disease so he can enjoy his boys company at Xmas time It was the start of the weekend when Greg started deteriorating before the steroids 1st kicked in. The pallative care nurse whos service only operates through the week during the day, called on the “Silverchain”nurses for us, where we have 24 hr access to medical care & advice. They provide an assistant nurse in the morning to shower patients and a registered nurse to visit in the late afternoon to discuss Gregs condition. If you are worried about your loved ones condition you can speak to a nurse anytime-even late at night and early morning. Because Greg has improved so much for the time being the Silverchain nurses have been put on hold. But what a remarkable system we have in place over here. Until Greg got sick I never knew anything like this existed. They provided us with equipment so speedily as well. We are still in the care of the daily community pallative care nurses though.
We had another hiccup during this time. Greg started peeing alot of blood and the drs didnt seem to know why. Turns out his INR level was too high and causing internal bleeding. Greg has been taking the blood thinning tabs Warfrin to avoid blood clots with his chronic kidney disease. So the warfrin was stopped. I need to contact Gregs kidney spec to see how long for. I was speaking to Gregs Onc tonight & he said both Gregs kidney Spec & himself think the risk of bleeding through taking warfrin far outweighs the risk of possible blood clots with Gregs condition at the moment.
Greg continues to amaze me with how he is so strong and appears to be taking all of these challenges (for want of a better word-a swear one might be good at the moment) in his stride.
Hope you can all manage to find some type of peace this Christmas whatever your situation.
Kind Regards
LynnDear Lynn,
I am sorry to hear this. Please let us know how things are going after you see the oncologist tomorrow. Know that you and Greg are in my thoughts and prayers.
Hugs,
DarlaDear Lynn, I am so very sorry to read this about Greg. I can’t remember if you had asked me for the list of Signs that the end is near? Even if it is not it is very helpful to know what you may expect. I believe that we do pick our time to leave and perhaps Gregg is waiting for his sons to arrive. Than again you know how crazy this CC is and time could even be longer. I hope they can improve his comfort level and please know you are not alone we are all here for you.
Well I’m back.Wish I had some great news that Greg was now cancer free or that there is now an instant cure for cancer but no such luck.
Greg has deteriorated in the last week. His hands have started to get the shakes and he keeps dropping things. He has more pain and his mind is not as alert. He is not steady on his feet.
His kidney spec rang tonight to inform us that his kidney function was low and the level of cancer in his blood had skyrocketed. He wants to give Greg a blood transfusion to make him feel better thru Xmas. We see his Oncologist tomorrow & will find out more then.
Just wanted to thank Lainey especially for her last post to me and for sharing her poem.
Gregs 2 sons are coming for Xmas. I just hope Greg is ok for their visit. We may have to call an early Xmas.
God bless all of you out there fighting this disease and your families. I wish only the best for you.
Regards
LynnLynn…..when my husband was in Greg’s position we took it day by day and adapted along the way.. Some days were more reflective whereas other days we found enormous pleasure in being close and finding some humor in life and all it throws our way. Then there were the ordinary type of days, kids, family, house, his praxis, friends, etc. It was such a precious time.
Hugs,
MarionLynn,
I too am sorry to hear this and know exactly how you feel. I lost my husband to this disease and then also watched my mom slowly decline and pass away from Parkinsons disease a few years later. None of this is easy, but know that we are all here for both you and Greg to help and support you in any way that we can. Take care and keep us updated as to how things are going.
Take care and know we are all thinking of you and hoping for the best.Hugs,
DarlaSTICKEY: Dearest Lynn, I am so very sorry to read this. All I can tell you is how I felt when Teddy and I reached this moment. Teddy was very strong of mind and did his best to make it a more soft landing for me. When Hospice started coming to the house he would say we were on our Honeymoon. We talked about everything including planning his Memorial together as it involved his Catholic Church and my Temple. I allowed visitors at no more than 2 at a time and no longer than 30 minutes at a time. I did not want him to zap his small amount of energy. I did not force feed him so to speak but made small portions of things he asked for. His biggest request was for me not to let down in front of him as he had steeled his mind for the journey. I would get in the car and put “MaMa Mia” on the CD and drive around for about 20 minutes singing at the top of my lungs, surprised I was not kicked out of our retirement community. But it worked for me. I was ready to go back home to what ever faced me. He was the one going through this, there would be time enough later for me to let loose. Of course I can’t remember everything but I found some comfort in writing a poem that says what I was feeling that I would like to share with you. I wrote it 5 days before he “relocated”. If you need to ramble or have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me. I am here and can be right with you.
PRECIOUS DAYS from Lainy to Teddy Bear
Time is growing closer I can see it in his eyes,
Time is growing closer but we’ll have no sad goodbyes.
Memories abound from our precious moments spent,
To God it is I’m sending the most precious package sent.These last few months of knowing, we’ve made a Honeymoon,
In my mind a vision of a beautiful, eternal afternoon.
He still is my charming Prince who taught me how to love,
And someday we’ll be together in Heaven up above.I will see him riding stars I will see him in the moon,
And someday you will see us dancing to our favorite tune.
He will touch my face so gently like he’s known to do,
It’s not goodbye forever with memories bad or few.All our love my sweet one is ours to hold so tight,
Until once again together on that mystical magic night,
We will be again united to celebrate our dance around the sun,
And know that our eternity together has only just begun.
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