Cliff's Battle

We encountered some new problems today that left us all, including the Hospice folks, scratching our heads. I had mentioned in past blogs that Cliff's pain management was pretty much under control with the methadone but after missing several doses, it sent him into a tail spin. During the night he had a lot of difficulty with pain and breathing and then this morning he was really suffering. After my emergency call to Hospice, we gave him more pain meds and anxiety medicine through the PEG and it seemed to do the trick for awhile. Then when our Hospice nurse came, Cliff's pain level increased and I drained his Pleurex. Right after that, he was hit with a bout of nausea which he has never experienced. I was relieved the Hospice nurse was there and he had me give Cliff some anti-nausea medicine in his PEG again. This seemed to help but Cliff was extremely groggy and slept for quite awhile. When the Methadone was due again, I woke him up and gave him all the meds he required throug...

We were pretty excited about coming home today after a full 14 days in the hospital. Cliff was stabilized and Hospice and Palliative Care folks had assured us our transition and journey ahead would go smoothly with them at our side. It is difficult to share everything that happened today because it really was just one thing after another that went wrong!!! There were problems right after we arrived home, when our Hospice nurse arrived and we found out that none of the medicines that Cliff required in order to remain stabilized were delivered. He was due for several medications and after calling several pharmacies and having roadblocks each time, she ended up sending Tyler out to two of the pharmacies. It really is a very long story but the main problem was that Cliff began experiencing a lot of pain. The doctors had worked for three days to stabilized his meds and in just half a day home, it all was coming undone. There are quite a few more things that also went haywire with his PEG ...

I am sure I have mentioned several times but I will say it again, this cancer is very, very aggressive. The doctors also remarked they are so very surprised at how aggressive it is and how quickly it is spreading. The remarkable thing is that Cliff got up for the first time since he was admitted twelve days ago and went for a walk with the physical therapist down the halls of the oncology unit. He even requested to keep going a few more doors down before he returned to his bed. Since the cancer has spread to his pelvic area and the lymph nodes have caused fluid buildup in his arms and legs, it is quite remarkable he is able to move around like he did today. He is one tough guy!!! This afternoon he has been having problems with very low blood pressure, quite a bit of coughing and comfort in his bed and dizziness. Because the methadone was just introduced yesterday in addition to his meds, we are wondering if some of the blood pressure issues may be from that. They are hoping to stab...

Yesterday there were a few issues but the most critical involved Cliff's requirement for oxygen. He has been pretty comfortable on an oxygen level of 3 for the past two and half to three weeks. This was increased a couple days ago to 4 when he was facing the PEG procedure. Yesterday, his oxygen levels drops so drastically that they increased the size of the tube where he receives his oxygen and bumped it up to 10! They are constantly monitoring this now because if his oxygen levels drop again, they will send him to ICU. They are continuing to monitor his body's response to the food going through the PEG. Since he had not really eaten anything for quite a few days, it can be very dangerous when introducing food again. He has had a lot of visitors, which he always enjoys, but we have been trying to limit the stays. We first thought we might be coming home Sunday but now it is looking more like Monday or Tuesday and we still have a lot of information we need before that takes ...

Cliff had a feeding tube that was successfully put in yesterday. They began slowly introducing food today. He's pretty happy about it but still very week and requiring quite a bit of pain meds. They are mentioning Sunday as a possible time to go home (whoop whoop). We will meet with hospice, home care folks and continue to monitor him. Two pretty good days!!!! Yay!!!! Thank you again for all the positive thoughts and prayers.

Cliff went in for the PEG placement this morning at 11:30 and all went as hoped. They were able to hook him up and will begin putting his pain meds and some nourishment through the PEG tomorrow. He was in quite a bit of pain following the procedure but he seemed to be doing much better later this afternoon. When the doctor came in to talk with him, he was pleased how it went and there was even a mention of going home in a few days, once they monitored his progress on and healing from the PEG. Thank you for your continued thoughts, prayers and support.

Once again, we have experienced many days filled with emotions and mixed information from various doctors. As soon as we are feeling comfortable with the plan, something else comes up or someone else comes in the room and delivers completely different options.  We are hoping today will not be one of those days!!! Yesterday began with us planning on going to Interstate Hospital for the radiation consult and possibly getting set up for the radiation, but after getting a call from the radiation oncologist, Cliff decided that it was not a good choice for him. With the side affects, he would most likely not be able to eat for at least three weeks and the benefits would take a long time to be of any use. The blood infection apparently is not as serious as once thought and Cliff is still able to get down his super shakes the nurses create for him along with some chicken or vegetable broth. This morning he even drank two cups of coffee! This is always good news. We were just told th...

Yesterday was full of highs and lows. The good news first is that Cliff has been removed from the NPO which means he was unable to eat or drink anything by mouth for the past three days. He had a cup of broth last night, coffee this morning and is preparing to enjoy a chocolate smoothy! Whoop! Whoop! It has made such a huge difference in his spirits. He keeps a suction tube next to him, just in case the fluids will not get down into the stomach. So far, so good! The bad news is that they have pretty much ruled out any cancer treatments other than radiation, which possibly begins tomorrow, to attack those lymph nodes surrounding his esophagus. If he can tolerate the radiation and it works as hoped for, he may be able to gain strength by eating regularly again and there may be consideration for targeted therapy. The problem we see and the doctors have agreed with is that this cancer is just so aggressive. There was a pow wow of doctors yesterday in the room and his Pulmonologist co...

I am certain I will not be able to list all the details because we consulted with several doctors today and they all had some of the same information, a bit of conflicting information and it covered Cliff's ongoing problem with eating and keeping anything down, (not nausea) and a couple new problems that showed up which include a bacterial infection in his blood and blockage of his kidney. There was an endoscopy, I believe it's called, where they went down his esophagus to find out what was going on. The doctors say the opening to his stomach is so very small because of the pressure from the lymph nodes surrounding his stomach and esophagus. There were several options presented but so far we have decided to go with radiation to try and reduce the size of the lymph nodes so that Cliff can eat again. It has been several days since he has been able to eat anything and it is REALLY frustrating because he is VERY hungry. The other problems include the bacterial infection and the k...

       For those of you just finding out about our courageous husband, father, grandfather, brother and friend . . .   About two weeks ago, Cliff went to the doctor for a check up and x-rays since he had been losing weight and had a persistent cough. After a series of tests, the diagnosis was devastating and has brought us to where we are today. Cliff has stage 4 lung cancer which has rapidly spread into his lymph nodes in his neck, chest and abdomen. He is having an extremely difficult time keeping food and fluids down and is experiencing frequent pain in his abdomen. He is able to use oxygen to help him breathe easier right now due to fluid on the lungs.        Tuesday he had a tube put in his right side to help drain fluid build up on the right side and hopefully dry up his lungs. Wednesday morning the pain was so bad that he went to the ER where they decided that it was best to admit him over night to rehydrate him, h...