Surgery postponed again

Dad's surgical procedure to have a permanent access portal has been postponed AGAIN due to a low blood platelet count. Since our trip to the Dominican Republic, Dad has been experiencing more severe pain and has been eating less.  Dad says he cannot hear at all in his left ear, so his internist has referred him to an ear specialist (might be nerve damage) -- one more doctor to add to Dad's star list.

Recently my mom asked me to talk to Dad's oncologist about new clinical trials on ABIRATERONE for patients living with advanced prostate cancer and which had been highlighted on ABC News.  At first, I was hesitant to ask the doctor about these trials because ever since the doctor has provided us with a prognosis, I have had to resolve within myself to accept the inevitable.  But my mom made the request.  When the doctor responded to my question, I felt that she didn't want to completely shoot my mom down and so she provided a soft answer -- "These medications haven't been approved."  

Since the day I spoke directly to Dad's oncologist about Dad's prognosis (a summer afternoon, & I was on my cell phone outside Bayonne Hospital during Dad's hospitalization in mid-June), his doctor shared with me that she had already explored a number of clinical trials which my dad was not eligible for due to the aggression of his cancer and co-morbidities (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, kidney failure).  But she doesn't have the heart to keep telling my mom that . . . my mom who grasps at any hopeful treatment.

Any chance I can make a request to postpone death for a while?

Author of "Last Lecture" has died

Did I mention that Randy Pausch died (of pancreatic cancer) on July 25? I've been heartened by his cancer journey and recently viewed his graduation address to Carnegie Mellon University alum. Check out his life at: http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/beyond/2008/summer/an-enduring-legacy.shtml. As you can imagine, I am quite saddened by his death leaving me quite reflective of our own family's experience.

Back from Santo Domingo, DR

Al & I are back from the DR.  And what a trip it was!  We flew into a major thunderstorm, and our flight was diverted to Puerto Plata where the plane refueled and hung out until the storm passed and we were given the ok to fly to Santo Domingo.  So our trip took a little longer than we would have liked. Our five-star hotel was lovely, and I had my share of pina colodas by the pool.  

Patrick & Joanna's wedding was a true taste of Catholic charismatic culture. The ceremony, scheduled to start at 7pm, began a little late and ended by 10pm.  We then drove to the reception

which was 45 minutes away on a military base. During the ride, Al & I were reminded of Manila's streets, poverty and raw humanity.  The reception venue was most elegant with its aquamarine theme, open air space and vaulted ceilings. While dinner wasn't served until midnight, we were pleasantly entertained by the extensive wedding photography, including the various poses that the bride & groom were directed to do through the entire evening. Felicidades, Patrick y Joanna! 

The kicker was the flight back home.  I must've eaten rotten plane food or maybe it was all of the ice that I requested for my coffee during our stay. During the last 45 minutes of our return flight, I vomited three times into a bag -- the one that the plane provides -- which I planned to hold onto until I could dump it when we got off the plane.  The bag broke, and my own vomit spread all over my shorts and backpack, and some dripped onto my flip flops and the floor. 

Poor Al who sat on my left and the woman who sat on my right.  I tried going to the bathroom, but it was the last 45 minutes of the flight, the plane was landing, and the bathroom doors were closed. Since the bag broke, I had to just leave it in the magazine holder in front of me. Nasty. My stomach cramping, I smelled horrible as we walked through customs.

Dad had his check-in with the oncologist today. He seems to be getting weaker, in worse pain and eating much less.  Mom has been giving him Glucerma as a nutrition supplement.  He's also napping more what with being on FENTANYL patches and PERCOCET to manage his pain.

Fentanyl is a powerful opioid analgesic with a potency 81x greater than morphine.

Percocet is a combination of oxycodone and acetaminophen used to relieve moderate to severe pain.

No doubt Dad is dreaming more too.  Dad shared this dream with Mom today -- that he died, and the doctors cut his ear off.  (Dad's actually been having trouble hearing in his left ear.  Doctors recently removed a big piece of wax, & he constantly requests his ear drops.) Dad must've been a tortured artist in a previous life . . . or will be one in the next life.