Tuesday, January 31, 2012

#sweet

Being the social network addict that I am, I figured I would share this tweet below. Mark Herzlich is a former Boston College football player and now a New York Giant. In 2009 he was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, bone cancer, his tumor was in his left leg and his surgeon was Dr. Lackman. Dr. Lackman will be performing Brandon's surgery in March.

A Mark Herzlich tweet from earlier this week....

"2 yrs ago I was told I might never walk again. Just WALKED off plane in Indy to play in The #SuperBowl. #TakeThatSh*tCancer"

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Monday, January 23, 2012

Happy Birthday Brandon

Happy 28th Birthday to the best son, brother, uncle and husband. Here's to a great year ahead!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Jolly Ranchers? Really Brandon?

Brandon had some trouble sleeping last night, I woke up to him not once but twice chomping on Jolly Ranchers (in my ear) & watching the replay of the Penn State vs. Illinois basketball game. Bright spots of him not sleeping; he was hungry therefore has somewhat of an appetite and PSU beat the Illini.

Brandon also received a phone call today from the new Penn State basketball coach, Pat Chambers. We do not know Coach but he wanted Brandon to know he was thinking of him, keep his spirits up and thank him for the Ream's support of PSU basketball. Pretty cool, thank you Coach Chambers. So many good people involved in Penn State athletics, reasons why we will forever be Penn State proud.

Stay warm State College,
B&S

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

City of Brotherly Love

Philly is starting to feel like a second home to us. We have our favorite eating spots, stores we like to explore, and we even get the same hotel suites every time. I can't reiterate the fact how great everyone here has been, the whole Penn Medicine Oncology Staff, the Homecare staff, and hotel staff. This city has stayed true to it's name.

Cycle 2a is complete. Like I previously stated Brandon and I weren't looking forward to this treatment. The two chemotherapy drugs he knew he'd be receiving weren't very welcoming the previous time. We had a great appointment with Dr. Staddon and our nurse practitioner, Laetitia. They informed us all Brandon's levels have been... In their words "perfect" trust me Brandon keeps reminding me of that fact. They also told us that the drug Brandon receives in the B and C parts, Methotrexate, is on shortage. Please tell me how a drug that so many people need is not made in appropriate amounts and the companies who do supply this drug are only releasing 1gram a day to Penn? Healthcare issues? I see a letter to the White House in my near future (put that one on my list) Anyways, if it is not available when Brandon needs it they will proceed with treatments but tack on all Brandon's Methotrexate portions on the end. A little confusing, but they assured us this has been a common practice because of various drug shortages in recent years. Again, we put all our trust in these amazing doctors and nurses and have full faith in their expertise. Brandon's time in the chair this week was only 5 hours compared to 7, so that was a plus, we enjoyed a day of our apple products and chatting up our neighbors. Dr. Staddon and Laetitia suggested that Brandon receive a shot of the strong anti-nausea medication directly into his port before he left the oncology unit. They seemed to think this would help fight any sickness caused by the meds. It definitely made a difference. He of course did not feel great but felt and looked much better in comparison to that first treatment. He was able to drink and eat a whole bowl of chicken noodle soup. Brandon is continuing to to eat a little and drink today, he is hooked up to fluids, and is in high spirits.

We are looking forward to each day improving and hoping he gets more strength and energy as the week continues.

Much Love from the City of Brotherly Love,
B&S

Home Sweet Home

Monday, January 16, 2012

Chinese food anyone?

Just Breathe

Quick recap of last week, Brandon's last treatment of Cycle 1 went really well. Sam's parents came to Philly for that treatment. Thanks Mom & Dad. We got to enjoy some time with family and a few friends and here we are again.

Well.....

Ever feel like you can't catch your breath? Yep, that is pretty much how I have felt since November 22nd. A little reminiscent of the 4 court suicides and 6am lifts Brandon and I use to endure back in the day. Not fun, but I will say Brandon is worth every breath I feel have missed the past 2 months.

Brandon begins Cycle 2 tomorrow at Penn. I'd be lying if I said we both weren't experiencing a little anxiety about this treatment. Although it wasn't terrible it wasn't easy either. Is chemotherapy ever considered easy? Probably not, so I guess we have been pretty lucky. Lucky as in we have been blessed that Brandon went through Cycle 1 pretty smoothly, a few bumps along the way but nothing he can't handle. So all we can do is pray Cycle 2 follows suit.

I'll say goodnight on this note, My husband is AWESOME.

With Love,
B&S

Saturday, January 7, 2012

You got that right ...

Really hanging on tight to this one lately.

"I know God wouldn't give me anything I can't handle, I just wish He didn't trust me so much." -Mother Teresa

Thursday, January 5, 2012

They Call Me Mellow Yellow

Hello 25 degree weather! Back in Philly after a wonderful 2 weeks in sunny Florida. Seems we left Florida just in time, temperature dropped to 40 degrees down South the day we left.

We are settled back into our routine in Philadelphia. Brandon finished Cycle 1B yesterday at Penn. It was a long day, we were there 8am -4:30pm. Brandon did great, he basically read, slept, and was on his iPad. The medicine Brandon received this round is meant to destroy all the cells dividing in his body, unfortunately it also kills the good cells. Did I mention the meds Brandon received in chemo were bright yellow, causing his skin and his bodily fluids to turn neon yellow, hence the title. The homecare nurse came last night and taught me how to administer the rescue drug through Brandon's port every 6 hours. This will restore his good cells. He is also having blood draws every 24 hours until Saturday so our oncologist can track his counts. FYI if anyone needs any medical assistance I am your girl, I'm practically a pro. (Again, Brandon begs to differ) Enough of the procedural talk, Brandon is doing well! No nausea after this round and he has a full appetite. Potbelly has been our food of choice.(right down the street from our hotel, yes!) I am so proud of him, his resilience and strength through this process is a constant reminder of why I married Brandon.

We are so thankful for all the love and support we have received. Most of you have seen our video of Brandon's haircut. He has since received at least a dozen pictures of friends and family who are now rocking a Mohawk in his honor. Thank you, every message, picture, action has truly touched our hearts. We have a couple days off to regroup and spend some time with family and then we will repeat this week again next Wednesday. Stay tuned.

With Love,
B&S