Update from Annie- May 24

Good morning. I received this update from my mom and her words are far better than mine would be, her heart continues to humble us all. From now on, we'll send prayer requests/updates from this email account (prayingforanniem@gmail.com), we'll also continue to update the blog (www.prayingforanniem.blogspot.com). Using this email address will help keep each of your responses organized to make sure my mom and dad are able to read each of them as they provide such encouragement and salve for our hearts. We will try our hardest to respond to your reply emails...if you don't hear from us, please keep sending them and know that we are grateful for your support, encouragement and prayers...we will respond when we are able. We continue to be so grateful for all of you, thank you for your prayers as this mountainous journey continues and we keep climbing and pray that God receives all the glory. Be blessed.

This morning I am praising God because He loves me, praising God that I am home, praising God for rest in my own bed, praising God for family and friends that love me.

I spent the last four days in the hospital at the University of Minnesota. I was admitted with severe stomach pain that could not be helped with some pretty powerful pain medications. In trying to find the cause of my pain another pancreatic CT scan was ordered. It showed some lymph nodes around my pancreas. A needle biopsy was performed on Tuesday and the biopsy indicated the presence of cancer. Certainly not the news we were hoping for. Once again, we find ourselves on our knees pleading with God for a MIRACULOUS CURE! On Tuesday I will begin a new cheomo regime of 5FU and Oxaliplatin. These drugs were part of my original chemo regimen and my tumor showed a good response then. We are praying that it will again.
Specifically we are praying for:
-a relief from the pain which ironically was not caused by the cancer
-an overwhelmingly positive response to the new chemo, that it would kill every cancer cell floating around my body
-that my body will tolerate the new chemo well
-strength for the journey
-that I can be enrolled in a clinical trial of oral 5FU and Ruxolinitirib (who names these drugs!!!) as soon as possible
-that a new drug, Minnelide, will be approved by the FDA for clinical trials, (sometime this fall), and I could be enrolled in that study
-for my family....this is an unexpected turn of events and we are all trying to wrap our minds around it
-that our faith would not waiver, that we would keep our eyes steadfastly on our Savior
-that we might not be consumed by fear, but instead be filled with a sense of God's perfect peace as we trust Him
-that we can walk this new journey with grace, and that God will be glorified.
-thanksgiving that pain took me to the ER and we found out about the reoccurrence now, instead of in July when my next scan was scheduled, buying precious time for treatment
-thanksgiving for the peace I do feel
-thanksgiving for my family who is rallying around me, supporting me and each other
-thanksgiving for each of you, precious prayer warriors who pray without ceasing on our behalf

We are heading to the lake this weekend, praying we come home filled with joy, happy memories, rested and ready to take the next steps. May your holiday weekend be filled with the same. Daily we are reminded how precious life is....and not to take even one moment for granted.

May each of you be blessed,
Ann

2 Corinthians 12:9 - "My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness."

Thanks for your love and support during this long climb!

Answered Prayers!

I just received a call from my dad that my mom's biopsy was just completed! Yes, COMPLETED...today...not later this week. The interventional (not international...thanks to auto-spell correct) radiologist reported that the procedure went well. They went through her back with NO complications. The procedure could have been precarious in that they had to 'navigate' around several things to get into the area where the swollen nodes are located. They were able to get the tissue sample that they needed and have sent it off to pathology and we now wait, again, for the report. The radiologist said it could be 2-3 days before we hear anything even preliminary. As of now, my mom is resting. She will most likely be discharged in the morning, assuming everything goes to plan. My mom's chemo (which was supposed to take place today) has been rescheduled for Friday of this week. We are praying that she would be able to get her chemo as scheduled on Friday and that we would be able to celebrate GOOD & CLEAR news going into this holiday weekend.

Would you please join us in praising God..

-That the radiologist was available TODAY and had clear discernment as to how to proceed with the biopsy

-That the procedure went well

-That even the valet worker at the hospital noticed the praise music being played in the car when bringing it back from the parking lot and commented on how much he enjoyed hearing it (seriously...even in the smallest of ways, God's hand is in this situation)

Would you please join us in continuing to pray...

-That the nodes would miraculously be JUST swollen as a result of the narrowing of the pancreatic duct

-That the cancer would remain GONE

-That peace would transcend each of our understandings as this time of uncertainty and waiting is hard and wearing

-That as my parents wait that they may have sweet PEACE-FILLED time together

-That chemo would be able to continue on Friday

-That we may be able to celebrate a CLEAR report this weekend as we are planning to head up to the cabin for Memorial Weekend

-That God would continue to receive all the Glory

Several of you continue to share words that spur our hearts on, thank you thank you thank you, your prayers and encouragement are such a gift. May each of your hearts be blessed.

"You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods with singing lips my mouth will praise you. On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night. Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings. I cling to you, your right hand upholds me." Psalm 63: 1-8

Every one of us...from the oldest to the youngest continues to be so grateful for all of your prayers...thank you for walking...rallying and cheering Annie on.

May you be blessed.

Tuesday Morning Request- May 22

I just spoke with my Dad and he asked me to ask each of you to pray specifically for my mom's upcoming biopsy.  The biopsy was thought to be scheduled this morning at 9am...which was about an hour ago. The nurse came in to my mom's room to relay the message that the are working with the international radiologist's schedule to fit my mom's biopsy in...with that said, it could be today sometime or later this week...we just don't know which is hard because it means more waiting. They are still uncertain as to how the biopsy will take place and hoping to gain more clarity as the day progresses.

Would you please join us in praying...
-That the international radiologist would be available TODAY and have clear discernment as to how to proceed with the biopsy
-That the nodes would miraculously be JUST swollen as a result of the narrowing of the pancreatic duct
-That the cancer would remain GONE
-That peace would transcend each of our understandings as this time of uncertainty and waiting is hard and wearing
-That as my parents wait that they may have sweet PEACE-FILLED time together
-That God would continue to receive all the Glory

One of your gracious hearts shared this truth that I thought I might include as a praise for all of your encouragement and support.  In response to my desire to pound on God's chest a friend wrote...

"Pound away. That chest is infinitely big. 

Be still, and know that I am God- Psalm 46:10

And as you settle into that thought it becomes more refined:

Be still, and know that I am God
Be still and know that I am
Be still and know
Be still
Be"

It is easy for the stillness of this time of waiting to be deafening...but we must remember that we are called to simply be still in trust & hope, no part of God's character has changed in the past 48 hours and nothing will cause it to change in the next...none of this is coming as a surprise to our Heavenly Father.

Until the next update...be blessed & thank you for praying!

Monday Night - May 21st

Today has been a long day. A long day of waiting. 

Tonight, my mom and dad learned some about the results of the CT scan preformed late last night. The scan revealed three lymph nodes that are swollen around her pancreas.  The swelling of the nodes leaves many questions, not many answers.  The doctor has determined that they will need to biopsy the nodes to discern what might be causing the swelling. A typical biopsy would be down the throat, for my mom, this isn't an option as a result of her surgery. The doctors are consulting with a gastrointestinal specialist to decipher what the next best avenue might be, most likely alaparoscopic procedure which we will probably learn about tomorrow. The doctor mentioned that the nodes could be swollen as a result of the narrowed pancreatic duct (which is our MAJOR PRAYER and hope) but wants to make sure every base is covered.

With all this said, we want to come to each of you again and humbly ask you to come before our Heavenly Father and pray...

-That the nodes would miraculously be JUST swollen as a result of the narrowing of the pancreatic duct
-That the cancer would remain GONE
-That my mom's doctor's would have discernment in choosing the best biopsy method(s)
-That peace would transcend each of our understandings as this time of uncertainty and waiting is hard and wearing
-That God would continue to receive all the Glory

I will be honest, as I am simply speaking for myself here... tonight I simply want to pound my hands against God's chest and yell "Why? Why? Why?" as this time of waiting feels rather reminiscent of last September when her initial diagnosis took place.  In feeling this way, and pleading the question "Why?" I am reminded of God's hand throughout this journey...

-How He made us aware of her need to initially go to the doctor with what seemed like a pesky stomach ache
-How He led her to the doctors and facilities that He did
-How the initial chemo provided an avenue to even get to surgery and shrunk the awful Goliath-like tumor
-How her surgeon got negative margins when removing the tumor
-How 30 of the 30 lymph nodes removed were clear!
-How He provided (and continues) to provide her with compassionate caregivers
-How He provided both familiar and new community who have rallied around her (and our entire family)...and who continue to do so
-How He allowed (and continues) you all to provide encouragement as you have shared your stories and been her/our cheerleaders
-How He is using this continually evolving journey to empathize with others walking through similar uncertainty
-How this journey is reminding our hearts of our ultimate yearning for Heaven where cancer (and no other fear or sickness) has any place!

Staying focused on such sweet glimpses of His goodness help drive the fear of uncertainty away and provide reminders of how precious each day really is.

Thank you for continuing to rally around my mom...we are so sorry for the lack of communication/updates... we were all basking in the joy of not having much to update.

Be blessed.

"They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord. Their hearts are secure, they will have no fear ;in the end they will look in triumph on their foes." Psalm 112:7-8

Prayer Request & Update

Good morning and happy start to this new week.

I apologize for the delay in sending updates...as there hasn't been too too much to update on since the last email my mom sent.

This morning, we would like to solicit prayer...as we're in the realm of waiting for answers again which can be so tedious and I will admit...disheartening.

In April, my mom went through her first round of scans post-surgery to determine what might be causing some serious pain in her upper abdominal area. To our relief and joy, the scan came back clear (in regard to any cancer) but did show that her Pancreatic Duct has narrowed as a result of some scar tissue leaving her doctors with the impression that that was the culprit for the pain. The solution to this 'problem' is surgery to place a stint to keep the duct open but not an option until late summer/early fall because of the infection risk that surgery would bring as she is still working through her preventative chemo regimen.  The oncologist did prescribe some enzymes to help with the pain hoping that they might help to ease her Pancreases job.  The enzymes along with strong pain medication have seemed to keep everything pretty manageable...that is until this weekend.

Unfortunately, this weekend, the pain got so uncontrollable that she was admitted (last night) to the hospital to have some more tests run to determine if there might be any other source for this pain. As of this morning, we don't have any answers and are simply waiting for tests to be run and results to come back. I think I can speak for everyone in our family by saying the waiting is hard as your mind/heart can and do go to places they shouldn't go.

Would you please join us in praying...
-For my mom's doctors as they work to detect what is causing her pain, that they may have the discernment to know what tests to run and cover every base possible
-For each of our hearts as we wait for results, for peace that transcends understanding
-For relief from the pain
-For the cancer to remain GONE!
-For God's continued glory as the journey continues

I just read this in Jesus Calling by, Sarah Young and thought I'd share as it provided such a tangible reminder to trust in God, our Provider, and not become overwhelmed and terrified by our problems...

"I, the Creator of the Universe, am with you and for you. What more could you need? When you feel some lack, it is because you are not connecting with Me at a deep level. I offer abundant Life.; your part is to trust Me, refusing to worry about anything.
It is not so much adverse events that make you anxious as it is your thoughts about those events. Your mind engages in efforts to take control of a situation, to bring about the result you desire. Your thoughts close in on the problem like ravenous wolves. Determined to make things go your way, you forget that I am in charge of your life. The only remedy is to switch your focus from the problem to My Presence. Stop all your striving, and watch to see what I will do. I am the Lord!"

"What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all-how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?" Romans 8:31-32

"But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me." Micah 7:7

I promise to be in touch, thank you for continuing to join our family on this journey. May your day be blessed.