Scan Update - January 15, 2013

Raising our hands, shouting it out, giving all glory and honor and praise to our mighty, merciful, healing God.   Knelling down, bowing in prayers of thanksgiving!   

 

My scan was clear....my doctor calls me stable, we call it a miracle!  Thank you so much for your prayers, there is no doubt God listens.

So now, what does this mean?  I have quite significant peripheral neuropathy, (I have no feeling in my fingers and toes), which is most likely caused by one of the two chemo drugs I was taking.  There is no way of knowing if this is permanent.  So, we will discontinue the chemo drug believed to be causing the side effect, which I have been taking for nearly twice as long as most patients, and continue indefinitely with the other drug that has fewer side effects.  We will wait 6-8 weeks to see is the neuropathy subsides, if not there are some drug and electrical stimulation therapies we could try.  One change at a time, I can be patient.  I will continue to see my oncologist monthly, and will have another scan in April. Our ongoing prayer is that there will be NO breakthrough...that the cancerous cells are indeed miraculously gone!

Please join my family and I as we praise God for His faithfulness, we have indeed been blessed, not by anything we did, but by a very gracious, loving God.  May you too be blessed!

Annie

Quick Update & Prayer Request 1.11.13

Happy New Year!

We hope that you and your families enjoyed a blessed and sweet Christmas together. Thank you for prayers and continued questions about how my mom is doing...you continue to be such an encouragement for which we are so grateful. My mom sent me the below update and prayer request this morning.  We are BOLDLY praying for God's continued hand of healing and to be honest, my heart (along with I'm sure others of ours) is praying against doubt and fear...that neither would creep in and that peace would overwhelm each of your hearts. Thank you for rallying around us, may each of your hearts be blessed!

Sara 

 

 

 

Psalm 40:10 "Be still and know that I am God" 

I apologize for the long lapse since my last update.  I continue to praise God for the miraculous healing and the clear CT scan.  The last round of chemo has been very difficult.  On Christmas Eve I was diagnosed with Influenza and had to postpone my chemo a week.  In an effort to stay on schedule, I had round 12 the next week.  Clearly it was a lot for this tired, battered body to handle, and I spent the better part of the next six days sleeping/dozing on the couch.  Which as God would have it, gave me ample time to pray for the miraculous healing  of a very dear friend's husband.  The neuropathy in my hands and feet continues to worse to the point that I have no feeling in my fingertips, toes, or balls of my feet.  I am thankful that this will go away when I am no longer taking on all of the chemo drugs.

 

We are praising God....as the flu epidemic continues to develop, currently there have been 27 deaths in my home state of Minnesota, We thank God for His protection.  I should have ended up in the hospital, I should have been battling for my life, but God laid His hand upon me.  I was able to be at home, I never had a raging fever, chills, aches, or any of the awful things that go with the flu.  I just had a miserable cough that turned into bronchitis, but not pneumonia.  I was able to take Tamiflu, which I believe helped immensely.  So, as you can see, God provided, protected, healed.

 

I do have one prayer request....I am scheduled for a CT scan on Monday.  The waiting is so hard, hence the verse, "Be still".....trust, have faith, believe.  Our prayer is that the scan will show no signs of cancer.  Please join me in asking our powerful, healing God for that.  My hope is that if the scan is clear, the chemo will be stopped, and I will begin to regain feeling in my hands and feet, gain strength, and resume some of the things I love to do.  This has not stopped me from loving on my grands, but I so would like to have more energy to really play with them, take them skiing, sledding, snow angel making, snow fort building, moonlight walking......God is teaching me to have patience, to rely on Him, and wait on His timing.

 

Thank you so much for your continued prayer support, when I can feel my fingers, I have many things I want to share with you.  God is at work....in my life and in yours.

 

Be blessed,

Annie   

HUMBLED!!!!

Just visited the Minneapolis Purple Ride Website and learned that our PRAYING FOR ANNIE M TEAM raised $9,669.00!!!!!!!!!!!

That is incredible, such a tangible reminder of the grace and support that continues to carry our family (and others like us) along on this journey!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

To God be the GLORY!!!!!

My mom's words below depict our hearts best...we are dancing and totally humbled and in awe of the great God we serve. Thank you for all of your prayers...for your continued encouragement and support...truly to God be the Glory!

 

This hymn is ringing through my ears...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymrZO1PZbU4&noredirect=1 !!!!!!!!!!!!

 

All praise, honor, and glory to God!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We worship an awesome God, who hears our prayers and answers.  Yesterday I got the results from my CT scan on Monday.  In May, we found out that my cancer had metastasized into several retro-peritenial lymph nodes.  Radiation was not an option, so we changed the chemo to one that is more aggressive, and yes , more toxic and has more challenging  side effects.  The lymph nodes began shrinking, or were stable in the next two scans.  Monday's scan showed, and I quote from the radiologist's report, "NO EVIDENCE OF METE STATIC DISEASE IN THE CHEST, ABDOMINAL, OR PELVIC AREAS" (those are the three regions they scan.  So that's right, NO CANCER EVIDENT!!!!!!!  Our God is an awesome God!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Where did the lymph nodes go????  I don't know, I was too busy taking it all in and praising God.  What have I learned....oh so very much....but perhaps most important, PRAY BOLDLY and BELIEVE.  To be perfectly honest, my prayers have been for God to allow the lymph nodes to continue to shrink, and that there would be no further spread of the cancer.  Then at the very end, I would pray for God to completely remove the cancer from my body and work a mighty miracle.  Why were my prayers lacking in the boldness, the honesty, the lay your heart out at His feet?  I don't know, I think I was afraid to ask for too much (crazy I know in my mind, but something I felt in my heart), maybe it was my doctor telling me that pancreatic cancer is incurable, and the best we could hope for would be to get it stable.  There is certainly room for my faith to grow, to learn to trust God to do the mighty things I know He can do.  What I do know is that from now on, I will pray BOLDLY, that God would continue to keep my body free of cancer, that I would grow stronger each day, that the side effects of my continuing chemo would be lessened as we begin to cut back the dose, and that I would look expectantly toward the future, free of fear, would you join me in praying and thanking God for this miracle, and boldly pray, that I will remain cancer-free?

Where do we go from here?  I have been on a chemo regimen of two different drugs.  One is an oral form of a chemo drug that I was on before my surgery.  I will stay on that drug for the near future.  It's most troubling side effect is peripheral neuropathy, a constant tingling and numbness in my fingers and feet.  This keeps me from doing the sewing and hand work that I love, and is made worse by the cold, so walking is difficult because I can't feel my feet strike the ground.  (Hence I now have a handicap parking permit so as to spend as little time in the cold, and avoid a fall....makes me feel old, and yet I am grateful for the chance to be able to get out independently!), The other drug causes my vision problems.  We began cutting that drug back yesterday.  Most patients begin having much more severe side effects with that drug after six months or so of treatment.  I am now in my seventh month, and so thankful to God that I will be able to continue for another month or two.  My next scan will be in three months.

 

Thanksgiving is coming, how appropriate, we will be praising, thanking and GIVING ALL GLORY to God.  Our married kiddos alternate Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, and this year they will be in Minnesota for Thanksgiving so we will all be together.  I am so blessed.  We hope to make it to the lake for a "day away".  Christmas will be more low key with two of the three families away, but we are so thankful they get to share Christmas traditions with the "other side of their family".  Letting just the "nose of the cat" out of the bag, we are looking forward to welcoming a new grand baby late this spring; my niece is expecting her first around New Year's Day, and our son's brother and sister in law are expecting their first in May, and cousin, who lives here in Minnesota is expecting her third sweet bundle of boy in late April/early May.  If you know me, you know I treasure the promise of new life, even more so, after the past 14 months.  I look forward to praying over their pregnancies, the transitions to parenthood, welcoming these sweet "gifts from God", and holding, and loving on them.

We got the best news yesterday, better than we expected.  I wasn't fully trusting God, believing "big enough".  He answered my weak prayers, He knew what was one my heart without my even asking.  He heard each of your prayers too.  We are so blessed to be upheld by all of you, praying, believing.  We have, all of us experienced a miracle, yes a miracle, and only God, only God could perform that miracle.  He used His people to be His hands and feet, the doctors, the researchers, the medicines all worked together orchestrated by God, the Healer. 

Please, take a moment to thank God today, and if you would continue to pray BOLDLY that the cancer will not return.  And we would be honored if you would share our story with those who might be blessed by hearing it.

We have been blessed, may God also bless each of you.  May your Thanksgiving celebrations be special times, for those of you traveling, may God keep you safe.

With joy and thanksgiving,

Annie

Quick Update

I just received this quick update from my mom. Thank you for your continued prayers...the days before and after a scan are always a challenge. May each of your hearts be blessed.

 

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  Phil. 4:6

That is our prayer for this week.  I have another scan on Monday, November 12th.  Mostly I an overwhelmed with the peace of God that I am experiencing, but I have to be honest, there are times when anxiety and fear creep in.  My chemo cycle this past two weeks has been much better.  I think we are finally beginning to figure out how to medicate to give me the best "quality of life" and I have had more energy to participate in what is going on around me. 

Thank you foryour prayers over the past few weeks, God hears, and thank you for praying over the scan next Monday.  I am so grateful for each and every one of you.  A more detailed update will follow next week after we get the scan results.

Be blessed,

Annie

Purple Ride!!!!

 

 

 

 

Thank you to EVERYONE who supported our Praying for Annie M Purple Ride Team!!!!!!

 

God provided a BEAUTFUL backdrop of sunny, bright blue sky along with beautiful fall leaves for the bike ride.  

 

Your gracious generosity raised $8,244.00 for Pancreatic Cancer reasearch!!!!

 

We are humbled to have been surrounded by this small army of purple...and everyone else riding 'virtually'...such a tangible example of your love, support and prayers.

May your hearts be blessed!

 

 

 

 



Purple Ride Info. & Update from Annie

Happy September!!!

Oh, how short and sweet every summer proves to be. Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement...as seasons transition we continue to thank you all for your prayers and support...you all truly are our cheer leaders!

We are so excited about the Purple Ride THIS SATURDAY!!! It promises to be a fun-filled purple day as we enjoy the leaves changing, the autumn breeze and the beautiful-ness of fall in Minnesota.

 

As of today, we are thrilled and humbled to share that the Praying for Annie M Team has raised over $5,900.00 for Pancreatic Cancer Research and has 42 riders and 22 generous supporters/virtual riders!!!! To God be the glory!!

We have received our team shirts and have sent shirts out to virtual riders who are 'riding in spirit' on Saturday, be watching your mail boxes (we'd love to see photos of you riding, gardening, walking...doing life in your shirts, please share them with us). Those of you in the area, we will be delivering your shirts to your doorstep sometime Thursday...be looking for a little purple package!

A couple things about the ride:

-The ride is SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15th at Elm Creek Regional Park (12400 James Deane Parkway, Maple Grove 55369)

-If signing up has slipped your mind, it's not too late. The website is open through the week and there is ride day registration at 8:00am on Saturday morning. Check the website (www.purpleride.org or email us prayingforanniem@gmail.com for details).

-Please wear your purple shirts!!! And any other purple attire you so desire:) Please invite family and friends to come cheer you on...the more the merrier!!!

-The 25 mile ride is from 8:30-10:00am

-The 8 mile ride is from 10:00am-12:00pm

(note: route support closes at 1:30pm)

-Our Praying for Annie M Team photo will be at 12:00pm. If it works in your schedule that morning, after the bike ride, please meet at the registration table area at noon. We hope to share the team photo with our 'virtual riders' who are supporting our team and the cause from all over the country!

-Closing Celebration for the entire event is at 1:30pm (for those of you who can and choose to stay)

Most importantly, Below is an update I received from my mom earlier this afternoon. Thank you for continuing to rally as days often feel long and wearing. May your hearts be blessed.

Hebrews 11:1 “Faith means being sure of the things we hope for. And faith means knowing that something is real even if we do not see it.”

Faith is built upon trust. God wants us to trust Him - even when we do not understand what is happening or can explain the circumstances. Even when nothing makes sense and everything seems wrong. It is easy to trust Him when the seas are calm and the skies are clear, but the strength of our faith is measured in the midst of a raging storm. Faith is a deliberate choice to believe God, to walk through our fear, knowing we can trust Him every step of the way.

This was part of my quiet time this afternoon and I found it so meaningful.....faith....clinging to God when you don't know where He is leading, when strong winds are beating at my boat and threatening to overturn it, when the sky is gray and dismal, when hope is absent, when God feels far away. This journey I am on is requiring me to relinquish my need to control the direction on my journey and trust God's leading. This past cycle was really difficult. I struggled with feeling tired all the time, sleeping 10-12 hours each night and spending the majority of the day on the couch. It was discouraging....my mind wandering to things best left alone, Satan played with my emotions, whispered lies. I was in near constant prayer that God would drive him away....Of course He did and I was able to once again place my trust in my Savior. What a sense of peace. God is here, God is in control, God desires the very best for me, God loves me....though my circumstances may change, God loves me, He saved me, He is always with me and that will never change.

This morning I had another infusion of chemo. This will be the plan for the foreseeable future, chemo every three weeks, with oral chemo weeks one and two giving me one week off to allow my body to rebound. Thank you so much for continuing to pray. Here is how we can pray together:
thanksgiving:
-that God would first and foremost be glorified by the journey that my family and I am on
-that the chemo appears to be "holding my cancer at a stationary place, and slowly decreasing the size of some of the affected lymph nodes
-for the many people involved in my care who are so patient, understanding, and encouraging
-for beautiful weekends to celebrate the end of summer and the beginning of fall, warm afternoons and cool, crisp evenings
-for my family who have made such deliberate efforts to get me out of our house and thinking about something other than cancer; for making me smile and laugh, for letting me cry, for giving me strength and encouragement
-for B, who loves me and cares for me even when I am pretty unlovable
-for each and every prayer warrior that has been so faithful to continue praying and walking with us

petition:
-that God would continue to receive all the glory and honor
-that this cycle would be better than the last
-that I could continue to eat and gain weight (I gained 3+pounds this last cycle....thank you God!)
-that the side effects of the chemo would not increase and cause a reduction in dosage, or discontinuation of therapy (they are not suggesting this, but I am aware that it is a possibility, so I am asking you to pray against the side effects and pray for my body's ability to withstand the drugs)
-that new medication will help lift the cloud of depression I am under (this is where Satan is really attacking me)
-for a beautiful Saturday for the Purple Ride, for safety for those riding, that I would feel well enough to attend (I will be there in spirit if the chemo has me down!), that the donations will bring funding to those doctors and researchers who have dedicated themselves to finding a cure. And a very big, heartfelt THANK YOU to those of you riding, both in person and virtually. Your willingness to support research for pancreatic cancer treatments means so much to us, your generosity is unbelievable, and we feel so grateful and blessed.
-THAT A CURE WOULD BE FOUND!
-that God would bless each of you, and that your faith would continue to grow as we learn, together, to place our trust in the one who created us
-that God would be glorified!

I am so humbled, and so very grateful for your prayers.  It is such an honor to be surrounded by "such a great cloud of witnesses" as we walk this journey together.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

With love,
Annie