tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post632500242417138586..comments2024-03-10T10:40:32.319-07:00Comments on Pyromaniacs: Valerie: the part I didn't tellPhil Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00649092052031518426noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-90654266240010336062011-06-24T18:35:38.221-07:002011-06-24T18:35:38.221-07:00Hey Dan!
I will definitely be praying for Valerie...Hey Dan!<br /><br />I will definitely be praying for Valerie, you, and your family Dan.<br /><br />Philippians 4:6-7 "do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.The peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."Michael Lawmasterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03919034430085510082noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-15098163613238681952011-06-23T11:06:02.180-07:002011-06-23T11:06:02.180-07:00Dan: Not to toot the horn of my own profession, bu...Dan: Not to toot the horn of my own profession, but will Valerie consult with a medical oncologist? There are some subtleties about cancers (and some lesions that resemble cancers but are not actually malignant) involving the appendix that should be sorted out by a specialist.Ken Abbotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01398980914190503708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-55425599741287251872011-06-23T10:37:08.736-07:002011-06-23T10:37:08.736-07:00Dan thank you so much for sharing this with us! an...Dan thank you so much for sharing this with us! and while such news can be a terrible thing to anyone we are so blessed to have the knowledge that our Lord is in control of everything at all times and his will perfect and good always! <br />And Valerie is so right! I would actually tell everyone get checked whatever it is! doesn't matter if your 50 or 30 or 20 or even in your teens(i have a 15 y/o cousin with cancer who did not get checked in time :( but by God's grace has been receiving treatment all paid for).<br />God bless you Dan and Valerie!<br />Penn and I will keep you in prayeMoonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01385067178930906667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-26027618824297948452011-06-22T23:42:02.878-07:002011-06-22T23:42:02.878-07:00This is too much like the saga we began just over ...This is too much like the saga we began just over two years ago. And you and your family were so gracious to pray for us on many occasions. Now it's our opportunity to do the same for you.<br /><br />Praying fervently for your wife, all the doctors involved, for your and your family...threegirldadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10514416693800430357noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-61112122323122351582011-06-22T18:51:02.190-07:002011-06-22T18:51:02.190-07:00I suspected you'd left something out. I'm...I suspected you'd left something out. I'm glad you and your wife decided to share with us so that we could pray for you.<br /><br />If she needs further treatment, you might want to consider going to a cancer specialty hospital. I live near one (so I hear a lot about cancer) and there is a massive difference between even a good hospital and the very best. Just some of the procedures that the best hospitals can perform is pretty amazing. MD Anderson is one such hospital you might keep in the back of your mind. I'll pray that it doesn't come to that though.Aaronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15285043747501470199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-55027604254799943002011-06-22T14:16:03.027-07:002011-06-22T14:16:03.027-07:00Dan,
Be assured of our prayers for your wife and ...Dan,<br /><br />Be assured of our prayers for your wife and the family as they stand by, and wait upon the Lord.<br /><br />Jim KirbyJim Kirbyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05044327958041356844noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-14876154722170763202011-06-22T12:21:00.751-07:002011-06-22T12:21:00.751-07:00Heavens above dude. I'm so sorry for the canc...Heavens above dude. I'm so sorry for the cancer and so glad for the way God is sustaining and delivering you. God bless!Rob Steelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09232124026732892112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-20007093108003481082011-06-22T12:09:45.222-07:002011-06-22T12:09:45.222-07:00Yes, Dan, you would think so (about the Dr. knowi...Yes, Dan, you would think so (about the Dr. knowing my smoking history)and I guess that was the thing that was so bewildering to me at the time.<br /><br />Thank you for asking...I guess I didn't say but I have been cancer-free since then, although the Chemo and Radiation have produced some side-effects that I still deal with. I did quit smoking, as did my wife, but we both suffer from severe COPD-hers to the point of needing Oxygen 24 hrs. a day and having been placed on the donor's list for a double-lung transplant. <br /><br />The upshot of all of this is that it has made our relationship with the Lord so much stronger and just as you have stood by your wife throughout these very trying times, my wife did this for me 12 years ago and now it is my turn to support her as the Lord strengthens our walk with Him. Our prayers are with both of you.<br />Dave H.dave hewitthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17042227028899190528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-88045486243839197402011-06-22T09:10:51.268-07:002011-06-22T09:10:51.268-07:00I have been and will continue to pray for you (as ...I have been and will continue to pray for you (as well as Frank and Phil) for many years. I pray for my extended "Pyro family". When one of my son's needed pray, I reached out to Phil for support. My son came through his time of concern and is closer to God than ever. When one of my other sons became a police officer, I added Phil's son who is a police officer to my prayers. I love praying for you guys and your families. Thank you for the added opportunity to spen a little more time in God's presence through prayer.<br /><br />RickRick Potterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12525495561013100331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-60306659576702636072011-06-22T08:41:07.472-07:002011-06-22T08:41:07.472-07:00Dan,
Thank you so much for sharing--Valerie and y...Dan,<br /><br />Thank you so much for sharing--Valerie and your whole family will continue to be in my prayers.<br /><br />Almost the exact same thing happened to my father several years ago. Flu-like symptoms sent him to the doctor, who, for no legitimate reason (other than God's sovereignty) ordered a scan which revealed an abnormal-looking appendix. They removed the appendix and part of the colon and discovered it was cancer so, as with Valerie, it was the appendix that ultimately led the doctors to find the cancer. Preventative chemo and regular blood work and scans kept him clean for awhile.<br /><br />The cancer did come back a few years ago in the liver, but was caught early because of the blood work they were doing every couple of months. He went through another surgery to remove the tumor from the liver and a stricter chemo regimen and is now going on 4 years cancer-free...PRAISE GOD! It's not an easy road, but it's not one that's untraveled by others and, more than anything, it was such a blessing to see God at work through the whole thing. You truly do learn to lean on Him more than ever.<br /><br />Praise God that Valerie had such capable doctors and is on the mend! As I said, you will all be in my prayers.EBenzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03135319328096595388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-58691356056175664472011-06-22T08:29:07.964-07:002011-06-22T08:29:07.964-07:00Dan:
Thank God for his providence that He sometim...Dan:<br /><br />Thank God for his providence that He sometimes intervenes intrusively into our lives, where our health is concerned. Steve's and Dave's stories seem to attest to that.<br /><br />I know one man who's been walking with Christ for decades, and developed stomach pains recently. He went in to see his doctor, and within a few days, had a quintuple bypass (!), and is now in relatively good health (all things considered). Apparently, there had been no other symptoms. Who knows what kind of catastrophic medical emergency might have occurred, were it not for his stomach pains?<br /><br />Without going into details, I can mention that my wife has had cancer as well, and come out the other side with a clean bill of health. It was only by the providence of God (I am firmly convinced) that she found it when she did, and that the doctors intervened when they did, or it would have been much worse.<br /><br />We each have our appointed number of days in this finite, mortal life. Thank God for the gift of each and every one of those days, and opportunity to catch even fleeting glimpses of the sweetness of the everlasting joy that awaits us, in the midst of this world of sorrow and sadness.Stefan Ewinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05530690016594029847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-25944272777320205792011-06-22T08:05:35.152-07:002011-06-22T08:05:35.152-07:00Dan
I had a fair chunk of colon removed from the ...Dan<br /><br />I had a fair chunk of colon removed from the secum (appendix end) the transverse (where my tumor was located, thats the bit that runs across horizontally before descending downwards through the sigmoid)some of my sigmoid also went. obviously generous margins are used to insure minimum risk of recurrence.No colostomy bag was needed though there had been talk of a possibility for that, it didn't happen in the end, but people do remarkably well with these things today.<br /><br />My tumors location in the transverse part amounts to only 20% of all Colon cancers, we have a very strong family history grandfather had the disease in his 50's his 3 brothers had all died with the disease before they had even reached their 30's.<br /><br />Tumors down the secum /appendix end are sometimes the hardest to find, I was told by a specialist nurse here in the UK that I should always insist on colorectal surgeon and not a general surgeon to do a colonoscopy as many inexperienced surgeons will fail to scan the secum end probably, The famous England Soccer player Bobby Moore suffered that fate, he was given an all clear by a general surgeon only to later discover a tumour that was too advanced for treatment.<br /><br />I had one lymph node that came back with changes, the surgeon told me had I been an 80 yr old man as opposed to the 39 I was at the time I wouldn't need to have undergone chemo but they felt it neccesary to do so as backup for the surgery.<br /><br />As I said the chemo course is one of the less aggresive I had 5FU (flurouracil) for 6 months there is no hair loss as a side effect not that it would have matterd to a bald man anyway the only irritating side effects are sometimes sore mouth, sore skin, brittle nails and some urge incontinence which sounds worse than it is you'd have to be near a bathroom during the treatment but I got out and about, even went to work, I went for pict line method (portable) which meant a little pump machine and a bag of poison to go with it, it all added up to something the size of an old Sony Walkman. 12 years later by the grace of God I'm still here, every 2 years a colonoscopy 'Catch the polyp stop the Cancer' is how it goes. Next week I go in for a hernia repair for the drain site from my cancer op.<br /><br />Hope the info is of some helpSteve Talashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05518606007786515472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-9630578597155928832011-06-22T06:09:23.185-07:002011-06-22T06:09:23.185-07:00Dave Hewitt — wow, that's a harrowing tale. Yo...<b>Dave Hewitt</b> — wow, that's a harrowing tale. You'd think a doc would look at the smoking and want to rule that out.<br /><br />So you had that surgery and treatment, and have been fine since?DJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16471042180904855578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-42392895217320561702011-06-22T05:54:34.886-07:002011-06-22T05:54:34.886-07:00Steve Talas — so you had colon cancer with lymph n...<b>Steve Talas</b> — so you had colon cancer with lymph node involvement 12 years ago, got chemo, and have been fine since? How much colon did you lose, if you don't mind my asking?<br /><br />No chemo or radiation recommended at present, which we understand is a very good sign.DJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16471042180904855578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-80425518332832052142011-06-21T22:18:23.943-07:002011-06-21T22:18:23.943-07:00Praying for both of you!Praying for both of you!Pastor Howard Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15152989861671662666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-55451919887230984922011-06-21T21:20:47.956-07:002011-06-21T21:20:47.956-07:00Dan, you've made the strength of a man's l...Dan, you've made the strength of a man's love for his wife nearly palpable with your words..Beautiful to behold. I too am not one to go to a Dr. unless I "HAVE" to; as well, no cancer running in my family..I should take your post under advisement..<br /><br />(word veri-"brest" .. gulp) <br /><br />Thanks to you both, for sharing. My prayers go out to you and your beautiful wife, Valerie.<br /><br />~SuzannenorthWordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00938074261657256560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-33090439099233469452011-06-21T21:09:45.918-07:002011-06-21T21:09:45.918-07:00Dan,
This brings back many memories as I also expe...Dan,<br />This brings back many memories as I also experienced something very similar to what your wife did about 12 years ago. <br /><br />I was being treated with Cortisone shots for 5 weeks for what the Doctor felt was inflammation of the muscles around the area of my shoulder blade. There was no progress and a substantial increase in the pain with no real prognosis as to where to go from that point to relieve the pain.<br /><br />While I was checking out she came out of her office and I felt this strong urge to stop her and ask her a question that kept nagging at me<br />so I got up the nerve(it was now or wait another two weeks)to ask her if when they were reading my X-rays were they also looking at my lungs since I had been a smoker for 40 years? She replied that we would do a series of 'pictures' from different angles and see what was there-right now-so I wouldn't have to wait for the results.<br /><br />Well,the results were that she saw a definite 'mass' in one of my lungs but would like to have it confirmed with a CT Scan at the local hospital. The CT and subsequent biopsies showed it to be cancer for sure and I was set up then to go through 6 weeks of daily Radiation and also Chemo once a week as well. The tumor was growing rapidly and the intent was to shrink it and kill it if possible to prevent even more radical surgery than they actually did perform. They were not able to shrink it much but they did kill it but they also had to remove 4 ribs to allow the removal of the tumor, and of course part of my lung. <br /><br />I have always wondered where all of this would have gone had God in His providence not allowed me to experience the pain-which a nurse said was unusual for that type of tumor-and also the nagging urgency to ask that question without trying to appear as though I was stepping on the Doctor's toes. It was also uncharacteristic of me to press like that. Thank God for boldness when it was needed. My sincere prayers for your wife and yourself and praise be to God who makes no mistakes.<br />Dave H.dave hewitthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17042227028899190528noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-82869271939202852532011-06-21T20:23:03.069-07:002011-06-21T20:23:03.069-07:00Dan, So sorry to hear this news. I'm praying w...Dan, So sorry to hear this news. I'm praying with you!Kitchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01828751825747117361noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-13748169148602948182011-06-21T18:52:01.221-07:002011-06-21T18:52:01.221-07:00Praise God. He is truly amazing! We will keep pray...Praise God. He is truly amazing! We will keep praying for you guys.VcdeChagnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09061295600050633057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-61533019571972615352011-06-21T17:46:28.857-07:002011-06-21T17:46:28.857-07:00You both are in my prayers.You both are in my prayers.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-31645291578796616862011-06-21T17:39:32.909-07:002011-06-21T17:39:32.909-07:00Deus pro nobis, Valerie and Dan. Thank you for th...<i>Deus pro nobis</i>, Valerie and Dan. Thank you for the update and the health reminder. May the Lord keep you both healthy!Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08289347868497438542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-58816322189088644062011-06-21T15:37:44.768-07:002011-06-21T15:37:44.768-07:00Dan
Your story strikes a strong chord with me, as ...Dan<br />Your story strikes a strong chord with me, as I too was diagnosed with the disease inadvertantly with unrelated symptoms in my case there was a strong genetic factor and lymph nodes were involved, as with your dear wife's story I look back 12 years later and see the amazing and deeply humbling providence of God in all that happend,I trust you and your dear lady will find much comfort and help in the Lord, you haven't mentioned any possible Chemo perhaps it won't be needed as lymphs came back clear but if that does arise as a course of treatment, while it isn't a walk in the park my experiences are that as chemo goes it is less grueling than many others. <br />Remembering you as a family in prayer.Steve Talashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05518606007786515472noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-87443117658485093382011-06-21T15:29:32.286-07:002011-06-21T15:29:32.286-07:00"I, looked to Philippians 4:6-7 and 1 Peter 5..."I, looked to Philippians 4:6-7 and 1 Peter 5:7 for comfort and strength."<br /><br />Dan, those are the two promises that I constantly grasp daily. <br /><br />I honestly do not comprehend how the world without Christ does it-how they can face these types of things apart from faith.<br /><br />As for praying for Valerie and you, for sure, for SURE my wife and I will be in prayer. <br /><br />BlessingsPierre Saikaleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09409964448078910855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-79330365324259649562011-06-21T15:21:43.306-07:002011-06-21T15:21:43.306-07:00Thanks for letting us know about the part you didn...Thanks for letting us know about the part you didn't tell earlier, Bro. Dan. I can only imagine how awful that blindside hit of bad news was. But thank God, there was good news wrapped up in it as well. I will still be keeping you both and your family in my prayers.Burrito34https://www.blogger.com/profile/04326575419406343733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21212024.post-11002648442009411092011-06-21T15:14:59.666-07:002011-06-21T15:14:59.666-07:00I really hate cancer. I donn't know what else...I really hate cancer. I donn't know what else to say other than I will be praying for all of you.CRhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01912897040503058967noreply@blogger.com