The Big Picture!

So many of you have asked about my health I thought I should give you an update. Pls forgive my delay! :-)

In case you were not aware, in 2001 I was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time. I was caught completely off guard because my youngest daughter, Sofia, was almost 3 yrs old and cancer did not run in my family. After some time grieving and accepting the situation, I opted for a mastectomy and reconstruction. Since we had caught the cancer early, my oncologists did not recommend further treatment (tamoxifen, etc.) apart from surgery.

Unfortunately, just two months shy of the "magic 5 year" mark, my cancer came...with a vengeance. It seems cancer was eager to get back at me. April 2008, I discovered another lump and was told that I, not only, had a recurrence, but it had grown for some time under my sternum. In Nov 08, I had most of my sternum removed along with part of 2 ribs, muscle and more tissue from my chest area. Additionally, I underwent extreme doses of chemotherapy and radiation. The drugs were nothing in comparison to the horror of the surgery. Even today you can see my heart beating clearly from my chest since there is no muscle or bone to cover it (my doctors & I laugh that they never need stethoscopes with me). One must have a lot of levity to get through something like this! :-)

Needless to say, I was classified as a Stage 4 cancer patient without much chance of living. My oncologist, a "rock star" in the field of women & cancer, told me I could beat my prognosis of 2 yrs at best if I maintained a positive outlook. That proved challenging, but not impossible because I serve the Creator of overcoming the impossible (Phil 4:13). All seemed to be going well, in fact my family had planned an elaborate vacation--a 14-day cruise around the Hawaiin islands. We loved every moment of it; my girls were the belles of the cruise ship! I was doing terrifically physically and spiritually, until the last few days of the trip when I suddenly began to have trouble feeling hungry. By the last days of the trip, I had given up eating altogether. By the time we arrived back in Orlando, I had lost a significant amount of weight and slept for 24 hrs straight.

By the time we returned home, I was slipping in and out of consciousness. My husband rushed me to the hospital where they found that I was in complete organ failure. After an emergency surgery to revive my organs and extract the fluid that had filled my chest and collapsed my heart and lungs, I was barely alive. I did not find out until much later that my family had been asked whether or not to keep me on life support. Thank the Lord that I never got around to filling out my Advance Directives forms because several friends had urged me to put "do not rescscitate" and "no feeding/breathing tubes" on my documents. FYI: once you put those down, those directions are followed to the letter of the law by medical professionals, so know what you're requesting!

After a 4-5 week hospital stay and lengthy recovery, I have fought back with every fibre of my being and the Spirit of God infused in every cell. My spiritual and physical families have been absolute angels, not letting me get too down or feel alone. I have so much to live for and I plan to do just that. Now, I am happy to say that I'm doing so well that my doctor has taken me off of one of my chemo drugs! The medical staff at MD Anderson Cancer Center--my 2nd home--call me their MP (i.e., "miracle patient" or "model patient", depending on their moods that day).

If ever you feel short on faith or skeptical that God means what he says in the scriptures, drop me a line or look at the pictures of my beautiful family on Facebook! I am forever grateful that God gave us His son and each other so that we never have to go it alone!

Love always,
Janet