Nothing New - Just Making Note!

Hello You Fine Folks!

First and foremost, if you're reading these words - I sincerely thank and appreciate you beyond words. It means that you care enough about my husband and our family to keep checking in! <3 (Or it means you're a sad, lonely person with too much time on your hands, who knows! For your sake, we'll go with the former ha ha!!)

I have read all the blood work and CT Scan results myself and everything is "unremarkable". For those of you who live this cancer-stained-existence, you know that is a GREAT thing. Who knew one would ever strive to be unremarkable? :)

When going through these journeys, people are always contacting you with their ideas, suggestions, etc., Sometimes, I admit, it gets tiresome and consuming. There's always a ton of data to sort through, statistic, symptoms, treatment options, etc., It creates the inevitable task of sorting options and seeing if it checks enough boxes to be worth a consideration. I have to actually get in a specific mentality to do this as it is more draining than you could ever imagine. During the past four years, it fell onto me to do the research, educate myself and sort through the information because Chad simply had enough to carry on his shoulders.

It's a tedious task but sometimes, there's a hidden gem in there. My friend from the other side of the world reached out last week with a suggestion for something to look into. When I got into that mentality and looked it up - I sat there reading symptoms .... Check, Check, Check, Check, Check ... Every single one. This is a new term for us, a disease we had not heard of or at the time it didn't fit but it sure does today and it is one we will be following up with, with his care team. So big huge thanks Steph <3 xoxo I am sorry your brother had to endure this but I sincerely thank you in passing along the information.

Gastroparesis - a condition that affects the normal spontaneous movement of the muscles (motility) in your stomach. 

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of gastroparesis include:

• Vomiting
• Nausea
• A feeling of fullness after eating just a few bites
• Vomiting undigested food eaten a few hours earlier
• Acid reflux
• Abdominal bloating
• Abdominal pain
• Changes in blood sugar levels
• Lack of appetite
• Weight loss and malnutrition

100% Chad.

The other lead we'll be following up on came from Grey's Anatomy. (Thanks to Chad's friend RJ) is MALS.

Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome - a condition characterized by abdominal pain attributed to compression of the celiac artery and possibly the celiac ganglia by the median arcuate ligament.

 Patients with MALS reportedly experience abdominal pain, particularly in the epigastrium, which may be associated with eating and which may result in anorexia and weight loss.The pain can be in the left or right side, but usually where the ribs meet. ^[1] Other signs are persistent nausea, lassitude (especially after a heavy meal) and exercise intolerance. Diarrhea is a common symptom, some experience constipation. While some experience vomiting, not everyone does. Exercise or certain postures can aggravate the symptoms.

- Another one that is very fitting for what Chad endures.


I will keep everyone posted! I wanted to post here for two reasons;

I wanted to document the information and also - I wanted to thank those who reached out and bring awareness that sometimes what you may think is insignificant may in fact be something. But every lead is worth looking into!

Preliminary Results of CT Scan

Chad has been having more severe attacks of nauseous and vomiting. To the point where he's lost 8 pounds and cannot seem to eat a single thing without losing it 30 minutes later. He has had this intermittently but lately it seems more often than not.

He still bloats like a beach ball and has that awful pain in his left side. We rushed his bi-annual CT Scan by a few weeks to try and see if, for once, it would show whatever causes his never ending issues.

I am not going to put on a brave face for a few seconds. I was worried. I still am, but not as bad because the doctor called Chad this morning with both lab and CT Scan results. Aside from his cholesterol being high - everything looked good and clear.

Hallelujah !!!  Seriously. I was a bit scared, for the first *real* time since his surgery I was genuinely getting concerned that the CT Scan would show a mass  I was prepared to convince myself it could be anything at all and not necessarily cancer but I was concerned. It hasn't gone away completely but it certainly has alleviated a bit.

Once again though, we're left scratching our heads and wondering WHY this is happening. A dietician is going to be in touch and we still have the appointment with the GI Surgeon in December.

If physically things are where they should be, there has to be something someone is missing. Last night while watching Grey's Anatomy a woman was in the hospital room with severe stomach attacks and they ran every test and came up empty handed. The patient had been through it all before and insisted she was not crazy - SOMETHING was wrong. She ate a sandwich and eventually they were able to determine some something was wrapping around something else which expanded when she ate, causing crazy pain. It was missed the million times before because she was also fasting prior to taking tests.

I will have to watch it again to find out what it was and I am NOT saying Chad has whatever this woman has - but the situation was eerily similar and I can't help but wonder if the doctors need to take a different approach. Clearly whatever is wrong with my husband is not of the normal breed. We just need to find a doctor who cares enough to figure it out.

Wish us luck.

Thanks for your love and prayers xoxo