Monday April 17th,1995 at 1:30Pm Judy's surgery was performed. She was in the operating room for 3 hours. Attending were the best Gynecological Oncologists UNC had to offer. They found macroscopic tumors in Judy's abdomen. One was on the omentum an apron like covering over the intestines and was 5x9 centimeters in size. The doctors' removed 70-90% of the cancer. There were two tumors left one over five centimeters. It was behind her diaphragm and spleen. Doctors reported it would be too dangerous to remove. It was decided the chemotherapy would have to be very aggressive. Taxol and Cisplatin were to be used. The chemotherapy would begin on April 28th.

On April 20th Judy's temperature started to rise. This would be one of the many battles she would fight the rest of her life. We soon realized it would always be an important sign to watch for. Judy was in a good frame of mind and trying to keep her spirits up despite all she was going through. Then the infections started first the incision site, then her eye swelled shut, and it was one thing after another. She was already having a hard time keeping food down and the chemo had not even started yet. The doctors decided to let her go home for a few days before starting the chemotherapy. She was released from the hospital on April 23rd. Two days later, her daughter had to take her on the two-hour trip back to the hospital. That night they drained a large abscess. She was experiencing a lot of pain and nausea again, as well as depression. This was only the beginning of the terrible pain, mood changes, and hospital runs that would be made at all hours of the day and night.

On April 28th Judy had what is called a port, inserted into her chest. This is an implanted access device which allows professional carers to draw blood and make intravenous (or intra-arterial) injections into a patient in an easier way without having to locate and insert a canulla into a new vessel every time. This would make it easier for Judy to receive the chemotherapy drugs and have blood drawn without harming her veins. Chemo started that night, she was very apprehensive. Judy would receive Taxol first, then Cisplatin the next morning. She actually did very well with her first chemo and her spirits were up again. By May 1st, Judy began feeling very sick. The chemo had done its job. I was worried about the depression that was setting in. She could not eat and, although at home now, she wanted left alone.

On May 3rd, my husband and I left Ohio to go help and comfort my sister and her husband. When we arrived at their home, I was overwhelmed to find her looking so frail. I had no idea what to expect. Seeing her this way really brought home the realization of how sick she was. Our presence seemed to elevate her mood. The very next day I took her long hair in hand and cut it very short. The picture you see of Judy and I on the Faith page was taken that day. We were hoping the short haircut would make it more tolerable when she started losing her hair. She was starting to feel a little better by the 8th and we even went shopping only to find the doctor horrified. We had not anticipated the fact that her blood counts were dropping. That evening she started chilling and her temperature went up. We called UNC and they said go to the nearest hospital and have blood work done. If the count were below four we would have to make the two-hour trip to North Carolina. What a nightmare that was for all of us. We got there and they refused to do the blood work because she was being treated in another state. I could not believe it. Here we were back at the hospital where it all began. Now I knew how right we were to have had her transferred! After a lot of hassling, and sitting in a crowded waiting room with Judy's immune system being very low, one of the lab tec's said he would take it on himself and do the blood work. He also sent us to a private waiting area. Thank God he did, her white count was down to 1.3. We rushed her home and packed a few things, as her doctor wanted her there as soon as possible. Just as we were going to the car the telephone rang, it was a different doctor saying do not come. They would try to treat it at home with a hospice nurse coming to take blood in the morning. Her environment would be better left unchanged.

Judy was what doctors call natering ,this is when all blood counts are falling. Apparently this was expected about two weeks after receiving chemo. Within a few days and strong antibiotics, her counts were climbing again. Praise God! I would leave my sister with Tonya, one of her daughters, and her husband Tim to take care of her. I knew I was leaving her safe. Her two other children Tom and Tammy were both within a few hours drive.

On May 11th, my husband and I left for home. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do. I would have preferred to stay but had to return to work. Going home, we took the scenic route through the Blueridge Parkway. We needed to clear our minds a little before facing the routine task of working and pretending life was normal. The Parkway had a beautiful view, and I found myself feeling so close to God it amazed me. One of the things I have a horrid fear of is height, but I did something that day I never would have imagined. Climbing out on a rock formation high above the valley I went and prayed for Judy's life. It seemed if she could be so brave with all she was going to face, it was the least I could do. We arrived home fourteen hours later.

A few days later I called Judy to see how she was doing and found her crying. She had been sitting on the porch, running her hands through her hair and it was coming out in handfuls. She was worrying about hair falling all through the house. Leave it to Judy to be concerned about her house getting messy.

On May 18th, Judy went back to UNC in North Carolina for her second chemotherapy. Other than nausea, everything was going fine. The doctor also told her the tumor grade and it was poorly differentiated. The similarity between a normal cell and the cancer cell, defines what degree of change has occurred. Cancer cells that are well differentiated are close to the original cell and are usually less aggressive. Poorly differentiated cells have changed more and are more aggressive. This was more bad news. The good news was that the chemo was working. Her CA125 was down to 378. The nurse decided Judy should have her head shaved. She said it would be easier to have it all gone than putting up with it falling out. The next day on the way home from the hospital Judy bought her first wig. She decided now would be as good a time as any to see if blondes really do have more fun and purchased a blonde wig. After arriving home, they found their son and his wife with all kinds of food for them, and many little presents. Going in the house they found their cat left them a present too. It had knocked a plant down and scattered dirt and leaves everywhere in spite of this, the day was a good one for Judy.

By the 22nd, Judy was in a lot of pain again and feeling very sick. On May 30th while talking to her on the telephone, she kept bringing up the fact that she would like to come home. She was scheduled one more chemo on June 9th. Then Judy's doctors started discussing a change in her protocol by increasing her treatments to six instead of three. At that point of time things were changing in the way doctors were looking at treating ovarian cancer. This caused her to have many mood-swings because she wanted to visit so badly, and being unsure of what the future held for her. We were worried about her plans to travel, as she would be in transit alone.

Judy entered the hospital on June 9th, for her third and as far as we knew at this time last chemo. She started failing soon after. By mid June she was very sick. Judy was having pain everywhere and having problems with her bowels. This was another big fear with ovarian cancer. In fact, the woman in the bed next to her had died from complications relating to involvement of the bowel and ovarian cancer. This increased Judy's anxiety tremendously as to what she might be facing. Feeling depressed and frightened, she was released from the hospital to return home and recover from treatment. It was suggested by her oncologist that she should seek the advice of a professional psychologist. Judy took the doctors advice and went to a psychologist once and only once. She decided she would put her trust in God and leave it in his hands.

On the 18th, her fever started to climb dramatically; she was panicky and very ill. This was the first time I ever heard her say she was ready to give in. I told her to take a tranquilizer, get in bed, and then call me back. As soon as we hung up I called her oncology nurse and explained what was happening. She called Judy and told her to get Tim home right away and get to UNC. They were very concerned having the assumption it was a septic blood disorder, and was life threatening. Arriving at the hospital, they discovered she was also dehydrated. Judy was admitted again. Blood work was done and Judy was found to have neutropenia, an acute febrile condition marked by severe depression of the granulocyte-producing bone marrow and by prostration, chills, swollen neck, and sore throat sometimes with local ulceration. It is believed to be a response to the side effects of certain drugs. It also causes a drastic drop in the white blood cells, which could turn into leukemia. Judy was started on neutrophil shots, which is an immune system booster, and a granulocyte that is the chief phagocytic white blood cell. Judy was taught to give them to herself. This would cause more complications as they had side effects of their own. Peripheral neuropathy a disease or degenerative state of the peripheral nerves in which motor, sensory, or vasomotor nerve fibers may be affected and which is marked by muscle weakness and atrophy, pain, and numbness, being just one of them. On June 21st, Judy had her first blood transfusion.

Judy was a fighter though and on the 25th, she came home from the hospital. On June 26th, she was on a plane bound for home, which is just northeast of Pittsburgh, PA. I could not believe her strength! Judy visited until July 6th, We really enjoyed our time together but the doctors, having decided on the six-treatment protocol needed her back in Virginia closer to her hospital in North Carolina. Of course, as luck would have it, her plane had trouble due to storms and she was delayed for three hours in Cleveland. I felt so sad for her considering she had pushed her endurance to the point of exhaustion. This was a woman very strong in her beliefs. Her faith in God kept her going when she was down. Her stamina was amazing. She received her fourth chemo the day after she returned home. On July 7th. She would receive three more, three weeks apart. The chemo was shrinking the tumor! Judy's Ca125 was going down. She was still having a lot of pain but as usual, her spirits were high. July 28th, was her fifth chemo. It went well.

On August 18th, she had her last chemotherapy, and on September 1st, she and Tim came up for the weekend. It was around this time that Judy started wishing that she lived back here again. On September 18th, she had to have another transfusion. October 3rd, Judy's CAT scan showed she was clear of the cancer! She visited us again on October 15th. While she was here, she seemed to be having a hard time walking. We took her to our hospital and the doctor explained it was the chemotherapy causing it and was called peripheral neuropathy a disease or degenerative state (as polyneuropathy) of the peripheral nerves in which motor,sensory, or vasomotor nerve fibers may be affected and which is marked by muscle weakness and atrophy, pain, and numbness. She was very frightened off and on but I felt God was really working in her life.

Judy and Tim decided to move back to our area in late November, this meant Tim would give up his job and try to find work in this area. On December 9th, they made the trip, in an ice storm, no less. They moved in with my husband and I till they could settle in their own home. We were very happy because this really gave Judy and I quality time together. We had a blizzard in January. Judy was like a kid with all the snow, having lived in Florida for fourteen years and then Virginia for one. She was so happy to be back home.

In late January Tim and Judy moved into their own home and soon Tim found work at the steelmill, where he had worked before they moved to Florida. It was as though God led them back to us.

Judy started seeing a new doctor in Pittsburgh. It was inevitable that she would have to travel to see her doctors. Pittsburgh was over one hour away. Every thing was looking up. Although she was experiencing pain again, the new doctor said the CAT-scan was clean as of April 1996. [Continue...