Rollercoaster

Co-Pilot Zu-Zu!

Hello All,

Well, we've been on a bit of a rollercoaster since the last update. At the moment, we are at Grant Hospital waiting to see when a stent may be put into his liver. Let me recap...

Everything was going pretty well. He had his pump removed last Friday without any problems, and we were able to meet with his palliative care physician. His pain is being managed much better, but he still has a lot of discomfort and is not sleeping more than two hours at a time.

On Monday (8/19), he was scheduled for an upper and lower GI scope at Holzer in Athens. As you might imagine, the prep for that was not great. Mark has not been eating solid food for over a week, and then putting that nasty liquid into his diet was a bit of insult to injury. He was a trooper, though, and when we left the house on Monday morning to get to the appointment, we were both shocked at how jaundiced he had become.

The scope results confirmed esophageal masses, but the most important thing we learned was that Mark's liver was in some serious trouble. We were advised to go straight to the ED at Grant (his oncologist is affiliated with Grant) because of the level of jaundice and abdominal pain. After many tests and a lengthy wait, he was admitted, and we moved into a room around 10:00 p.m.

He finally had a restful night of sleep, and the jaundice is receding. However, we are still waiting to see the gastroenterologist for the next steps. There is a chance we might be spending another night here, but the care is great, and the people are fantastic. I think he is right where he needs to be at the moment.

His next chemo treatment is Aug. 28, but I'm sure there will be more to update you with before that. I'll keep you posted on what happens here at Grant as soon as I can.

Thank you so, so much for your continued support of Mark. He really does feel supported and loved by everyone in this community. We are extremely fortunate to have you in our lives.

Please enjoy this picture of Mark with his co-pilot, Zu-Zu. It was taken a year ago when we were on our way to my parents' house for Thanksgiving dinner.

-Jill via GoFundMe