The Clinical Study Information

It's been a couple of fast-paced days...okay...more than a couple of days...more like a week...or more...but I know you understand.  We heard from my Oncologist late on Friday (November 13th) that the spreading cancer is HER2-negative (which is the absence of a growth-promoting protein), which is a good thing, because that is the same as my original breast cancer, and we don't necessarily want things in my body reacting quickly.
Time.
We want time.
(Except for the miracle of eradicating this cancer in me...then we're all for fast!)

Our weekend was filled with friends and family. Brad's brother, Jason, and some college friends, Joe, Scott and Jim surprised us by coming for the day to help with our outdoor winterizing chores (and a little football too!)  Jason and Tami worked hard at filling our freezer with some wonderful crock pot meals.  And a group of my close high friends (Leah, Angie, Julie and Julie) came out for some quality friend time.  Laughter (and deep-hearted conversation) really is the best medicine.

My girls and I: Julie, Leah, myself, Julie, and Angie.

Brad's parents have been amazing with helping us through these first few weeks.  They've brought meals, watched kids overnight, gone grocery shopping, done laundry...basically anything you could think to do that would help us out.  We've been blessed to have lots of friends stop by, so many co-workers and loved ones who have brought us meals, and we've gotten so many supportive and loving messages from all of you...oftentimes, when I can't sleep in the middle of the night, I like to read over them for a quick smile.

Brad and I headed back to the cities on Monday night (November 16th) and stayed with Brad's sister, Jill, and her family (thanks for letting us crash on a school night!)  On Tuesday we started bright and early with a day full of brain scans, bone scans, CT scans, and blood-work.  We were trying to get into a clinical study to get access to a drug that is very specific to my case (breast cancer to bone with BRCA gene involvement).  The study needed us to re-do most of our initial testing to make sure nothing else was going on in my body that had been missed.  It was a long, hard day of waiting rooms, needle pokes, and laying still in machines for extended periods of time.  But Brad and I kept our humor and he taxied me around in a wheelchair (one of the fastest ways to make a gal feel 80!) and he only tried to kill me, via wheelchair, once...so I think we're doing good!

My parents came out for a few days to spend time with us and help with the kids, and we all enjoyed some Papa and Nona time.  They kept an eye on the kids, helped with meals, and kept a focus on my job of eating.  My dad chauffeured me to the cities on Friday (November 20th) for a last-minute EKG and physical from my Oncologist,as the final stages of getting me ready for approval for the clinical study.  On Friday afternoon we found out that I had been accepted into the study, but we had to wait until Monday to find out which drug I would be taking (a 2/3 chance of the PARP-Inhibitor-the one we want most!- and a 1/3 chance of another drug that's still good...but not the PARP-Inhibitor.)

More waiting.  It's a good thing waiting is so much fun! ;)

My parents stayed through Saturday afternoon, and my sister, Lauren, drove from the cities to spend the afternoon with us too.

Lauren with Brendan, Emily, and Megan.

Today (Monday, November 23rd) we finally found out what our future travel plans will be.  I got randomly assigned to the drug that we wanted (the PARP-Inhibitor...hooray!!!) and will be heading to the cities for a morning/afternoon of appointments, blood-work, and receiving the PARP-Inhibitor.  We will finally have a better idea of what the coming weeks and months will look like, which helps put this planners' mind at ease!

Further updates will come after tomorrow, as we'll be able to tell how I metabolize the drug immediately.

Lots of love to all of you!  The Future Looks Beautiful!