Spirit of Love

Dad has been resting a lot as his body fights off the side effects of the first round of chemo. Some days he has to take multiple naps to keep his energy up. But he's a fighter! Dad even snuck out and headed to Costco to help Mom with groceries. A few laborious hours later, he came home exhausted but triumphant. 

Every year, for the last 30 years, Dad has brought home flowers for Mom on Valentine's Day. He was not to be foiled this year! Here they are in their glory.

Nothing Like Home Cooking

One of the most important things to do before stepping into any battleground is a great meal. Mom has been painstakingly making breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, and dinner every single day! She also has to be wary of the type of foods Dad cannot eat and the foods Dad should eat, to improve his health. If this is hard to fathom, the schedule below gives you an inkling of the work involved.

Seriously, this is no easy task.

Thankfully, my parent's friends have been dropping off cooked meals for them once in a while to alleviate the burden and cheer them up with conversation. I can tell that it's incredibly uplifting for both my mom and dad. They're lucky to have the support of such a strong community!

My dad is also very lucky to have my mom looking after him. I would think it quite a treat to get served the lovely homemade plate below. There's even apples in the salad for color! Rock on Mom!

- Christina

Top of this Hill!

After two days of fatigue, occasional palpitation, feeling low, and some minor side effects from the chemo, Dad is feeling much better today.  Seeing him going around, lighten up my spirit as well.  He went to his office to have a lunch meeting with his coworker Michael.  Interacting with people energizes him.  Dad was very touched that Michael prayed for him. 

We saw Dr. Dormady for a one week follow-up. The doctor was very pleased to see that Dad rebounded quickly after the chemo. Dad can go in to receive the third drug, Avastin, tomorrow. One more blow to the cancer cells!

The gene testing from the biopsy samples will return in two weeks. 


- Jacqueline

Craving for a big meal

GwoHann lost some weight, therefore, several people including a couple of cancer survivors told us that we shouldn't focus so much on eating healthy, GwoHann should feel free to eat whatever he wants, at least once in a while. With that suggestion and having endured the biopsy #2, GwoHann wanted to reward himself with a big meal. Thus, we dined out last night and had Chinese beef rolls, Xian Bing, and ZhaJiangMian. It was satisfying, flavorful and tummy-full. However, the feelings of fullness came with a price. During the night we each had to get up several times, drinking water for the MSG, and alka-seltzer for GwoHann's heartburn. Evidently, the chemo drugs damages the cells in the digestive track, compromising his ability to eat regular size meals. A lesson learned. But, this morning GwoHann said 'I don't think alka-seltzer is a medicine. I think I should take it so I can eat more food and gain weight' 
What do you think?

- Jacqueline

Biopsy #2

Time for a big breakfast! We arrived at 6 am and were ready for the 2nd CT scan guided biopsy at the El Camino hospital. Blood work, x-ray, and CT scan both before and after the procedure. At least 8 nursing staff came to do different things. We wish that Dad didn't have to go through this, but are thankful we have modern technology. Fortunately, the procedure turned out to be short and successful. We just need to wait for 1.5 hours to take the final x-ray to make sure there are no air leaks. - Jacqueline

First Round of Chemo

I'm with Dad at the El Camino Hospital while he gets his first round of chemo. It will take 6 hours for him to get the full dosage of his first two meds - Cisplatin & Alimta. First 1.5 hours is saline solution to keep him hydrated, along with other pre-meds to combat the side effects. Anti-nausea, steroids, etc.

Mom told him last night that while you're in the hospital, you can make friends with other patients. As you come in regularly, you'll start to form relationships. When Dad got situated he immediately asked, "With these curtains between us, how are you supposed to make cancer friends?"

He's still the same Dad. Always wanting to be with people.

Dad's also such a fighter and once he puts his mind to it, will do everything 100%. The nurse mentioned it's helpful to drink plenty of water. He has had at least 32 ounces of tea in the first 1.5 hrs, and gone to the restroom three times.

He's gonna win. :)

- Steph

Results from MRI Scan

Great news! Dad's MRI results were clean! There were no cancer cells detected in his brain, signifying that the malignant growth is not wide spread.

- Christina