Dear Family & Friends:
This week you are getting an update from my perspective as Doug asked me to share with you my thoughts on how things are going.
We hope you had a blessed Resurrection Sunday celebrating our Risen Lord! Doug was able to go to church on Sunday with us and we had a wonderful time worshipping our Lord and His victory over sin and death. We were also able to spend time with my brother John and his family. Later in the day the Emry family was together and we enjoyed great food, fellowship, and the sunshine.
It is 9 days and counting since Doug's chemo treatment and has been pretty hard on him. He suffers with nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and fatigue. It is to be expected, but even then it is hard. He is getting stronger each day and we are very thankful. On Wednesday we met with Dr. Ralph Sutherlin at Optimal Health Clinic in Boise and were able to learn of some additional therapies Doug can undergo while having chemo to help his body stay strong and prevent damage to the healthy cells. Our visit with Dr. Sutherlin was very hopeful and encouraging. He is all about treating the whole person, body, mind, and spirit. Doug is going to join a "Quality of Life Study" for AMARC who are the distributors of a product called "Poly-MVA". Poly-MVA is a formula that protects healthy cells while the body undergoes radiation or chemotherapy and also replaces critical nutrients that are depleted from the therapies. This product had been mentioned to us before and Dr. Sutherlin was in favor of using it too as he has been encouraged by the results for cancer patients. Doug is also going to be undergoing Vitamin C IV therapy from Dr. Sutherlin to oxygenate the body, which we know inhibits cancer cell growth. Doug will start by having 1 Vitamin C treatment on the week in-between his chemo treatments. We also have to order the Poly-MVA and enroll him as a member of the study. I need to get all of his diagnosis from Dr. Fiorentino for him to be able to participate. Tomorrow Doug is going to have another PET scan at St. Luke's Meridian so we can get a new baseline in order to monitor any changes since the one in January and also any changes from the chemo treatments. We both have seen the swelling in the left lymph node behind his ear go down and know this is a very good sign the tumor is shrinking.
Please pray specifically for Doug tomorrow during his PET scan which is at 7:30 a.m. that he will not have any nausea, vomiting, coughing, or anxiety as the scan is performed. He needs to be able to lie completely still and this can be challenge when one is not feeling good. Please pray too for him to regain his strength, for the chemo treatments to kill the cancer, but not do any harm to the rest of his body....and for Doug not to lose hope. This round of treatments has been much harder for him and he has been discouraged at times as this is his 4th round of chemo.
We will get the results of the PET scan on Tuesday, April 21st when we meet with Dr. Fiorentino before Doug's 2nd chemo treatment. We are asking the Lord for great results! We will update the blog next week.
Thank you once again for your faithfulness for going boldly before the Lord on Doug's behalf and our family. Words are really inadequate to express our thanks and appreciation. We know Doug has done so well and the Lord has sustained him due to your prayers and faithfulness.
Blessing to each one of you! May you find comfort, hope, and peace in the arms of our Lord! Isaiah 41:10
Linda
This week you are getting an update from my perspective as Doug asked me to share with you my thoughts on how things are going.
We hope you had a blessed Resurrection Sunday celebrating our Risen Lord! Doug was able to go to church on Sunday with us and we had a wonderful time worshipping our Lord and His victory over sin and death. We were also able to spend time with my brother John and his family. Later in the day the Emry family was together and we enjoyed great food, fellowship, and the sunshine.
It is 9 days and counting since Doug's chemo treatment and has been pretty hard on him. He suffers with nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and fatigue. It is to be expected, but even then it is hard. He is getting stronger each day and we are very thankful. On Wednesday we met with Dr. Ralph Sutherlin at Optimal Health Clinic in Boise and were able to learn of some additional therapies Doug can undergo while having chemo to help his body stay strong and prevent damage to the healthy cells. Our visit with Dr. Sutherlin was very hopeful and encouraging. He is all about treating the whole person, body, mind, and spirit. Doug is going to join a "Quality of Life Study" for AMARC who are the distributors of a product called "Poly-MVA". Poly-MVA is a formula that protects healthy cells while the body undergoes radiation or chemotherapy and also replaces critical nutrients that are depleted from the therapies. This product had been mentioned to us before and Dr. Sutherlin was in favor of using it too as he has been encouraged by the results for cancer patients. Doug is also going to be undergoing Vitamin C IV therapy from Dr. Sutherlin to oxygenate the body, which we know inhibits cancer cell growth. Doug will start by having 1 Vitamin C treatment on the week in-between his chemo treatments. We also have to order the Poly-MVA and enroll him as a member of the study. I need to get all of his diagnosis from Dr. Fiorentino for him to be able to participate. Tomorrow Doug is going to have another PET scan at St. Luke's Meridian so we can get a new baseline in order to monitor any changes since the one in January and also any changes from the chemo treatments. We both have seen the swelling in the left lymph node behind his ear go down and know this is a very good sign the tumor is shrinking.
Please pray specifically for Doug tomorrow during his PET scan which is at 7:30 a.m. that he will not have any nausea, vomiting, coughing, or anxiety as the scan is performed. He needs to be able to lie completely still and this can be challenge when one is not feeling good. Please pray too for him to regain his strength, for the chemo treatments to kill the cancer, but not do any harm to the rest of his body....and for Doug not to lose hope. This round of treatments has been much harder for him and he has been discouraged at times as this is his 4th round of chemo.
We will get the results of the PET scan on Tuesday, April 21st when we meet with Dr. Fiorentino before Doug's 2nd chemo treatment. We are asking the Lord for great results! We will update the blog next week.
Thank you once again for your faithfulness for going boldly before the Lord on Doug's behalf and our family. Words are really inadequate to express our thanks and appreciation. We know Doug has done so well and the Lord has sustained him due to your prayers and faithfulness.
Blessing to each one of you! May you find comfort, hope, and peace in the arms of our Lord! Isaiah 41:10
Linda
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