Remission

Remission. Words we thought we would never hear. It is hard to imagine that the cancer that has invaded Courtney's body could be almost non-detectible. His CEA (blood cancer markers) have been steadily dropping over the past few months and his last level was 2.0. Courtney's oncologist has declared him in partial remission.

Now I should clarify what remission means, it does not mean that he is cured, it just means the cancer that is  still present is not detectible in his blood or on scans. He will still be undergoing treatment, to keep the cancer from its rapid growth off the chemotherapy. However, this means that he may be able to take some weeks off his treatments to gain his strength and energy back. Courtney also had a PET scan this week to look at the size of his tumors. The tumors have shrunk in accordance with his blood levels. His liver tumors are not visible. His tumors in his lungs have shrunk dramatically. Needless to say, we are all very excited. 


I'm attaching some pictures of our amazing Memorial weekend trip to Johnson Lake, Nebraska. The weather didn't fully cooperate, but we still had a great time! 

Thank you all for your continued prayers, support, and words of encouragement. I know they mean so much to Courtney and all of us.

So, cheers to a small victory in the big fight...

Stars

Hello Friends and Family,

I recently read a quote from Earl Riney, "the stars are constantly shining, but often we do not see them until the dark hours." As I reflected on this, I truly realized how applicable this message of hope is to our family. On April 14, 2010, two years will have passed since Courtney's diagnosis of advanced colorectal cancer. Looking back, he has been through hundreds of doctor visits, blood draws, chemotherapy, and surgery. It has been a long rough road. While he has endured all of these treatments mixed with good news and bad, we have all marveled at his strength and zest for life. He has met all of his obstacles with amazing resilience and an unwavering spirit. Yet, each and every one of us never questioned his ability to fight and overcome the odds that were first given to him. However, it is when you closely examine Courtney's fight with cancer that you can see those "stars" that were around him, the people closest to Courtney. These "stars" are those people that have supported and fought with Courtney through these past two years, and it is with closer examination that you truly appreciate how amazing and bright they are. These stars, always shining, yet dim to the casual onlooker, have illuminated the darkness that threatened to surround Courtney. Of course, I am speaking of Sue, Tyler, and our entire family.

First, I must speak of Sue. Throughout these past 2 years, she has been to every doctors appointment, chemotherapy treatment, blooddraw, and surgery. She has taken care of Courtney when the chemo has made him so sick. She has listened to all of us, many times setting aside her own sadness to comfort us. She has encouraged, fought, and consoled each of us, including Courtney. I know that his treatment would have been miles more difficult without her brilliance.

Secondly, Tyler. I have personally watched as Tyler and his father have grown closer these past 2 years. I know that watching his father fight cancer has not been easy for him. He has traveled so many weekends to work on the car with his father. They have enjoyed spending time talking, laughing, and sometimes cursing the occasional car part that doesn't work. All the while, he has provided support, love, laughter, and a great distraction from Courtney's treatments.

Our Family. It has been a pleasure these past two years to see many of our family members more than we ever have! Through the visits, phone calls, cards, and prayers, the support and love has been overwhelming. I know that Courtney has truly treasured his time at the cabin, Christmas at the Webers, Arizona garage sales, playing with the kids, visits from family members and more! Each of you have been an integral part of his fight with cancer.

So as we come upon the 2 year mark, it is those that have surrounded Courtney with their love, prayers, and support that I know have enabled him to continue with his fight. Thank you all.

Love,

Ashley

New PET Scan

Hello Friends and Family,

Happy New Year! Hope you are all doing well, and enjoying this beautiful weather we have had lately.

The Hanson family had a interesting Christmas. We traveled to Nebraska to spend a family Christmas at Jean and Wayne's house. In a previous blog post, I had asked Jean to order up some snow for our arrival...well she delivered! We had more snow than Nebraska had seen in a long time. We had to push our departure back a day since the most of the roads in Oklahoma were shut down. We even missed a white Christmas in Texas! Below are the links to two videos that I posted of all of the snow over the holidays.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cF7ezJeghs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9U8qftfwvE

We spent a wonderful Christmas day together with all of the family. It was such a blast to watch Gage and Gracie open all of their presents on Christmas morning. We played in the snow, and tried to keep the drifts from blocking us in the house. It was one venture outside that changed our plans for the rest of the time that we were there. Tyler was playing around with me, and threw me into a snowdrift. My wedding ring and engagement ring went flying through the air. We lost them. We sifted through snow for hours that night and the next day. We only found my wedding ring. Brandon came back over and helped us search for hours, and we even bought a metal detector, but to no avail. We are hoping that as the snow melts (its still on the ground as I type this) we will find it. But, despite the loss of my ring, we had a wonderful time with family and wouldn't trade it for anything. It was so great to be able to catch up with the family, eat amazing food, and create great memories! Courtney even got extra time off from chemo over the holidays, so he was feeling especially strong.

Recently, Courtney got his results from his most recent PET scan. The scan showed that there were minimal changes to his liver tumors, one was larger but one was smaller. There was a new spot in the lung, however the doctor attributed it to the chest congestion that Courtney has had lately. So, we stay the course for now.

Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes. Our family and Courtney truly appreciate it.

Love,
Ashley