06/20/01 - It has been almost 6 months since
Mickaela left us all behind. Life has been very difficult without her laughter and funny
pranks. We have all tried to keep it together, we all heal at different paces, and
something that just totally blows some of us out of the water, will leave others unfazed.
A song, a flower, the smile of a stranger, or the eyes of compassion. Probably because
Kaela was all of this to so many of us. I can only speak for myself, but I suspect other
feel similar, I have lost a huge piece of my day-to-day life. But somehow, through all of
this, I feel like she is still with me, protecting her little sister, visiting me as a
spider, or just when in a very dark day, I think of her and a smile mysteriously forms on
my lips. I - we all - loved her very much, and still do. It doesn't seem to get
much easier yet though, I guess I will let you know in another 6 months.
02/23/01 - Sent in from Mickaela's (and mine
too) mom:
In
remembrance of Mickaela S. Earle-Ross
There will be a special service at
Mile Hi Church of Religious Science
In the Chapel by
Reverend Patty Lucas
Thursday, March 1st at 4:30 pm
9079 West Alameda Ave. in Lakewood
(Garrison & Alameda)
Music by Kent Rautenstrauss & Anne Achenbach
The practitioners at Mile Hi Church have arranged a special service honoring Mickaela's
memory, in loving support of her family and friends. Please come for a time of music,
sharing, healing and closure.
02/10/01 - Louis forwarded this poem that
Helen Goldie had sent him. It seems to sum things up pretty well, I think I can even hear
Kaela saying it along with me! :^)
DEATH is nothing at all.
I have only slipped away into the
next room. I am I, and you are you.
Whatever we were to each other,
that we still are. Call me by my old
familiar name, speak to me in the
easy way which you always used. Laugh as
we always laughed at the little jokes we
enjoyed together. Life means all that it
ever meant. It is the same as it ever was;
there is unbroken continuity. Why should I
be out of mind because I am out of sight?
I am waiting for you somewhere
very near, just around the corner.
All is well.
1/22/01
-
Kaela is gone.
We are all still in a state of shock, I guess. Even though you know what is coming, and
you see it getting ever nearer, I think that when you lose someone that close, there is no
such thing as "being prepared". Louis is doing about as well as can be expected,
his life has changed - forever, and that is not an easy adjustment to make. I believe all
of our lives have changed forever, we are more vulnerable, less invincible, one of our own
is gone, and that is just too much at times. Make sure you make the most of every second
with those you care about. Our family is close - that is a blessing. If yours is not -
make it so! There is not enough time for grudges, ill will or silly feuding. Take the
time, make the time, tell 'em about it!
We are going to create this
site as a comprehensive breast cancer awareness site. With the help of Kim Wright and
others who have been there, we are going to arm newly diagnosed, family and support
people, survivors, or anyone else who wants it, with the information they need to
irradiate breast cancer once and for all! Knowledge is power!
1/12/01
-
We lost our
Mickaela at 2:30 this morning. She had basically slipped into a coma, and went in her
sleep. The family (except our dad) was there by her side. It was very difficult but she is
finally pain-free and hopefully 100% mobile! Marina, the youngest sister placed two of her
very favorite things in her hands, a rubber spider and a small self-inflating whoopee
cushion! I will add more later, after all of our heads clear. Plus watch for a really cool
tribute to her later on this week.
1/05/01
-
The past few
days have been very difficult for Mickaela. She is in immense amounts of pain and can only
stand about an hour and a half of action at a time. She tires easily, and this frustrates
her to no end! Any one who knows her, knows what I mean! Louis is very tired too, the
stress has been huge. Mickaela did not receive a good report last week. Her markers jumped
about 70 points. That's not good. Please keep good thoughts, hopes and prayers for Kaela
and Louis this weekend.
12/26/00
-
I hope you all
had a happy holiday. Mickaela & Louis spent the Holidays split between their two
families. She over did it a bit, but she said it was worth it to see everyone. She's
pooped, but looking forward to signs of Spring. Please keep a good thought for her on
Thursday afternoon, when she will give a vile or two of blood. The big date is January
2nd, when she will find out how well the Xeloda (chemo) worked. If her counts show
improvement or are stable, she can go to UCLA where they are leading edge in the field.
Thursday is also Louis' Birthday - Happy Birthday Master! When Kaela & Louis go to
California, they are also hoping to visit her Daddy, the relatives and Mexico. They
have not been since 1996!
Kaela, I hope 2001 sees an excellent miracle. We love you.
11/20/00
-
We all got some
very good news today, Mickaela's counts are only slightly elevated. While this may not
seem real great - it is! As aggressive as this cancer has shown itself to be, the fact
that the markers have not shot off the charts is a very good thing. Her pain levels have
dropped slightly, but her spirits are way up. She has warned us though, she has become her
regular Mickaela self again, but during the next chemo round she could get kind of
"loopy" again. The doctor has reassured her that the cancer has NOT traveled to her brain - good, because we like that brain just the way it has always been
thank you very much! Please keep those cards and letters coming.
Send to:
Mickaela Ross
c/o SYS-Graphics
P.O. Box 33472
Denver, CO 80233
or if you want to send it to her directly, call or email me and I will give you her
address. A friend was telling me recently that the stilled believed a miracle could happen
- hey, may it can! :^D
11/11/00
-
Happy Birthday Kaela! Today Kaela is 41! Please send her a birthday message.
She is in a great deal of pain these days and having a bit of trouble walking around or
holding up her own weight. Louis is taking very good care of her and helps her to get
around by sometimes carrying her. He really is excellent. Her leg pain has increased in
severity and spread to both legs. The doctors don't necessarily think this is cancerous,
but more likely the damage from her spine and pelvic bones pinching the nerves running
down her legs. She remains in good spirits - as if she would be any other way! - even
though the pain is worse than ever and constant. More as it develops. Mickaela - we love
you - and hope you get a reprieve from pain for at least today! XXoo.
10/30/00
-
After about 5
months, it turns out that the radiation was not as successful as we had previously
thought. It actually appears that it didn't even slow this very aggressive cancer down!
Mickaela has been suffering unbelievable amounts of pain and even had to miss the Race for
the Cure event here in Denver earlier this month. Probably the hardest part of this -
besides the excruciating pain - has been the realization that she can not do the things
she wants to do; play in the garden, go shopping, or play with her nieces and nephews
without suffering incredible consequence. If you have noticed that her emails have been
sparse, it is because pretty much doing anything for any extended period of time is pretty
much out of the question. She had an appointment with Dr. Caskey on Friday and the news
was NOT good. She now appears to have 6 active spots in her liver and her pelvic region is
rampant with cancer. We will be taking her for an MRI later this week to see if the pain
shooting through both her femurs is cancer or nerve issues related to the deterioration of
her bones. Please send your prayers and good thoughts.
06/15/00
-
Although it has been a while, no news did turn out to be good news!
Mickaela finishes up her radiation treatments tomorrow. Back in January, after Kaela and
Louis came back, Dr. Ueno strongly urged Mickaela to undergo radiation treatments to
eliminate any leftover cancer cells still hanging around in her hips. They returned to
Houston in April, and he pretty much told her to do it! After some coaxing from Louis and
us, her family, she decided to go ahead and try it. It has been about 3 weeks, and the
side effects are cake compared to chemo! I think she was scared that it might do something
really bad to her, turn her green like a night light or something? She was very
apprehensive.
But now, as she goes for her last treatment tomorrow, she goes knowing that her bone
x-rays look "great" as told by Dr. Pasium, her radiologist. They were worried
because Kaela fell twice in the past few weeks and landed hard on her back. Dangerous
activities like that, Kaela assured me today that she will be less reckless and more
focused on her health. YIPPEE!!!! I personally want to thank everyone who has held out a
good thought, or prayer for my sister and best friend. It is still a long road back to
total health, but soon the emails, spiders and festive Mickaelaisms should resume.
02/23/00 -
(from the guestbook)
2-23-00
Hello Everyone! I am getting stronger and stronger every day. I am going to try
Colloidal Silver along with the *Essiac green tea (*thanks Eyvind for turning me on to the
green tea). The Colloidal Silver tincture is said to have amazing healing abilities? Dr.
Donald Gay of Whole Life Healing Centre, will help educate me on this holistic product. http://www.healingcentre.com
We had our first rain and thunderstorm yesterday. I love it!!! The first rain in
Colorado is a wake up call to all living things that spring is coming. Life will start a
new. I'm hoping that my hair will grow as fast as the weeds. One day I will sit down and
write my book, entitled, "Off to Race the Tumbleweeds"
Take care everyone and thank you for the prayers and well wishes. I believe these are
the reason I found the strength to conquer this wicked disease!
Thank you!
Mickaela1@aol.com 303-457-0774
01/31/00 -
Mickaela and Louis just returned from Houston again after follow-up
testing. Kaela sent this email:
1/27/00 10:17:09 AM Mountain Standard Time
Hello...
I hope you are doing okay? I just returned from my three month check up in Houston. All
still seems to be 99.9% cancer free and on the mend. This is good news. No evidence of
spreading or active cancer at this point. I return for a three month check up to get the
final good news. There will be pain as the sponge-like holes in my bones heal themselves.
The Doc's want to radiate these areas. Sorry, the risks and damage don't warrant the
treatment for me! Eventually the pain will subside and I will be back to normal again
(like I ever WAS normal, hee, hee).
Take care
Mickaela
01/04/00 -
(from the guestbook)
Kaela, We are back from the holidays and started talking about you. So, here I am
writing you. I assume you brought in the New Year with a little more excitement than the
city of Denver did. Year 2000 is a big deal but has no bugs attached. Pro Green show is
next week so we have something to look forward to. It is quiet around here. Spring is not
far away. Go leaves. From Jan and the folks at Little Valley
12/25/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hey! How are you feeling? Let me know how things are going with you. I'm worried that I
haven't seen an update in some time. Laurie
11/17/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hi Fer-Kaelie & Louis, WELCOME HOME!!!!!! WE MISSED YOU AND WE LOVE YOUR FARM KITTY
FACES!!!! :) Fer-Reenie
11/13/99
-
SHE'S
HOME!!!!! Mickaela and Louis got in late last night. It was very good to
see them and they will be resting for the weekend. We will update with a message from
Kaela later this week.
11/11/99 -
Happy
Birthday Kaela! Drive Carefully Louis! See ya soon!
11/11/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Oh - it's that National Holiday again...how did your parents ever manage that, I
wonder? We've got a package off in the mail to you...or at least we will as soon as the PO
opens again. Happy Birthday! Pat
11/09/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Somebody's got a birthday coming!! Pat, Joel, Jake & Boomer
11/09/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hi Fer Kalie & Louis, Have A Great Day! Fer Reenie
11/02/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hi FER KAELIE, I hear you are doing great, YIPPY! You are one cool farm kitty! We can't
wait until you are home even though we won't be able to see you for a while it will still
be GOOD to have you home. I bet you and Louis are very excited and of course Mr. Bear
& Mr. Monkey too! Keep sending me e-mails no one else can read my e-mails, so let them
flow...... I love your face, Fer reenie Hi Louis farm kitty, hang in there you guys are
almost home. :)
11/01/99
-
Mickaela is
beginning to be Mickaela again! Louis says she is feeling very strong, she says she feels
very good. She is still sleeping a good part of the day, but that is a good and healthy
thing. We are looking at the target date as the 11th or the 12th. Mickaela thinks she can
talk them into letting her go a few days earlier than that even. Her counts and test
continue to show very rapid and steady progress. She has begun to send jokes out again, as
many of you are probably delighted to see, and that has always been a pretty accurate
marker of how she is feeling. She still has to be very careful not to allow herself to
become vulnerable to anything that might be floating out there. Measles? Mumps? Chicken
Pox? Even a cold could do very bad things still. So keep a good thought that she stays
strong and healthy. Her hair is already starting to come back too. Louis says like a 5:00
shadow.
11/01/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Little Spider monkey head,
sleeps soundly in her bed,
she is getting stronger and
stronger,
from Houston soon she will wander.
Go little spider monkey head go!
Let those new healthy cells grow!
And then in just a
little while,
We will see our precious spider monkey head smile.
Tall and more hairy and
sure
that she has found her cure.
I love you my little spider monkey head.
10/29/99
- (from the guestbook)
Yippee-do-dah!
Hmmmm dmmmmde dmmmmdmmm
10/27/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hi Fer Kaelie, If you can set me up on your funny e-mails I would love to read them. I
can't receive anything with attachment for now but anything else I can. They are coming on
Tues to upgrade something on my computer and I think it has something to do w/internet :)
maybe I will be able to receive attachments then? Hope you farm kitties are doing GREAT.
Keep checking your mail a package is on its way. Oh, your friend Bob Sullivan said to say
"HI". He is going to send you a note. Missing your kitty face, Fer reenie
10/25/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Hi Fer Kaelie & Louis, Almost home free & cancer free!!! Hang in there farm
kitties we love you and miss your faces. fer reenie
10/20/99 - (from the
guestbook)
DAMN it's good to hear you are doing better!!!!!!! I have spent a lot of time on my
knees (praying...don't go there!!) for you and :Louis that you fight the good fight and
come out alright. I am so proud of you....I have never even MET YOU!!! But knowing that we
have a common thread..high school...makes me feel like I am a part of your family...and
you part of mine. I hope to meet you some day,,,no..I WILL meet you one day...and it will
be nice!
I Love you Mick....Mike Evans
10/20/99 - (from the
guestbook)
To The Texas Two,
Yer comin' home soon? Reckon tings ain't quit rite 'til y'all do. The critters be
tended 2 ok i reckon, butt we all missen y'll. me n the mr looken 4word ta wen y'all be
hear in colorady. Yeehaw! we gonna hav a real hum dinger ov a time! Y'all come back now
hear?
Luv, the keeper o' the critters
10/19/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Great News! Your out! Everyone at LVN has been thinking of you. The food thing does not
sound to fun. Hope you can get back to Denver soon.
John
10/19/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Kaela...you are always on my mind...our prayer are working...I wish I could take some
of the pain away!! A big hug to Louis, your guardian angel!! Keep up your good spirits!!!
Much love and prayers, your cousin, Janet XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOXOXOXOXOO
10/18/99
-
She's Free!
Mickaela has been sprung from the hospital. Her counts are slowing coming up, and that is
good. Unfortunately she can not come home just yet, she is still about a month away. She
must go to the hospital every day to have her blood drawn and tested, and she is not
allowed to go pretty much anywhere! Public contact at this point is a definite non-no
because her immune system is still very low. She is susceptible to colds, flu, infection
and just about anything else floating around out there! She can eat no raw vegetables,
uncooked or unprocessed food of any kind for at least 6 months. That includes lettuce on a
sandwich, guacamole, cucumbers - nothing! Can you image how that would change your diet? Otherwise, her spirits are up as well and the emails have once again begun to flow
freely from her laptop. Now especially, please keep those cards and letters coming :)
Remember, no flowers though. 8181 El Mundo Apt. 1303, Houston, TX 77054
10/19/99 - (from the
guestbook)
How's my bossum buddy? It has been so great to have email messages coming through from
you. So have you picked up a texas accent yet? Y'all should take line dancing lessons
while y'all are down there. Do they say y'all down there?!? Anyway I'm still fighting away
and raising awareness anyway I can. That does not include wet tshirt contests. Keep
getting stronger day by day and we will be seeing you soon. Love, Kim
10/14/99
-
Happy
Birthday Ferdy & Chester.
Well sure enough, you can't keep a good Mickaela down! As many of you may have noticed
that your email is beginning to flow again, she is feeling a lot better. There had been a
rumor that she might be released as soon as today, but her doctors want to play it safe
and keep her a few more days. She still has a good month in Houston, so any hope we had of
her coming home before her birthday (Nov. 11th) have all but been dashed. I spoke to her
yesterday, she sounded very tired, but more like Mickaela than I have heard in a while.
Man, it was great to hear her voice! :) I try to stay in touch with Louis on a daily
basis, he has been great about giving me information and keeping me up on the latest
trends and festivities in Houston. He is awesome, and I think I speak for us all when I
say - Thank you Louis - We love you. :^) -
Kaela's counts are coming up slowly, they say the slowness of all of this is because of
the Interluken2. That is the immune building drug that she has been taking throughout this
entire process. So, if it takes a little longer, but the results are more stable, I say go
baby!
Mickaela has really been through a lot. This has been very difficult on her, being without
friends, family and Ena & Chester. Hang in there tootz - it will all be better soon.
Please keep those cards and letters coming, they add quite a bit of cheer to both Kaela
& Lou.
10/14/99 -
(from the guestbook)
Hi Y'all!
Had a festive Birthday party today for Chester, he was a party pooper! Ena enjoyed the
treats Grandma brought, and since the Young Master was not in the mood for his (he tried
to bury it), Ena cheerfully ate his too. She really enjoyed it! This was the first time
Ena has seen Chester since September, She was NOT impressed. All day she gets hissed at,
and now her own brother does it too? What is with them? I am going to take her for a
W-A-L-K soon. (she can read too! Very smart little girl!)
Love & kisses, D Jr.
10/13/99 - (from the
guestbook)
chomp chomp chomp! yum yum! I am eating AlmondaRoca and it is yummy for my tummy but
really sticks to my teeth. Would you like me to send you some? It hasn't ripped out any of
my fillings yet, that is a good thing. PRANCE tried to eat a big spider last night but it
was to fast for her Jim had to relocate him outside. I hope PRANCE isn't loosing her sight
along with her HEARING. HUH? Hope everything is going good with you and Mr Louis, tomorrow
the big day? The big escape? If not it will be very soon so hang in there you strong farm
kitty. I love your face (say "HI" to Louis) Fer Reenie :)
10/13/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Meow-PRPPPRPRPPPR
Kitty-Kisses
10/10/99 - (from the
guestbook)
Faith is the bird that sings to the dawn while it is still dark Kabir
10/9/99
-
Well, the
diagnosis has been changed. They did determine that Mickaela does in fact have Pneumonia.
This is not good, but they do expect this to a certain degree. Her counts are still very
low and last night she got another transfusion. While this very scary, the doctors have
thing under control and are not too freaked out by all of this. MD Anderson is VERY
thorough! Louis has discovered an excellent site that explains a lot of this. As he puts
it, "it is not sugar coated". I visited the site, I did not get comfort, but I
gained knowledge, and that is more important at this point. (http://www.cancerconsultants.com) Go to
Treatment Overviews. The third BULLET point down is a STEM
CELL TRANSPLANTATION. Mickaela's is an Autologous transplant.
This site can answer any questions you may have better than I can. Unfortunately, I have
learned way more than I had ever wanted to know about not only breast cancer, but all
cancers. They are NOT something to mess around with! Learn all you can, and join in the
fight! I have listed a large selection of Cancer Information links on the Metro Mart
Health section (http://www.cmmart/healthinfo/)
10/9/99 - (from the guestbook)
Mommy loves her baby! CBC loves his Nanny-Mommy and Master!
Remember....BREATHE!!!...both of you!
Big Kisssss Big HUggggggg xxxxxx ooooooo
10/9/99 - (from the guestbook)
Hi Kaela & Louis,
Fid got her photos back from Houston and said there are some really good ones of both of
you, can I post them? I will update the photo above. Hang in there my pals, I wish I could
fix all of this.
Love D. jr. (your humble servant) ( | ) hee hee!
10/5/99
-
The
last few days have been VERY difficult for Mickaela. She went to zero Sunday night. She
has been exhausted and too weak to even read email. The IL2 shots she has been taking have
also thinned her blood and platelets, and she has had some nose bleeds. She has also been
coughing and experiencing a bit of congestion, possibly something she picked up here. The
doctors (and Louis) had feared pneumonia, but after 2 X-rays and a CT Scan, her lungs are
clear - of everything! That is great news! For all these think that they would like to
donate blood or platelets for Mickaela, thank you. Unfortunately, these little guys only
last about 24 hours, apparently they need to be harvested and used while they're fairly
fresh. Please keep your emails and cards coming. Louis especially could use a bit of
cheer. It is hard on Kaela, but I can't even imagine how Louis deals with all of this.
Here address again, for those who can send cards (no flowers please): Mickaela
& Louis Ross, 8181 El Mundo #1303, Houston, TX 77054. Keep those cards and
letters coming. :)
9/25/99
-
Yesterday
Louis sent this email:
"...Mickaela is in the process of the first chemo day. It is a festive
cocktail of three drugs. Eight hours total. It is 5:00 here so there is still about four
more hours. One of the drugs dissipates through the skin so it's shower time three times
per day. Here is the short term schedule.
day-7 chemo (today)
day-6 chemo
day-5 chemo
day-4 rest
day-3 rest
day-2 rest
day-1 rest (stem cells are "thawed and activated " in IL-2
day-0 transplant . cells are reintroduced 10-1-99
day+1 to +21 daily IL-2 gets to leave the hospital sometime here.
So far she is doing well , too soon for side-effects??? ....."
If you would
like to send her a get well card (don't forget to put in some plastic spiders or ants - ha
ha) you can send it to Louis & Mickaela Ross,
8181 El Mundo #1303 Houston, TX 77054. Please do
not send flowers, that request is from her doctor. Remember, below you can send her a message, or a private
email at mickaela1@aol.com or to Louis at lcross1@aol.com .
9/23/99
-
After
huge delays, it looks like Mickaela will begin high-dose tomorrow (Friday). They are
admitting her today. This is a very crucial time, the high-dose chemotherapy will take her
to the brink, as far as white cells go. Basically what they are trying to do is kill off
everything! That way when they reintroduce the previously harvested stem cells, they will
grow unimpeded and cancer free. But to get her system that pure, they must irradicate
anything that may pose a threat - blood cells, bone marrow, immune systems, EVERYTHING!
She will not be the girl in the bubble, as we had previously thought, but she will be in
isolation and intensely monitored,
especially for the first week. They are allowing her to have her computer in the room and
Louis will be able to see her ( no contact or unmasked visits). Please keep the good
thoughts and prayers coming. Thank you everyone who has sponsored, donated or decided to
walk with us at the Race for the Cure on October 3rd. There is still time is more would
like to join in. :)
9/07/99
-
They
began the Harvest today. While Kaela is in a lot of pain, Louis says she is doing well.
They harvested the stem cells for about 4 hours this morning, and will continue for
between 3 and 5 days. There is talk of starting the high-dose as early as Monday! I guess
the sooner they start, the sooner she can come home and begin putting her life back
together. Even if they keep her for the two weeks of IL2, she will still make it home by
Halloween. That is one of her favorite holidays. :) Her birthday is November 11th, and we
really want her home before then!
9/02/99
-
Friday
the "garden hose" thingy gets installed. I asked Kaela about all of the obvious
questions, walking, swimming (I doubt it), or sleeping on her stomach. She changed the
subject, so I am guessing that she did not want to think about it too much. Louis says
they are pretty much on-track with the schedule below. Man O Man! Keep those prayers and
good thoughts coming! We are now entering the hardest phase of all of this, once the
harvest is done, the high-dose chemo begins. That will pretty strip her down to nothing.
(The Interluken "IL2" should carry her through all of it. I hope you all can
send stuff to Louis, while she's in the isolation for 3 weeks, he sure will need something
to occupy his very worried mind! We love you Lou & Kaela!
8/25/99
-
Well
beginning Friday the harvest will begin. She will be getting treatments of IL2, an immune
building agent. This will last for 10 days. 4 Days treatments, 2 off, 4 more treatments.
MD Anderson has chosen to hospitalize Kaela for the first set of treatments, they want to
keep an eye on her heart, there are a variety of side effects and they just want to make
sure she's ok. On Sept. 3rd, she will get this nasty catheter for the harvesting
procedure. Louis says they describe the thing as the size of a garden hose! Yuck! On Sept
8th (if all goes well to this point), Mickaela will begin the super high dose chemo, for
which she will be hospitalized for 3 weeks. Barb, one of Kaela's friends who has had the
procedure, says she won't even be aware during that time. We will though. Please keep
those emails, fun jokes and stories coming, especially for Louis during Kaela's hospital
stays. I know he will need reminders of home to keep his spirits up!
8/16/99
-
Kaela's
surgery went smoothly on Friday. She is healing and there is the possibility that the
blood harvesting could resume as soon as next Friday. This is very good news, as we
thought she and Louis might have to be away for as long as a month extra. She will still
have to be in Houston for Halloween and her birthday, but it looks like we may have the
best Thanksgiving ever! Keep the jokes and encouragement coming - it really does make a
difference. Also, Louis needs some cheer too, so if you have some particularly funny
stories, please send them to his email: lcross1@aol.com . I will be contacting each of you within the next month or so to try to "hit
you up" for a donation for the Race For The Cure held in Denver October 3rd.
(Ironically enough, the Race for the Cure is also being held in Houston that same day) Feel free to contact me if you want donate or walk
with us.
8/11/99
-
Well
there has been a slight delay. It seems they will have to do a little surgery before they
can proceed with the harvesting. the people at MD Andersen are very thorough and do not want anything in Kaela's body that could give a false reading or
influence the outcome of her treatment. Therefore, the expander must go. This will delay
her transplant between 1 to 3 weeks. They had believed they would have to remove some
cysts on her ovaries, but those guys just kind of took care of themselves and dissolved. That is excellent news! Meanwhile, she continues to report hot weather
with high humidity, what a lovely combination. Her and Louis' hair must be very fluffy
right about now. She continues testing and preparing for the harvest. On Friday the 13th
(always a lucky day for our family - no really!) she will undergo surgery at 7:30 am. Keep
her in your thoughts and prayers, and keep those jokes coming, it can get pretty boring in
Texas for Louis with not much to do!
8/06/99
-
It's
a go! Mickaela will begin the transplant process next Friday and she will be in Houston
until October 28th. While this is an incredibly long time to be without our charming
little Mickaela, the fact that she can proceed is a very good thing. Her tumor markers are
lower, and that is good. She hasn't exactly shown progress as far as the cancer
receding, but no progression is really just as good at this point. She will not be able to
respond so much to the great emails and messages sent for a little while as they are going
to be spending the next week or so trying to settle in. Please, keep the funny emails,
jokes and stories coming! Thanks.
8/03/99
-
Well
testing is the word for the next couple of days. Kaela and Louis won't know whether or not
it is a go until Monday. She said it is very hot out there. Please send her emails, she
wasn't sure if she had all of her addresses on the new system. I forwarded the email I
sent, but I may have missed one or two of you. I apologize if I had. I'll send more on
Monday.
7/31/99
-
Kaela
& Louis left today for Houston. They will know more about how long and what direction
her treatment will take by midweek. Please, keep all the jokes and funny emails coming.
7/29/99
-
Hi all. Mickaela is leaving for Houston on Friday. She will be gone for what we are all
estimating to be about 2 months. She will undergo extensive testing until the 9th, at
which time we expect to know if she can proceed or not. If not, she most likely would have
to return and go through another round of chemo. We're all hoping that's not the case. If
all appears to be good and the cancer has either stopped growing or even (dare we hope)
receded, she will proceed with the bone-marrow transplant.
We, her family have been very anxious about this because not having her here for 2
months is just unbearable. But PrimaDonna from the Tom Martino
Show and Mark Hope from Action Computers have
donated a laptop computer for her to take to Houston and be able to stay in touch. I can
not thank these kind and generous souls enough and I am touched by this total act of
kindness. Thanks Donna & Mark. Kaela will be able to receive your emails, so please,
keep the funnies coming! I will receive info as it comes and pass it on.
