Oh where, oh where have I been???

It's been a very strange two years. Two years of my life that at times seemed to drag and absolutely stand still - and two years that went by all too fast. Too fast to grab the rail of life as it twirled me from hope to despair back to hope.

My last post was full of hope. Hope that John's cancer would be arrested and we could get on with our lives. Well, that simply was not to be.

After he underwent his second surgery at MD Anderson, he went back to Houston two months later and underwent an 8 week regimen of concurrent chemo and radiation. Brutal.  But, he never complained.  He never said, this isn't fair.  He never told me he was in any pain.  He just smiled and said he was good.  Liar.

John came home from Houston July 4th weekend and looked good.  He was eating food and feeling energetic. We believed the cancer was gone.  Liar...the cancer lied.

In September he began having strange spasms. We would find him on the floor sitting up or laying down. When we asked him why he was on the floor, he said he was tired and just wanted to lay down.  Say WHAT?? The occurrences were not regular, but on one occasion, we witnessed it and it scared me.

After spending almost a week in the hospital, where he was mis diagnosed with seizures, I began to suspicion the tumor was on the move. That was confirmed when the spasms began more frequently.

John was scheduled for his 6 month check at MD Anderson in November and while in the plane, he had a violent spasm.  The pilot called for an ambulance upon arrival and we were whisked to MD Anderson.

5 days later, after numerous tests and teams, the cancer team came in, read his charts, reviewed the scans and gave us the news that the tumor was back and had once again wrapped around his carotdid artery.  He could have no more surgery and no more radiation or chemo. Basically, there was nothing they could do...except....

The head of the Oncology Department called right after we received the grim news and offered John immunotherapy.  We went home with our directions to call John's oncologist. We had to wait an agonizing 5 weeks before treatments could begin.

January 11, John started immunotherapy.  But...wait!  2017 rolled us into 1 incredible year.