Answered Prayer

We went to Dad's big appointment on Mon. the 18th. According to the Doctor, my dad's latest catscan reveals that there doesn't seem to be any new tumors and that the original tumors have not grown . The scan shows that there has been extensive scarring on both lungs, due to the radiation. This is to be expected but is the reason for much shortness of breath. The Dr. explained that it is as if my dad has had part of his lungs removed. The scarring also blocks some viewing of the lungs, so we just have to keep a watch on them. We are so thankful that at this point the cancer has not progressed. For now , my dad has a break in treatments & will return in Oct. for follow up.

God continues to uphold us and we are so grateful for the latest news! Thank You for your continued prayers.

Well, it has been a long time since I've updated. Not too much has changed. Dad & Mom were able to make the trip to Wisconsin. It was very tiring, but I think they are glad to have gone. Dad has completed his last chemo treatment & is now dealing with the side effects of being very tired & loss of appetite. He will go back mid August for another scan & meets with the Oncologist for latest results on 8/18. Of course our prayers are that the cancer has decreased instead of increased, and for continued strength for Dad. This has been a very long & hard trial for my parents but God continues to show His love & kindness, for which we our thankful!

"You, O Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light. With your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall. As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. " Psalms 18:28-32

Today was Dad's big appointment and we are so thankful for the work God has done. His latest catscan showed a "considerate decrease" in the size of the enlarged lymphnode and tumor in the lung. Dad's voice has improved incredibly and he doesn't have anymore pain when swallowing. Because he responded so well to treatment, the doctor wants to give him two more chemo treatments (one in the last week of May and one in the last week of June) . They will not be as agressive as the first rounds and he won't be doing radiation along with it. My parents will have to cut short their trip to Wisconsin, but our thankful that they will still be able to go for a little while, if things stay well. Though he still needs prayer for continued healing and strength, today we are so thankful for this encouraging news!!

Wow, I can't believe it's been almost a month since the last posting. Things have been going fairly well the last few weeks. Dad has been very tired but doing pretty good. Then yesterday he went in and found out he now has a 7mm kidney stone. He goes to the Dr. tomorrow morning and hopefully they will be able to break it up so that it will be easier to pass. Him and Mom are still hoping to go to the church retreat for the weekend!!!

On Monday, we saw Dr. Fahrenbaucher. Dad is done with chemo & radiation. He will have a catscan on May 5th and then we will find out what progress has been made on May 13th. Dad is still having burning sensation from the radiation treatments. This should start to let up and hopefully he will start to be able to eat more comfortably. He is pretty weak, but his spirits are still high and is patiently waiting on the Lord thru this. Thankyou all for your continued prayers!

6 more weeks

Vern saw his cancer dr.,Dr. Fahrenbacher, on friday the 28th. He said vern's weakness and the soreness in his throat was still the effects from the chemo and radiation which ended this past monday the 24th but he was bothered that vern had lost 20lbs in a short period of time so he told vern he needed to force himself to eat. It is difficult for vern to even swallow water so please pray that the soreness will soon get better which it should. Next we must wait 5 weeks and than vern will have a ct scan done. A week after that we will see the dr. again and find out the results of all these treatments. We pray for the best which would be a miracle that the cancer be gone. But most important is that God's will be done and that we would accept His decision and bring Him the glory. Vern was able to be at church last week sunday and our hope is he can go again tomorrow. We just wanted to keep all of you updated and thank you all very much again for all your PRAYERS and love. Vern & Pat

Praise God!!

We are down to only 4 more days. Radiation is to be finished by Friday. Dad meets with the oncologist (Dr. Fahrenbaucher) on March 31st, and will have a scan done sometime around then. Our prayer is that the past several weeks of treatment prove to be beneficial. Looking foward to coming back to Bible Study & Church and seeing brothers and sisters in Christ.

Answered Prayer

The radiation machine is fixed and back on track. Dad is down to about 12 more treatments!! Feeling a little icky today, but doing okay and no more weight loss.

The radiation machine is broken again. Dad has not received any radiation since Tuesday. He is to call in Monday morning to see if it is fixed yet. If you are reading this, please pray that the machine will be fixed and there will be no more problems from here on. Each day that he misses a treatment, prolongs the process. Dad is still holding up okay ( still weak, pain when eating) and God is constantly showing His mercy to our family.
1 Peter 1:3-9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you (we) rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith- more precious than gold - that perishes though it is tested by fire- may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

So Tired

Well it seems the effects of chemo are a bit stronger lately. Dad is extremely tired and a little more weak. Radiation treatments are causing severe burning in throat, making it difficult to eat. Still doing pretty good considering and thankful to not have caught any infections (seems everyone else is). Dad enjoyed getting a visit from Grandma Lenore (and Aunt Pat) today. It seems like his voice is a little stonger more often and we are hoping that this is a sign that the lymph node is shrinking or disappearing. Please continue your prayers. God has been so good to us and we are so grateful for His love and mercy that He has consistantly shown us!

just to let you know

Vern finished his last day of chemo today. You can tell he is more tired and weaker but that is to be expected. Radiation will continue everyday but weekends until 3/17. That could change since the machine was down for a few days. The radiation will burn not only the skin like a sunburn but also his insides. God has been very gracious and his skin is fine but his esophagitis (the tube that goes from his mouth to his stomach) has become very irritated and has caused his throat to be sore and he has difficultly swallowing. Would you please pray this won't last long and God would help him tolerate it. As I'm typing he is resting in HIS chair and when I look at him I can only be so thankful to jesus for bringing us together and keeping us together. It will be forty years this May. Vern and I like to say we know the road together isn't over yet but we both know where we will be when it ends and thats in the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thanks again for taking the time to read our updates but most of all for your prayers.

answered prayer

PRAISE THE LORD! The doctor confirmed friday that Vern's white blood cell count is definately higher and that means he will be able to get his last 3 scheduled chemo treatments starting on tues the 19th, 20th & 21st. The doctor also seemed pleased that Vern hasn't had any worse side affects than he's had (loss of hair, tiredness, weakness etc.) This is of course a big encouragement to us & we know without a doubt all this was possible because of all of your prayers & therefore our Lord Jesus Christ gets the praise. Again we just want to say thankyou & we love you all very much. As the song says "Because He lives (we) can face tomorrow." Amen!

Upcoming Appointment

Dad has an appointment Friday at 10:15. We assume we will find out if white blood count has come up. Please pray that it has and that chemotherapy can continue on schedule. Though he has lost his hair (no more mustache either) and is more tired, he seems to be doing well . We are so thankful that he hasn't caught any sort of bug, given his blood count is so low, please pray that continues also. It is such an encouragment to know there are loved ones out there praying!

a few updates

On wednesday the radiation machine was down again so Vern wasn't able to have a treatment again until today. I found out that this is quite common with most of these machines and both his Doctors say everything will be able to be completed within their planned time frame. We received a call on friday from his cancer Dr. Dr. fehrenbacher. Vern needed to come in and start taking injections for 7 days because his white blood cell count is too low and if it doesn't come up they won't be able to start his last round of treatments of chemo beginning on tuesday the 19th, 20th & 21st. His radiation is scheduled to end on march 17. He will be giving himself the injections at home so please pray they will work. As I mentioned before he has lost his hair and continues to be very tired and weak feeling but none of the other side effects have been to intolerable. Please continue to pray for us that God give us the strength to continue walking in His great love and that He be glorified. Thank you all again for your prayers and love. vern and pat

something new

tammy has been kind enough to let vern & I share this blog. We want to thank all of you with all our heart for your care and love for us, especially your prayers. Its true that vern's side effects have been tolerable so far but today he has started losing his hair. I know there's lots of jokes that can be made about this but I can only imagine how it makes him feel about himself. To me he will always be the most handsome man i know and we have been told that it will grow back. We found out that it could even grow back a different color or from straight to curly. The Lord has faithfully guided us through this trial ps 48:18 says "for this is God, our God forever & ever, He will be our guide even to death". For those who don't know part of vern's cancer has affected his voice so please pray that it would be God's will it won't worsen or that it would improve. Vern hasn't been able to attend church or bible study at this time. Chemo kills the good cells in his body too not just the bad cells so he can't take a chance of getting ill, not even a slight cold. He misses fellowshipping and worshiping with all of you very much but we will always remember you in our prayers. Thank you again for loving us. Only God knows the outcome of all his treatments and we want to give Him the glory no matter what His will is. Vern & Pat

Back on Track

Radiation machine is fixed. Dad has been going every day (except Sun) since Friday. He is more & more tired but still holding up well and with few side effects. He is having some stomach issues & a little loss of appetite but nothing too extreme.

So, apparently radiation machine won't be fixed until Friday. Dad will have to come in on Saturdays to make up for missed treatments. Please continue to pray that the machine does indeed get fixed ASAP. He is still doing well (just tired) and this is a big anser to our prayers!
Also, I found out that I was indeed incorrect on my Dad's favorite verse (He tends to quote alot of different ones :) ) He informed me that his favorite verses are :

Romans 8:38,39 - "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord!"

Jer. 9:23,24 - Thus says the Lord, "Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these thinsg," declares the Lord

Broken Machine

As of Friday the radiation machine has been broken, so my Dad has been unable to get his radiation treatment for 2 days. He is to call tomorrow morning to check on the status. So, please pray that the machine gets fixed and that the delay doesn't cause any real problems. Still just tired (more & more lately) but otherwise no big side effects.

Update: finished 3 days of chemo and radiation. So first 3 rounds of chemo is complete. Six more weeks of radiation, combined with 3 more rounds of chemo at end. I am so thankful to God that no sickness and just a little bit of tiredness.

This is a passage that God gave to me for comfort:

Isaiah 43:2 "When you pass thru the waters, I will be with you, and thru the rivers they shall not overflow you. When you walk thru the fire you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. "

I appreciate everyones prayers and will continue to update.

Love, Vern

Day 1

Well, today's appointments went as planned and without any difficulties. The chemo treatment took almost 5 hours and so far just some tiredness and a bit queazy (but medicine seems to help). Tomorrow & Thurs. chemo appointments are at 8:40 in the morning. It is important that Dad avoids catching anything (cold's etc) and so we are trying to be careful about that too! God blessed us with an extremely loving nurse, who took a lot of time to explain everything and we our thankful for that!

Phillippians 4 : 6-9

Be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything is worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice thse things; ant the God of peace shall be with you!

Dear Loved Ones,
Today we saw my dad and as we were online reading a "blog" of another brother who is embarking on chemo & radiation my dad thought it might be a good idea for us to try and do. Now, please forgive me, I have never done a blog and am not quite sure of all that is involved but I will attempt to do this. The main idea is that we can keep you posted as to my dad's treatments and prayer requests.

When I came to this site and it asked for a unique "title" , God brought to mind part of a verse that I have heard my Dad quote so many times that I just assumed (and probably am wrong about) it was his favorite verse. But in writing it out here, I am reminded how God gives us exactly what we need at the right time.

Driving home from our visit, I let fear & worry take control for a while, and then I read His word and am reminded of His grace and am so thankful for the strength and peace that only He can give!

Anyhow, Tomorrow morning is the big day. Radiation at 8:30 and Chemotherapy ( 3 plus hrs) at 11:10. For the next two days, chemo & radiation. For the next 8 weeks daily radiation and 3 more chemo's toward the end.

Please pray for :

* That side effects on Dad's body are minimal
* That our eyes stay focused on Christ
* God will give wisdom to Dr. Shank (radiation) and Dr. Fahrenbaucher (oncologist)
* Strength for my mom
* That the treatment is effective

Thanky you for your support and prayers thus far. I will try to update you regularly :)