They were right...

Cancer sucks.  I've often heard that, now I've got ringside seats.  This is an event ticket I could have done without.  I'm choosing to believe that the Lord, in his infinite wisdom, is gonna sustain me through the days ahead.

The last few days have been a complete roller coaster.  Yesterday, I had to help facilitate some difficult decisions concerning my mother's care.  After 12 days in the same hospital, my parents had more questions than they did answers.  We weren't moving forward.  My mother continued to be in real pain.    We spent all day trying to get her a hospital to hospital transport, but none of the Duke facilities would grant her a bed.  We hit one dead end after another.  Finally, about 5 o'clock we made the call that we were going to allow them to discharge her.  We then put her in my van and drove her the 30 excrutiating minutes to Duke Medical Center, praying that when we presented in the ER they would actually admit her.

I shouldn't have worried about being turned away.  By the time we got there, she was in significant pain and her vital signs were in agreement.  The doctors were concerned and she was admitted.  It was a difficult few hours, but I know we made the right choice and it is already obvious that they are going to be able to give her an excellent standard of care.

Today has been a day of  getting answers.  And the answers weren't what we hoped for.  My mother has terminal cancer.  The scans show multiple lesions on her liver, lungs, and bones.  Pain racks her body.  She is battling pneumonia.

Our goal for the weekend is to minimize her pain until we can get another biopsy on Monday.  This one will be a bone biopsy.  We're hoping it will provide the doctors with answers about the cell type and origin.  This will allow them to begin palatable chemo for the purpose of increasing the quality of her remaining days.

The days ahead will most definitely be a journey.  We appreciate your prayers.