You know what the worst part of writing these darn blog updates is? The first sentence! For those of you who know me well, you know that I never address anyone formally. Its usually more like a “cat call” or some smartass comment! I will attempt to provide another update for everyone below : )

After our last set of scans at the end of May, we as a family, were pretty frustrated with Winship Cancer Institute (Emory) so we decided to switch treatment providers. I am currently undergoing treatment at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Newnan, GA. I can honestly say that CTCA is INCREDIBLE. Their staff is amazing, they have an organic cafeteria (food is phenomenal), and they offer a plethora of services that the average treatment centers do not. CTCA specializes in advanced cases and they focus on healing the patient by way of mind, body, and spirit. As a part of their services, they offer naturopathic medicinal treatments. For each patient, the doctor will evaluate the case and will recommend a variety of herbal remedies (among other things)  that can assist the body in repairing itself from the inside out; a holistic approach if you will. I could not be happier about this because I personally have been taking my diet and supplements very seriously over the last 15 months. A lot of the alternative treatments combined with traditional chemotherapy have proven to be very effective.

Now for the meat and potatoes, the CT scan results from yesterday showed only very little thickening of the primary tumor in my stomach. This is GREAT news considering that I have had some pain in my left side for about 3 weeks now. I try to be as tough as possible mentally, but It is extremely challenging to NOT let your mind go to the wrong places and have negative thoughts after you have been diagnosed with cancer. The scan results showed NO metastasis in my bones, lungs, or other organs.

So what are my next steps? My oncologist at CTCA has recommended that we try another chemo named Irinotecan combined with Fluorouracil (bring the fanny pack back) for the next few cycles (8 Weeks) and then I will get reassessed. In the meantime, I am still speaking with the specialists at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore for treatment options. As of now, I will be travelling up there again the week of 8/12 to meet with a surgical oncologist, radiation oncologist, and medical oncologist. Will definitely keep everyone posted on the outcome of the meetings.

On a much lighter note, we have Parker’s bachelor party and wedding coming up, football season right around the corner, a few birthdays…AND last but not least, Baby Boy Blanchard coming on 11/21!

I am looking forward to the sunny days ahead.

With Love,

HB