Slow-runner's husband has passed

Trubrit · December 2019

I am copying and pasting Slow-runner's post here, so that we can share our love with her at this time.

My husband just passed on November 27. He was diagnosed in August 2017. He had a tumor in the ascending colon with liver, lung, peritoneal and lymph node involvment. His only symptom was shortness of breath when running and a small pain in his side. Lung mets were small, but did grow but never enough to alarm the doctor. Buck's initial CEA was 1200, the lowest we ever got was 115. Buck had all the therapies, folfox, folfiri, oral meds, chemoembolization to the liver (pretty successful), was on a clinical trial for immunotherapy. Buck developed an intestinal blockage, more like a shutdown, in the Spring of 2019, also a liver abscess. At this time our doc told us we were out of options, suggestioned hospice. Buck was not ready. I prayed so hard for one more summer; he got it. His bowel function returned after a gtube, abscess drain and TPN. He went back on chemo. Buck enjoyed the summer, he had rehabed a shore house we had purchased the winter before being diagnosed and got to spend most of the summer there. In October he basically went into liver failure, his bilirubin was 19, he was sooo orange, some mental changes also. Drains were placed in the liver to bring down the bilirubin but then he started taking on water like the Titanic and that was when he put up the white flag. He would get his abdomen drained weekly but... In November he was in distributive shock, we went to our community hospital (had been getting treatment in the city). Very good experience at the community hospital, Buck went onto hospice service. Our daughter was to be married this December, she got married in his hospital room, it was his last fully conscious day. Buck's passing was so peaceful. He had the chance to have a heart to heart with all our children (all grown). Buck used these past two years to their full advantage. He tolerated chemo so well, yes there were down days but as long as he knew they would be followed by good days, he was okay with that. He saw this disease as a blessing, said it got rid of the noise in his life, blessed that it happened when our kids were grown (3 had gotten married in these 2 years). He truely appreciated every day. Sorry for rambling. What I really wonder is if we had not done the clinical trial would things be different. In my mind I associate the trial with the liver abscess. The liver was doing fine before the trial. We entered the trial to address the lung mets which were not responding to the chemo. I don't know. Not worth questioning. We had great care at Penn, really have no regrets. Was just hoping for more time. In the end, his passing was so peaceful, he was ready.