Never a dull moment

Hello all

Well I'm doing fine. I'm now nearly a month out from the stereotactic radiation treatments and doing well. I've been very pleased with how few side effects I've had and have resumed my normal activity schedule. My weight lifting coach has declared me 100% which is great, though with that has come stepped up workouts with heavier weights. I continue with my three infusions/week of one Iscador (mistletoe) on Tuesdays and two IV Vitamin C on Wednesdays and Thursdays. These will continue for awhile yet (6–12 months). March 7 is my next CT scan and I travel to Casper for my appointment with my radiation oncologist March 10.

The unexpected news this time though is regarding my husband Dave. On the return trip home from a board meeting in DC Thursday Feb. 10, Dave was unable to get off the plane in DIA (Denver, CO) because of severe back pain. He was transported to a Denver hospital where, after an MRI and an aspiration of the inflamed area between L2 and L3, the spine specialist, neurologist, and infectious disease docs determined discitis caused by a gram positive cocci bacteria from either oral or intestinal origin that opportunistically found a place in the spinal disc to set up shop. They see five or six cases of discitis a year at Rose Medical in Denver. He started on IV antibiotics Saturday evening. He now is medically stable with the infection in his disc responding well and on Thursday February 17, he was moved to a long term acute care facility near Ft Collins, CO.

Dave's case is considered medically complex but very curable. He has a PICC line for the IV antibiotics, and will be on this for at least six weeks. He still has a lot of pain but is now on oral pain medication and off the morphine pump. He can move his arms and legs in the bed, but still cannot sit or stand, which puts weight on his spine, for long periods. We skyped this past Sunday and his spirits are up as he is able to do more and feel more connected. It will take some time to for the swelling in the disc to reduce and this is what requires the long term acute care and pain management.

Because it's unpredictable how quickly someone will heal from discitis, we don't know when Dave can return home (I've heard anywhere from 1 week to the end of March). When he comes home, he needs to be ambulatory and able to do daily living tasks. He can do the IV antibiotic treatments at home.

His sister is the primary family contact in CO, and lives in Ft Collins. She has been visiting everyday and his nieces are also frequent visitors. We also have friends in the area who are very involved and very helpful.

Meanwhile, I'm holding down the ranch here in Wyoming and so grateful that I feel as well as I do. Plowed the driveway again Sunday though this time only 4" of snow. Got plenty of firewood and the border collie is excellent company.

all the best, Leslie


Life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.
~Grandma Moses