Victor's Progress: Update 7/29

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Update 7/29

Vic is almost totally bedridden. He is very weak but his mind is still very strong. His nights have been same for the past few days with waking every 2 hours for his medications. He has been put on an automatic pain killer pump, which he can control when he needs more pain relief. I am in charge of giving him his nausea, blood pressure, heart rate, diabetes and blood clot thinner medications. And basically keeping him comfortable. He was also put on a stomach pump to continually drain his stomach. His nurse came today to adjust it and so far he seems a little better with his nausea. We'll have to wait until tonight for the real test. Night time seems to be the worst for him.

Barbara

2 comments:

Linda AdamsJuly 30, 2009 at 8:34 AM
Dear Barbara and Vic and family,
I guess once the surgery was over, we all kind of knew what was coming. It just does not seem fair because Victor has touched the lives of so many people and cares so deeply. We are all blesseed because of knowing him. He is so caring and compassionate for people and life. I fly down to visit mom on the 31st for one week in Florida. I guess Victor is teaching us an important lesson. That lesson is to cherish every moment with family and friends and utilize the time we have wisely. I do that now with mom by spending as much time possible with her in Florida. I will update her on Vics condition. Think we all need to pray now for what is best for Vic and be grateful that he touched our lives. We love you..
Eva, Cathy and Linda
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CherellJuly 30, 2009 at 4:26 PM
Barbara and Family,

Words can't express the amount of empathy I feel for you and your family during this time. I want you to know that I am praying for you all. God doesn't make mistakes and from what I can see and feel from the love on this blog, Victor was an incredible person, who was loving, caring, strong and optimistic. Who could ask for more? People like that are designed for a purpose, to warmth the hearts of those around them and leave behind a memory that will strengthen and inspire for a lifetime. I am personally touched... for that, I thank you Victor.

Sincerely,
Cherell
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Vic's Story

As you may or may not know, Victor Barrales was diagnosed with colon cancer in April 2007.

His first surgery was on May 10, 2007 and it was believed that all of the cancer was removed but to improve his chances on a full recovery, chemotherapy treatment was advised for 6 months after the surgery.The chemotherapy drugs proved very detrimental to Vic’s health. He became very ill from the first treatment and had to be treated at the Sparta Cancer Center daily with intravenous infusions. His white cell count dropped extremely low and was prone to severe infections.

After his 10th chemo treatment, he was rushed to Newton Memorial Hospital with a very high pulse rate and the physicians at the hospital believed he was having a heart attack. It was determined by Vic’s cardiologist that the one form of chemo was causing this problem. He then decided to stop the chemotherapy and his first cancer marker test numbers came back normal. However, another test was taken in early January 2008 and the numbers came back unbelievably high indicating that the cancer had spread.

At the same time, a “lump” was discovered in the back of Victor’s leg and again, he had to have surgery to remove it. This, Thank God, proved to be noncancerous. Victor’s cancer marker test numbers, however, were now going up almost on a weekly basis. He went to see a new oncologist at the Carol Simon Cancer Center in Morristown and went through several Cat Scans. It was discovered that his cancer had indeed spread and was now in his peritoneal lining. He was immediately started on new types of chemotherapy with the hopes that this new cancer was caught early enough. This chemo did even more havoc to Vic’s body. He had to be hospitalized each time he was infused, sometimes twice in a month. He also came down with serious infections from one of the chemo drugs, which meant more surgery in August and again in December.

Now, Victor has been told that there is a surgery to help stop the spread of his cancer, but it is only performed by 4 doctors. Two doctors are located in Baltimore, one in Washington, DC and the other in California. This is very serious surgery, taking as long as 14 hours to perform and up to 21 days in the hospital. Complete recovery will be about 6 months. If the surgery is successful, it would mean not having to get chemo treatments unless the cancer returns.

Victor has been scheduled for this surgery (Cytoreductive) on April 14, 2009 by Dr. Sardi with Mercy Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. His latest Scans have shown that the cancer is showing in the surface of his liver but is still contained to the right side of his abdomen. We expect to be in Baltimore for a minimum of 3 weeks.

Victor's Progress

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Update 7/29

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