Chemo #12

Some of you have seen or heard, but Tom finished what we had hoped would be his final chemo this past week, #12.  Unfortunately, he has at least one more round...potentially several more depending on how the next steps go.  

This entire journey has been a fair amount of up and downs, but this treatment was definitely a downer for both of us.  His weight was down slightly again by 2ish lbs and his CA 19-9 that has been dropping nicely just barely dropped.  It wasn't quite a plateau, it did drop like 6 points from 175 to 169, but still disappointing.  The only positive I can say was that it didn't increase.  Side effects have been a bit worse this time as well and it's hard to tell if it's just the chemo, the cold weather, or mental effects as well.  Tom's been more fatigued, his cold sensitivity in his hands is still lingering (he wears knit gloves at all times currently) and his GI symptoms continue.  His potassium has been low because of the GI symptoms, so they gave IV potassium during his treatment and we've added supplements twice daily.  Potassium is one of those things you definitely don't want too low or high since it supports your heart.    

We are in the process of waiting for approval/denial to transition Tom from his short term disability to his long term disability.  As far as Wells Fargo is concerned, he'll continue to be on disability/unable to work, this determination is by the Lincoln Financial people regarding if he'll get paid 😉  We've also shared with some of you that Tom was encouraged to apply for Social Security Disability because of his diagnosis and it's one of a few that are considered a higher priority because of the survival rate statistics.  Since it was expedited, he has officially been approved and will start receiving SSDI in December.  It also does allow for some income along with the SSDI in the future.  

For those who don't know (which I didn't until Tom's diagnosis) November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness month and it's color is purple!  I'll be sharing some things we've been learning along the way about pancreatic cancer and research that's in the works.  DSM does have a local walk in the Spring PurpleStride Iowa 2026 - Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (and tons of other cities) for anyone who is interested in those things.  

We are otherwise trying to stay the course of "normal"--school, work, extracurriculars, chores, etc.  My brain is admittedly chaos all the time and I rarely know who needs to be where and when...if it's in my calendar, we'll probably show up (late) but there.  If it didn't get added to a calendar, it'll never happen.  Apologies if we miss your call, texts, or visits--I promise we do see them all and will eventually get back to you.  We appreciate all your continued thoughts, prayers, and support.  Fingers crossed for an uneventful week at the Martindale household 

Gratuitous pictures of the dogs 😍

 



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