Radiation is Hard

Dennis will pass the half-way point with radiation today.  He has 13 treatments left.  It has been a difficult time with this round of treatments.

Radiation was hard last time but it has been awhile since that last round and you tend to forget the specifics until you are in the midst of them.  Last time he had radiation he was also on a trial drug and chemotherapy.  We had hoped with him only being on radiation that it would not be so hard this time but it is proving to be exhausting.  His treatments have been in the afternoon and he spends much of the morning resting or sleeping.  Often he gets home and does the same in the evening.  He had started a new medication prior to the treatments but he was really struggling with the side effects from it.  It is used to help prevent damage to healthy cells during the treatment but in this case, it was impacting his quality of life so much they decided to not use it.  They have done this before and it has been OK so we are comfortable with this decision. 

We are finding that Dennis has little ability to do much beyond going to his appointments and resting.  We are grateful for friends who have offered to help with lawn cutting and some outside projects that need to get done this summer.  I am continuing to work full-time and the addition of these chores was beginning to overwhelm me.  I can’t begin to express my gratitude for our friends who continue to step in and assist us.  You are a blessing in our lives. 

On Sunday Dennis wanted to go to the fireworks at Brat Fest in Madison so after church he took a long nap.  We got to Brat Fest, found a place to put down our blankets and relax and wait for fireworks to start.  Of course we had to have brats, so I made a run to pick up brats for all of us which we enjoyed while we waited for the fireworks.  We enjoyed the fireworks and the time together as a family.  We have learned to plan for activities to include times for rest and not to plan for things that last too long. 

Dennis and Brooklyn at Brat Fest

Please keep praying for us as we go through this.  Pray for Dennis as he completes the radiation that he will have the strength he needs and that it is killing the cancer cells.