Big A

An eye exam is required to get into this drug trial. Aaron wasn't able to begin the new treatment last week because he needs an MRI and that MRI got scheduled the end of this week and then we had a blessing that got that appointment moved up to tomorrow. I am a little nervous about this MRI because a lot of drug trials are picky about cancer activity in the brain. The drug trial he did two years ago kicked him out when they saw a spot on his brain. Aaron's cancer has moved to the brain, we saw this on the last MRI, but this drug trial will compare tomorrow's MRI with the one he had the end of July and if the cancer seems stable we can go ahead with the treatment this Thursday. The past few weeks have been a good reminder to me to practice " being still ". Other then that I think we have all the other tests completed to qualify.

Thank you for your prayers and fasting and words of love and encouragement. We have most definitely felt the power of your faith. Aaron doesn't have the genetic marker we were most hoping for (MET) but he does have the marker that qualifies him for the drug trial at Huntsman. We are grateful he has an option besides chemo. Aaron will be the only person in Utah in the drug trial and the doctor is really excited about it. In the Petri dish, in mice, and in theory this treatment works, but the real test will be if it works in Aaron. We are about finished with all the requirements to get into the study (scans, eye exam, blood tests, etc) and he will begin this Thursday. He does have to have another lung biopsy shortly after he begins and then again at the end when he shows signs of progression on the drug. My hope is this drug will work and work long enough for there to be another good option besides chemo. Maybe in the meantime Aaron will develop MET (because it is an acquired genet...

This is Aaron's sister Alison posting. Last week on Tuesday morning, Aaron had a lung biopsy done.  Like his previous biopsy, this one also resulted in a collapsed lung. He was in quite a bit of pain that day and through the night. On Wednesday his lung was able to seal itself, and he was able to come home Wednesday night. Aaron deals with his pain such a quiet way. He doesn't complain, he just bears it. And I don't know how, but he manages to think of others when he's suffering himself. I'm sure I don't need to tell you all how remarkable he is! There's no one quite like Aaron. Lorraine texted the family today with a request that we pray and fast for Aaron. We felt that there would be many people out there who would like to join with us, so we'd like to share the invitation to all who would like to join in a special fast for Aaron this weekend.  Here is part of Lorraine's text: "I don't know for certain what to ask everyone to pr...

Aaron had his first scans since starting the immunotherapy drug Keytruda. The results aren't good. There has been a definite increase in tumor size and quantity. The report says there are innumerable tumors in the lungs as opposed to the couple that we have been watching. It's also in the bones and lymph nodes. He didn't have an MRI and so we don't know what the cancer looks like in his brain. Most likely there is more there too. This report is surprising to us because Aaron has been feeling better these days. We are hopeful he can get a needle biopsy this week and praying it doesn't collapse his lung like it did after the last biopsy. Drug trials are our only option at this time, and we can't really move on any trials because they all require a washout period (usually 4 weeks) and this biopsy, which can take up to three weeks to get the results. We hope to have the drug trials researched and one chosen so when the results are in we can move quickly into a new...

June 9th at Aaron's youngest sister's wedding. It seems like things keep changing faster than I can keep up. Aaron started a new chemo, Gemzar, in April, but after two months of it, scans showed there was definite cancer progression in his lungs. He then completed the four week washout period (a specified amount of time you have to be off all cancer treatment drugs in order to qualify for certain drug trials) and then decided that instead of a drug trial consisting of two immunotherapy drugs combined, he would stick with the one immunotherapy drug, Keytruda ( Pembrolizumab ) that is as simple as going to the dr. office and running it through his port. The drug trial required a total of three needle biopsies over the course of his treatment. His biopsy,about two years ago, was painful and went from an outpatient procedure to a week-long stay at Huntsman Cancer Center. Drug trials also require a lot more dr. visits and tests, and in the case of the Huntsman drug trial a lot m...

Aaron face times with his parents (they are serving a one year mission at the  New Zealand MTC)  about his options for his next treatment. Aaron has consulted with five oncologists and the good news is he still has multiple options. He can choose between two chemos from different families than he has used before and three drug trials. We have a few concerns about the drug trials. First, they all require a needle biopsy and the last one Aaron had caused his lung to collapse and landed him in the hospital for a week. Second, he doesn't have a tumor large enough to get a good sample. Third, we would have to potentially wait for two weeks for results of the biopsy and another week before starting a drug trial. Since Aaron has not received any treatment for his cancer for nearly two months he has opted to do another chemo. He will start next week. We are hoping this chemo will help him feel well enough to do a needle biopsy and lay the groundwork for doing a drug trial (we w...

MRI a.k.a.Aaron as a Storm Trooper  Aaron had his scans on Wednesday and the results are not what we thought. I guess that "knocking on wood" business doesn't really work. Aaron met with two of his oncologists yesterday to discuss his scans and his next treatment.  In the brain, there is a spot that indicates a small stroke. The kidneys appear to be stressed from the chemo and some cancerous nodules in the lungs appear to have increased in size. It has been 5 weeks since Aaron has had any treatment and my simple way of seeing things says to just go back to what he was doing and this will resolve (I would suggest taking out the most toxic of the two chemos), but his doctors don't agree. Aaron will fly to Colorado this week to discuss his options with his dr there. If there is a promising drug trial Aaron should be able to start immediately as all drug trials require a "wash out" period of three weeks (meaning treatment-free for at least three weeks)....