January 26, 2017

We wanted to give you all a quick update on yesterday. I received 57 Billion T cells, with half of them being killer T cells. The doctors said this is the best and biggest bag of TIL they’ve ever given! All that to say, things went very very well yesterday. Here’s some pics:

We were able to meet and thank the team that has been working on my cells for the past couple of months. Everyone has to wear gloves and a mask when they come in the room because my immune system is so low right now.

This is me with Dr. Wong and my bag of T cells.

This is me receiving the TIL with the doctor and nurse monitoring. I was constantly monitored through the entire process to make sure things went smoothly.

Today, I’ll start IL-2, which is designed to help those T cells strengthen and mature. The plan is to receive multiple doses over the next five days. The catch is, they will give me as many treatments as my body can handle, meaning that things could start to get a little rough today. So, please, as you continue to pray, pray the things from the last two posts, especially focusing on complete healing and minimal side effects. Thanks so much for being with us, it’s clear to us your prayer and solidarity have made a significant impact!

January 25, 2016

Hello Everyone!

So, today is the day. I’ll receive the T-cells for which I’ve been waiting. Please pray many T-cells have grown, they are highly viable, and that there’s a high ratio of killer T-cells to helper T-cells. All of these contribute to the effectiveness of the treatment.

I’ve been in the hospital for 8 days now and, exactly in line with my request, the side effects have been manageable and mild. So much so, in fact, that it has surprised my doctors and nurses. Now, as we shift to receiving the T-cells and then high dose IL-2 (another drug) there continues to be a high probability for severe side effects. All that to say, continue to pray in these ways:

• My body will recover quickly from treatment.
• The side effects will be manageable and mild.
• The treatment will work.
• My body will be healed completely.

Lastly, this is pretty cheesy but we are feeling very positive this morning and have been singing a little. But, I thought maybe it’d be cool to share a song we’ve been singing. Here’s the song with lyrics:

January 16, 2017

Hello from Houston! Brooklin and I left Cincinnati almost a week ago. We drove down, stopped to see some great people, and arrived on Thursday. I had to spend much of Friday doing prep work at the hospital. But, Friday was also my birthday and it consisted of many of my favorite things – cinnamon rolls, tacos, chocolate cupcakes, friends, and Brooklin. Then, it felt like my birthday continued into the weekend with more tacos, friends, breakout rooms, and football. We’ve been showered with love since we left. See pics below:

Delicious Cinnamon Rolls made by Nanner – notice the empty tray

“Happy Birthday Joey” cupcakes by Nanner

Vampire Tacos!

Escape Room with Garry and Kate

Tomorrow we will start TIL, the treatment we identified as the potential solution when I was first diagnosed 15 months ago. I’ll be admitted into the hospital for 3 weeks or so, after which I’ll be released for about a week, and then I’ll return to the hospital for another 2 weeks. These lengths of stay are rough estimates. The actual length of my stay in the hospital will be determined by how fast my body recovers from the treatment. Brooklin will be staying with me in the hospital room and I’ll have to stay in the hospital for the duration of my time, meaning we have lined up books, TV shows, movies, hobbies, and other routines. Additionally, my family will come down to be with me and a number of friends are planning to visit. My doctors have done their best to make sure we’re prepared for the harsh side effects that normally accompany this treatment. All that to say, we’re expecting a rough month and a half or so but are hopeful this treatment will bring the results for which we’ve all been hoping and praying.

If you are the praying type, we’d really appreciate prayer for the following things:

• My body will recover quickly from treatment.
• The side effects will be manageable and mild.
• The treatment will work.
• My body will be healed completely.

The treatment I’ve been on for the past 6 months continues to shrink the tumors and we will return to that if TIL doesn’t work as we intend. That being said, we have very good reason to believe TIL will work as it has for half of the people who have received this treatment. It’s worth reiterating that “working,” according to the doctors, would mean no longer requiring treatment. In this case, I’d technically still have cancer but it wouldn’t detrimentally affect my life. Of course, we are praying that it works even beyond their expectations and that my cancer will be gone.

With complete healing almost constantly at the forefront of my mind, it’s difficult to not filter all of my experiences through this intention. As I was reading a book on epistemology, I couldn’t help but relate an excerpt to my hopes and prayers. In this excerpt, Esther Lightcap Meek is writing about shalom, a holistic peace that includes resolution, healing, relationship, joy, and peace.

“But the vision of shalom cannot be false, if it is to be itself. We have to really think this in order to seek it. Is it wishful thinking? Yes, definitely. But it is not delusional. It is true – not in the sense of correct, certain information. It is true in the sense of troth. Troth is the old word for a pledge or covenant. We pledge to this vision of life. It is true in the sense of a T-square or a plumbline. This vision brings reality in line with itself…” (A Little Manual for Knowing, pg. 99)

That being said, thank you for entering into this pledge with me since my diagnosis and thank you for continuing to covenant with me for my healing. As I’m sitting in the hospital for the next 6 weeks, please feel free to reach out in any way you’d like.