Family and Friends on the Holidays

Dennis and I celebrated our holidays in Denver this year, sandwiched between doctor's appointments and a visit with a new oncologist, Henry Kaplan, from Swedish Hospital. It was a great visit-we got to see Heather and Erin and Glen, and spend time with them during their days off.

Gary and Debbie Qualls hosted us at their home for the first two days-thanks for all the help re-orienting me to Denver-it was surprising how fast I got around the old neigborhood with their direction....thanks G&D for your freindship & hospitality.

(above) Dennis, Sam and Scott Fitzwilliams from Glenwood Springs

We stayed in Lakewood at a guest room in Erin and Glen's apartment complex-it was handy because it was so easy to get around from there to all points north and south. Traffic in denver has only gotten worse. We got to see friends, some of whom we hadn't seen in as much as 20 years-it was awesome. Thanks to Erin and Glen for arranging it!

Heather has been diagnosed with a schwanoma, a kind of localized cancer of the nerve sheaths in her spine, which is likely benign, but is causing lots of discomfort. She is planning surgery for February. We were extra glad to be able have Dennis and his girls together.

Dennis's visit to the eye doctor in Lynnwood on the way south alerted us to a occluded artery in his left eye, which a retina specialist later took pictures of-apparently it is not blocking the central vision but they want to monitor it in case it expands. The retina doctor said it looked like old blood had pooled there and she chose not to laser it but watch it.

Dennis's new cancer doctor at Swedish Hospital spent a lot of time with us and may end up altering Dennis's temodar chemo regime to a low daily dose. He suggested the retina issue may be from the avastin Dennis received in the clinical trial. All in all it began the new year on a positive note for his treatments. By the time we got home to Alaska we were tired but glad to be in familiar surroundings again. Wishing you all the best in the new year, Dennis and Faith

Holiday Greetings 2011

Happy Holidays everyone!

Well, we are on our way to drier climates and to visit Denver area: Heather, Erin and Glen and a host of friends tomorrow-and we are excited to get off the wet rock. Hope you are enjoying hoidays with families and friends too. Here is Alaska it seems to be raining much of the time, and there have been 5 days of no rain this month so far. We are ready to see the sun.

Dennis is on his second week of oral chemotherapy taking temodar and he is tolerating it well. He knows just what to do, take it in the evening and sleeps. He has been on it before, and there is a week between taking the drug when he can recover by not taking it. On the way south and on the way north we'll be visiting specialists, including a new oncologist that we have high hopes of taking over Dennis's care. We are also working with a local doctor so that he can take his chemo here in Alaska. Thank goodness everyone is working together.

There are lots of adventures planned for for 2012-Dennis is going pig hunting in Texas and I am attending and working at the Mule Deer Fdn camp in Salt Lake City. And, the days are getting longer-thank goodness, we are ready for spring to arrive. Love and best wishes to all of you, Dennis and Faith

Being Thankful 2011

We are here in Alaska enjoying a day off from hectic schedules; Dennis is putting away hunting gear, and I am off of work until Monday. It has snowed some in the morning, and it was 32 degrees F when we called Dennis's mom in Missouri and the girls in Colorado. Everyone we talked to is doing well; Heather was grating cheese for a cauliflower au gratin; in Missouri the temperature was headed for 70 degrees when we called.

On this Thanksgiving, and indeed each day we are thankful for having each other; that the kids are well and happy; that our family and friends are content and doing well; that the larder and freezers are full of the fruits (quite literally for my upright) fishes, game meat and birds of our labors. There's plenty else, and the list could be quite long, but we'll stop there.

As the darkeness falls around 4 pm we are looking forward to the time that daylight will increase instead of decrease. We wish you all the best in the coming season, Dennis and Faith

October through November Hunting trip

Dennis has just returned from his fall hunting trip to the lower 48. I tagged along for the first two weeks-after being with my mom for her 80th birthday. He drove his truck on the Alaska Marine Highway ferry and landed in Bellingham Washington, picking me up at the airport.

We began our adventure with the Daniels in Missoula and their doggie Maggie-then our next step was a terrific trip across Yellowstone country into Wyoming-to the K-Z guest ranch. There I hung out in the pines while Dennis got out hunting for some mule deer-and several rides on his horse, Nevada.

Nevada is now 19 years years old-originally a mustang from Nevada and bound for the Grand Tetons, this wonderful horse came into Dennis's life in 1994 via friend Scott Fitzwilliams. I have never seen such a broad smile as the day Dennis rode off on Nevada to hunt. Our trip to Wyoming and the K-Z was too short and we'll not be as far out of touch as we have been.

I then flew home to Alaska and Dennis went hunting on the lease for Mule deer with friend Orville Daniels-he got a non-typical 4 X 3-a big one-and then some pheasants. After getting the deer in the freezer he had brought in the truck. Dennis drove to the Black Hills and hunted with friends south of Custer, South Dakota for whitetail. Two weeks later he was back home in Alaska. Except for a pesky abcess in his jaw, he has felt fine the entire trip.

He got home just in time for some thick snow and blowing winds. Winter has arrived in southeast Alaska. His next medical step is a trip south next week to go to see his new nuero-oncologist and working with a local GP here in Ketchikan to coordinate chemotherapy. We'll update you when we know more. In the meantime, we are thankful for successful hunts and a safe return.

Our best wishes to all of you for a wonderful Thanksgiving with family around you, Happy holidays, Dennis and Faith

Dennis is going to get a P.E.T.

No, it is not a furry fourlegged one....it stands for Positron Emission Tomography, and it is a way of assessing the glucose uptake, oxygen use, and vascularity of individual cells. A nuclear medicine is added to glucose which is injected as an IV and then pictures are taken in what can only descibed as radiology donut machine smaller than an MRI donut.

Dennis and I have just returned from Seattle, where his latest MRI shows areas near the old tumor site that appear to have dye enhancements called flares. While some have come and gone, and many appear to have disappeared because they were scar tissue from past radiology treatments, this area is suspicious. The P.E.T. scan will determine if these cells are scar tissue or cancer.

In general he feels good. He was sad to see his nuero oncologist Dr. Lynn Taylor leave for Tufts University. She has been heading up his medical team and is one of the finest readers of brain MRIs ever-but Thursday is her last day so today we wished her well with a little Alaska salmon and jam, and then spent the rest of the appointment discussing his treatment options for the future-including how to work avastin treatments around his hunting trips and visits to the lower 48. We both got home to Alaska exhausted, but glad to be home.
Stay tuned, we'll let you know what we hear in a week or so. Keep those prayers and good wishes coming in, Faith and Dennis

September is here and so is Heather!

Youngest daughter Heather is here with her Dad and they have been fishing! So far the weather has given them a reprieve and they have had two good days on the water. Yesterday they saw humpbacks gulping krill, and today one of their lines had a banana peel on it as they pulled it out of the water. That is the way things go here in southeast Alaska. The fisherpersons have decided to sleep in this morning.

They have lots of plans for the rest of the week, we'll keep you updated, Love and cheers from us three!

August: Niece Bobbi Arrives from Utah!

Bobbi arrived for a week's visit-they did the zipline through the rainforest canopy, took a flightseeing trip into the Misty Fiords, went fishing and caught tons of salmon-and basically dodged the raindrops (they had some pretty nice weather days too!)

Meanwhile, I was at work, but did manage to make some kelp pickles and Dennis managed to pick huckleberries. The end of the summer is rapidly approaching.

Dennis is feeling good- as long as he has his naps. He is getting stronger day by day, getting ready for hunting season. I will be meeting up with him in Seattle as he is going down south by Alaska Marine Highway.

Youngest daughter Heather visits in a week so we are looking forward to that lots! More updates soon, Dennis and Faith