The last couple weeks have been challenging for us. We have enjoyed some great celebrations around Katie's 14th birthday, along with Aaron's first football game of the season and the end of summer. But we have also received more discouraging news regarding Katie's disease. It is a daily struggle to find balance.
We originally started this blog to keep family and friends informed of what was going on with Katie and to avoid answering dozens of texts and phone calls. It then morphed into a journal of sorts, at times allowing us to share some of the emotions and questions we wrestle with. It has been both helpful and healing in those respects. God has used it in some mighty ways. But for a variety of reasons, we feel like we need to change our approach to the blog at this time. When Jesus was preparing to go to the Cross, he took his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane and told them, "Sit here while I pray." He then went a little farther with his closest friends where he experienced more distress and trouble. As his soul became overwhelmed, he said to these friends, "Stay here and keep watch," and Jesus went on even farther. At varying levels of this garden, his friends were to wait and pray while he continued on. This is what we ask you to do as well. We must keep going farther, but we ask you to stay and pray. At this time, we respectfully ask that you don't press us for details. Suffice it to say that we need your prayers. Many of you have been faithful and fervent in your prayers for us. Thank you! Continue to care for us, think and pray for us, hope for us. Smile, hug, encourage, be present. We may not be updating the blog as frequently as we have been, but our prayer remains the same: that God would see fit to heal our Katie. Until we update again, we simply ask that you join us in praying toward that end. Thanks for going so far with us. Thanks for staying and praying. Blessings, Chad and Sarah and the Cobb 7
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Last Thursday was the first day back to school for our kids. We have two in high school, two in elementary school and a preschooler. I guess the middle school gets a reprieve from the Cobbs for this year.
Katie started her freshman year with the rest of her peers. It was a long day for sure, but she hung in there. She continues to show us what courage really looks like ... one day at a time. She plans to be in school as much as possible, although we will continue to make frequent trips to Cincinnati. Immunotherapy does not lower her ability to fight infections but the newly added medication may, so we will continue to monitor her white blood cell counts and adjust accordingly. She is very social and driven, so it's important to her to be in school. The great thing is that because it is important to her, it is also important to her doctors. They are compassionate to her desires and do their best to make those things possible for her. They are the ones who suggested we go on vacation so that Katie could get her toes in the sand when we didn't think that was an option. They arranged an unscheduled visit last week so that she could get home in time to be ready for her first day. They hug her and sit on the bed with her and look at her pictures. They are such a blessing to us during this ridiculously painful season. We head back to Cincy later this week for a couple appointments on Thursday. She will receive her next immunotherapy infusion as well as planning for proton radiation. If the risk/benefit analysis for radiation is in her favor, we will begin those treatments in early to mid September. All parties involved feel that this is a necessary intervention, and we would like to see it happen sooner rather than later. Some prayer requests: - for endurance for Katie as she goes into each day of school, another day of treatments, and the dreaded experience of radiation. She told Aaron one day that it was like lying on concrete for half an hour. - for endurance for Chad and me. We are trying our best to keep life in our house as normal as possible but the extra weight we carry is exhausting most days and overwhelming the rest. - for the immunotherapy to build momentum as it works in her body. Katie's cancer is very aggressive. We need this therapy to be even more aggressive. Thanks for fighting with us. Blessings, Sarah and Chad and all of Cobb 7 After a couple days of scans and appointments, we came home from Cincinnati with a reality check. We definitely have reasons to celebrate. The improvement in Katie's lungs is incredible. The radiation in conjunction with the Keytruda has done an amazing job of clearing out the numerous nodules invading her lung space. For that we are so grateful. This has allowed Kate to be home, walking, laughing, keeping up with physical therapy and experiencing no visible symptoms.
The scans also reminded us that Katie's cancer is very aggressive. It has not backed down or submitted yet. Outside of the lungs, there is still very strong evidence of the Hodgkins. The next step will be to add another agent to be taken at home which may augment the immunotherapy. We also plan to go back to the proton radiation (the more precise radiation which was postponed previously) in the next few weeks. In the meantime, Katie will be enjoying the last couple weeks of summer before starting her freshman year at Winfield High School. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. . . So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9, 18) We don't know about tomorrow, but today can still be a good day. We continue to pray for complete healing for Katie. Blessings, Sarah and Chad and the rest of Cobb 7 |
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