Casey has responded very well to his Chemo treatment. He’s had some nausea and fatigue but overall he’s done much better than we expected. He rested for most of the weekend besides a few incidents where he was being stubborn and he’s been keeping up with his 6 bottles of water a day. He’ll have his check up with Dr. Atluri tomorrow, and we hope it will be all good news and he won’t have to go back until June for his first round of surveillance.
We met with Dr. Jordan, a fertility specialist, today. The news was mixed, neither good nor bad. She’d like us to wait for another 3-4 months and have Casey tested again to determine if he really does have low concentration and motility before we make a decision. She believes that the surgery and the cancer could have had a negative impact on his sperm count. He will go back at the end of March to be tested again. If his counts remain the same our only option would be In Vitro Fertilization or IVF. This is a 6 week long process where eggs are removed from the body and fertilized in a lab, then implanted back into the body. There is a little more than 60% success rate in women under 30. The only bad thing about this option is the price tag. It would cost $12k. My insurance would cover $5k of it. We’re hopeful that it’s possible that he may recover from the surgery and chemo possibly return to a higher concentration and motility rate and have the option of insemination which is much cheaper. It’s another one of those wait and see periods.
However, we have lots of good things coming up in the next few weeks. Every year we throw a Christmas Party with one of my coworkers. We’ll be having the Christmas Party this Saturday! It’s usually lots of fun, food and a great game of dirty santa! I can’t wait! Plus, My Mom and sister and her fiancé are coming to visit on the 16th. I’m very excited to see them. I ‘m usually lucky if I get to see my family once a year around Christmas since they all live in Ohio but we weren’t sure Casey would be able to travel so my family is coming to visit for a week and will leave a few days before Christmas. We traditionally spend Christmas Eve with Casey’s family and take a flight to Ohio on Christmas Day to be with my family. So, while it’s a detour from our usual plans we’ll both get to see our families for the holidays. I’m looking forward to their visit, I’m not sure if Casey would say the same! They are quite the whirlwind!
We’ve almost finished our Christmas shopping. One of the things I look forward to each year is our tradition of adopting a senior citizen for Christmas. Our person this year lives in a group home and has many health problems. With some help from my Mom and some very thrifty shopping, we were able to buy her everything on her list including a winter coat and a cd player. I feel lucky that we’re able to do this and we hope to continue this tradition every year.
As the year winds down and we celebrate the holidays we are just so very thankful for everything we have and all the great people we have in our lives. I’m still working on learning to hope and look forward to the future with optimism but I’m slowly working on it.
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We’re all sending you our best, Casey. Rest up!
My prayers are with you and Casey. Thank you for your amazing attitude. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas,
Cami
Thanks Cami! Just being able to experience Christmas as well as other events here on down the road makes this all worthwhile! Some people don’t get that lucky with their diagnosis.
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