Hi everybody. I hope your weekend is going well. Not much change here- still tubeless which has been great for comfort and mobility. Mon through Friday, I go to radiation at 8 am and out by 8:30. No side effects-I guess this is accumulative so maybe worse later. The chemo is 2 pills per day so that was easy. Then off for the weekend. Some days I feel like I have nothing and others not so good. I'm about 1/2 way through the treatment now but I'm sure to be stopped or take a break by 3/14 when Matt is getting married. That's it for now so take care all. Thanks again for all of your cards,e-mails, calls, and the prayers. Rutt

Hi from Florida. Well, where do I start. I've been on pill for chemo-1 am, then 1pm- for about 2 weeks and no side effects-so far. Also, I go to radiation mon thru fri at 8 am-it takes about 8 minutes each time. I do nothing Sat and sun. On last Wed we went to Tampa General to have the tubes internalized. The doc said he was able to get 2 8mm stints in the ducts but it took some work. He asked me if I remember "coming of the table and almost hitting him". I told him NO, I'm sorry. He said he might have hit a nerve while I was out. He said he beat me up inside pretty good but better for the long run. So, all the bandages are off and I have 2 bullet holes in my belly (what's left of it) to show for it. Feeling better every day-hoping for a great summer. Thanks again for all of your cards, e-mails, calls and mostly your prayers-they're working, THANKS I wish I had all of your e-mail addresses so I can respond. Tina, in ICU, thanks for the note and helping me. Well, That's all for now. I hope everyone is well and happy and remember-don't sweat the small stuff. "Tubeless in Cape Coral", Rutt

Hi Everyone from Cape Coral, Florida. Well, I just took my first chemo pill and instantly, my hair fell out- oh, thats right, I didn't have any, never mind. So far so good with the radiation and chemo. No side effects, yet, we'll see. We go to Tampa this Wed to have the tubes "internalized" so that will help with mobility and comfort. More later, Rutt

Hi Everyboby, TGIF right. Just quick update- started radiation 2 days ago. Gave me a nice glow-just kidding. Starting chemo on Monday. Than Wed, going back to Tampa to have the tubes put back inside. Hi to all and thanks for the cards,e-mails,calls, and mostly the prayers. Love to all, Rutt

Hi Y'all from the south. I hope this update finds you well. Well, where do we begin. The last time we blogged, I mentioned we were going to keep the "outside tubes" because we could keep them clean better than internalizing them. BUT, We had to keep flushing them twice a day to keep them open. The docs also said that if I got a fever over 101, to head for the ER. So Tues night I hit 103 and we headed for the Ft Myers ER. Flushing the tubes can cause infection. The Ft Myers hospitals are swamped with snowbirds so we waited for ever and spent 2 nights before we got released so we could go back to Tampa where they know the "ins and outs of the tubes" ( how's that for a pun). We drove up to Tampa Thurs afternoon and spent the night for an early appointment to replace the old tubes then we went home same day. The good news is that the docs think plastic covered tubes can be used for internalizing both tubes. The success rate of the tubes staying clear after 1 year is 95 %. This means I can be more mobile, less pain, less chance of future infections, and a better quality of life. So, That's it for now. Thanks again to all of our friends-all of your cards, calls, e-mails, and most of all- your prayers. They mean SO much. God bless, The Rutts

Hi everybody. We hope this blog finds you happy and healthy. We went to Tampa to have the external tubes "internalized" but the docs decided to keep them on the outside for now. We got to Tampa every 4 to 6 weeks to have them changed. The thinking is that when we change them, maybe we can keep them open and draining better. We see the oncoligist on Tues but we don't expect much- The written info doesn't show much improvement for the discomfort chemo causes. If we can keep the drains open, the options look unlimited but if we internalize them, they could re-block causing a bigger problem later. Thats it for now. Thanks again for all of your support, prayers, cards,e-mails, and calls- it is always great to hear your voices. Bye for now, be safe and stay healthy. The Rutts

Well, Here's the latest. We just got a call from the docs in Tampa and we are going this Friday to get the drainage tubes "internalized" so we don't have to mess with them anymore. We are meeting next Tues with the Oncologist to see what the options are for the future. Thanks again for all of the support through prayers, e-mails, cards and calls. Debbie has sent all of our records to the Mayo clinic in Jacksonville to see if they can help and we continue to look for options. Thanks again for the support as we keep praying for a miracle. The Rutts