Go Steve - Steve's Updates

Updates from Steve’s cancer-free life

January 4, 2006

(mom [carla])

Filed under: chemotherapy — Tags: , , , , , — By steve @ 6:34 am

Steve began his last course of chemo last night. Hopefully it will really be his LAST!! It was delayed because of mucositis (mouth sores and infection). This last course went somewhat smoother than the previous ones so we are hopeful about this one. He also went to the prosthetist and began the preliminary measurements for his prosthetic leg. Exciting!!

Steve was able to be out of the hospital over Christmas even though he wasn’t feeling the best. Christmas Eve Libby & Steve were with the Gruber’s and Christmas Day our whole family was together at Kathy & Chadd’s. Several ATO brothers and other friends have visited lately and Steve really enjoyed seeing you. Thanks also for the Christmas greetings.

Libby will be starting this semester back at NDSU so things will be more complicated for appointments, etc. Our “little angel” will be missed alot when she is not in Minneapolis, but hopefully it won’t be too long until Steve can return to Fargo and travel back and forth for medical appointments.

December 7, 2005

(mom [carla])

Filed under: chemotherapy — Tags: — By steve @ 6:33 am

Things are on an upswing now–comparatively speaking. Steve has managed to stay out of the hospital–bloodwork is good–no intravenous fluids needed–mouth sores are healing. Yeah!!!

November 14, 2005

(mom [carla])

Filed under: chemotherapy — Tags: , — By steve @ 6:25 am

Chemo is delayed because of extreme mouth sores and mucositis. Steve is miserable!!

October 7, 2005

(lib)

Filed under: chemotherapy — Tags: , , , , , , , — By steve @ 6:20 am

The past two weeks have gone by with hardly a problem. The chemo drug Steve received in mid-September (called Cisplatin) knocked him out, but the last two weeks Steve has gotten Methotrexate, which is pretty easy for him to take – the only side-effect being possible mouth sores and a little nausea. After Cisplatin Steve stared losing the bit of hair he got back after surgery, so his mom got the honor of shaving his head! Not an easy task, let me tell you.

Steve got to spend about 5 days at home, where he got to know our new cat, Persnickity aka Percy. He is the friendliest cat he’s ever seen, and he even likes to play fetch! He likes Llibby best tho. We ate pizza, tacos and ice cream: Steve has been steadily gaining weight back, however he is still 30 lbs less than when he came to the hospital in April.

We’re currently in the hospital awaiting discharge, and hope to spend the weekend relaxing before Cisplatin starts again Monday. We’ve been on a different floor than usual, 7D. This is a change of scenery from bright colors and crying babies that we had before on the Children’s floor. We even had a quiet roomate up here.

Every day seems to be getting more normal, but we still have a long road to go. We’re both excited for the GoSteve fundraiser this weekend and will be with you in spirit on that day. We listened to the radio spot on Froggy 99.com and were impressed that the event is getting such good coverage. Thanks Brandon, Stacy and Liz! And thanks to all those who helped out!

May 28, 2005

(from Ben Crockett)

Filed under: chemotherapy — Tags: , , , , , — By steve @ 4:02 pm

Wednesday, May 25th – Saturday, May 28th:

When I got there Wednesday Steve was feeling pretty much normal, aside from being stuck in his bed that is. On Thursday, Steve’s mom had to go back home. That night he started chemo again. He was warned about the posibility of developing mouth and throat sores with this batch. He has to take good care of his mouth and brush his teeth often. They also have him drink some not so tasty medicines to coat his throat every four hours. He felt a little queazy when they initially started the chemo but didn’t have much trouble sleeping. On Friday, he still felt really good. He felt very little mouth or throat irritation, and hasn’t thrown up for several days. They are starting to cut back on his IV and he is regaining his appetite. He had some pizza and chicken yesterday. When I left today (Saturday), he was still feeling good. So, things are looking up for now. He will have chemo again next Thursday and that will complete his first “round”.