Kathy just called me! The biopsy showed NO CANCER! BUT...not definitive because they couldn't get to the bottom of the pancreas during the biopsy surgery! The PET Scan will show more. They have just gotten preliminary report. On Monday they will have more conclusive results! The pain in his abdomen they believe is Pancreatitis related to the procedure. Doctor said he had the option of going to the hospital or stay home and manage the pain with meds. Ken opted to go home! This is a miracle and I heard him shouting in the background,"Thank you for all of your prayers!!" Hands were raised as they shouted, "Praise the Lord!" They will have a good weekend! Continue to pray for rest and complete healing!
It's Sherry. Ken just got out of the PET scan and with a smile on his face! He was able to rest in the big comfy chair and rest as the "special drink" went through his system about an hour and a half! Of course, during the scan he continued to pray, quote scriptures, and sing! They have now gone to the other doctor to check on fever and abdominal pain just to play it safe. Kathy and Maggie were able to do a little shopping while he was doing the scan! It did them good to have other scenery! I was there and they all look pretty good and standing strong...all things considered. Kathy told me she was feeling good, I believe her! We had a few laughs while waiting on Ken.
I just now got a text from Kathy and she asked me to post to you all, "We are all much better today after better rest. Ken is still having severe abdominal pain, but it didn't stop him from reading scriptures out loud on the way to the hospital! I had to laugh when he came out of the PET scan and said he was singing praise songs while on the machine! These are the Scriptures we are clinging to: (and she asked me to type them out for you to read!) Blessings to all for you love and prayers, Ken and Kathy Ps. 73:23-26, 28 (NIV) Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my hears and my portion forever vs.28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds. Phil. 3:7-14(NIV) But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him not having a righteousness of my won that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ-yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Psalm 119:72-74(NIV) The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold. Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands. May those who fear you rejoice when they see me,for I have put my hope in your word. It's now 7:30am. I got a quick text from Maggie this morning. She said her dad slept till about 3am and then was in and out but it was better than the other nights. He got out of bed around 5am but went back and laid down till about 6:30. He slept downstairs and Maggie in living room close by so that Kathy could get more rest. They should be headed to the hospital soon for the PET Scan. I forgot to ask about the fever. sorry. I was so excited that he slept! Let you know more as news unfolds.
still praying, Sherry Good morning. It's 6am and I haven't heard anything from the Drakes during the night so I am assuming that Ken's fever didn't spike and no ER visit necessary.
I wanted to remind everyone of the PET scan this morning at 8am (central time). They are also supposed to be receiving the results of the biopsy sometime today, not sure when. Wrap today in big time prayer! We are all still hopeful and praying that unique Ken is in the 5% non-cancerous! Pray like never before for our sweet Ken, Kathy, Maggie, and Mary Elizabeth as they await news. OUR God is a faithful God! I'll let you know more as the day progresses and I hear of news. Pray! and Pray believing! Sherry Just took the Drakes a binder of hard copies of all of your comments, wishes, and comforting words for them to read without going online. It was quite a thick binder! I was able to give K & K a hug and see for myself how they seem to be holding up. Ken is still having some abdominal pain. They have stayed in touch with Dr. McDonald's nurse and another doctor and doesn't think this level of discomfort was that unusual, but said to watch it. He is running a low grade fever of 100 and they shouldn't be concerned unless it went over 101 (I think). He is now taking Loritab but Ken says it isn't working very well. He is very groggy and NOT comfortable. Now the nurse is suggesting a clear liquid diet to not add to abdominal discomfort, and he hasn't wanted much except ginger ale or Gatorade. Kathy took a little over 3 hour nap today. Ken's sleep is on and off! We need to continue to pray for more extended sleep, rest, and that his fever not spike! Well, we need to pray it to normal!!! It wasn't the restful day they were hoping for but at least they were at home. Kathy says that they are feeling the power of prayer and please continue to hold them up. Maggie is still strong and holding up well. Mary Elizabeth is still in OKC, so continue to pray for her as she faces all of this alone at college. Pray that her friends will help comfort her during this time away from her family. Also, pray for Susu and Grace (Kathy's sister and mom).
That's it for tonight. Remember, SLEEP, REST, and NO FEVER! Just call: 333 (Jeremiah 33:3) Once again, thank you for prayers and thoughts toward Ken and Kathy and family. I will post a site for you to visit to sign up to minister to K&K by taking them a meal....when they are ready for it! Lovingly, Sherry This past Tuesday night as choir leadership and Mary and Donald Tabb prayed with the Drakes, Mary prayed God's phone number (so to speak) and it has stuck with me ever since!
God's Phone Number: 333 ~ as in Jeremiah 33:3 " Call unto me, and I will answer thee..." We have asked and God has answered! Ken and Kathy are resting...at least for now. Thank you for your prayers and your wonderful lullaby of peace and rest over them! Continue to pray in this way! Sherry Ken is still fighting FOR sleep! They are still at home and trying to rest. They just spoke with Dr. McDonald's nurse and she is checking with the other Dr. to make sure we are confirmed that he is not having one of the side effects that can happen with the procedure. Please remember that before all of this, the Drakes were exhausted already. Combine that with the stressful information and more lack of sleep and rest, along with emotions, it's a wonder they are holding up at all. Please pray fervently for sleep even right now! Maggie is very strong today is playing the part of "Sleep Nazi!" This is their only day to really rest before the PET scan tomorrow and more blood work! I'll do my best to give you information as quickly as it is relayed to me.
Luke 4:10 For it is written, He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up... My prayer is that the angels are now holding harps and singing lullaby's over Ken to comfort him and calm him. Even in Zephaniah 3:17 the Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. Sing out church with the Lord and with the angels! Sing! Sing the lullaby of sweet peace and rest over the Drake household! Sing to the Lord a new song! Isaiah 42:10, PS 144:9, 96:1, 98:1, Eph 5:19 We trust you Lord for sleep and rest! Sherry I got word this morning that Ken had a little bit of a rough night. A little abdominal pain and some vomiting. Kathy thinks it was the anesthesia wearing off. They did take precautions and called the doctor. Suggested pain meds and see if they could wait until the morning or go to ER if he really felt he needed to. There is still a little abdominal pain but not as bad. Vomiting has stopped. He still has NOT slept much and Ken is on high alert to any abnormality. He was able to take some pain meds with hopes of giving a little relief to itching and lack of rest. Ken is having great difficulty getting his mind and body to rest. They need to find a way to get him to sleep! The closest thing they found to help him was some instrumental music. Kathy has been quoting scripture but of course, that would get him talking and praying. The same thing with worship music....he'd start singing! He seriously needs TOTAL rest! Ken has been on the rat wheel for so long, I'm not sure he really knows HOW to rest. Kathy and Maggie are asking you to pray for rest, to ease his anxious heart, and ease some of the discomfort he is feeling. On a side note, Kathy hasn't slept much either! Please continue to pray for physical and emotional strength as well as wisdom. They are thinking of going to the doctor this morning when it opens and let a doctor on call take a look into his discomfort. The Drakes thank you so much for your continued prayers and they are depending on you to intercede for them. I will post more later this morning and add some pics of the wonderful prayer time we have had over the last couple of days! Know that you are all dearly cherished.
Still trusting, Sherry Dear friends and family,
I deeply thank you for your love, support, and mostly your prayers today! At this point, all though there are not answers, we feel this is a good thing and God is in control. We are feeling cautiously optimistic! It has been an emotional day for everyone, but one that has helped us keep our face turned toward our Savior. Please pray for a restful night for us, especially Ken who has had so much trouble sleeping due to jaundice symptoms. The PET scan is scheduled for Friday morning so we have a little down time on Thursday, (tomorrow) to get rested for more blood work and tests and spend time with Maggie. Once again thank you for your prayers we are not out of the woods yet! Much love and gratitude, Kathy I'm going to link onto this email to give you all an update. Ken is out of
surgery and we have spoken with Dr. McDonald. The procedure didn't give him any definitive answers. The mass does not present as a typical cancerous mass, but there was one area on the bottom of the pancreas that couldn't be adequately viewed with the scope. He did take several samples to be biopsied and those results will be back by Friday. The various tubes that lead from the pancreas were not swollen and inflamed as he would have expected in a typical cancerous presentation, and because of this, he was not able to get a stint in, so the jaundice and itching will not be relieved as of yet. But because they are not inflamed, this leads him to think it could be something else altogether--things just aren't adding up to put the puzzle pieces together as he would have expected. He has prescribed a stronger medication that may help with the itching. He did not want to give false hope that this won't ultimately be diagnosed as cancer, but more testing will be needed to find out for sure. There is a PET scan scheduled for Friday at 8:00 am and those results along with the biopsy results will let them know if there is cancer in the pancreas. If these additional tests prove negative, then more labs and possibly a liver biopsy will most likely be necessary. There is obviously something going on because there is definitely a mass there, it's just not typical. It could even turn out to be something as simple as an autoimmune inflammation of the pancreas which has a really long name that I can't remember and certainly couldn't spell. This is fairly rare, but Dr. McDonald said he does see it. This would truly be a miracle, because it is treated with steroids and then would clear up the blockage in the bile duct area and the jaundice would clear up as well. So this is still a waiting game with more tests, but perhaps a bit more hope, too. Dr. McDonald is going to try to get the radiologist to speed up the preliminary results of the PET scan so he can go over everything they find with Ken and Kathy on Monday. We'll know much more by Monday evening. So spend your weekend praying for miracles. Love, SuSu SuSu Rosenthal |
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