A Miracle

{Eunice Editor} I wanted to send you the latest information about Jack. He has CT scans every 9 weeks to track his cancer. The first CT scan showed that his main cancer tumor had shrunk 30%. We were amazed at that! It was so unexpected because the drugs were defined as being able to just stop the growth of the cancer. They did not expect that his cancer would actually shrink!

This time, that same cancer tumor is the same. Which is good news because it means it hasn't grown! The really good news is that the other cancer nodules and lesions, and places where the cancer had spread from the beginning, are all GONE! There is no cancer any more in his lymph glands, no nodules throughout his lungs. There were 9 places that they were tracking the cancer and they are ALL gone, except that one tumor. It is really truly a miracle! Even the doctor who was "cautiously optimistic" about the 30% shrinkage is pretty excited now. Jack is very aware that yes, he still has cancer. But we have been given the blessing of hope and optimism. We thank you ALL for your prayers in his behalf, and for your love and concern. It means so much to us.

Motorcycle Man

This is what Jack is up to lately.

"Faith is such a principle of power. God works by power, but this power is usually exercised in response to our faith."

--Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "Christlike Attributes", Ensign, Nov 2005, 100

A third

{Editor Mindy} Can you imagine if your debt was reduced by a third? What if your pants shrunk by 30%? Wouldn't it be wonderful there was a delicious chocolate cake and instead of a piece of it, you were offered a third???

Yesterday Dad went to the doctor where he was informed that after 6 weeks of the treatment his tumors have shrunk by 30%. SHRUNK! By a third!!! We are in such awe. We have been fasting and praying for the tumors to slow down or maybe stop, but shrink?! I didn't even know to pray for that!

Back when my dad got diagnosed, my mom asked everyone to pray for a miracle. She didn't just ask, either. She believed it could happen and acted that way. She has been so strong and optimistic and faithful. And here it is! Prayers work. Miracles happen! The doctor said he was "cautiously optimistic." My dad's results are the best within his peer group of the clinical trials. We know there's still a lot that can happen. We know it's still a long road. But we also know that we're part of this miracle happening. Just like all of you - friends and family - are a part of it. THANK YOU for all your prayers and fasting and putting his name in the temple, and everything else you are doing. It's working! Keep it up!

Uh Oh! Side Effects

{JaNece editor} I was talking to my mom the other day and she said that my dad was getting a really bad rash on his face. It hurt to have his glasses on and his face was red. This is one of the side effects of the drug. And do you know something? He stopped coughing. He feels better and the rash is there because the treatment is working hard to stop that cancer. It is a good sign and we'll find out May 7th what the treatments are doing. Yeah for side effects! :) I was recently reading up on one of the drugs that Jack is on and found this about rashes:

"Rash occurs in the majority of patients. This resembles acne and primarily involves the face and neck. It is self-limited and resolves in the majority of cases, even with continued use. Interestingly, some clinical studies have indicated a correlation between the severity of the skin reactions and increased survival though this has not been quantatively assessed. The Journal of Clinical Oncology reported in 2004 that "cutaneous [skin] rash seems to be a surrogate marker of clinical benefit, but this finding should be confirmed in ongoing and future studies. The newsletter Lung Cancer Frontiers reported in its October 2003 issue, "Patients with moderate to severe cutaneous reactions [rashes] have a far better survival, than those with only mild reactions and much better than those with no cutaneous manifestations of drug effects."

Fun Facts about JACK

{JaNece editor} I thought it would be fun to post fun facts about Jack. So, here goes:

• He was born on Halloween, and what a fitting name he has to go with his date of birth.
• He has been known to eat his cereal with half and half instead of milk.
  
• His favorite snack to eat is popcorn and pespi. (He still has the huge yellow popcorn bowl that he's had since I can't remember when.)
• He has a huge car fetish. Corvettes and Mustangs. Have you seen his 3000+ sq. ft. garage that he built himself with car parts up to the ceiling?
• He used to be a huge original Star Trek junkie.
  
• He is the hardest worker I've ever known. He only sits down to eat or sleep.
• He used to always get after us kids by saying, "socks off or shoes on" when we were outside. Guess what I say to my own kids now?
• He can build great fires. (Grass fires, camping fires, fireplace fires.)
• He has the smoothest, whitest legs. We used to tease him when we'd go swimming or to Lake Powell. And he's got a major farmers tan on his arms.
  
• He used to play with chemicals as a kid. Ask him why he has glasses.

Information on Clinical Treatment

For those of you wanting to know more about the treatments Jack is on, he is involved in a research study that uses Bevacizumab (Avastin) and Erlotinib as a first treatment for Metastatic Non-squamous, Non-small cell lung cancer. Both are approved for the treatment of lung cancer but they have not been used in this specific combination together and by patients who have not received conventional chemotherapy. So there you have it.

To read more on Bevacizumab, click here.
To read more on Erlotinib, click here.