HD #15

Two Weeks and Counting

Hard to believe another two weeks have gone by since Michael returned to Mayo.  Michael doesn't have to worry about buying reading material, he's got the Blog.  It continues to get more and more entertaining!  I love all the humor that is surfacing, because laughing has tremendous healing power.  Michael continues to improve.  He is now up walking on a regular basis and eating a more regular diet.   The big wait is now for next week when he will undergo a repeat CT of the liver to see how the treated liver lesions are doing.  The fistulas will be reassessed to see if they are getting smaller and hopefully going to heal on their own.

Winter continues to spread the word about prostate cancer.  Today she ran a 1/2 mile race at Lake Placid, NY and sported her new Athletes for a Cure triathlon uniform in honor of the prostate cancer foundation.  She took 1st in her age group and was only beat by one boy overall!  The team  uniform she is wearing (pictures coming soon) will be worn by Michael's brother-in-law, Chris Dandeneau, Michael's friend, Glen "Ollie" Oliver and myself at Sunday's Ironman Lake Placid event.  We have dedicated this race to Michael and prostate cancer awareness.  For more information go to the Herald Times article on the right side.  For those who want to follow the race on Sunday go to the ironman website posted in the right column. 

God's Speed

Dawn & Kids

HD #12

Up And At 'Em

Dr. Commando is back in town and in charge (although I know there wasn't a day that went by that he didn't think about Michael or touch base with colleagues about his status) . The phrase of the day is "get up and get moving". Today he will challenge his legs to a walk. Soon they will recheck the status of the fistulas (holes in places they don't belong) to determine if more surgery is needed or not. It looks like Michael will stay parked out at Mayo at least through all of next week with no sign of returning to Gaylord yet.

Michael continues to have a class-reunion of his own going on (minus the beer). Eric Heidel stopped in yesterday for a visit! Hopefully Michael has a picture of the visit to post, this could start to get quite entertaining. Michael is in the Francis Building at St. Mary's Hospital on the 6th floor. Every nurse on that floor can direct you to his room for those wishing to come visit. Rochester is a really neat place to visit. New names continue to surface on the blog. I am going to start checking off names from our class list and see how well we do at making everyone aware of Michael's journey. I bet we can do better than our last class-reunion at finding lost classmates! Many of you are following but haven't figured out the log in process to leave comments, just ask any kindergartner and they can help you out, they know more about computers than we do.

Michael has been gone so long that he is once again an uncle. His brother brought a new little girl into the world last week, yes, just days after he was on a plane transporting Michael out to Mayo. What a brother!

I must say, yesterday while reading the amazing number of blog comments, I was brought to tears by Barb's entry. I hope many of you caught her entry. She is the nurse that is caring for Michael and to Michael she is an angel that has been sent to care for him. Reading her entry made tears stream down my face. There still are compassionate and caring people in this world who love what they do and who want to make a difference in this big world.

Eric, you are the Hero of the Day!
Dawn & Kids

Hospital Day #9

Michael had company yesterday! Craig Soderberg, a classmate from Gaylord High, stopped in to visit. Michael is two days out from his latest ablation on the liver. As you can see the tube is out of his nose and he is drinking broth. This week Commando is back in town so some decisions will be made as to where we go from here. Michael is down to 125#.

Let Michael know we have not forgotten about him! If you haven't said hi in awhile, type a few lines. He has a computer and reads the blog daily. Cancer is evil in that it creates isolation for its victims.

CRAIG, YOU ROCK!

Dawn & Kids

HD #7

Michael has asked to post this picture because he wants people to know the reality of Cancer. (not to show you his new talent as a trapezist) Today Michael underwent a 4 hour surgery to ablate the liver lesions. The probes are stuck through the skin so there are no big incisions made, making recovery a lot easier. Surgery went well with no problems and now we can only pray that this will destroy all the cancer cells.

Some of you are asking the best way to get in touch and possibly visit Michael. Please put a phone number on the blog (if you don't mind) and I will contact you. Michael is always up for visitors. Ten minutes of your time can mean the word to those in Michael's situation. Please continue to spread Michael's blog address to those who have crossed Michael's path in life. Over the last several days, a whole new channel of people have opened up across the WORLD. Spread this website to friends and family you might know who have had prostate cancer.

Michael will rest well tonight knowing he is continuing to eradicate his cancer, even if it is just one cell at a time.

Love

Dawn & Kids

Hospital Day #6

Tubes & More Tubes

Sorry about the days without blog updates. As many of you know I am back to work in Gaylord trying to hold the fort together while Michael is back at Mayo with his parents. Unfortunately, for many of us life has to go on despite this nasty cancer. Keeping up on everything including the blog has been almost impossible. I will try and provide updates every couple days and Michael states he is determined to start writing a few little lines on the blog from his bed. What a treat that will be for many of you. (just remember, you asked for Michael on Morphine)

Tomorrow Michael is scheduled to undergo the second round of radio frequency ablation (RFA) on his liver. The second liver lesion needs to be ablated as well as a new area growing off the old ablation site. Michael has 2 areas that have not healed well down by the bladder and rectum creating holes (fistulas) between structures that don't belong, which is what sent him back to Mayo in the first place. They stuck a drain tube thru his butt check into his lower pelvis to drain an abscess (pocket of pus). The infection has created abscesses also on his kidneys. He is now receiving nutrition thru his Pic Line ( IV going into the heart) for the time being and is not allowed to eat anything to rest his bowels.

Michael will most likely be at Mayo for several weeks. If you happen to be in the neighborhood, as one friend is, Michael is welcoming any new faces for company.
I have plenty of new pictures to post in the near future. Michael is stable for now and more comfortable than he has been in the past.

Any comments on how to beat this tumor are welcome by us and Mayo!
Dawn & Kids

BACK TO MAYO

This was, unfortunately, the scene the morning of July 4th. Michael has suffered some significant complications from his surgery and had to be rushed back to Mayo Clinic. The hours leading up to his transfer required labor-intensive efforts from friends and family, many of which stayed up all night to help keep Michael as comfortable as possible and as stable as possible. All of these individuals involved follow the blog and need to be thanked over and over for their incredible compassion. From helping stabilize Michael, to those helping care for our kids, to those helping arrange his flight and to his brother for traveling with him, Thanks, Thanks, Thanks!

Michael's complications are not the fault of anyone or anything. It's just one of the things that can happen when you try and preserve organs at all expense and have a 12 hour surgery. This is just a setback that we will overcome. Michael is comfortable now and in good hands. We anticipate at least a week back out at Mayo Clinic.

Good Night,

Dawn & Kids

PS. check out the links to some of the amazing articles that have been released through out the United States! Team Winter is making a difference in the field of prostate cancer already!

Survivor Week #4

MY HERO
Dr. Commando

Well, here is the picture you have all been waiting for. Michael and his hero.

Things are starting to settle into a routine here at home. Michael is finishing up his IV antibiotics. Hopefully if the infection in his blood has cleared, he will return to Mayo next week to have the second liver lesion ablated. The blog will always continue but will only be daily when there are significant changes occurring. Michael is ready to make his appearance on the blog, so expect a word or two from him soon.

Have a Great 4th of July!

Dawn & Kids