A Long-Overdue Update
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Well, it has been months since my last blog!  So much has happened, and many have asked for an update.  In my last update, I had just come through the surgery to remove all of the infected hardware.  I’m still without a forehead, but doing very well.  About 4 – 6 weeks after that surgery, I started chemo.  Since my cancer progressed while taking Temozolomide, we’re trying something different this time — PCV.  PCV is a pretty wicked combination of Procarbazine, CCNU (Lomustine), and Vincristine.  Fortunately for me, Vincristine has not shown to be effective ag ..read more
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Another One in the Books
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
So, we are through with surgery number seven!  Surgery was yesterday afternoon, and I’m now back in a regular patient room at the hospital awaiting discharge.  The surgery was a complete success, and the neurosurgeon was able to remove all of the infected hardware and the old prosthetic. The infection was significantly more advanced than anyone had expected, with a large build up of pus underneath the old prosthetic.  That has all been removed and cleaned, and I’m just now on IV antibiotics for quite some time.  Fortunately, this can be done at home by using what is known a ..read more
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Round Seven
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Even championship bouts are only five rounds!  Geez… So if you haven’t been following closely, it’s been quite an adventure recently. After five doctors — including two neurosurgeons and an infectious disease specialist — the consensus is that the hardware holding my prosthetic in place is infected with colonized bacteria. The only way to remove the infection is to remove the hardware, so I’m headed back, today, for surgery #7.  The adjusted plan is now to remove the prosthetic and all hardware, wait a few weeks, start chemo, do about a year of chemo, then wait a few months, then go ..read more
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Too Much, Too Soon — And A Slice of Humble Pie
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Well, it has been a long three weeks!  I’ve owed an update for a while, and a lot has happened since the last post.  In brief: We got our referral to the University of Colorado Cancer Center in Denver, and met with both a neuroradiologist and neuro-oncologist.  It was an excellent meeting, and I have a lot of confidence in both doctors. The neuro-oncologist recommended trying a different type of chemotherapy, one called PCV, that has a long and well-established track record of preventing brain tumor recurrence. This type of chemotherapy, consisting of Procarbazine, CCNU (Lomusti ..read more
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The Way Ahead, and the Keto Kid!
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Well, we have have safely returned to Colorado, and we made it home in time for Christmas!  It was a mixed blessing, with lots of fun (and a few presents) for our little one and a beautiful new layer of snow in the morning, but very few decorations and no tree.  Still, the greatest blessing was being home, and being (mostly) healthy. Last week I had the staples removed by my regular doc/PA at the base, and put all the necessary paperwork in for the referral to the University of Colorado Cancer Center in Aurora, just south of Denver.  The first of those appointments was last Thu ..read more
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Gethsemane
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
I had hoped to have this blog posted on Wednesday, after the final consult with Dr. Chu. However, that consult did not go as planned, and since then we have been simply trying to survive — trying to “deal”.   Brain cancer comes in various flavors — four, according to most doctors. The World Health Organization categorizes these cancers by grade, resulting in a basic breakdown of:    Grade I:  low-grade tumors, which are benign or not growing, or growing very slowly.     Grade II:  still low-grade, but these tumors grow steadily, though they are still co ..read more
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So, What is Brain Surgery Like?
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Both for the intensely curious and for my own record-keeping, I thought a few of you may be interested to know what actually happens as you go through this process.  As a six-time veteran, I’m probably as much of an “expert” as you’re likely to find…so I’ll share what the experience is like from the patient’s perspective. This will be long and boring for most…but perhaps interesting to a select few! 1. Pre-Op Consult. The first step in each of these events is a pre-operative consult with the neurosurgeon. At this point, you’re not even sure yet that you’re actually going to have surgery ..read more
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Recovery Progress!
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Well, we did get our miracle, and now I’ve been home for a couple days recovering and feeling better all the time!  I’m not in any pain, and the incision is healing slowly but well. In the discharge consult with Dr. Chu yesterday, he showed me the post-op scan and explained that he had decided to remove the rest of the right frontal lobe. Most of it was removed in 2008, but a significant portion of the lower half still remained, which is where this tumor was located. Rather than just remove the tumor and radiate the tumor bed as planned, he decided to remove the entire lobe and avoid radi ..read more
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We Got Our Miracle
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
Many friends, including many of you, have adopted the “Miracle for Mike” slogan to brand this battle. At the same time, I’ve been reading trough Timothy Keller’s book “Walking with God Through Pain and Suffering.” Recently, I’ve come to a section of that book on miracles, which was the subject of Dr. Keller’s Ph.D. dssertation…so, he’s likely the foremost theologian on the planet when it comes to the topic of miracles.  His point was, you may get one — just not the one you want or expect. We’ve been praying for months for a miracle, but very specifically for healing. What if that’s not th ..read more
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God is Good! 
Fighting Through Fitness
by MichaelMoyles
3y ago
If you are reading this blog you know we believe in God. We believe in Miracles. Mike is a miracle, plain and simple.  I’ve seen him at his lowest point the last couple of months. He hates it. It pains him to not be positive. It pains him to not be in control of the situation. However, this recurrence has brought, not only him, but us both, to our knees. Literally, crying, shouting and yelling at God. Not always negative, but definitely begging, for anything good. Something. Just give us HOPE! We can go miles on a little bit of good news.  In Nov, just before Thanksgiving, we receive ..read more
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