1. BIG Update: Yesterday (Tuesday) we met with Stacy’s oncologist in Bellingham to review genetic test results regarding her tumor’s recurrence rate. We had waited two weeks to hear these results, so we were very, very anxious. They came back very low, which is awesome.

Basically, the test was done to look at how likely the cancer is to recur, based on genetic factors, compared with other cancer examples, etc. (the test is called ONCODX). These results were important because Stacy’s stage of cancer was early, but borderline, enough to consider some of the harsher treatment options (ie: chemotherapy) to eliminate as much possibility of it coming back elsewhere in her body. With good results, though, like she received, the doctor is able to say that chemo would likely do more harm than good overall and therefore recommend other treatment options (less harsh, yet still very effective, hormone treatment).

We were nervous and anxious to find out these results, for lots of reasons. I know many of you have been praying for good prognosis, as we have been. This IS that good prognosis. This IS what we were hoping for (the best case in all this worst case scenario mess we’re in). We left the appointment somewhat stunned, having prepared for the worst. I think it’s safe to say we (and our families) are still in awe of this wonderful, seemingly miraculous news.

Stacy is likely to begin the hormone treatment within the next month. She’s begun her reconstructive appointments, so they will hopefully be able to coordinate finishing that work up with this next phase. The hormone pills won’t be easy or pleasant, but their lasting effects are much more hopeful (fertility, overall health), so we’re “happy”.

2. I’ve had this other blog post on my mind for a while titled: “I’m really bad at thank you notes”.

The last month, we have been overwhelmed by the generosity and care we’ve received from the wonderful people in our lives. We’ve recieved meals, kind phone calls, cards, and random bits of encouragement from every direction. It’s been wonderful and I deeply believe it’s been one of the things that has kept Stacy strong and healing well.

I’m bad at thank you cards, so let me just say, in probably the most insufficient of ways, THANK YOU. Thanks to everyone who is out there reading this, praying for Stacy. Thank you for your concern and care. Thank you for your faithfulness and strength, filling in for places where we’ve been weak. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

3. Finally, I have to mention how overcome I am at the power of prayer and faith. God has been so present throughout the ups and downs of this whole ordeal. We cannot help but see the hand of God guiding this process.

Places throughout the Gospels, Jesus heals those who reach out in faith. And repeatedly, he remarks that it is faith (in things unseen, in things that are seemingly impossible) that we need. That’s all. He tells the parents of a young girl, who has just died while Jesus was delayed on his way to heal her, “do not fear, just believe.” Don’t fear? In the midst of tragedy? Yeah right! But that’s where we’ve found ourselves, challenged with the open door of fear, but offered this other way: belief. In ways I’ve not known before, this stuff of faith has become more and more real than ever. The teeth, the bite, the action, and the strength are there. God is here. Without, we have nothing.

So, here we are. The anxiousness is beginning to dissolve. Stacy is getting stronger and stronger every day and more back to her normal self. Her strength and will have continued to amaze me. And so, we continue on. We ask for your prayers, as she begins the treatment, finishes her healing process, and begins to get ready for another year teaching 4th grade. This isn’t over. But we are thankful and will continue to be hopeful.

PS: Just so everyone knows, Stacy is most likely on her way to a 4.0 in her 4 (that’s right four, 4, quatro) graduate level summer classes at Western that she’s ALSO been taking this quarter. Yeah. Incredible.

PPS: Oh yeah, and we’re really excited to celebrate our 5 year anniversary tomorrow.

We have a small update to share and a request for prayers over the next few weeks.

Yesterday, Stacy and I went back down to Swedish Medical Center in Seattle for an appointment with a medical oncologist. We met with this doctor the week after she first received her diagnosis and this appointment was to follow up the extensive tests and surgery results she has from the last few weeks. The appointment yesterday went very well. He basically told Stacy that all of her reports look really, really good (as we’ve heard from doctors up here in Bellingham). We were worried that he would recommend some pretty harsh treatment immediately, simply because of her age and to hopefully deal with the cancer definitively right now. Instead, he has asked that she get one additional test run on the tumor to predict the cancer’s recurrence rate and potential benefits of chemotherapy. Sounds like a pretty simple test and it’s one of the best ways of predicting recurrence and planning treatment options. Also, the doctor told Stacy she’s an excellent candidate for the test because of her age, the results up to this point, and her family history.

So, here’s where we are: We need to get this test started (takes about 2-3 weeks). And we need to pray that it comes back with a low possibility for recurrence. If it does, she’ll likely not have to do chemotherapy now and have a MUCH better overall survival rate in the long-run. Instead, she’d likely take hormone pills (no cakewalk, but not chemo and not as damaging, from what we’ve heard). This would be wonderful. This would be an answer to our prayers and hopes and so we ask that you all join us (as we know you have been and will be) in hoping for the same.

God is faithful. Amazing how seemingly small news can bring light and hope to the situation. It’s awesome.

The week at home has been nice, if not challenging at times. The first few days home from the hospital were spent managing the pain and finding the right schedule for sleeping, getting a little nourishment in, and managing the overall stress and recovery following the bilateral mastectomy. I was helped by a couple of divine women, our mothers Jo Anna and Sandra, to get through the first 4 nights. They each stayed for 2 days a piece, helping me with keeping the house clean, getting Stacy medications or food, and just generally helping us feel ok in the midst of it all. I don’t know where we would be without them, or the many other people who’ve stopped by to offer a little support, a smile, and a little help when we’ve needed it.

The past few days, Stacy has felt up to moving around quite a bit more, watching lots of “How I Met Your Mother” on TV, eating Haggen Daas’ Dulce de Leche, and relaxing. She had an appointment today with one of the surgeons and he remarked on how well she’s been healing up and how great it was to see her smiling face. She’s been smiling a lot more the last few days and has felt a lot more like herself. She’s healing very well and will hopefully be able to ditch the bandages altogether this weekend. Yay!

With joy and healing, there still are concerns and prayers to be had. Tomorrow and Friday, we meet with a couple of different doctors to begin discussing the follow up treatment and the results of the pathology done on the tissue removed during last week’s procedure. While all reports have come back very, very positive in her favor so far, there is still a lot that is unknown at this point as far as how much treatment she’ll have to receive as follow up. Words like chemotherapy are scary and we are hoping for all the best in the next few days.

As I’ve mentioned, we’ve really appreciated all the support and prayers we have (and continue) to receive from our families and friends. The meals from friends and church members have helped a lot. Those who’ve stopped by to say hello or who have sent a note, your words and smiles and presence has been a great part in helping Stacy heal and feel better. Some have asked how they can continue to help, as this will obviously continue with us for a while. We’d love to keep seeing you all and, as Stacy’s health permits, to get out of the house to play a bit and pretend like it’s a normal summer. Meals are great and we’d love to see you. And, we ask that you keep praying for her speedy recovery and for continued good news.

I’ve found asking for and living in earnest prayer has been a challenging and beautiful thing these past few weeks. I don’t presume to understand how God works in regards to answering our prayers. I don’t know why some things we ask God for are not answered or why some are. I’m not sure that’s the point in all of this anyways. God is faithful to us, all of us. All, I am learning, that I can do, is reciprocate that faithfulness, through whatever comes, and hope to grow closer to knowing God and being known in return. At times, it seems God is distant and certainly could not hear our deep cries. At other times, God is so close. I don’t know why that is, but I’m hoping, as we weather this storm, to remain faithful to the one who has thus far, close or far away, stayed faithful as well.

Blessings to you all. We’ll keep you posted on what we hear these next few days.

Seth & Stacy

We have good news this evening. Stacy just got off the phone with her doctor and her results from Monday’s surgery have come back good. The lymph nodes that were taken during the mastectomy returned clean. The mass in her left breast had very clean and clear margins and her right breast, which there was possibly a lump in, came back clear. They will be doing another test to look for any stray cells, but this news we got tonight is the important stuff.

We are somewhat speechless in our joy tonight. The unmistakable power of prayer and hope in this time takes us aback. We’re overwhelmed with the way people have offered care, prayer, kind words, and support. Tonight, that support is seen in the joy of the good news we received.

Our prayer tonight: Thank you, thank you, thank you. The Lord is good.

There will be more to come, but tonight we’ll rest on that.

Tonight, as we wait and hope to sleep, we are thinking a lot about Stacy’s pending test results. Tomorrow, we hope to hear back on the pathology of the lymph nodes taken during yesterday’s surgery. All visible indications told us they are cancer free, but we are still waiting for that to be confirmed. And so, we are anxious.

Please, tonight and tomorrow morning, take a moment to remember Stacy. I know you all are praying for her and we are so thankful. Please keep it up. God is faithful.

We’ve really appreciated all your kind thoughts and notes sent this week. They help us stay positive and hopeful as we wait and see.

Prayers tonight.
Thank you.
Seth

We arrived at 11am today for her bilateral mastectomy surgery. We’ve been waiting and waiting for today for the last few weeks, so there was a mixture of excitement and nervousness. It is wonderful to have the cancer removed. It is awful that Stacy has had to have such a major surgery, quite out of the blue.

Everything went very well during the surgery. All the doctors who helped with the procedure, from the anesthesiologist, to the two surgeons working on removal and reconstruction, said she did great. Also, we got very good first results back from their initial look at the surrounding lymph nodes, showing no “visible” signs of spreading cancer cells. This is good news.

We have been in her room for about 5 hours now, resting up and getting used to pain and medications. Stacy’s doing very well, considering everything. We will likely be here at least another night so the doctors can monitor her and make sure she’s healing up well.

Stacy wants to make sure everyone knows how appreciative she is for your generosity and your continued prayers for her these last few weeks. Every time we hear from another friend or family member, saying they’re thinking of her or telling the story of their church at home praying for her, she is encouraged (as am I). We need the good, hopeful news and encouragement.

Please, please, please: Keep praying. Keep hoping. And keep believing that she will come through this.

Here are things we still need prayer for:
- Obviously, rest. She needs lots of painless rest here these next couple days, getting the preliminary healing going well before we head home.
- We still don’t know for sure that the cancer is not in her lymph nodes. We are very hopeful with today’s news, but we still need the pathology results to come back confirming the absence of cancer in the nodes they biopsied today. This is very, very important, especially as we look to the future.

She is fighting. We are believing. God continues to be present and faithful.

We are facing a very long week ahead as we look forward to Stacy’s surgery next Monday. She’ll be going into St. Joseph’s hospital, here in Bellingham, for a bilateral mastectomy. It will be a pretty big procedure, which we’re nervous about, but she will be in good hands with the surgeons here in town.

We could really use prayers this week as we spend it just waiting. We are concerned, obviously, about that kinds of results we’ll get from the procedure. Our biggest prayer right now is that the cancer has not spread to her lymph nodes. Please, please, please pray for the lymph nodes to come back clean after the surgery. This result will help the doctors determine the best plan for post-operation treatment. The kind of treatment Stacy will receive has a lot of implications for her health and our future, so we’re concerned and hopeful and would appreciate your prayers.

This is a very hard time. We really appreciate all the support we’ve received and ask for your continued prayers and presence in this ongoing journey. I hope to share good news soon.

In faith,
Seth

Also, it sounds like things are moving forward towards getting a surgery date set for Stacy. We would love to get her in as soon as possible, just to keep moving along in this process, and it looks like she might have a date set for the last week of June. We’d love it to be sooner, but it helps to at least have some idea of a date in mind, and along with these hopeful test results, this brings some relief.

We both greatly appreciate the prayer and support Stacy has received over the past couple weeks as well. Without our family and friends, it would feel so isolated and alone in all of this. I’m continually surprised at the ways people have reached out and offer help, prayer, and advice.

Finally, God is faithful. God remains very present in our moments of stress and fear, as well as present in our few glimpses of joy.

Things to pray for:

• A surgery date, very soon
• Rest: We’re still not sleeping great and Stacy needs to stay healthy, so a good night’s sleep would greatly help that.
• Continued good results: There are a couple of tests still out, so we’re hoping those come back with good results as well, continuing to ease this situation.

Things to be praying for today:

• Rest: We are both very tired. Prayers that Stacy will stay healthy and not get too run down by all the running around and phone calls to doctors.
• Good results: We’ve had a lot of encouraging news from the doctors and also need to get good test results back. She’s scheduled for quite a few tests over the next few days (into next week) which should reveal more about what we’re dealing with.
• Quick turnaround: We’d like to move on this quickly, so hopefully results get back and she can get into surgery quickly to remove the cancer.

We really appreciate all the help and prayers and messages and support we’ve received so far. I’m trying to pass on any messages I get to Stacy (even via Facebook, which she STILL hasn’t signed up for ). We’d love to hear from you, so make sure you say hello. We love our friends and family and wouldn’t know what to do without you all.

Through it all, God is faithful. I don’t mean to sound trite. Every day I’m believing that more and more. God is faithful.

As many of you have already heard, it’s been a crazy, stressful couple of weeks for Stacy and I. On Friday of last week (June 4), she received back malignant (cancerous) biopsy results on a small lump she found on her left breast. Yesterday (June 8), she had a follow up appointment with a doctor here in Bellingham and we began to get a little better picture of what they seem to think is going on and some possibilities for action.

I probably shouldn’t go into all the details here, but I would like to ask for your prayers for some specific things.

• We are praying right now that the breast cancer is isolated and hasn’t begun to spread into her lymph nodes or begun growing in other places.
• For peace in all the navigation of the medical system. They don’t make it easy to get a hold of doctors or information and she has been working hard to advocate for herself.
• For both of our stress levels as we finish the school year. Stacy has 4 more days left next week teaching this year. She just finished her second quarter of her principal’s certification and is hoping to take a full load of classes this summer. I’m wrapping up the year at the INN this weekend. We had a great last INN Tuesday night yesterday.

We have already heard from so many of you and we really appreciate and love you all. It really goes without saying, we know we have great support. Please, please, please, please keep praying. I know deep in my heart that God is faithful, through any of this, but sometimes it’s pretty hard to see that or to understand why it is happening this way. Please pray for peace and understanding and most of all, for healing.

Don’t hesitate to shoot me an email or Facebook message or whatever communication you prefer. I’ll do my best to keep you all up to date, answer any questions I can, and let you know how you can be praying for her and supporting us. Follow the blog for updates (hopefully) and Twitter (@sethjames) for any short, quick news.

Love to you all.

Seth & Stacy