Getting ready for Christmas

Hello all:
I had my ERCP Monday and for the most part (except a fever that night and felt flu-like yesterday afternoon) I feel good. I am just trying to get a huge start on gifts so I am not rushing around late Dec. Kid's are doing well but Tyler is coming down with a cold and not feeling well. We all know what 2 years olds are like when their sick? Bingo!

I am ready to move forward out of this stent chapter in my life and have some smooth sailing for a while. I do not have to have another procedure done for 8 weeks and plan on having a great christmas and new year!!! I was supossed to get chemo but I postponed it till Mon. for a few days of recovery.

Thank you those of you who have been bringing food. It is a huge blessing.

Romans 15:4
Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope.

This was in my Beth Moore devotional.

It focused on God's usual healing method is the daily process of teaching us to walk with him.

Val

Gastroenterology, 7th Floor, Cedars Sinai

Yesterday was a great day! 1 hour 25 minutes from San Marcos to Beverly Hills. Busted at 80 by the CHP (no ticket). 4 am is a great time to be on California freeways if you have a need for speed and a radar detector!

Val's ERCP procedure started at 0730 and lasted two hours. Dr. Lo is the bomb! Probably one of the best in the world on this procedure. Thanks for your diligence in getting this appointment so quick Char. And 6 am is perfect. Val was number one on his agenda.

He explained that plastic stents will always make more sense for Val. They can be moved and changed as needed. Metal stents are permanent. If you have a problem with a metal stent, you are sc _ _ _ ed.

Dr. Lo removed (2) stents and inserted (3) in their place. Stent location and size are critical for bile flow and pain levels caused by the stents. He also removed whatever "bad stuff" he found in the biliary tree. He added an oral antibiotic and a bile thinner to Val's prescriptions.

Normally the stents last 3 months but he wants us back in 2. Hopefully we can get on a 3 month interval with the help of the bile thinning medication.

After final consultations, we were on the road and back to San Marcos at 2:30 pm. We did have a scare last night when Val's temperature spiked up to 101.6. It came down.

Please pray that these stents will work until our next appointment. Pray that there are no blood infections. They are deadly with a 50% morbidity rate and Val has survived 2. Pray that the diuretic begins to reduce the abdominal fluid. Pray that Val has the strength to keep her Thursday 8:30 am USC chemo appointment. Paul is planning to take her.

Speaking of Paul, I am reminded of the Apostle's words in his letter written from a Roman prison cell to the church at Phillipi; "do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Or, in the words of Captain Kirk, we boldly go where no man has gone before.

Congratulations to Matt and Sarah on the birth of their second son this morning. Too much testerone for one house Sarah. Good luck!

Godspeed

Dawn's Early Light

It is cold and dark tonight as I write from Escondido. A storm is rolling in from the north carrying an inch of rain to our coastline. Nancy is en route to Val's house to spend the night.

Val, Chris, and I are leaving at 4 am for the trip to Cedars Sinai in L.A. We have a 6 am appointment with Dr. Simon Lo, Val's stent doc.

We assume that he will be performing an ERCP to look at what's going on in the biliary tree of Val's liver. He will probably remove and replace the (2) plastic stents that were placed just (3) weeks ago at USC. Normally we would expect these stents to last (3) months.

The outcome of Dr. Lo's work in the morning is a turning point in Val's treatment. We are very optimistic about his skills to correct any problems he encounters.

Please pray that Dr. Lo would have great wisdom and skill as he does his work. Pray for Val. This is a painful post op procedure for her to endure after only 3 weeks. Pray that these stents would last (3) months. Pray also that God would deliver Val from the acsites (peritoneal fluid buildup) that is causing stomach distension and discomfort. Pray that Val recovers enough to keep her Thursday chemo appointment with Dr. Lenz at USC. Pray also for Chris' back pain as he makes this trip. Pray that we can get back to San Marcos without having to spend the night in the hospital.

In Psalm 30, God Most High speaks to us through King David as he give thanks for being delivered from death. "I cried for help and You healed me. You brought my soul up from Sheol. You kept me alive. Weeping may last for the night, but joy comes in the morning."

Our joy will be to see our beloved Val healed.

Godspeed

A Hard Week Past And Another On The Near Horizon

This photo was taken on Easter of this year in front of one of our Sagos.

The past week has been hard.

Bloodwork prior to Chemo last Thursday at USC showed an elevated Bilirubin (3.5), elevated liver enzymes (138 ALT, 203AST), and low Hemoglobin (8.9). Val's weight was down from 122 to 117. She was jaundiced.

She was transfused with (2) units of whole blood on Friday at Pomerado. Her Bilirubin crept up to 4.4. She had an ultra sound.

On Sunday, members from Val's church, The Movement, came to her house to pray for her and Chris.

And then came Monday. Another blood test. The Bili. dropped to 3.6 (good). The liver enzymes plummeted to ALT 86 and AST 77 (epic!).

Prayers change things!

Monday got tougher, however, when Val learned that Kelly Lester, a cholangio patient she knew from Houton, died.

Char spent time on the phone with Simon Lo, Val's stent doc at Cedars. He is concerned and wanted to see her ASAP. Val has an appointment next Monday at 6 am for another ERCP procedure. Please pray for Val's determination as this is a tough road to travel. I am confident, however, that Dr. Lo will be able to correct some things.

Since pain continues to be huge problem, Char is also going to talk to Dr. Lo about a Celiac Block for pain management.

Next Thursday, we are scheduled back to USC for Chemo 26 at 8:30 am.

A tough two weeks for Val. She is a warrior.

Godspeed

Emerald Green

While Val and I were at USC went found a list in a shop there that has all of the different "support colors" for all of the different cancers. Although we did not find bile duct cancer since it is so rare, the closest thing was liver cancer. Since the bile ducts go throught the liver cholangiocarcinoma is often called liver cancer. At any rate the official color is emerald green. We bought out the shop of all of their wristbands, pins, and car magnets.

We were so happy to find a symbol for support of Val's specific cancer. Lance Armstrong, the Susan B. Coman Foundation, and Team in Training have done unbelievable jobs at raising awareness, support, and fundraising for more common cancers, but none of that support goes toward gastrountestinal cancers such as cholangiocharcinoma. I want to buy green t-shirts and wear all of my green support wear and shout from the mountain tops that this cancer needs attention, research, support and HOOPLA too!!!

So keep the pink, keep the yellow, but GO GREEN!

www.choosehope.com

Go to this site and order wristbands, hats, tshirts, pins, magnets..... And when someone asks you what all the green is about you can tell them about VAL. One day Valerie McCrea will be right next to Lance Armstrong's name because the courage, faith, strength, determination and love shown by Valerie every day of her life surpasses that even of Lance. She is amazing. She does not look back. Does not complain. She only moves forward.

At USC when she was lying in bed with a life-threatening blood infection and quietly dealing with all the pain and discomfort that go with such an infection, Val's nurse mentioned that her daughter had died a few years back. We could tell that this sweet, quiet lady was still so saddened by this. Val put out her hand to the nurse and asked if she could pray for her. With such a genuine heart Val prayed for this nurse and we could tell the nurse was so moved by such and act of kindness. Could it be Val was the first person to pray for this woman? Val is my hero. Even in her situation she puts others needs in front of her own. God is well pleased with my sister.

GO GREEN

Chemo 24

Our day started with an early departure from San Marcos and came to a grinding halt on Camp Pendleton when two tractor trailers collided. This added an hour to the trip.

Val was sick twice on the trip up to LA. We always bring freezer bags with us. Meanwhile, in the back seat of the Chrysler, Nancy and I engaged in several heated arguments about PET Scans.

We arrived at USC at noon. Val checked in to the Day Hospital for a blood draw. I walked out into the waiting room and ran into Brian Stiver, Val's boss when she worked for Option Care. Brian is an amazing person. He just shows up out of the blue bringing gifts to Val. And this is not the first time. He did the same thing when Val was getting Chemo at Cedars. Thanks Brian!

We had a consult with Taleen and Dr. Lenz after the blood draw. Although the hospital care at USC is shaky, I am always impressed with our cancer caregivers.

Val's weight was 117. A bit low, but still well above her low point of 110. She is slightly jaundiced and her Bilirubin is at 3.5. Still too high but not at a point of alarm. Chris went up to Dr. Yang's office to get a copy of the stent insertion report. I will fax this to Dr. Lo, Val's Stent Doc at Cedars. We will probably schedule her next stent procedure for early February if Lo and Yang agree.

Dr. Lenz was concerned about a low Hemoglobin Count at 8.9. He recommended an infusion of two units of whole blood. This is a six hour procedure. We contacted our personal friends, Dr. Dean Tasher and his wife Veronica, a Nurse Practitioner in Escondido. They arranged for an infusion at Pomerado Hospital ER first thing tomorrow morning. Thanks Dean and Veronica.

Val was able to receive her chemotherapy today.

We struggled with traffic gridlock getting back home. A long day for all but thanks to your faithful prayers we joyfully carry this battle to the enemy day by day.

Godspeed

Early Thursday in Escondido

Val, Chris, Nancy, and I are off to USC for Chemo 24 this morning. Val receives IV 5Fu/Leucovoran and Avastin. The 5FU is administered over 48 hours through a pump in her pocket. She is also on oral Tarceva.

Pray for Val as she makes this trip and weathers the storm of cancer therapies.

Continue to pray for wisdom in pain management. Like all of us, Val tries to get by with as little medication as possible. This can and does get us in trouble.

We are also going to try a walk-in consultation with Dr. Lo at Cedars. Pray that he can fit us into his busy schedule.

Your Servant

A Closer Look

Here is one slice of a CT Scan done in August. You are looking at a slice of Val's liver. The white areas are bone.

Tumors can be seen in the liver. I am not sure exactly how to interpret what I see, but Jesus, the Great Physician knows every detail.

Looking at this image, I can imagine God's intervention to squeeze the life out of these tumors.

One missing piece of the puzzle will be revealed when we have our next PET (Positron Emission Tomography).

Cancer tumors that are still alive love sugur. The radiologist adds an isotope to sugar that causes the living tumors to light up. Pray that the images we see from this scan reveal a landscape as dead as the Moon.

Richard

Brainstorm

Nancy called to say she was going over to Val's to brainstorm our plans for future treatment. The issues are; pain management, chemotherapy, other cancer therapies, PET/CT, liver re-section, stent management, diet and exercise, getting enough R & R while juggling a family with excessive testosterone levels, and attitude.

Pain management: This continues to be our biggest problem. It drains you of energy and takes your fighting spirit away. Today is the last treatment of infusion antibiotics. We are looking forward to getting beyond them.

Chemotherapy: We are not happy with USC and will be leaving them soon. Local treatment would be great but we also have the option of going back to Dr. Drazin at Cedars. MEK Inhibitors have also been mentioned by Dr. Lenz. We are scheduled to go up to USC for chemotherapy this Thursday. Pray that we can get there for infusion and get back on oral Tarceva also.

Other cancer therapies: Interventional radiology, Cyberknife, and chemo embolization should be investigated.

PET/CT: In spite of Dr. Lenz' objections, we should always get a PET/CT instead of a CT only. We must schedule a PET in the next few weeks.

Liver re-section: This is always our goal. Since the liver regenerates itself, if we can get one lobe cancer free, this is the final cure.

Stent management: We will definitely use Dr. Lo at Cedars for this. We will be scheduling the next ERCP now. They want to do this every three months. This could be a stretch for Val in terms of blood infections. Please pray that we can get through this period infection free.

Diet, exercise, attitude, and management of excessive testosterone levels in the McCrea house: A huge challenge!

As we rush headlong into the holidays, the order of the day should be; do less!

Your prayers and suggestions are always appreciated. Pray for us as we move forward with confidence in our goal of ridding our dear Valerie of this disease. God Most High is with us and nothing can stand against us.

Your fellow soldier and servant of Jesus Christ

Something Bigger Is Going On Here

This title is from an acronym I heard recently from Dennis Keating. Thanks for your faithful ministry of God's word Pastor Keating.

In Chapter 12, the unknown Writer of God's Letter To The Hebrews speaks to we who are alive today when He says "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off all hindrances and the sin that entangles us, and let us run with perseverence the race set before us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith."

Who are these people? Are they really surrounding us?

The writer identifies them in Chapter 11 as Old Testament Servants of God Most High. Their lives of faith are presented to encourage us. To serve as examples for us. By faith, we still hear their voices speaking to us. Their lives of faith are Milestones on our journey.

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on Earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead they were longing for a better country -- a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

In C.S. Lewis' allegory "The Great Divorce", a ghostly resident of a grey and lifeless town boards a shining omnibus for a trip to the world of the solid people. The omnibus rises off the ground and the occupants sense that they are ascending through a huge canyon with steep walls that appear to go on forever. The light gets brighter and brighter and they finally land in the world of solid people. While talking to one of the solid people, the ghost described the massive canyon that they flew through. He was terrified when the solid person shows him a crack in the ground so small that it could hardly be seen. "That", said the solid person 'is the canyon you ascended." Everything that is not part of God's kingdom will fit in a microscopic crack in the Earth.

Our journey with Val seems to be attended by high rock walls looming out of sight. But look up beloved. The light grows stronger. Look up. Our Redeemer lives.

Someone once said, "Life is a journey." And every journey has a destination.

Look again at the lives of the saints described in Chapter 11. Abel murdered. Noah scorned as he built a boat in the desert. Abraham; his faith was so strong that he believed God would raise Isaac from the dead after he slew him. Moses considered Christ greater than the riches of Egypt. They were stoned, sawn in two, tempted, put to death, destitute, afflicted, ill treated.

If you are reading this, you are breathing. And the words of the song are true; "Every breath I take, every move I make. I'll be watching you." God Most High is watching. A great cloud of witnesses are watching. Our world is watching.

Val has had a hard week since her discharge from USC last Sunday. A trip to the emergency room for level 10 pain. Two hours per day of antibiotic infusions. Nausea and pain. She had to cancel a chemo treatment on Thursday. It is re-scheduled for this Thursday. Chris has been traveling. He also had to have an infusion of Remicade for Crohn's. Please pray that Val will be able to make her chemo appointment Thursday. We are encouraged with the cancer report but it seems that all the other demons are lurking in the shadows. Pray for Val's attitude. It is very positive now and I am very grateful for all your prayers and support.

A special thanks to all who continue to provide evening meals. God is a witness to all your acts of kindness.

Godspeed

Meals for McCreas

Amy Nelson is generously continuing to be the point person to coordinate meals for the McCreas. Many of you are already on Amy's list, but if there is any other people who would like to sign up to bring a meal to Val and her family call or email Amy. Since the time change Tyler is raring to eat by 5:00 or 5:30, so if you can bring dinner around that time they would greatly appreciate it. Special thanks to Amy!

Amy Nelson
ononuts@cox.net
760-743-2331 home
760-807-6032 cell

When I think of you who bring wonderful meals for Val I can't help but think of Romans 12:4-6

For as we have many members in one body, but all of the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them.....

Thank you for being the "hands" to prepare meals. Among the other outpourings of love you are meeting a need that is part of the "body" of needs that Val has as she fights this cancer.

Much Thanks!
Julie

Bilirubin down slightly

I am feeling better. I am on MS Contin 30 mg 2X/day. I am in no pain. My billirubin went from 3.6 to 3.2. It is going the right direction. It needs to be around 1.

We are really making a push to find out why my stents get infected so easily and better ways to manuver my care. I am up, took a shower, put some make-up on and I am going to pick up a few things for my albums I am working on.

Chris is at a 2 day work conference. I pray for strength for him. He is really burning the candle at every end possible. I am on 8 more days of IV anti-biotics to make sure the infection is gone.

The crazy thing about all this is my cancer is shrinking. Thank you for ALL the meals, movies and friendship. I do not know how other people go through this with out help and support like I have. I am so lucky and blessed. My Mom framed this verse and it is on my kitchen counter. I read it and beleive it every day.

"Therefore I tell you, what ever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it and it will be yours". Mark 11:24

Day by day resting in God's arms.

Valerie

Our World

One day, a godless university professor decided to bully his students.

He asked; "did God create everything that
exists?"

One student answered bravely; "yes, He did."

"Everything?" asked the professor. "Everything" said the student.

"In this case, God also created evil because evil exists." Is this correct?" asked the professor.

To this the student had no answer and was silenced. The professor was delighted to prove one more time that faith is a myth.

Another student raised his hand. “May I ask you a question professor?” “Of course” , was the answer.

Does cold exist? "Of course," answered the professor. Did you never feel cold?

"Actually, sir, cold does not exist. According to studies in Physics, cold is the total absence of heat. An object can only be studied if it transmits energy,and heat is the source of that energy." "But cold does not exist. We created the term to explain the lack of heat”

“And darkness?”, asked the student. "It exists”, replied the professor. “Again, you’re wrong sir, darkness is the total absence of light. You can study light and brightness, but not darkness. The prism of Nichols shows the variety of different colors in which the light can be decomposed according to the longitude of the waves."

"Darkness is the term we created to explain the total absence of light” And finally, the student asked; “And evil, sir, does evil exist?”

"God did not create evil. Evil is the absence of God in people’s hearts, it is the absence of love, humanity and faith.Love and faith are like heat and light. They exist. Their absence lead to evil”

Now it was the professor’s turn to remain silent.

The student's name; Albert Einstein.

Oceanside, 12:26 PM

I talked to Val. She is at Palomar Hospital. her blood work looks good, except fot Bilirubin. Normal range is 0.3-1.9. Her level is 3.6 this morning. This compares to 3.0 at USC on Saturday and Sunday. Also, an x-ray and urine test did not reveal any problems. Dr. Lenz is in the loop.

Bilirubin, in Val's case, is a way to measure how well bile is flowing out of the liver and down through the stents. I don't think the doctors are overly concerned with this number as long as it begins to drop soon. She will have another blood test tomorrow.

Dr. Yang used plastic temporary stents as opposed to expanding stainless steel stents . The difference is that the steel stents expand to a larger inside diameter and are less susceptible to blockage. The plastic stents are usually good for 3 months. We have heard thru the grapevine that once you have permanent stents, you are no longer resectable. Can anyone shed any light on this issue?

Other than the Bilirubin, pain management is the big demon. Any advice out there on methods other than morphine based drugs would be appreciated.

Val hopes to get sprung in the next few hours. I don't think she will be admitted.

Thank you for remembering our beautiful girl in prayer beloved.

Pain

Escondido, 6:20 a.m. Val spent the night on Laslo. She is in level 10 pain. No fever. Nancy and Val just left for Palomar emergency. I am staying with Ryan who also spent the night. Chris is calling USC. Chris recommended 4 mg. Dilaudid iv.

Please pray for Val.

Richard

Sunday Morning at the McCreas

The day starts early here. Tyler is up and at em no later than six. And he didn't go to bed last night until 9:30.

Both of Val's stents were replaced late Friday by Dr. Yang at USC. One was completely blocked and the other was partially blocked. ERCP Post-Op is painful because the abdomen has to be inflated like a balloon to perform the necessary work.

Mitzi, Kerry and Tami, took Ryan and Gavin up to visit mom yesterday. Chris has been there since Thursday when Julie left. Good soldiers all.

Thanks to all who have faithfully provided evening meals to us all week. They were delicious.

Val is hoping to come home this morning. The decision hinges on the Bilirubin Count, a measure of liver function. Yesterday her count was 3.0. This isn't bad, but it wasn't great . They are looking for a trend down.

The docs are pretty certain that the stents were the reason for the blood infection. I don't think there is any plan to remove the chemo port at this time.

stent replacement not till afternoon now

We all know how hospitals work, their 6:30am means sometime in the afternoon. Well somewhere in the scheduling of this procedure, someone did not do their job right and I fell through the cracks. I now have to wait till mid-after noon. The hard part is, I can not eat or drink anything. I am having the breakfast of champions...... ICE CHIPS.
I am trying to keep my spirits up. I wanted to strangle someone this morning but I have cooled of since then.

Jesus,
I pray and thank you for all the aswered prayers we have seen over the last few days. I ask for strengh, patience and courage to get through these next few days. I know you want me to run the race for you Lord! I am and only because you are with me I love you Jesus.
Amen

Valerie

Follow Me

When the Lord was with us here on Earth, His command was simple. Follow me. He has and will always leads us in the right direction.

Today is no exception.

The door to Cedars Sinai closed this morning. Immediately, we made the decision to have the ERCP stent procedure done at USC. It is scheduled for tomorrow morning.

I caught up with Val and Julie a few minutes ago. They were down in the sunny garden area of the USC Quad having an outdoor barbeque. Chris is en route to LA as we speak. we have a hotel booked 3 miles from USC for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I think Julie is going to head back to San Luis Obispo soon.

Val is very anxious to see her boys. We are going to try and get them up there this weekend.

Pray for Val as she has this procedure tomorrow morning early. Pray for wisdom in deciding what to do about the infusion port. Pray for travel safety for all. Pray also for Char's husband Michael. He had to go to St. Thomas for treatment of swollen joints. They ruled out Dengue Fever (mosquito borne) and think it is a virus.

The Latest News

Val had a port surgically implanted in her arm when she began chemotherapy last year. A tube runs directly from the port into her heart for delivery of chemotherapy drugs. Doctors at USC suspect that the port and tube may be causing her blood infection. She also has (2) stents in the liver bile ducts. There is some evidence of a problem there also.

Dr. Lenz has concluded that the stents should be changed. These were done at Cedars Sinai by Dr. Limon Lo.

As I write, we are waiting for a bed at Cedars. Val will then be transferred by ambulance from USC to Cedars. A 3o minute trip.

Please pray that a bed becomes available in the next few hours. pray that Dr. Lo will put Val in his schedule tomorrow. Pray for wisdom on when to remove the suspicious port.

If a bed is not available by tomorrow morning, we will probably pull the trigger and have the procedures done at USC. Dr. Lenz said that this is Val's call. She will make it in the morning.

Either way, Val will probably not be out of the hospital until Sunday or Monday.

Nov 1st update

Last night after got back from the library, I did spike a fever up again to 102.8 degrees with shakes. Bummer! But it did go down quite quickly. What this means though is they may keep me tonight. The hospital rules are you must be fever free for 24 hours before discharge. Since I am on the edge it they are going to see how I do today. Pray for no fevers t0day..... Thank you for your support.

Val and Julie