Kevin is of HIGH spirits, especially the last 24 hours. He is currently working with the speech therapist on swallowing, and making sure that the liquids do not go down the windpipe. He is VERY proud of how far he has come with the swallowing.
The staff has even allowed him to SWALLOW APPLE JUICE. For those who don’t know, Kevin has been craving fruit juice, no, not just craving, JONESING! So, he’s swallowing apple juice-it goes right into his esophagus bag by his neck, but it feels and tastes SO good. He stil has some minimal coughing, but he’s doing great and getting those swallowing musclesmoving.
All the Drs came in this morning to speak to us about Kevin’s ports for his IVs and chemo. If they can, with Kevin’s fever diminishing, they are looking into inserting a medi-port under the skin that lasts for several months compared to the temporary port they have in now. They are also going to put in a pic line for more of his IVs.
They did try his feeding tube last night, but had some complications with the tubing, and the nurse accidentally popped the tubing a bit. Now we have to wait 4 days for the feeding to resume, but in the meantime, they have started him on the IV feeding to get him some of the important nutrients and protein. This is very temporary, being that his body may try and use that to grow bacteria.
Things are looking great-Kev is swallowing well, we’re geting the feeding started, so far no adverse effects from the chemo and we’re working up to get him disconnected from the chest tubes so he can get up and walk.
Pray these things keep moving forwards-we are not looking negatively-we are looking at healing and progression. The Lord’s will be done!
PS-I apologize for those I haven’t yet written thank yous for the cards and financial help. So for now-THANK YOU THANK YOU!
We love you all!
Brenda, I tried to email this to you at [email protected] but it bounced back with a failure to deliver it to this email address. ???
So, I’ll post it here (plus I’m sure a lot of other readers will be interested in this too)…
I found the following information about asparagus and cancer. Give it a read. I’ll leave it up to you whether you wish to talk to the doctors about it or try it. To me, it’s worth a shot.
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Asparagus
Several years ago, I had a man seeking asparagus for a friend who had cancer. He gave me a photocopied copy of an article, entitled, `Asparagus for cancer’ printed in Cancer News Journal, December 1979. I will share it here, just as it was shared with me:
‘I am a biochemist, and have specialised in the relation of diet to health for over 50 years. Several years ago, I learned of the discovery of Richard R. Vensal, D.D.S. that asparagus might cure cancer. Since then, I have worked with him on his project, and we have accumulated a number of favourable case histories. Here are a few examples.
Case No. 1, man with an almost hopeless case of Hodgkin’s disease (cancer of the lymph glands) who was completely incapacitated. Within 1 year of starting the asparagus therapy, his doctors were unable to detect any signs of cancer, and he was back on a schedule of strenuous exercise.
Case No. 2, a successful businessman 68 years old who suffered from cancer of the bladder for 16 years. After years of medical treatments, including radiation without improvement, he went on asparagus. Within 3 months, examinations revealed that his bladder tumour had disappeared and that his kidneys were normal.
Case No. 3, a man who had lung cancer. On March 5th 1971 he was put on the operating table where they found lung cancer so widely spread that it was inoperable. The surgeon sewed him up and declared his case hopeless. On April 5th he heard about the asparagus therapy and immediately started taking it. By August, x-ray pictures revealed that all signs of the cancer had disappeared. He is back at his regular business routine.
Case No. 4, a woman who was troubled for a number of years with skin cancer. She finally developed different skin cancers which were diagnosed by a skin specialist as advanced. Within 3 months after starting on asparagus, her skin specialist said that her skin looked fine and no more skin lesions. This woman reported that the asparagus therapy also cured her kidney disease, which started in 1949. She had over 10 operations for kidney stones, and was receiving government disability payments for an inoperable, terminal, kidney condition. She attributes the cure of this kidney trouble entirely to the asparagus.
I was not surprised at this result, as `The elements of materia medica’, edited in 1854 by a Professor at the University of Pennsylvania , stated that asparagus was used as a popular remedy for kidney stones. He even referred to experiments, in 1739, on the power of asparagus in dissolving stones. We would have other case histories but the medical establishment has interfered with our obtaining some of the records. I am therefore appealing to readers to spread this good news and help us to gather a large number of case histories that will overwhelm the medical sceptics about t his unbelievably simple and natural remedy.
For the treatment, asparagus should be cooked before using, and therefore canned asparagus is just as good as fresh. I have corresponded with the two leading canners of asparagus, Giant Giant and Stokely, and I am satisfied that these brands contain no pesticides or preservatives. Place the cooked asparagus in a blender and liquefy to make a puree, and store in the refrigerator. Give the patient 4 full tablespoons twice daily, morning and evening. Patients usually show some improvement in from 2-4 weeks. It can be diluted with water and used as a cold or hot drink. This suggested dosage is based on present experience, but certainly larger amounts can do no harm and may be needed in some cases.
As a biochemist I am convinced of the old saying that `what cures can prevent’. Based on this theory, my wife and I have been using asparagus puree as a beverage with our meals. We take 2 tablespoons diluted in water to suit our taste with breakfast and with dinner. I take mine hot and my wife prefers hers cold. For years we have made it a practice to have blood surveys taken as part of our regular checkups.
The last blood survey, taken by a medical doctor who specialises in the nutritional approach to health, showed substantial improvements in all categories over the last one, and we can attribute these improvements to nothing but the asparagus drink. As a biochemist, I have made an extensive study of all aspects of cancer, and all of the proposed cures. As a result, I am convinced that asparagus fits in better with the latest theories about cancer.
Asparagus contains a good supply of protein called histones, which are believed to be active in controlling cell growth. For that reason, I believe asparagus can be said to contain a substance that I call cell growth normaliser. That accounts for its action on cancer and in acting as a general body tonic. In any event, regardless of theory, asparagus used as we suggest, is a harmless substance. The FDA cannot prevent you from using it and it may do you much good.’ It has been reported by the US National Cancer Institute, that asparagus is the highest tested food containing glutathione, which is considered one of the body’s most potent anticarcinogens and antioxidants.