Michael Hockett

(Updated as of March 29, 2019)
Welcome to my CaringBridge website. It's designed to keep you, my family and friends, updated in one place as I continue to walk with God through the trial of sarcoma. Leslie and I appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement, so thank you for visiting! 

The backstory is that in early February 2018 I was on a morning jog and felt a sharp pull in my upper armpit. Upon further investigation, I discovered I had a pea-sized lump there. By the end of April the pea had grown to the size of a small potato, and various medical exams, labs, scans, and doctors determined radiation and surgical removal was the most effective one-two punch for therapy. I had five weeks of radiation, five days a week, from the beginning of May through the first week of June. On July 16 the surgeon and radiologist partnered to excise the tumor and then blast the area one last time with intra-operative radiation. The plan then was to have recurring scans over the next five years to ensure all is going well. The surgeon, radiologist, oncologist, and even my family doc firmly believed the cancer would never return. But as of November 2018, it did. And it metastasized to boot to adjacent bones and my abdomen. There is no known medical remedy for this form of sarcoma when it metastasizes, so we are praying for a miracle or miracle cure (both from God's hands).  Currently, I am trying various forms of chemotherapy to slow the growth of the cancer. The first chemo cocktail we tried  was not successful (in fact, one of the new drugs was subsequently pulled off the market). But the second chemo drug I am on now appears to be having a positive effect in slowing and even shrinking the tumors.  My oncologist cautions that the very longest he has seen this particular drug remain effective for an individual under his care was two years. So we will use it as long as it remains effective and then try other therapies as needed.

For all of you entering into this site and offering your support, your ongoing prayers for the miracle noted above is the most important thing we need. Jesus' brother James tells us the prayers of a righteous person are powerful and effective, and we trust God to carry us through the tough times as well as the tranquil ones as we reside under the shadow of his wings.