Hi friends and family -

Checking in with an update on Jess.

This past Friday afternoon, Jess went to United Hospital in St. Paul due to fever, intense vomiting, and pain. She was admitted overnight.

Scans showed that the cancer in her lungs had grown a bit, but otherwise, they felt the stent looked ok. After fluids and meds, they let her go home around 2 pm on Saturday…which was short-lived.

Soon after returning home, Jess started feeling pain, and her fever returned. At the same time, the hospital called for her to return because one of her bacterial cultures came back positive for infection, and she was told to return to the hospital immediately.

Jess came back to United and began receiving antibiotics for the infection. An ERCP was scheduled for 2 pm on Sunday in order to determine the source of the infection - which they speculated might be the stent that was placed a few weeks ago.

The ERCP procedure went well yesterday. They discovered that the stent had slipped, so they replaced it and added an additional stent to prop up the main one. Jess was back in her room recovering by mid-afternoon Sunday.

Today, the GI doctor and hospitalist have both been by to see Jess. They have taken two additional cultures since she began antibiotics, and the infection has dropped to an undetectable level. This is great news; it means the antibiotics are working!

Jess is experiencing abdominal pain (about a 3 on a scale of 10) and nausea, but both are being managed with medication - Dilaudid and Zofran.

The hospitalist would like to release Jess this afternoon so she can continue 12 days of antibiotics orally from home. Jess would like this as well!

Unfortunately, this hospital stay again impacted Jess's planned trip to MD Anderson for her second round of scans. She was supposed to leave for that trip today, but it will need to be rescheduled.

She was also scheduled to receive chemo and radiation today, but this will also need to be rescheduled once she has finished the round of antibiotics.

The weekend was pretty heavy, emotionally, for Jess. The doctor told her that the infection could be life-threatening if they didn't locate the source quickly. Thankfully, they did, but hearing those words from the doctor wasn't easy for Jess.

Increasingly, the reality of the severity of her disease is overwhelming to Jess - and she takes some time to cry and feel the grief.

We know you'll be glad to hear that Jess is never alone - she always has someone by her side. Friday and Saturday night, Caitlin was in the hospital room with her, and on Sunday, her college friend, Rachel (that's me), got into town and stayed with her.

Jess's good friends Becky, Anne, Ali, Morgan, and Millie all visited her on Sunday, and her seminary friends Isabel and Allison also stopped by with plants, flowers, and snacks. Allison also gave her the sweetest foot rub with essential oils, which was so nice!

Jess is excited to return home today - and hopes for some non-hospital weeks in her future. We hope so too!

As always, Jess feels your love and support. Never hesitate to send her messages, cards, or memes - she loves hearing from her people.

Her address, just so you have it close by, is:

Jess Carter
3531 East Mineral Pond Blvd
Anoka, MN 55303

Warmly,

Team Jess

P.S. Please enjoy the pic of Jess "so over" her hospital stays, while also being quite doped up.