Joshua’s Story

Site created on February 26, 2023

In February of this year, our 23-year-old son Josh discovered he has 2 retroperitoneal masses in his abdomen. He has been having stomach issues, including nausea and pain, for quite some time, a few months. An ultrasound & a couple of scans showed these 2 tumors,  which are paragangliomas like the one his dad had removed in December. That means they have "fingers." One is golf ball sized and the other is softball sized. They both secrete a hormone that affects his blood pressure and blood sugar. He's also in a bit of pretty consistent pain. 
He will have surgery on March 29 to resect these tumors and we'll update you on his progress here!! Dr. Tan will be operating on him and we are so comfortable with Josh being in his care! He was Drew’s surgeon & he saved Drew’s life.
Thank you in advance for your prayers.

https://gofund.me/102b73fe

Newest Update

Journal entry by Stephanie Porterfield

Wow, it's been quite a while since I updated you! I will update you on all things Drew & Josh while I'm here.

They both had their appointments with their new oncologist here in Georgia. She is a proper Georgia girl, got her undergrad at UGA. 😜 They had their appointments on different days, but you all know that I was there with bells on, taking notes. 

Drew:

  • blood pressure - amazing & the lowest he's seen in years!
  • bloodwork - I think I heard her use the word "perfect"
  • no tumor recurrence
  • he's got an incisional ventral hernia that he will see a surgeon about tomorrow (that's a hernia in his abdomen caused from surgical recovery) 

Josh:

  • blood pressure - incredible!
  • bloodwork - pretty darn good. His bilirubin is low, but they'll be keeping an eye on that.
  • no recurring tumors
  • the tumor in his neck is still less than a cm & Dr. Ye will compare with the Vandy scans

We are so thrilled and will be counting our blessings until the next round of scans, roughly 6 months from now!!

Thank you for your continued prayers for my boys. 

Steph

 

 

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