Kim’s Story

Site created on November 10, 2023


Welcome to Kim's Caring Bridge site.  We wanted to take the updates off of Facebook so we can make sure everyone has access to these updates as you follow along my cancer journey.  November 11 marked 7 months of this journey and we still have a long road of unknowns ahead of us.  Here is recap for those keeping track.

On April 11, 2023 I went to urgent care because my left hip kept going out randomly.  During my visit I mentioned an annoying non productive cough that didn't seem to go away.   We got some pain meds for my hip with the instruction to continue to monitor it because it wasn't quite clear why it was happening.  The Dr. also had me do a chest x ray to ensure the cough wasn't pneumonia with the plan of prescribing some antibiotics later that day.   We thankfully did the chest x ray right there and then left to go about our day.  While driving to work I stopped at Starbucks and received the call the would alter the rest of my life.  The Dr said the chest x ray showed a large amount of small tumors in my lungs and it's cancer and we will need to do some tests to properly diagnose.


Following that phone call we immediately started the process of scheduling any and all tests with the hope they were wrong.  On April 19 I had my first ever "surgery" where they took a biopsy of my lungs and were able to clear up some of airway.  This was accompanied by MRI, CT scans, PET- CT scans and so much blood work.  We kept hoping each test would show it's not cancer, just an infection or something easy to fix. Also as someone with a high needle and Dr anxiety this time was very hard to process and I was constantly on edge.  Prior to this experience, having my children was the most medical thing I had gone through. 
Unfortunately the test kept confirming yes it's cancer and unfortunately also not just in my lungs.  I was officially diagnosed with Stage 4 non -small cell lung cancer - adenocarcinoma that has metastasized to my brain.  Further blood work confirmed I was Her2 positive, which is more commonly found in breast cancer and the cause for all of this.  

Cue all the anxiety and blocking out a lot of information and worse.... how do we tell the kids. :(

Now that we had a plan we sat the kids down to share those dreaded words... Mommy has cancer. 

On May 12 I had my first round of chemo. The first round knocked me out.  I could barely get out of bed and could barely make it to the end of my hallway; let alone down the stairs.  I was terrified this is what my life would be now and was so thankful when my energy returned a couple of days later.  I did a couple more rounds of chemo before getting my next CT scan which FINALLY showed promising news that the tumors were shrinking! 

On June 14 I had my first round of radiation at the Gamma Knife center at Harborview to hopefully take care of the tumors in my brain before they became a problem.  We had originally been told we would be doing 5 rounds and only ended up doing 3 rounds that were 33 mins each.  33 mins of laying completely still and received the parting gift of a cool mask when it was all over.  In comparison to chemo - this was much easier and less side effects. 

In August we received the news that chemo was no longer doing it's job and the tumors were once again growing and possibly spreading to my liver.  This meant changing the game plan and starting a new (to us) chemo drug. Before starting we were warned this would be a harsher drug with harsher side effects which includes hair loss.  The hair loss happened pretty quickly and  my hair was gone by the end of August, after just one round of this chemo drug. 

September 1 I had my second round of the new chemo drug and the first time I had an allergic reaction.  So not only has this drug taken my hair, we learned I am now allergic to it.  This means more premeds and figuring out the best combo to not have a reaction again.  It took 3 more rounds to finally not have a reaction and we are hoping it continues to be this way from now.
September 18 my MRI showed a mass on the side of my head.  The lump I've been complaining about since this whole thing started and they thought it was related to the chemo as well as a couple small tumors that were previously not seen in the scans.  This means more radiation.  I not only did a LONG 2 hour session in Gamma Knife, but 5 separate radiation sessions that were maybe 5-10 mins each. 

October 10 I had my first ever seizure while we were on happy trip to Disneyland.  After a couple scans it was determined that it was likely caused by scar tissue surrounding one of the tumors that was previously treated.  I am currently on anti seizure medicine and the Drs seem to think this may have been an isolated event with unfortunate timing.  Thankfully it had nothing to do with flying or being at Disneyland.   Phew


I think that catches us up on the last 7 months and will continue to update here as things progress.  I am currently doing chemo every 3 weeks and will continue until told otherwise.

Thank you all for your continued thoughts, prayers and support as we navigate this unimaginable journey no one ever thought we would be on. 

Newest Update

Riff raff lab rat…

Journal entry by Kim Pygott —

I want to preface this post as please no toxic positivity in relation to what you are about to read. This by no means I have given up hope or the fight but it’s time to be real as the real fear of the unknown and what’s to come really settles in.  

As I’ve stated several times this is the concept of cancer that is hard to grasp if you aren’t in it… it doesn’t matter what you do, how hard you try… cancer has other plans and you are truly just the passenger trying your best to make sense of the nightmare you got thrown into.  

Friday we received the news that my lab rat status has come to abrupt ending as the cancer continues to spread… even if my lungs seem to be doing ok.  This was the dreaded news we anticipated hearing, but once again hoping we were wrong.  

Remember the drug we fought insurance for last year? Well thankfully since we finally won that fight I was able to immediately jump ship to that medicine.  I had my first infusion Friday and exhaustion has set in strong.  It’s hard to know what to expect as each chemo drug hits differently… but I’ve been told my hair is once at risk and exhaustion should be my biggest obstacles,  but they say that movement should help with exhaustion… easier said than done.  

So it’s back to our regularly scheduled program of infusions every 3 weeks in hopes progress is made and we can continue attempting to hit unpause. 

To be real things are hard right now and as I continue to attempt to stay positive and find the light it’s increasingly becoming harder as it often feels we are trying to hit unpause but can’t find the remote… or we do find the remote and the batteries don’t work.  

Long story short it’s a lot to process and I truly do not know what is needed at this moment.  We knew this day would come eventually and honestly scared of what this means as we move through this process desperately looking for a way out and to put this behind us.  Unfortunately as we continue down the path it seems this is a scenario we can not truly escape.  There are a lot of unknowns and none of this is any of my control.  In the meantime we continue to look for the light and hope for the best.  Hence the no toxic positivity- it’s time to be real, this truly sucks and is completely unfair.  

Thank you to those of who continue to attempt to show up I know it’s not easy but it’s truly appreciated.  




Read More of the journal titled "Riff raff lab rat… "
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