Steve’s Story

Site created on December 6, 2019

A hearty hello to friends and family who are visiting  our CaringBridge site.  We are starting to share here at the recommendation of our medical oncologist - so here goes, we figured transparency is the best path forward.  Thank you all for the good vibes, prayers and support!


By way of background, Steve visited his general practitioner, Mary Ellen Ritchie (who is amazing btw) the week before Halloween for laryngitis.  They ran a standard lung scan and on Halloween afternoon, we learned that they had found a 10cm mass.  From there Steve underwent a series of tests; scans; MRI's etc.  


It has been determined that Steve has Stage IV metastatic lung cancer, having traveled to other areas including his shoulder and spine.   We are now with the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.  Fantastic team of oncologists!


Steve started radiation therapy for pain management the week of Thanksgiving, and finishes up December 11th.  That was to simply help reduce the two largest tumors in lung and spine and help alleviate any discomfort.


We learned yesterday that his biopsy revealed he tested extremely well for the PDL-1 marker, which indicates that he  should respond well to immunotherapy!  This was great news to us -- as this is cutting edge therapy and the results are phenomenal.  He will begin this treatment 1x every 3 weeks.  If he responds well -- then no Chemo!  If not, then we will move to Chemo in concert with Immuno -- Chemo for 4 sessions and Immunotherapy indefinitely.


So here we are -- ready to celebrate the Christmas Holidays with more Joy than ever!  He will have three weeks of no treatments -- thus will be looking forward to  making his famous Bloody Mary's and having a beer or two with friends and family.  His humor is at it's best! So no doom and gloom -- we are ready to ring in the New Year with positive spirits and continued good vibes from our tribe.  Love you all.





Newest Update

Journal entry by Julia Sweeney

A hearty hello all!

Apologies for such a long delay in posting - perhaps we can apply the old adage "No news is good news!"

Let's recap:  Steve is doing really well.  He had to stop receiving Immunotherapy in January - as the medical team was concerned about being on the drug for so long - his body is not able to handle it anymore.  The team at Hopkins has designated Steve as "Pioneer" in the study of using Immunotherapy for Stage IV Metastatic Cancer.  His case is so noteworthy and is being monitored by the Tumor Board at Sidney Kimmel.  Steve has exceeded every expectation of his diagnosis - a true warrior!

So what next?  Steve is now getting CT scans every three months with contrast to keep an eye on disease progression.  We have been successful in setting benchmarks for his battle with cancer -- and applied a six month goal this year to hold our breath until at least two cycles have gone well.  We hit that mark!!  Steve looks amazing - is healthier than ever (less the cancer) and is living a full and happy life.

We are still on a mission to live life in the present and be grateful for our health and happiness.  We had an amazing summer.  We celebrated family and friends with destination weddings and engagement parties.  We traveled on a dream trip to Turkey, Greece, Italy and Spain.  We continue to be hopeful - and happily making plans for the future!

This month marks Steve's third (3) year with cancer.  We found out at 4:30 PM on Halloween afternoon 2019.  What a journey!  We have battled and will continue to do so - looking forward to making plans with our tribe -- enjoy your Halloween all - we sure will!

Julia

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