Gail writes.....

We have moved to 10 south cancer ward this afternoon. The Doc's was going to start chemo today but I asked to wait one day after yesterday she desevered to have ONE day of rest and was totally shocked they all agreed with me. Lisa is slowly come off the strong pain meds so she is a little on edge but she knows and is trying to be nice and happy . so far so good ..... So as I am writing this Lisa is painting a horse out in the pasture and is enjoying have paint on her hands and a little on the face . Grandma is relaxing & reading the newspaper . I am just enjoying this 70 degree room and watching life flight land on top of OHSU we have the perfect view !
Tomorrow we find out the results of the surgery at least that is what they are telling us.

Lisa was a very brave girl today !!!! The Doc's took out all three tubes today she is tube free ! The tests came back normal no infections . We find out the surgery results sometime tomorrow .Lisa wants everyone to know that she could not have gone through this surgery without all of your prayers she says thank you very much !

Gail

Message from Gail

The last couple of days has taken a toll on Lisa from high fever to having tubes fall out & put back in to struggling to breath . But things are starting to look better for her. Yesterday Lisa starting running a high fever ( but broke finally ) the Doc's ran a bunch of tests and as of yet the ones that are coming back are looking normal but will find out tonight around 7 pm the (big one ) if she has an infection in her port. We are praying alot ! All of Lisa's veins in her arms and hands have collasped ( thanks to chemo ) and she has no more to give, even the ones in her legs and feet are shot the port is all that is left.

Tomorrow ( monday ) will be a HUGE day, the Doc's will run a test on her lung. If it does not collaspe then they will take out all 3 tubes . Remember she is 14 and is scared of this test along will Grandma and I and Gordon so please pray that we will be

ready and nothing will go wrong.

doing good!

Gail called this morning and said that Lisa is doing well. She is still dealing with some pain, of course, but is handling so bravely! They thought they might be up there for 2 weeks, but it looks like maybe it will not be that long.
We sent Lisa pictures of her cat and dog on her cell phone because she misses them as much as they miss her! We hope you get to come home soon!

ss

Lisa's surgery that was supposed to started at 12:30, kept getting pushed back and did not start until about 3:30. The Doctors said that the surgery went well and they removed the 6 spots that were in her left lung. They were cancerous spots, but I don't know any more information on them then that. The doctor said that they do plan on going into the other lung in a few weeks to remove the spots that they see in there. Lisa was struggling with pain in the recovery room, but hopefully they have gotten that under control for her now.

Our prayers are with you Lisa.

ss

Pray during Lisa's lung surgery!

Tomorrow morning (Thur.) Lisa will head up to the hospital for surgery on one of her lungs. They plan to do the surgery at 12:30 and expect it to last a few hours. They will try to remove the spots of cancer, and once they know the outcome of this surgery they will make plans for the other lung.

This is a big surgery for Lisa, please pray for the doctors doing the surgery as well as Lisa and her family. They have been told that there is more than 10 spots in her lungs now and that they seem to be growing, but they have also been told other things by other doctors. It is not always easy to understand everything that you are being told, anyway, in stressful times like these, but the differing opinions from the doctors is making it more stressful. We understand that there is no exact answer for some of the questions they have but pray that the team of doctors will be able to give the Harders a clearer picture of things.

They think that Lisa will be at the hospital for about 2 weeks, so I sure they would love to have visitors to pass the time. I will try to make a post when they are ready for visitors.

We will all be praying for you Lisa!

ss

Lisa had to go back to Doernbecher today because she was feeling so weak and had 4 bloody noses. When she arrived they determined that she needed to be given blood plateletts, but the problem was that they did not have a match for her in the hospital. This was so discouraging. The doctors contacted the Red Cross to see if they could bring in a match. Thankfully they were able to find a match and it was given to Lisa. This helped her enough to be able to go back home. Pray for continued strength and healing as she waits for her upcoming surgery.

ss

surgery news

I think it feels like 1 step forward and 2 steps back right now. The Harders headed back to Doernbecher this morning to check Lisa in for the next session of chemo. But the frustrating news was that her body was not ready. Lisa's blood platelets were too low, this causes her to be very weak and get the bloody noses. She just had not healed enough from the last round to start this round. The doctor then suggested that they go ahead and do the surgery on Lisa's lungs this Thur. That is the night of the Volcano's baseball game where they are doing all kinds of neat things for Randy and Lisa, and neither Gail or Lisa wanted to miss that, the doctor agreed and they scheduled Lisa's surgery for the 23rd.

This will give Lisa a chunk of time to be off chemo and build some strength for her surgery, but it also prolongs the whole process. The light at the end of the tunnel, as far a chemo goes, just keeps getting farther away.

They will be operating on only one of Lisa's lungs on the 23rd. They will go in from her side and take out all the cancer spots in that lung. The spots will then be tested. They are so praying that they are all dead. The results of that test will determine their next step.

Pray for strength, both physically and mentally, for all the Harders. This is overwhelming and lack of sleep is often an issue. Gail is up at the hospital every night Lisa is there and she sleeps in a window seat. Gail's mom, sister or Gordan are up there with her also. The recliner beside the bed is where the other person sleeps, so as you can imagine the days they get to be home are treasured for sleeping their own bed too.

They would love to see you all at the Volcanos game. There is also a car wash at West Coast Bank in West Salem this Sat. Come support Randy and Lisa.

ss

A little visit with Lisa

I saw Lisa today, and she looked good. Basically today they are playing the waiting game, hoping that Lisa's levels of chemo reach the point where she can go home. It did not look like it would be today, but probably tomorrow.

The are definitely going to do surgery on her lungs to remove the spots. They don't have an exact date but it looks like it will be the toward the end of this month. They are praying that they have all been zapped by the chemo and they are not living cancer cells.

The results came back on the scan that they did on Lisa's lungs. They found a total of 10 cancer spots in both of her lungs. This has been very hard news and the family has had a difficult day. Please pray for them as they talk with the doctors on what this will mean for lisa's treatment.

ss

Prayers for Lisa

Lisa started chemo about 6 pm on Mon. evening, and it was supposed to go for about 4 hours.
But there was a little change of plans today... They decided to go ahead with the scan of Lisa's lungs . In the past they have seen anywhere between 1 and 6 spots in her lungs. Lisa has gone through extensive chemo since they last looked at her lungs and the family is praying for a miracle and healing. They will not know the results for a day or 2, but if anything is found they will need to do surgery to remove it.
Of course Lisa and her family are anxious about the results, but they are trusting God and would appreciate your prayers.

ss

Gail turns the big 50! (almost)

Lisa came home from the hospital on Fri. evening, just in time for the 4th of July. She was feeling pretty down thinking that she may have to spend the 4th in the hospital, but when she passed the level of chemo left in her system and could go home she perked right up!
Debbie, Gails sister, is here to visit and help out where ever she is needed. Well I guess she was needed to throw a little surprise party for Gail, who will be turning 50 in a few weeks. Family and a few friends met down at Walleries on the afternoon of the 4th to try to surprise Gail with a Birthday party. Pretty sure it was not a surprise, but it still was a party!!! Gail received all the appropriate "over the hill" gifts, which she said she is eager to pass on to the next victim who turns 50. So Happy early birthday Gail.
Tomorrow Lisa will head back up to Doernbecker for 6 weeks of chemo in a row. They told her is it likely that she will have to stay up there much of they time, since there is only a few days in between sessions. If they do get to come home is will be for a short time and they will have to head right back up. So keep Lisa in your prayers, and now that is is summer they might enjoy some visitor up there! As always it is best to give a call, because they are never sure how Lisa will be doing after each dose of chemo. Stay strong Lisa, the end is in sight.

ss