- K
- A
Hello!
[Those of you that don't know me, I'm Ayako, Coop's wife and partner in crime.]
Cooper and I are so very fortunate to have so many friends and family offering love, support, help, in this sudden "expert level" life challenge. Cooper started treatment for colon cancer - specifically, adenocarcinomas in his liver and lungs that originated in a (thankfully non-obstructive) adenocarcinoma mass in his sigmoid colon - on July 30 at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (Northwest Hospital location). His oncologist has started him on a chemotherapy regimen that is a long-standing standard treatment for colon cancer, to which he thinks Cooper will respond well. The plan/hope is that, with this regimen, along with some tweaks the oncologist may make based on specifics of Cooper's body's response to the medications and lab results, the adenocarcinomas in all three areas will respond and shrink down. This chemotherapy is on a two-week cycle, and they will likely run Cooper through six or twelve cycles.
As with many medical situations, Cooper and I are finding ourselves in an unexpected place. A cancer diagnosis a month after our wedding... Definitely not something we had planned for. Many of you have offered support/help, but we have not been able to give many specific requests, as this is still so very new. Coop's work surprised him with collected PTO donations from fellow employees, which paid out about a month's worth of pay while he's been on leave from his job, and that has helped so much already. Our families (both Seattle and Memphis) have bought us groceries, cooked us healthy meals, kept us company. Thankfully, we are not in a place of immediate need financially, because we do have medical insurance, and the bulk of the bills haven't yet started coming in. However, we don't know how long treatment will take, what turns there will be, and what costs are coming down the line. If you would like to help us in a simple way, your monetary donation - for medical bills, prescriptions, groceries, gas, supplies, etc! - is very much welcomed and greatly appreciated. It will most certainly help alleviate some of our anxieties in this difficult situation.
Anyone that knows Coop knows what a tough, strong, hardworking, and stubborn person he is, not to mention full of passion, fight and fire, mischief, care and love. He's thoughtful and takes the time to process what is going on in his mind and his heart, while considering the feelings of those around him. Coop intends to stay strong and fight hard; he's adamant about being a "good patient." And when shit hits the fan (no pun intended), we take care of shit (okay fine, maybe this one's intended) as a team. We have a great network of support here in Seattle and in Memphis, and even in other corners of the world. We are learning together: leaning on each other, leaning on family, leaning on our loving pals. We appreciate all of your support and positive energy.
Much love,
Ayako
[Those of you that don't know me, I'm Ayako, Coop's wife and partner in crime.]
Cooper and I are so very fortunate to have so many friends and family offering love, support, help, in this sudden "expert level" life challenge. Cooper started treatment for colon cancer - specifically, adenocarcinomas in his liver and lungs that originated in a (thankfully non-obstructive) adenocarcinoma mass in his sigmoid colon - on July 30 at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (Northwest Hospital location). His oncologist has started him on a chemotherapy regimen that is a long-standing standard treatment for colon cancer, to which he thinks Cooper will respond well. The plan/hope is that, with this regimen, along with some tweaks the oncologist may make based on specifics of Cooper's body's response to the medications and lab results, the adenocarcinomas in all three areas will respond and shrink down. This chemotherapy is on a two-week cycle, and they will likely run Cooper through six or twelve cycles.
As with many medical situations, Cooper and I are finding ourselves in an unexpected place. A cancer diagnosis a month after our wedding... Definitely not something we had planned for. Many of you have offered support/help, but we have not been able to give many specific requests, as this is still so very new. Coop's work surprised him with collected PTO donations from fellow employees, which paid out about a month's worth of pay while he's been on leave from his job, and that has helped so much already. Our families (both Seattle and Memphis) have bought us groceries, cooked us healthy meals, kept us company. Thankfully, we are not in a place of immediate need financially, because we do have medical insurance, and the bulk of the bills haven't yet started coming in. However, we don't know how long treatment will take, what turns there will be, and what costs are coming down the line. If you would like to help us in a simple way, your monetary donation - for medical bills, prescriptions, groceries, gas, supplies, etc! - is very much welcomed and greatly appreciated. It will most certainly help alleviate some of our anxieties in this difficult situation.
Anyone that knows Coop knows what a tough, strong, hardworking, and stubborn person he is, not to mention full of passion, fight and fire, mischief, care and love. He's thoughtful and takes the time to process what is going on in his mind and his heart, while considering the feelings of those around him. Coop intends to stay strong and fight hard; he's adamant about being a "good patient." And when shit hits the fan (no pun intended), we take care of shit (okay fine, maybe this one's intended) as a team. We have a great network of support here in Seattle and in Memphis, and even in other corners of the world. We are learning together: leaning on each other, leaning on family, leaning on our loving pals. We appreciate all of your support and positive energy.
Much love,
Ayako