Seth's Info

I am thrilled to report that Jenny and I returned home yesterday and our family is back together again. I was going stir crazy by Wednesday and managed to convince the doctors to send me home Thursday. I am doing well and getting around the house without too much difficulty. My abdominal incision still keeps me from doing too much.

We had a home health care agency set up tube feeding equipment here at the house, so I can do tube feedings overnight. It’s basically a plastic bad to hold the liquid food, a small pump, and a tube that fits into my J-Tube in my abdomen. I’m currently getting about 1200 calories a day from the tube feeding, and starting to eat more each day via mouth to complete my nutrition. It is a little hard to describe the sensation of my new stomach arrangement, but I am getting used to it. I am slowly expanding the type of food I am eating as well. Jenny and I went to Wegmans today to pick out food that looked good (I even rode the motorized cart around without wounding my pride too much). Hopefully within a few weeks I will be off the Tube feeding altogether, but I am not going to rush things.

Jenny and I were thrilled to see the kids again, and they seem to be accepting our presence after an unplanned multi-week absence. Many thanks to mom, Mark, Ann, Jaime, and Jane for watching the kids while we were gone, it was a huge help. Also a big thanks to the many co-workers from SRI who came out this week to clean up our yard and mulch the landscaping. Everything looks great (and professional) and Jenny and I are so grateful for your efforts. I only wish I could have been around to help out. Another big thanks to all those who sent cards, books, and magazines to me in the hospital. It was always exciting to get mail in the room.

It looks like I am going to head to Memorial Sloan Kettering next week for some follow up appointments and also to meet with an oncologist there about a clinical trial. We may switch directions on the treatment plan, but haven't figured it all out yet. More on this later.

That’s it for now. I hope to report continued progress in the days to come.

Take care,
Seth