Casa Huppert 2.0

Sitting here reflecting on the past year, there are so many emotions. While 2019 broke our hearts, we were also introduced to Europe. We had the time of our lives in London and Barcelona. We got to see Suarez and Messi score goals at a Barcelona match, our favorite moment of 2019. Brent had such success during his first clinical trail. I know we will get back to that. Brent's blood counts stabilized and doctors ascertained that he is bleeding from his stomach. Yesterday they performed an endoscopy which determined the bleeding is coming from the cancer itself. He still has a lot of clotting in his leg, also caused by the cancer. In order to prevent large clots getting to his lungs, they placed an IVC filter in his main artery. They need to ensure there isn't any more damage to his heart. In addition, they also placed a catheter in his belly so he can drain the ascites fluid buildup himself. There is risk of bleeding and infection every time he gets a paracentesis. The hope is...

Brent was finally moved out of the ICU yesterday. We are so thankful his pulmonary embolism was caught. However, understand it will take time for him to recover. Our biggest challenge at the moment are his blood counts. His hemoglobin counts have decreased from 12 to somewhere in the 9's. If his counts decrease to the 7's he will need a blood transfusion. There are so many moving parts, it's hard to keep track of everything. I try to focus on one thing at a time. As Brent told me, we will get past this. While it's incredibly hard to see any silver lining in all this, I have to. I am encouraged by how much Brent is eating and drinking. He's no longer on IV fluids and staying hydrated. I  have found that advocating for Brent and our kids gives me a sense of peace among all this chaos. All your acts of kindness continue to restore my faith in humanity. I can not thank you all enough. You keep putting smiles on all our faces each and every day. Today I ask for pra...

The past few weeks have been a blur. We haven't seen any improvements since our stint at Sky Ridge. Brent did start chemo, however that could take quite some time to kick in. We've seen a rapid decline in his health over a short period of time and can't stay on top of it all. Our main concern has been keeping him hydrated. He had several bags of fluid at the infusion center yesterday and was already dehydrated again today. His breathing has gotten significantly worse the past few weeks. I thought he might pass out walking out of the infusion center yesterday. Today our angels came in the form of Brent's mom and sister. They convinced us to have Brent admitted to Sky Ridge again. Praise the lord for them and my sister, who communicated with Brent's mom for them to come talk to us. Shortly after checking in the doctors found blood clots in his right leg and lung. He is en route to the ICU for a procedure to break up the clots. I'm happy with our decision, but ...

Tonight seems like the first time in a while I've actually been able to take a moment and gather my thoughts. Where do I begin? Brent was released from the hospital on Tuesday. At that point we were informed that there were no signs of bacteria in the fluid they extracted via paracentesis. The Sky Ridge doctors at that point believed that his malignant ascites was causing all his symptoms. Malignant ascites happens when cancer spreads to the abdominal lining, it can cause irritation and stimulate the lining to create extra fluid. Brent's oncologist however, was not so sure. He requested another paracentesis on Wednesday. Thursday Brent called my sister and they rushed to urgent care per Dr's orders. This time the fluids they extracted tested positive for bacteria. As of yesterday he has three different bacteria's growing in the fluids that were extracted on Wednesday. Brent and I continue to have full faith in his oncologist. I'm incredibly thankful he figured out ...

The good news is Brent was discharged today. The bad news is all those antibiotics he received will delay the trial two weeks from yesterday. I have to thank my friend Miriam for the reminder today. All in God's time.  I believe this is all a bump in his road to recovery. The boys are excited to have papa home and I'm positive Brent is enjoying his own bed. That's what I choose to focus on today. Our village keeps surprising me every day. Thank you again and again and again. All the kind messages and gestures truly make our days so much brighter. Please keep those prayers coming! I believe they will continue to help Brent get stronger and better every single day before the trial begins.

It has been quite an emotional roller coaster this weekend. I am sad to say we are still at the hospital. Brent is fighting an infection. Until they get it under control he can't start the trial. The good news is he can start as soon as this is under control. That can still happen by tomorrow, but for now we wait. He is still vomiting and not able to eat or drink much. Saturday night one of the drugs he was given knocked him out hard core. It scared the daylights out of me to see him drugged up yesterday. To top it all off my poor Nicolas was so emotional this morning. All I could say was 'I know buddy, this sucks!' Not the most eloquent words nor one of my finer moments. However, in that moment, those words felt so true. I just like to think these are reminders for me to breathe. I don't have to figure everything out today. All I can do is be an advocate for my husband and our kids. We have so many angels looking out for us. This weekend I was reminded how much goo...

This week we learned that Brent has malignant ascites. What that means in medical terms I can not tell you. Here is what I do know. His appetite is nonexistent. He is uncomfortable all the time and he has zero energy. He has lost at least 30 pounds over less than two months. Friday morning, after his second paracentesis, he became violently ill. So here we are at Sky Ridge Medical Center for what I hope and pray is his only night. I pray that nothing derails him from starting the next clinical trial on Tuesday. We have been presented with many things that could be going on. My hope is that he has some kind of bacteria that will dissipate once the antibiotics he is being treated with start working. Through all these bumps in the road I remind myself to cling to my faith. This path is not easy, but we were chosen to walk it for a reason. If my words or our story helps just one person in any way, that would truly be humbling. So I keep writing not only to inform our village, but also ...