Team Meyer

Monday, August 23, 2004 11:57 PM CDT MONDAY Dave went to work today from 8 am to 3 pm and then football practice from 3-5 pm. He came home and looked great. His eyes are less puffy. He had a little headache, but it went away with tylenol. How strong is this guy, anyway? He's icing his head and going to bed early. We're still waiting to hear from Dr. Spence at UW. Guess I'll have to rattle some cages tomorrow. KOKO (keep on keepin' on) Love you all, Shelley

Monday, August 23, 2004 11:56 PM CDT THE HISTORY For those of you who don't know the full story of Dave's brain tumor saga....here's the copy I just submitted to virtualtrials.com There's more to add, but this is the basic story. Dave Meyer’s Story In 1996, my husband, Dave, was 33 years old with two small boys and a baby girl. He was a high school history teacher who coached football and basketball, working out with his teams and riding his bike to school. He was full of life and energy and love for everyone around him. His life motto has always been, “Use things, love people.” He had a few headaches, but attributed them to fatigue. He was considering visiting the doctor, because he noticed during basketball games he’d occasionally be overcome with a funny, surreal feeling and sounds were distorted. But before he could make that appointment, the world crashed in. He was driving to Portland with his brother, early in the morning, December 23, 1996. They hit a patch of i...

Saturday, August 21, 2004 9:52 PM CDT SATURDAY Hello all. Dave continues to do amazingly well. He went to football practice today. 9-12 and 2-5. It wasn't too hot today, only about 87, so that was a blessing. He does have a lot of swelling on his forehead and puffiness around his eyes today. I think he's probably been on his feet too much. He's putting ice on it and resting now. Thanks for all your continued prayers and support. Dave says he can definitely feel it. He says he feels lifted up. I say, okay, as long as Jesus doesn't lift you ALL the way up. :-)

Friday, August 20, 2004 11:36 PM CDT FRIDAY NIGHT TO CHECK FOR NEWS ABOUT THE GAMMA KNIFE, SEE JOURNAL HISTORY TO SEE PICTURES OF THE GAMMA KNIFE, SEE PHOTO ALBUM We're home now. Dave was sooo glad to see the kids. He looks really great. He's been on the phone non-stop since he got home. He's planning on going to football practice tomorrow. They have daily doubles in 100 degree heat, from 9-noon and again from 2-5 pm. He's amazing. Forgot to tell you all that he wore his Walla Walla Blue Devil Football shirt that says "COUNT ON ME" like he did for both surgeries. The picture on the front page is a picture of Dave playing guitar at Erik & Evy's house last night. He stayed up way too late singing and playing with Erik, but as he says, "It was good for my soul." He was so happy to be with Erik again and to play music. Sonja and Canute, Evy & Erik's two children, were also a trip highlight. Canute sang along with Dave a number of times, a...

Thursday, August 19, 2004 9:03 PM CDT THIRD THURSDAY UPDATE -- CHECK JOURNAL HISTORY FOR PREVIOUS UPDATES Hi everyone, it's 7:00 and we're back at Erik and Evy's house. Dave came through the procedure remarkably well. He did have a pain pill after they took the frame off his head. He's been icing it, trying to prevent swelling where they screwed the pins in. Right now, he's sitting with Erik and playing Erik's guitar. It's wonderful to hear him play and sing. He has an incredibly happy heart. It's amazing to see the affect Dave has on people. The nurses at the hospital just love him. His generous spirit touches all those around him. He even helped Denise and I finish the last answer on the crossword puzzle! Now we wait. They said that we could expect headaches, fatigue and nausea in about 4-6 weeks. That's when the tumor cells will begin dying off. They'll do an MRI around that time frame to see what's happening. They did say that if other sm...

Thursday, August 19, 2004 1:02 PM CDT It's 10:00 am. Dave is in the machine, receiving the radiation right now. He is listening to Switchfoot, Audio Adrenaline & Relient K. He'll be in the machine for one session of 62 minutes and then a second session of 24(?) minutes. The MRI did not have good news for us. The lesion that they had seen before has grown since July 19. They also noted several other areas of growth. One area that was significant is in the motor area. These other new lesions are very small, but they feel they represent true growth, not just an abnormality of the scan. The good news is that they can treat these lesions as well, so they are going to treat all the tumor growth that is visible. We'll need to meet with Dr. Spence at UW about a new chemo regimen to take care of the cells that are growing, but are not yet visible on the MRI. It's very scary news. Please keep praying. Dave is holding up well, and taking strength from all of you. Love to all. ...

Thursday, August 19, 2004 12:05 AM CDT Hello, we're at the hospital now. Dave has had the frame placed without any medication at all. He's feeling very tough and macho about that! He had a snack (thanks Evy!) and will be going into the machine about 10:30. Thank you all for your prayers. He's really feeling the support, says he's feeling a great sense of peace. Will update you on the progress as we go. Denise and I have almost finished the jigsaw puzzle! Love you all!

Tuesday, August 17, 2004 1:13 PM CDT We met with doctors at Harborview yesterday. Dave has a new growth in his right frontal lobe. This new growth is very small, but it was not evident at his MRI in May, and shows on the MRI in July. It's quite scary that it has grown so quickly, and is in a new place. It's also scary that it grew while Dave was on temodar (chemo). The doctors from the tumor board are recommending gamma knife. Gamma knife is high intensity radiation that is very accurate and focused on the tumor growth. There are 201 beams aimed at the tumor. (See the main page for a link to information about gamma knife, you have to scroll to the bottom.) On Thursday, August 19, 2004, Dave will undergo gamma knife at Harborview in Seattle. We are hoping that this will halt the growth of the tumor. He will go into the hospital at 7:00 am and they will place a halo or frame around his head, by screwing it into his skull (ouch! They will give him some IV pain meds). They took x-r...

Monday, August 2, 2004 3:39 PM CDT This page has just been created. Please check back for additional updates. I am moving the journal updates from Dave's Caringbridge site to here. They're easier to link to on the blog. On Caringbridge, they are one big chunk. This was the very first post.