Protocol Change

The doctors want to change Heath’s protocol. They scan his tumor after each complete cycle of chemo and then compare that scan to the past scans. Then they review it all at there weekly tumor review board meetings.

The most recent scan showed that the part of the tumor that is in the bone is stable but the part of the tumor that is in the soft tissue is changing. They said not to worry too much because this is common but that it did warrant a change in protocol.

It goes without saying that we are worried but we are fortunate that they have the technology to see the changes so they can change the protocol accordingly.

They want to put Heath on a different chemo called Ifosfamide which is geared more towards soft tissue sarcomas. He will get two rounds of the Ifosfamide with a 2 week break in between. They also want to move the Proton Beam Radiation treatment up approximately one month. That should put us in Boston in the second week in October.

Dr. Agresta at Moffitt also sent the scans to Harvard so they can review them at their weekly tumor review board meeting.

Please pray for Heath and pray that this new protocol will shrink the soft tissue part of the tumor to nothing. Also pray for the doctors so they can make the correct decisions on Heath's treatment as well as all the other patients that they are treating.

Article in the Bradenton Herald today about Heath

There is an article about Heath in the local section of today's Bradenton Herald, Sunday 8-20-06.

Donna Wright came to our house several weeks ago and interviewed Heath. She also made several phones calls and interviewed some of the doctors over the phone, one of which was Dr. Letson. The article is titled 'Network' helps with teen boy's cancer.

If you are unable to buy a copy, here is a direct link: http://www.bradenton.com/mld/bradenton/news/local/15315962.htm

I don't think the link above shows pictures. The article in the paper shows three pictures of Heath: one with Allen and Mike, one with his dad Gary and one with his mom Karis and myself. If I can find the pictures, I'll try and post them here.

Back at Moffitt on 8/20/2006

Heath is back at Moffitt for Methotrexate chemo until Wednesday. He will only have a couple days off before he has to come back next Sunday for another round of Methotrexate.

Update

Heath is back home resting now. He just got home yesterday, 8/2/06, from Moffitt. He went in on Saturday. Karis's birthday was Sunday, guess what she wished for.

This round was delayed by a week due to his throat being very sore from the previous round of Methotrexate. This round was the Adriamycin & Cisplatin chemo, which is the beginning of his 4th cycle, so he is still very tired and a little weak.

During his time off Karis and I took Heath, Karissa and some of their friends to Busch Gardens. Heath also went fishing with his dad a couple of times. I'm not sure what they caught but they had fun.

Karis is trying to make arrangements for us to fly up to Ohio to visit her family, especially her Dad. He has not been well and she hasn't been up there since last October and the kids have not been up for 2 years. She needs to time it around Heath's treatments and doctor appointments. We are concerned with exposing Heath to the germs from flying on a commercial airline so Karis did a little research and found this info about CAIRFlight. Their "goal is to eliminate distance as a barrier to accessing essential medical resources or reuniting families in critical times". I'll put the link on this blog in case anyone ever needs something like this or if anyone would like to give them a donation.

Please continue to pray for healing for Heath and for his grandpa Bill in Ohio.

Quick Update

Heath is back at Moffitt for another round of Methotrexate. He was admitted on Sunday, 7/16/06, and should be home Wednesday night. This will be his 8th round of chemo and will complete his 3rd cycle.

He is doing ok. He's been sleeping a lot and his mouth/throat are getting sore again. They have put him back on the anti-fungal and anti-biotics to try and control it.

Heath will be back in Moffitt on Monday, 7/24, to start his 4th cycle. I think we are planning on taking him to Busch Gardens and meeting up with some his relatives that are down from Ohio.

Please continue to pray for Heath's healing. Also, pray for Colt's safe return from Italy.

Article in North River News about Heath

North River News
Manatee's Independent Newspaper June 29-July 5, 2006 VOLUME 16 EDITION 22
BY RHIANNON DeBAYLO Osteosarcoma (Bone Cancer)

"Watching 18-year-old Heath Sammons sit on his living room couch with his guitar on his knee and passion flowing from his fingertips, you may never realize that he is sick.
A seemingly typical teenage boy, Heath has a love for music, enjoys goofing off with his friends, and skateboarding. Ironically enough, it's a skateboarding accident that just may have saved his life.
In early January, Heath was skateboarding with friends when he took a fall that fractured his tailbone and ultimately brought about the diagnosis of Osteosarcoma, or more simply, bone cancer ..."

The entire article can be read at BuckandVerajosClass.com, Click here to see entire article.

Some freinds and family are heading up a fundraiser for Heath.

See flyer below.

For raffle ticket information, visit Manatee River Community Bank or contact Donnas Arrasmith at 224-7777 or Melody Sweetman at 756-2847. Checks can be made payable to the Heath Sammons Cancer Fund.