Dear friends,
As you know, I have been recovering very well from the four “Tumor kills” which I had done for my Carcinoid Cancer in my liver. My strength was in the high 90th percentile of how I felt when I was “normal” – meaning, before the cancer. As I believe I stated though, I am now on a full dose of a cancer fighting drug called “Afinitor.” My reaction to a half dose went well, but the full dose is very fatiguing, meaning I get out of breath after a few feet of walking. It is not so much that I do not have strength, it is that I cannot seem to tap into it without getting severely out of breath. It is psychologically hard to take a pill that makes you feel bad when you know if you went off the pill you would feel very good for a while.
It is too soon to say whether I can continue with the pill – which amounts really to “chemo” by pill instead of intravenously – since at this point the pill is worse than the disease in how I feel. The point of the pill, the only pill ever proven effective for Carcinoid, is to slow or stop tumor progression. The ideal thing for me will be that I will adjust to the side effects of the pill but it will do its job unabated. We will not know what effect it is having, good or bad, until my next CAT Scan in November. If I cannot tolerate the side effects, then plan “B” is to rely upon the fact that this cancer grows very slowly, and if we see a tumor start to grow then I will go into the clinic for another “tumor kill.” Although I can repeat this “tumor kill” procedure a number of times, there might come a time when no more tumor killing is possible. This is another good reason to be patient with the side-effects even though they are severe and sometimes discouraging.
Please pray that the side effects diminish and that the pills work to stop or slow down the tumors even more. If the tumors grow slowly enough, as they might, then this is almost a cure for me. I will keep you informed from time to time.
– Bernie
Dear Mr. Schnippert,
I can only imagine how difficult this will be. I will pray that God will bless you with His healing, His patience to endure, His grace to withstand and be cordial in the process; a time to reflect on His extreme love for you, knowing that you have a “home” prepared for you by Jesus himself. None of want to go there yet, but I imagine that once there, we’ll all say something like “what was I stalling for?” Oh, if I could put you under His wings and protect you from hurt and fear, I would do it in a heartbeat.
God bless and heal you,
Sukaya
Dear friend, Bernie ~ Grace and I are grieved at the trial you are going through. Please know that we are with you in prayer for your complete healing. We’ll focus more on the pill side affects and pray that your body will adjust to receiving that medication without the suffering you have been experiencing. We pray too, for Arleene as she daily shares your burden. Hang in there, dear friend! Love & best wishes ~ Jim & Grace
Bernie, our prayers are with you as well as our churches. I know trials are hard but God will carry you through this, He is with you always.
We are praying for you brother. Thank you so much for allowing us to share in your suffering. You are an encouragement to all of us. We love you and will continue to lift you and your family up in prayer.
Bernie, to say you are in my prayers sounds rather shallow but it is true. I have forwarded your comments to all our church members in New Orleans and Hammond. You can count on them to be in contact with our Father in your and Arlene’s behalf. He will not let us down.
Walt
Bonjour Bernie,
Sorry that you are going through this trial. Always good to hear from you. You probably do not remember Edna and I, which is okay! We were one of many attending the Refreshers. God has used you to make a positive impression of us and sometimes, Edna and I still talk about some of the things you said. You and your family are in our prayers. Glad that God is giving you the courage to go through this difficult trial.
Eric and Edna, Canada
We do hope that with the arrival of each fresh day you are feeling some improvement. May God, through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, keep you snuggled very close in His loving, compassionate and healing arms during this difficult trial. Hope all will go well with your upcoming CAT scan. Thinking of you.
In Christian Love
Grace Covenant Fellowship
Birmingham, Alabama