30 April 2009

When we truly believe in Jesus’ Good News of salvation, we will have the freedom and power to face life whatever the challenges. This is because our focus in life would be the promise of our eternal life with God!

Chemo with Erbitux again tomorrow.. Thursday 30 April

Dear Partners in Prayer

Pete has been doing well after the last session.

Please continue to pray for Pete as he goes for another session tomorrow morning. Please pray that the blood counts are good and he can proceed with the session.

Specifically we ask that you pray
- that the therapy will shrink the cancer cells by at least 50%
- that the cancer is contained in the lungs.

Thank you so much for supporting us in prayer and helping us carry our cross.

No Prayer Session for Pete at CTK this week

Dear Friends

Please note that there will not be any prayer session for Pete this week because of the Exam Mass on Thursday and Labour Day Mass. At the Exam Mass, there will be a prayer petition for Pete.

Praise the Lord

2 things I need to be thankful

1. the pimples have subsided, I asked the nurse if there is something that I could use to help ease the outbreak. She went in and gave me the last sample pack from Erbitux. It contained Cepaphil face wash, moisturizer and desonide Desowen Cream. After 2 days of use, my nose has returned to it's normal size and no outbreaks. It is such a relief, after 3 weeks of tenderness !!! (what a baby complaining. well there are som who said that I look better now.)

2. the message today

Have no Fear - Faith: In today’s Gospel, Jesus, the Risen Lord appeared to His disciples who were living in fear and in the uncertainty of what had happened to Him after His death. If we dare to entrust our lives wholly to Jesus’ promise of everlasting life, we will have nothing to fear; only the true hope that Jesus will always be there for us.

As Christians, we are called to do God’s Will and spread Jesus’ message of eternal Salvation and God’s unconditional love for all peoples .
All we have to do is to respond as best and as generously as we can. God will grant us the gifts and abilities that are needed to accomplish the tasks we are to do for Him .
God will ‘work with us’ and will always look out for us. Hence, though the task of spreading God’s word may seem daunting, we should remember that God will never abandon us, and that everything will be done well .

Cycle 4

Had a review with Dr. Kong yesterday. We will continue with cycle 4 chemo with Erbitux. At the end a CT scan will be carried out and depending on the improvement or lack of, we will stay with present chemo if we see 30-40% reduction , else it is confirmed that they are slow growing, less aggressive cell and will switch treatment to ALIMTA, one 10 minute dose every 3 week to reduce the cell and then switch to an oral tablet Tarceva
(ALIMTA is a treatment for malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), which is a cancer that affects the inside lining of the chest cavity. ALIMTA is given with cisplatin, another anticancer medicine (chemotherapy) when surgery is not an option.)

Yesterday was a long day, Vincent gave me a lift to the doctor. got to the clinic and saw the doctor about 10am. The xray comparison showed some improvement on the edges of the lungs but no reduction in the main mass in the lower middle portion. The cancer markers were up again. I have been feeling well over the last 4 weeks and we decided to go with cycl 4. Started chemo about 10.45am finished about 4.30pm. was a long time sitting on a chair. but the chair is comfortable enough to doze and wake up. IPOD helps to listen to music to relax and a good book too. My sister Nancy came yesterday and she got me a Big Mac for lunch. It must have been a long day. She sat with me the last hour and we talked.

Had dinner out last night with Jo and Nicole, Gerard had guard duty and Brian late evening class. Had a surprise visitor last night, Fr Johnson. He attended the memorial mass for Fr Paul Staes eldest brother at Holy Spirit and stopped over for a visit.. We had a good talk and caught up with what's happening and also the progress of the new church in Pasir Ris. He sure has big things to worry about.

Jo and I were very glad that Fr. Johnson stopped by to visit. Thank You.

Thanks to all who are praying for us, we will forever be grateful.

Praise the Lord.

Thought for today 23 April

Dear Friend in the Lord,
Earthly and Heavenly Ways: In today’s Gospel, John explains the difference between “earthly and heavenly ways.” We should never be proud of our earthly possessions, power and popularity. We can only take pride in recognising how much God truly loves us and wants us to love others in return.
Fr Philip Heng,S.J.

Today is 2 months since I started the first chemo session. It has been 8 weeks and much has happened. I thank God for His graces and Love.

‘The Father loves the Son and has entrusted everything to his hands. Anyone who believes in the Son has eternal life

In His compassion for us, He will never abandon us. We are all called to believe in Him at all times .

When we experience the compassion of Jesus, we are also called to share this with others especially the needy and the poor. This will be our testimony of our acceptance of Jesus in our lives .

Wed 22 April

Been a busy week at work this week (actually it is only half the week that has passed)
Went for xray and blood test today, will see the doctor tomorrow to review the result and next course of action. I do hope and pray that the xray will show good improvement else i will haveto go do more test. However if the result is good, I will have to survive more weeks with pimples!!!

Jo has been a fighter and strong supporter. She been going and pushing. Glad that she is feeling positive now. I love her.

Vincent was so kind to call me and ask if I had 'retrenched' him from sending me to my appointment. He did not get any call from me so far this week. Actually I would not have the heart to 'retrench' him, I was actually feeling pretty bad about haveing to tax him and making Karen go to work early. Since the appointment this week was at 9.20am, I had planned to find my way there. However with Vincent's insistence and generosity, I relented and 'gave him back the job to send me to the doctor'. Thank You Vincent.

Had a few SMS from Ranga, Valerie, Vivienne and Edwin this week. it was good of them to keep in touch and check-up on me. I feel bad that I can't meet-up with them yet. Another old school/classmate, Joe Chin, came back from Canada, however due to schedules we have not been able to meet either but we did talk over the phone. Well I know now that even when we do not keep in touch all the time, friendship we have over the years survive the times. Thank you all for being friends and staying by to praying for me in your own ways.

Thank You for all the support and I strongly believe that I am able to manage these weeks without the side-effects of Chemotheraphy must be because of all the friends (most are already saints and some angels ) and family praying for me. Thank You again.

Prayers for Pete at Church of Christ the King Ang Mo Kio

The Altar Boys have resumed their prayers for Pete on Wednesdays at 8pm at Church of Christ the King. Venue: St Mary's Room on 3rd level. Please come and join us if you can.

Thank you for your prayers...Feast of Divine Mercy

Dear Friends
Thanks for all your prayers again. Pete went through another round of Erbitux, no problems.
Side effects of Erbitux is pimples. So my dear husband has been suffering from pimples on his nose and scalp and neck. Other than that, he is feeling ok though the pimples tend to get him down a little.

We had a good session at the screening of "Fireproof". Thank you to Father Andrew for making the session so special. Those of you who have not seen it, please get hold of the DVD if you get a chance to.

Next session of Chemo will be on thursday 23 April, with blood tests and X-rays on 22 April. Please continue to pray that the results will show a good significant improvement. Oncologist will also have to decide if we should carry on with present chemo drugs or to change.

I am still confident that the Lord will grant us a miracle and give Pete complete healing as He had promised. So, please dear friends pray with us, that on this Feast of the Divine Mercy, the Lord will release his Mercy and Healing power on Pete.

Session 7 of Chemo tomorrow

Dear Friends
Pete will be going for his end of cycle 3 chemo blood test and Erbitux session tomorrow morning at 8am and 10am respectively. Please continue to pray for him. Please pray that Erbitux will be effective and that the Lord's hand will lead the healing. We expect that the doctor will ask for a complete review of blood test including the cancer marker, X-ray and CT scan next week to measure the effect of cycle 3. We will trust and leave it in God's hand, if we continue with the current chemo treatment or change treatment.

I remember asking all to pray that there will be no complications for session 6 and thinking back.. everything went smoothly.. his haemoglobin, white and red blood cells and platelets were good. Thank you so much for your prayers and praise be to God!

I thank God for looking after Pete during these few months, without His Grace and strength, we would not be giving Praise and Glory to Him.

Will update tomorrow..God bless you all.

By the way, the Altar Servers at Church of Christ the King have resumed their Wednesday night prayers for Pete. You may want to join us at 8pm at St Mary's Room on the third level.

Reflection - 15 April 2009 unlock inner meaning

From Shalom Wed 15 April Reflection

When we ask for something the result is often quite unexpected. The crippled man was expecting alms, but Peter had neither silver nor gold for the crippled man. He had something far more valuable: healing in the name of the Lord Jesus. God gives us what we need, not necessarily what we want.

The two heartbroken disciples on the road to Emmaus were broken and depressed. They wanted answers. Jesus — His appearance masked — walked beside them playfully asking questions. They related their painful tale. They had high hopes for Jesus the wonderful prophet — all dashed when he was arrested and crucified. They had even heard of the empty tomb but at this point it meant nothing to them.

Jesus, exasperated by their inability to understand, patiently unlocks the inner meaning of the Scriptures to show them that it was absolutely necessary for the Messiah to suffer and die in order to enter into his glory. This was the stumbling block for early Christians — how could the Messiah suffer and die? It is also a problem for us sometimes — why do believers suffer and struggle? Luke makes it clear that the passion of Jesus was not just an accident but part of the divine plan. And so it is with us: Jesus walks unrecognized beside us to unlock not only the inner meaning of scripture but also the hidden levels of our own lives. Our own struggles are not meaningless, but prepare us to enter into God’s glory.

Lord, let my sufferings teach me compassion and humility.

FIREPROOF - 18 April 2pm @ Holy Spirit Church

Hi all, if you have not had the chance to watch this heartwarming movie, Fireproof (PG), Please make yourself free this Saturday 18 April afternoon. This is brought to you by the Holy Spirit Church Family Life Ministry in partnership with Worldwide Marriage Encounter.
Come down to Holy Spirit Church at Upper Thomson Road. Admission is FREE.
Screening of this movie will start at 2pm and should be done by 4.30pm. It will be screened at the ATTIC on level 3, take the lift next to the book store up.

FYI; Saturday sunset Eucharistic Celebrations starts at 5.30pm, if you like to attend.

Easter 2009

When the Sabbath was over, Mary of Magdala, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices with which to go and anoint him. And very early in the morning on the first day of the week they went to the tomb when the sun had risen. They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’

The Resurrection of Jesus three days after His death is central to our Christian faith. The Holy Spirit of Our Risen Lord will give us "eyes of faith" to know Him and be open to the power of His Resurrection .

However, to believe more deeply in the Resurrection of Jesus, the “stones” of our hearts must be “rolled away.” Once we allow the Holy Spirit to do this, we will encounter the Risen Lord with great joy, love and peace .

Maundy Thursday 9 April 2009

Thanks to the generosity of Karen and Vincent Kong, they came bright and early yesterday morning, braving the traffic at RI to my place. I got to Mount E for my blood test early, my full blood count was good and started on my Erbitex and Chemo (cisplatin & gemzar). Started at 9.30am and finished about 2.15pm. Brian and my sister Rose kept me company part of the time. Treatment went quite well. I had a couple of 40 winks and but had to wake up and ease myself every once a while. Rose packed a Carl Jr burger lunch, which was pretty good. Brian had to scoot off and take pictures for his poly project. After treatment as done, decided to take a cab home with Rose, instead of waiting for Jo to drive down and back. The next session will be next week Thursday, blood test at 8am and if result is good, Erbitex about 9.30am. It should last about 2 hours since there is no chemo this session.

When we got back we had some fruits and sat on the sofa and napped awhile. Rose had to meet a friend and left after a while, by the time Jo got back with eclairs for Rose she had already gone.
Brian's busy at CTK peparing the accessories for the various activities this week.
Slept early yesterday and woke up at 6.10am this morning, flelt lethargic and decided to take a day leave from work. Managed to spend some time today in the adoration room and got this message from Reena who was there this morning too.

This morning, during my prayers in CTK adordation room, i was inspired to contemplate on the passion of Jesus in Mark's Gospel. When it came to the Garden of Gethsemane, and how Jesus took Peter, James and John with him, i was suddenly drawn to the names Peter James. Then it dawned on me, " Peter James is named after 2 of Jesus' most beloved disciples!" It has never struck me in that way before.

As i continued on my reflection, a man came and sat quite near to me. Later, another man came in and knelt some way in front of me. I suddenly realised with a shock that it's you, Peter James. I could not believe my eyes! I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. But when the man next to me made some noise, and you turned back, i could finally see that it is really you! Praise the Lord!

As i offered my prayers for you, wondering about your health, suddenly these words came into my mind "Peter James, you.. will... rise.. again!" Surprised, i asked "what do you mean?" Then came the words "it means He will heal you." ?!

My sister's friend, that she met yesterday afternoon, had aother message for me;
She said that she prayed particularly for you since Sunday and yesterday before she met me while at the Adoration Room at St Ignatius, she had a reply from the Lord to her questions of 'why'. She said His reply was He has a reason for this. He asks for confession and that He wants you to be like Him.

This is such affirmation that He loves me but I wonder how I could ever be like Him.
Well, we should all take this time today, tomorrow and saturday to prepare to receive Jesus with a New Easter Joy, a new Easter People and a New Life.

Holy Week - inputs from Fr. T, Thanks Mike Chua

Holy Week is the highpoint of the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday (or Easter Sunday) are not to be taken as one big summit of our worship. They are three individual summits. Three individual summits where we can truly experience the love of God not in a cliched way but in a participated, personal and profound way. To make it more meaningful than last year, here are some points to reflect as we approach the coming Thursday - Sunday.

It starts now. In fact, it should have started six weeks ago, Maundy Thursday: Maundy came from the root word 'commandment', referring to the New Commandment the Lord gave (Love one another as I have loved u). Love one another is exemplified by the Master washing the feet of His disciples and then asking us to do the same. Love one another is also made real by the institution of the Eucharist (Body and Blood), the priesthood, the mass (community participation), which all happened that day.So even before we step foot onto Thursday, we are challenged to think about living out this Commandment. So a practical way is to think about one person in our life who has been quite impossible to love. To be engaged in this Commandment, make a commitment to love that person and DO IT especially these two or three days (depending when u read this email). Then as u participate in the Eucharist on Maundy Thursday, it will be that much more real, more meaningful.

For Good Friday, start thinking now about what sin or part of you that u would like to crucify at the cross on Friday. In other words, what sin would u like to die to on Good Friday? At mass, do it. Make a prayer at an appropriate time and tell the Lord that you are nailing that sin on the cross and ask Him for the grace to keep it dead and buried.

Holy Saturday is a time of silence and waiting. Read scripture text, references, literature about resurrection and reflect and wait. The whole Church waits in silence for the great event of the Resurrection. If we do it faithfully, we will have a most meaningful Holy Saturday mass or Easter Sunday mass... a truly liberating experience of New Life.Done faithfully, all the above can be quite life-changing. Otherwise... it's just another Holy Week.

Session 6 of Chemo on 8 April

Pete will be doing session 6 of chemo tomorrow. He will probably start early at 10am. Please pray for him to have strength to take the long, long session of at least 5 hours or more. May I also request that you pray for his blood count and all other readings to be good so that he can proceed with the session.

Thank you Vincent for sending Pete to the hospital again. Thanks Rose for always being there.
The journey is long and bumpy and we ask that you continue to remember us in prayer during this Holy Week.

God bless

Holy Week

Hi, hope that everyone will take the chance this week to make a spiritual preparation for Easter. Jesus knew the Father's will and plans for Him, He did not say when I am free or when I am ready I will. His whole life was a mission. Let us pray that we can make time this week to keep and walk a step closer with HIM.

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD with courage; be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD. R The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Just finished Session 5 of chemo with erbitux

Pete just finished Session 5 today.. it had been a long, long day! He was not done till 5pm.
We just arrived home and he is resting now. We will leave the healing to the Lord now. Please pray that Erbitux, the new drug introduced for this session, will prove to be more effective. It costs more than a bomb!! Please also pray that Pete will take Erbitux well and that he will not experience any side effects. He will have 2 more sessions with Erbitux before we do any more tests to determine its effectiveness.

God bless you all.

2 April doctor visit

I went to the doctor's office at 10am, 20 minutes early for my appointment. My sister Rosemary was already there. Took my weight it was 80.2kg, down again, though still overweight for my frame. The nurse took my temperature and blood pressure, she gave me the blood test report from yesterday and the week before( end of cycle 2). Last week's reading were good, Yesterday's reading I did not like, the CEA and CA125 marker after cycle 2 both went up again, 38.9 from 33.2 and 105.9 from 68.8 after cycle 1. Xray report showed some improvement but wasn't really conclusive. So Doc went through the history, what the results show thus far. It did not seem to be making much improvement, so we thought. Before making any changes he sent me for a CT scan of the chest. That was a 10 minute task but the queue time was pretty long. took from 11am till 1pm. The report would be ready at 3pm, fortunately God always send angels, my sister went over to my place to get the previous report so they could compare. by the time I was done with the scan, she was already back with the reports.

The CT report did not show anything major but it did show that in many of the locations the cells have hollowed out, looked like donuts, this is a good sign that the cancer cells have died. We compared the pictures and concluded that there was indeed about 10-20% reduction in the cancer in my lungs. many areas have reduced and cleared. We had both hoped for more. We agreed to start Cycle 3 on Friday but to add Erbitus this time. The full, most effective combination for chemo. We will monitor result at the end of cycle 3 and unless there is significant improvement, we will change medication to a newer medication for less aggressive cancer cell or oral tablet and not stress the body engine. If the result is significant, we will continue to with the present course.
Will start Cycle 3A tomorrow morning at 11am and will take about 5 hours, since the additional Erbitus will take 90 minutes on top of the usual 2.5 to 3 hours chemo.

See how the disappointment at the start of the day and the change at the end of the day. I was impatient for improvement but God wanted me to continue and trust in Him. Made me recall the reflection I posted this morning.

More updates tomorrow or in a few days. Praise the Lord.


Special thanks to all who prayed fervently when I sent out prayer request while waiting for the scan to come back. The journey is indeed long and bumpy.. thank you for being there when I stumble and fall... Jo

Forgive my impatience and my lack of trust

When Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him:"My covenant with you is this:you are to become the father of a host of nations.No longer shall you be called Abram;your name shall be Abraham,for I am making you the father of a host of nations.I will render you exceedingly fertile;I will make nations of you;kings shall stem from you.I will maintain my covenant with youand your descendants after youthroughout the ages as an everlasting pact,to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.I will give to youand to your descendants after youthe land in which you are now staying,the whole land of Canaan, as a permanent possession;and I will be their God."
God also said to Abraham:"On your part, you and your descendants after youmust keep my covenant throughout the ages."Genesis 17:3-9

Thought this reflection was so close to heart that I should share it with everyone.
If you had to wait a long time for somethiing, even for something important, would you have the patience of Abraham and Sarah? At 75, God promised to make Abraham a great nation spring from him, even though he was childless. At 99 and Sarah is 90, God is telling them to get ready! Then at the right time, Isacc is born and from him and his descendents came God's chosen people.
Some waiting is filled with eager expectation. However having to wait for something that we really want can be distressing, especially if we are uncertain if or when it will happen. We grow restless. anxious and doubtful, feel trapped and impatient.
Waiting on the Lord is not suppose to be an exercise in frustration; it's an opportunity to exercisr our faith. Abraham put his trust in God and saw beyond his circumstances believing that God could accomplish whatever he promised. We have inherited this promise, which God fulfilled for us by raising his only Son from the dead. Nothing is impossible, sometimes it takes a bit longer.

what are you waiting for right now? if you have done what you can, trust God to do the rest. You may not see what you are looking for right away, but that does not mean God has abandoned you. He is working even now, forming you more deeply during this time of waiting. He knows what is best for you. God's time is always the appointed time. 2 April 2009

old post - 3 March 2009

Is 55:10-11 Thus says the LORD:Just as from the heavensthe rain and snow come downAnd do not return theretill they have watered the earth,making it fertile and fruitful,Giving seed to the one who sowsand bread to the one who eats,So shall my word bethat goes forth from my mouth;It shall not return to me void,but shall do my will,achieving the end for which I sent it.

I want to thank everyone for their fervent prayers and community getting together is such a wonderful sight. I missed Fr. T last night and hope he gets better fast.
Just to give you more updates on my adventure (may become too much for some...but others may want to hear of my adventure)

God works in funny ways, the first chemo session,before I was to start I had a high fever (38.6). I had to get another blood test done, and the Dr Kong went through a very methodolic process to confirm, negate and validate. He was confident of his decision and expected outcome but the test result will confirm his decision, he was not prepared to make risk decision. This made me believe that the doctors that have come my way were Godsend. I told you what happened last week, Praise God that He has provided good help, reaction to the medication and much Love. Since I was taking antibiotic for the fever, he said that we will do the test on Monday 2 March instead to get a more accurate result. Norbet dropped me off at the blood lab and I was number 12 in queue, and I was 15 minutes early, lab opens at 8am. waited 30 minutes and it was my turn, the lab tech said they were not sure what one of the test was, they tried calling the clinic but it is way too early, the doctor don't open till after 9am. They asked if they could take the samples first(2 tubes) but if one of them is wrong to come down again and get another hole pricked and draw sample. I said ok, since it was wait another hour in the lab or go for a walk. As it turned out, they got the right samples, one less hole today.

Saw the doctor at 10am and in high spirit, he reviewed the result and said that the blood count was good but the kidney function result is out. Here it goes again, the urea is good but creatinine was 139 (limit 115). so he was suspicious but wanted to be safe, since the kidney is key in the chemo process to flush the toxins. Previous reading on 23 Feb was 103. So we worked out path forward, he is so much like working in the office with engineers, weighing possibilities and plan of action. I have been drinking at least 3 litres of water a day and about 1 litre through the night (going to toilet 3 times a night!!) Long story... He figured it could be a lab error or insufficient water, so put a drip for 1 litre of saline, take blood test for creatinine and see the result in 1 hour. if good proceed else wait for the saline to flush in my body and take another sample after lunch. Chemo will wait depending on the result. It beats coming back on Tuesday to take the test. after Divine mercy and rosary, the result came back and it was even better than last week's reading, It was a an error. so the 1 hour of saline was not wasted it , was part of the 1 hour for the chemo treatment. I felt that God just wanted these 2 episodes to show me that he has sent caring doctors and competent doctors to handle me, no mistakes no chance for his precious child, the doctor was not taking any risk. It all builds the confidence in the doctor i have. Thank You God for the caring hands.

It was lunch time and some old school friend came by intending to take me out for lunch (had to cancel twice already), but since it was another 2 bags of drips to go, the nurse allowed 5 minutes with each other. It was amazing that these guys would go out of their way and see me, give me encouragement, Jo encouragement too on their busy schedule, I am also amazed that these guys are catholics and are praying for us (hard to imagine since we got into so much mischief in our upper secondary school days).

What I miss most now is going for daily mass, the lunch time mass by CPS on Friday does make up for some of the loss. Last Sunday when I went to church, there were people sniffing and coughing infront and behind me. I was so conscious, I tried not to focus on them but it was hard. Well I only moved to a isolated corner in the stairwell after communion. Didn't want to miss mass for anything. Maybe I am paranoid.. should believe that Jesus in the Eucharist will keep me from being infected, just don't shake the hands of those coughing and sniffling.

Went through work Wed to Friday last week, my daughter Nicole had a good time with Jo's cousin taking her out for Catechism class and dinner, My sis Rose spent half a day clearing Nicoles' bedroom/study!!! (close eyes and throw). Thankful to Jo's old friend Fr Anslem (not sure if I spelt it right this time) Carmelite priest had squeezed me into the door (literally) to have Fr Gino pray over me after the Triduum at St Peter and Paul on Saturday. He had such a peaceful voice and face, he asked for my name and looked at me and said he would pray for me. I am proud of my son Gerard on his strong belief and faith, he told his mother to be strong and God is calling us to ministry and one day we may be asked to pray for people with cancer. My other son has a good time in Ho Chi Min, came back on Saturday and entertained his brother and Jo's cousins, while I took my sleep.

Friday night we attended the CTK charismatic prayer session, I gave my testimony and thank God for the people he put in my life and those that are popping up to support and pray for us. Noticed a new face, looked weak and scared, his wife was turning back looking at us several times during the evening. It was his first time attending. at the end of the session, realized that Vincent was due for a heart surgery for a defective valve. He was scared and cried hard after the group prayed over him. Jo & I prayed for him that he find peace with God.

The events this one week has opened our eyes that there truly are Angels and Saint walking here on earth, the famcamp divine mercy novena, the fellow pilgrims, the shunfu neighours, the CTK charismatic, Colin Seet and altar boys, the HS family life, ME, priests and so many others.

I keep getting the message of repentance and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Please pass this message on.

Fr T, God is great, looking back at the Advent preparation and the prompting of messages on the Advent candle, didn't quite make consistent sense then but reading it altogether now REALLY is powerful and He had given me direction and what he wants me to focus on the Faith Response.

Old update 19 Feb-23 Feb 2009

Adventure for 19 Feb to 23 Feb 2009

Got the X-ray done and it was not good. Saw a lung specialist and did blood and PET scans. Got the result the next day and did a biopsy of the lung cells. Friday result came out and confirm that I have stage 4 lung cancer (Adenocarcinoma, typical of non-smokers, female. Past large majority of males smoke and women don’t).

It is limited to the lung and no other organs or bones. (as this can be transmitted in the blood, there are 2 small cells in the right side of my brain, which don’t look active, no swelling around it., what the doctor termed you have a gangster in your neighborhood but he is co-existing)
This Adenocarcinoma reacts well with oral medication base on studies especially for Asian and women. Tissue samples taken will be tested in the NUS lab for study and if this oral medication will work well. .Doctor recommend that do chemotherapy first and then follow up with Oral. Shrink the cell first. Beside knowing the reason for the cough I am still quite healthy, there isn’t any recognizable difference today or some months ago. . There isn't any loss of energy, appetite or weight loss. I believe that God has put many good doctors in my way to treat me. They are confident that treatment will work.

I started Chemo yesterday afternoon(on my 47 birthday). I will be doing Chemo for the next 18 weeks, one cycle is 3 weeks and total of 6 cycles, monitor progress at end of cycle 2. Then either tweak the medicine, stay or do head radiation if the ‘gangsters ‘ start misbehaving. There will be regular blood test and CT scans in between the cycles. I feel fine today(Thank You Lord).
I am alright, still hopeful, know that God is the all power healer and he will be with me. I have a strong faith community, like last Sunday’s Gospel the 4 men that went through much difficulty to lower the paralytic man stretcher from the roof, done out of faith and love. And the first reading on Sunday really hit me in the face; Thus says the Lord: Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago consider not; see I am doing something new! Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? (Is 43: 18-19)

As all the 4 doctors in their interviews ask me if there were any symptom or reason I did the X-ray that led to this finding, I mentioned that an office colleague was sick/coughing and X-ray found micro plasma infection in his lungs & he suggested I go do an X-ray, Doctors were all very surprised and concluded that I have done everything in my power to do regular screening. It was just something that could not be explained.
I don’t intent to be defeated and will plan to continue working. My oncologist is a very sharp guy HL Kong(teaches at NUS, consults, was deputy director at AStar and has many publications and studies in cancer especially lungs.) He was a Youth award winner some years back. He is 43 years old but hard to tell that is, anyway many papers written about him tell that is a 'doctor with a heart'

I also like to thank my wife Jo (I love her very much) for being a pillar of strength and taking the endless sms and calls.