Just wanted to give you what seems to be the final update. I went to the hospital yesterday morning and sat with the family for a few hours. We were informed that Chris took a turn for the worse on Tuesday night. He started having continuous seizures and running a fever of 104. I think the fever was due to the amounts of ammonia in his body. I am unsure of the type of cancer, as it is a name I have never heard before. One of the tumors was sitting on his liver, not allowing it to detoxify the blood being pulled in. His ammonia level jumped another 4 points yesterday leaving him at 275, a normal persons levels are under 30. His blood pressure was dropping and his heart rate was double that of a normal person resting, at 160 beats per minute. They upped his dosage and were administering it every two hours instead of 4 to treat the ammonia levels. They can't/couldn't do anything about the ammonia levels because of the one tumor (keep in mind there wheresoever, that were rapidly reproducing) on his liver, but couldn't get the ammonia levels down because of the tumor.... no surgery because of how Whig the levels were. So basically we were looking at a double edged sword. They took him in for an EEG as I was leaving the hospital yesterday, and were also going to do an ultra sound to determine wether or not there was a way to relieve the pressure on the liver. Initially the EEG came back normal, showing no signs of damage due to the seizures.
This mornining I got a phone call saying that Chris is completely brain dead. With everything I have read, once you are completely brain dead, you essentially are dead. The only thing keeping him breathing is the ventilator. They are however, waiting for the final member his family, Chris' brother, to get here, as they had a grueling drive from Seattle, Washington. They couldn't fly with the baby, who was 4 months premature, and had only recently been released himself. Once Kenny arrives, I believe they will make the decision to pull him off of life support.
I want to thank you and all of your friends for keeping myself, and especially more than anything Chris and his family in your thoughts and prayers. It means so much. I will get an email address for sherry and pass this chain of love along to her. I love you guys and miss you. Thank you again for all of your heart warming thoughts and prayers.
God Bless,
Gretchen
Jeff & Rennie wrote: (e-mail)
Gretchen,
If you can you might want to share that link with Sherry and let her know that there are now "Hundreds" of people that she doesn't know, praying not only for Chris, but for all of you
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1739072/posts
Love ya lots,
Jeff
Oh my, I'm so very sorry to read this. I will continue to pray for Chris' family: especially his wife & children... that His love, comfort and strength reach them and help them through this.
Sad update ping for your Prayer Warriors.
Prayers are continuing for this family. Lord God in Heaven, comfort thy children during this time of grief and sorrow. May Your grace touch upon them and bring them relief from their pains. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Prayer for comfort mercies at this time for the whole family. God keep all of you in His tender loving care.
http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0187.htm
PLEASE SEND THIS TO THE FAMILY!
I may say to those of you also who have been bereavedif you believe in providence you may grieve; but your grief must not be excessive. I remember at a funeral of a friend hearing a pretty parable which I have told before, and will tell again. There was much weeping on account of the loss of a loved one, and the minister put it thus. He said, "Suppose you are a gardener employed by another; it is not your garden, but you are called upon to tend it, and you have your wages paid you. You have taken great care with a certain number of roses; you have trained them up, and there they are, blooming in their beauty. You pride yourself upon them. You come one morning into the garden, and you find that the best rose has been taken away. You are angry: you go to your fellow-servants, and charge them with having taken the rose. They will declare that they had nothing at all to do with it; and one says, "I saw the master walking here this morning; I think he took it." Is the gardener angry then? No, at once he says, "I am happy that my rose should have been so fair as to attract the attention of the master. It is his own: he hath taken it; let him do what seemeth him good."
C.H.SPURGEON
GODSPEED!
I am so sorry about this and at Thanksgiving and Christmas. It just seems so sad if someone in the family passes on during this time. Keep us posted. Prayers being said.
Prayers coming your way...nothing is impossible Jeff.
Keep your head up.
Scott
Prayers for Chris and his family.
May God's love enfold you during this time of trouble. May the grace of Jesus's love carry your soul towards peace.
Ray
I am so sorry. May the Lord hold all of you close to His heart.
Oh Dear Lord God....please, let Thy will be done.
Help this precious family in their hour of need...
Prayers, and your ping lists PLEASE...
Prayer bump
My prayers for this family. May our God comfort them and give them peace.
Prayers for Chris and his loved ones.
prayer bump
How very sad. I wil be praying.
I'm offering my prayers for your friend and his family.
I'm so sorry. Prayers for Chris and his family.
Prayers for the family - may the family and loved ones be surrounded by peace and God's love.
There's never a right thing to say. We're never ready, even when death is expected, when it's an obvious relief from suffering. And this one wasn't.
Please accept my sympathy and hope that you will find some solace in knowing that we don't have to know everything. And that's okay to ask, "Why?"