It’s Negative

Alycia’s genetic test came back negative. That result was one of our biggest prayer requests and it makes our future feel much less daunting. Because the genetic test was negative, Alycia can move forward with her plan to have a lumpectomy. A lumpectomy is a much less invasive surgical option and the one that we were hoping would be her path. A lumpectomy is an outpatient procedure and, from everything we’ve heard, the recovery isn’t too bad. Combined with chemo and radiation, a lumpectomy is just as effective at eliminating the cancer as other options. This plan will eliminate the cancer and hopefully have a shorter recovery compared to some of the other options.

With all of that said, Alycia is scheduled for her surgery on July 3. As I mentioned, it’s an outpatient procedure, so she’ll go to the hospital in the morning and be home that night. During the surgery, they’ll also test her lymph nodes to see if the cancer has spread there. The oncology doctor said that the chemo and radiation treatments would begin about a month after the surgery. The oncology doctor wasn’t able to tell us how long Alycia’s chemo and radiation treatments would be; that depends on what they find during the surgery.

So, while there are still a lot of unknowns on this journey, it feels good to finally have a plan and be able to move forward. We’re hoping that Alycia’s recovery from surgery goes well enough for our family to get away during July. We don’t really know how much Alycia’s treatments are going to affect her, so it would be nice to spend time as a family before our lives are built around chemo sessions and other treatments.

Here are some ways you can be praying for us:

• Continue to pray that the lymph nodes are cancer-free.
• Pray for Alycia as she prepares to have her surgery and that the surgery is free of complications.
• Pray that Alycia recovers well from her surgery and can really enjoy most of July.
• While we don’t know what to expect when Alycia’s chemo and radiation treatments, God already knows. Pray that we would trust in him and his provision for what will undoubtedly be a challenging part of this journey.

We continue to be so grateful for each of you who have reached out to let us know that you’re thinking about us and praying for us. We’ll keep sharing updates in this place as you continue to journey with us.