Happy New Year!!!

God has been so good to me. Reflecting over the past year, even with all the trials I have faced, God has shown himself so real to me. I'm looking forward to seeing what He will do in 2011!

I had a CT scan at the beginning of this week (I had one when I was in Mexico but my oncologist wanted one here stateside as well) and I met with my doctor yesterday. He was so excited that the scan came back showing the tumors "were reduced in size and amount". He was so pleased that he told us he will be presenting my case in front of the tumor board in the weeks to come (basically telling all of the local oncologists in town that the alternative therapy I am doing is showing incredible results and sharing with them the therapy I'm getting in Mexico). He told us that the results we are seeing are just as good, if not better, than if I would have done the chemotherapy suggested. Praise God--He answers prayers! He also told us that he didn't think that it was just the Vitamin C, but that there was a stronger power (and he pointed up to the ceiling) that was on my side. I told him that I KNEW for a fact that the Lord was on my side and providing the miracle. What a testimony!

So, as we enter this new year, I am thanking the Lord for what He has done and what He will continue to do in the years to come. We serve a great and mighty God who gives us much more than we deserve.

May all of you have a wonderful 2011!
God bless,
Sonya

Merry Christmas

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while.  I've been busy getting ready for Christmas.  Simon and I are staying home for Christmas this year (since we have been travelling so much lately).  We plan to head to Orlando in January to see my family and then back to Oasis of Hope in January as well.  After Christmas, I have lab work and an appointment with my oncologist.  I'm looking forward to sharing with him our good news!

I hope each and every one of you have a very Merry Christmas and a happy New Year's too! 

Remember the true reason for the season.....JESUS!

Praising the Lord!

I had my CT scan this morning.  My doctor came to me this afternoon and told me they would go over the results of the CT scan and discuss them with me in the morning.  The main doctor, Dr. Contraras, came to my room a while later and told me that he had seen the scan and it wasn't stable.....in fact, my tumors have actually shrunk!!!!  Praise the Lord!!  We are waiting on the radiology report to know by how much but we are headed in the right direction.  I should know more information tomorrow but was overjoyed to hear this great news.  I keep thanking the Lord over and over again for answered prayer!  Through good times & bad times, the Lord is always good! 

Treatments are going well.  I have a CT scan tomorrow morning--I'm praying the tumors have either a.) disappeared all together b.)  reduced greatly in size and c.) not grown any further.  I'm earnestly praying for option A! I should know more by tomorrow!

We arrived safely in Mexico for my 2nd round of treatment.  I'm still feeling great and look forward to seeing the results after the end of this week's stay. 

I'll keep you posted!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a wonderful Thanksgivng holiday!  We stayed in town and went over to our friends house and had an amazing dinner & great fellowship.  I have so much to be thankful for this year--a great family, wonderful friends, an amazing God and the list could go on and on....

I convinced Simon to take me out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants here on the Peninsula.  Since I knew they would be closed on Thanksgiving day,  I "cheated" with my diet the evening prior so I could go and get yummy chowder on the wharf.  Over the years, we have gotten to know the family who owns the restaurant.  Every time we eat there, we get the same thing so as soon as we walk into the restaurant, they start preparing our order! :)  As we were chatting with Lucie (one of the owners), we got to talking and she began to tell us that her brother had been diagnosed with liver cancer and it had spread to his lungs as well.  When she finished telling us this, I told her that I have been battling cancer for the past 3 years as well and had gone through chemo (which her brother was currently undergoing).  We told her we would be praying for him and their family--then when she brought us our food Simon asked if we could pray with her right there for her brother.  We did and when we were finished, she had tears in her eyes.  A few minutes later, she came back and said she had just talked to her brother on the phone and told him that we were there, that we had prayed with her for him, and he had said "I thought they were Christians".  What a blessing it was to be a blessing to someone else!!  We were able to relate with him, pray for him, and hopefully be a blessing to their family all because of my journey....and for that I am thankful!!  

Update

Hey everyone!

Sorry it has been a while since I last blogged.  We got home from Mexico and time has just gotten away from me.  Many of you know how the Lord provided for us to go to Mexico but some of you don't so I thought I would share our story.

When I found out the cancer had returned in my liver again, Simon and I started looking for alternative treatments.  I really don't want to do chemotherapy again so we prayed and asked the Lord to help us find an alternative method.  One afternoon I was reading a book and it mentioned the Oasis of Hope in Mexico.   The book didn't say a whole lot about the facilities but did mention that they had some good results.  The very next day, my mom forwarded an email from someone they know who went to the Oasis of Hope.  When I heard about this place for the 2nd time in a row I knew it was God who was opening the door.  So, I went online and filled out an application, the next day one of their doctors called and gave us some more information about the clinic.  They also told us that the cost to go would be $24,500.

Simon and I continued to pray.  We prayed specifically that if the Lord wanted us to go, then he would provide the full funds.  We figured that if He did provide the money then that would be another open door. If He didn't provide, then we knew that would be a closed door.  We prayed for several days.  We had 2 people send us money in the mail $600, then one of the real estate agents I work for talked to our market center administrator and told him that the Lord was working in her heart to give us money.  She told him that the Lord was showing her "what is money here on the earth for?"  She then proceeded to tell him she wanted to give us $24,000 for our trip, knowing that time was of the essence.  When I was told the news, I cried!  The Lord had answered our prayers in just a few short days!

Since then, my office has put on several fund raisers, we've had 2 of our agents offer to pay for our plane tickets to and from Mexico.  The verse that immediately came to mind was God provides exceeding abundantly above all we could ask or think!

When we left for Mexico, I wasn't feeling well.  The past 6 weeks I was having nausea, high fevers (102-103), and headaches.  I was on my 5th round of antibiotics.  I had lab work right before I left and my liver test were extremely elevated.  We got to Mexico, and just a few days after being there I was feeling so much better & not taking my antibiotics.  About a week into my treatments, they did lab work again and my liver function tests were back in the normal range!!  When we got back home, my oncologist was very surprised that I was looking and feeling so good.  He was very pleased that my liver labs were normal as well (he said he expected them to stay elevated).  His exact words were "you might make me a believer after all".  He is much more comfortable with us returning for our follow up trip.

We return to Mexico the 1st part of December for my 2nd round of treatment.  They will do the treatments, then do another CT scan.  I'm praying the CT scans shows a major reduction in the tumors (also praying they will be completely gone too!).  If that is the case then we will continue on the program.  If they see that the tumors are growing or the treatment is not being effective then we have to decide at that time if I should start chemo.

So, again I ask for your continued prayers that the treatment will be effective & the Lord will give complete healing.  He has continued to show me that He is Jehovah-Jirah (my provider).

Until next time....

We made it home safely!  Got back into town on Friday night around 8:00pm.  It's good to be home!!!

While at home, I'm will be following the Oasis of Hope home care program (which includes taking supplements and vitamins, eating the proper diet and B-17 injections).  We plan on returning to Oasis of Hope in one month for the 2nd round of treatment.

Thanks to all of you for your continued prayers!  I'll keep you posted!

Sonya

It's Thursday evening and I have finshed all of my treatments (at least for this 1st round).  Simon and I head back to California tomorrow afternoon.  We are so thankful that we had the opportunity to come--we have met some wonderful people while we have been here & I know I have been blessed & encouraged while I have been here as well. I'm so glad the Lord provided the funds for us to come--it has been what I needed!

I'm off to pack, then off to bed, then off to home!!

I got the results from my CT scan and things are still the same.  The tumors haven't increased or decreased in size.  The doctors told us not to expect any major changes/results for about a month (or around the time we come back next time).  Since I've been here I have felt much better--no fevers, no nausea, etc....

We are still praying for a miracle! 

Monday's over!!  Treatment went well again today.  I have a CT scan tomorrow morning--I'm praying the tumors in my liver will be drastically shrunk or even GONE!!   

We went and walked on the beach this evening and watched the sunset.  Other than that, a pretty slow day just getting treatment.....

I'm sleepy!

Sunday began as most days around here with Simon sleeping in :)  Today was another day without treatment (they start back up tomorrow).  This morning Dr. Contreras shared a message for "church" entitled "Negotiating life".  A recognition that each of us is able to negotiate our life by observing God's laws.  While Jesus may have fulfilled the law, and abolished the need for us to come to God through the law, the fact remains that physical laws still exist and observance of His commands often have blessings that directly relate to the quality and potential length of our life.  The interesting part was that cultures that observe the dietary laws tend not to be plagued by cancers and how as Americans (the Western world) we tend to completely ignore the vast majority of those dietary laws.  And as a result suffer needlessly.

After church, we came back up to our room and I rested a bit while Simon watched his Broncos get beat yet again!  He's getting used to them losing! :)  Then this afternoon we had the opportunity to be introduced to some Mexican/Spanish culture by going to a bull fight.  Let's just say I didn't find it to be my choice for entertainment... while the Matadors were entertaining and colorful and I suppose good at their job, I found myself cheering for the bull hoping he would not get slaughtered.  I was only able to watch one and a half fights then found myself dragging Simon out of the stadium.   On the up side, Simon did manage to scalp our tickets to some late comers as we were leaving so we only had to pay 1/2 price!  Simon got some video of the fight so I'm sure he will post it on Facebook or Youtube.  (Some of the other patients also went to the bull fights and they were only able to stay for about 2 fights as well so I'm not the only "softy" in the group).

Then to end the night, we were able to spend some time with some of the other patients here and just talk about the things of the Lord.  We ended the night praying together ready to tackle another week....overall a good weekend!

Today was Saturday....a day without treatment which meant I was able to leave the hospital.  A group of us were able to go to the mall and do a little bit of shopping (I couldn't find anything to buy) but it was nice to be able to get out and enjoy the sunshine and get a little bit of exercise too.  Neither Simon or I have exercised the entire time we have been here and although we are eating a vegan diet Simon has managed to gain about 8 pounds (either that or the scales are off)!!

One of the patients who we met finished his 1st two weeks of treatment this morning.  He has stomach cancer (a couple of inoperable tumors).  He did a CT scan right before he left this morning and one of his tumors is completely gone and the other one is now barely visible.  What an encouragement it was to hear this news!   God is good!

Until tomorrow......

Buenos dias!  It's Friday already!!  I just met with my doctor and he went over my blood work.   He was pleased with the results (my liver function tests came back in the normal range).  A few of my labs were not normal (I have low iron, etc....but that seems to be pretty normal in my case).  He said that they will do a scan of my abdomen the middle of next week so they can see the progress on my liver.

Since we have internet, I've been able to work (which keeps me from being too bored, thank you agents).  I've also had the chance to Skype with my mom (she calls several times throughout the day (love you mom), and Lanissa--keep up the good work, oh wonderful sister of mine!!  One thing I do know, I need to learn Spanish--it will be time for me to whip out my Rosetta Stone when I get home so I know how to better communicate with the Spanish speaking world.

Thanks to everyone for your prayers!

I didn't have the chance to blog yesterday.  It was a pretty busy day for me.  I received IV treatments from 12:00 and didn't finish until 9:00pm.  When I was done, I was pretty tired so I went straight to bed.  I had lab work done this morning and we should have the results by tomorrow.  The treatments are going really well and overall I feel great.  I haven't had any side effects but I am getting a little bit anxious to get out of my room and head down to the beach or do some shopping. :)  Hopefully this weekend we will be able to get out and about for a little while.   Treatments are calling again...so I need to run......

Today I began my treatments.  This morning I had an Ozone/UV treatment.  They drew my blood, infused it with Ozone and then gave my blood back to me.  It wasn't painful.  My nurse was Tomas and he sang and played worship music the entire time.  

Then this afternoon, they gave me a drug called Peftec (which increases the amount of oxygen in my blood), then I got vitamin C infusions and a B-17 infusion while breathing oxygen.  Apparently, Vitamin C given at the right dosages via IV has an effect on cancer tumors and is nearly equivalent to some of the best chemotherapy.  However, with no side effects.  

Overall, I'm feeling really well.....

Monday, October 25th, 2010

Day 1 at Oasis of Hope in Tijuana, Mexico.  We arrived last night around 5:00, got settled into our room and then ate dinner.  We have met a few people who seem really nice and the staff seems kind as well.

After breakfast this morning I met with my doctor and they put together a protocol for my stay.  My treatments begin tomorrow.  The hospital and the staff are pretty laid back and seem to not be on too tight of a schedule.

Simon and I took a walk this afternoon.  We found a Starbucks, a KFC and a Carl's Jr. (just in case Simon needs his meat & coffee fix).