Happy New Year

New Year's Eve is uneventful for the Faust Family tonight, but you know what? We'll take it. Just being together when life still feels normal is a blessing.

Derek is home from the University of Chicago and happily watching tv with the kids. He is properly medicated to manage his pain and was just put on a new medication that helps him break down the foods that he eats. Dinner is the first meal that he finished feeling satisfied and free from discomfort in weeks.

I want to thank our readers - friends, family, acquaintances, and some strangers, for finding it in your hearts to reach out to us and send healing, positive thoughts. We heard from so many people today including our incredible family and our friends, old and new. A pancreatic cancer survivor called me on the phone today to share her personal story. A stranger posted to my blog to share the name of renowned cancer surgeon. A woman I've known for years who has recently been in my exact shoes, talked to me on the phone for over an hour, letting me know that whatever the outcome, it will all be ok. I am awestruck by the support and love surrounding us.

Not only do I feel love and support since beginning this journey, but so does Derek. If you read my last post, you may have seen the request to join our text group, "Good Vibes for BigDFaust." The response was overwhelming. Just watch:

Over 60 people joined the group to give Derek some much-needed support! We are so grateful to those of you who joined! What a difference it made for Derek as he was preparing to get discharged.  (By the way, it's never too late to join. Just text @BigDFaust to 81010.)

We hope that everyone is having a wonderful evening ringing in the New Year.

Here's to a year of good health in 2016!

The C-Word

Up until this point, we have been avoiding the C-word.

What began as a "growth" soon became a "lesion" which doctors recently began calling a "tumor." When we started hearing the words "malignant" and "tumor" used in sequence, it startled us, but still no one described Derek's condition as the C-word.

Until today.

Today, Derek returned to the University of Chicago for a second endoscopic ultrasound and biopsy. U of C had a cytologist on site throughout the procedure, so as soon as the tissue sample was collected, they could determine whether or not the sample was adequate and what type of malignancy we were dealing with.

When the doctor came out to talk with Derek and me, the first words I remember hearing her say were,

"We have a diagnosis. It's an adenocarcinoma tumor."

Just like that, my husband became a cancer patient. A 41-year-old, pancreatic cancer patient.

Our heads are spinning.

Derek is resting comfortably at U of C where he is under observation for developing pancreatitis based on his experience after the last biopsy. Tonight, although we are filled with worry and fear, we are focusing on the positives: Derek is young, healthy and strong.

We have decided to stay off of the internet for now, and we encourage our friends and family to do the same. Until we meet with Dr. K on Tuesday, we don't know anything about how she plans to treat Derek or what his prognosis will be.

Many have asked how you can help. If you are wondering what you can do, here are a few suggestions:

• If you or someone you know is a cancer survivor, especially a pancreatic cancer survivor, please share your story with us!
• Derek LOVES reading positive messages. To help with this, I have organized a text group using a tool called Remind. To sign up for the Positive Vibes for BigDFaust group, you can text @bigdfaust to 81010 on your mobile device. Periodically, I will push out a text to anyone on the group asking for positive thoughts, and all responses will go straight to his cell phone. 
• Make your year-end donation to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network! They are trying to reach their goal of 100,000 donations by the end of the year, and I believe we can help!

Thank you again for all of your love and continuous support! 

Meeting Dr. K at U of C

Today, Derek, my dad and I made the schlep down to the University of Chicago. I am sure this will be the first of many trips down there. As soon as we arrived, we presented the oncology department with slides from Derek's biopsy that was performed at Lutheran General Hospital last Thursday. We waited quite awhile until we finally had the privilage to meet with Dr. K, one of the oncologists at U of C who specializes in pancreas cancers.

Dr. K acknowledged that the pathology team at U of C was also unable to determine the type of malignancy from the biopsy taken at Lutheran General and that she recommends that we repeat the biopsy tomorrow morning. Derek is scheduled for a second endoscopic ultrasound and biopsy tomorrow morning at 10:30 am. We have asked that Derek stays in the hospital overnight tomorrow night for observation in case he has a repeat of pancreatitis as he did after last week's biopsy. Assuming that all goes well, Derek should be home in time for a rip-roaring New Year's Eve party at our house complete with sparkling cider, confetti and a 10:00 bedtime.

At the appointment, we learned that we will not get results from the biopsy until we meet with Dr. K in person next Tuesday, January 5th. When we spoke with Dr. K, she was careful not to jump to any conclusions based on the limited amount of information that she has at this time. I'm sure that is hard for those of you reading this post who so desperately want answers for Derek. We appreciate how many of you have reached out in the last 24 hours asking for the latest news. We just don't have much more to share.

Here is what we do know: Derek is young and healthy. According to Dr. K, this means he will be able to withstand more intense treatments than someone who is much older and sicker. So, all I can say is that we will hold on to our hope, put up our dukes, and get ready for the fight of our lives.

I'll share another update tomorrow after the biopsy.

The First Post - A Letter to Family and Friends

Below is the letter that we sent to family and friends on December 28th updating everyone on the status of Derek's health.


Dear Family and Friends,

Happy almost New Year. As we close out 2015, I wish I was writing to share news of a miraculous fourth pregnancy or a winning Lotto ticket, but I am afraid that this news is a little less uplifting. Derek has been experiencing belly pain since around his birthday in mid-November.

On December 19, Derek landed in the emergency room with extreme abdominal pain. A CT scan revealed a spot on the tail of his pancreas, and an MRI later confirmed a lesion in the same location. Derek underwent an endoscopic ultrasound and biopsy on Thursday morning, which showed a mass measuring close to one inch by one inch in size. Roughly 12 hours later, Derek began experiencing extreme pain, which sent him back to the hospital where he was admitted for pain management of pancreatitis. On Saturday afternoon, Derek was sent home to rest and await the pathology report. This morning, we received word that the pathology report came back as inconclusive. We were informed that the biopsy showed some malignant cells, but the pathologist did not gather enough information to determine exactly what those cells are. At this time, we do not have a diagnosis or any additional information.

Tomorrow, Derek, my dad, and I will go down to the University of Chicago to meet with an oncologist to learn about next steps. I vowed to Derek that I would use my stellar communication skills to keep our family and friends informed every step of the way.

Thank you for every email, voicemail, and text message sent to us over the past week. Phone calls are a little more difficult for us to take right now, but we cannot thank you all enough for the love and support you have shown our family.

Special thanks to my dad, my brother, Jeff, my Uncle Neal and our dear friends Bill and Matt, for going above and beyond in getting in touch with the very best doctors in this field.

My brother, Jeff, continues to remind us, "You have every reason to be hopeful," and so we ask that you share in our hope as we move forward on this journey together.

With so much love and gratitude,

Marcie and Derek