Hi friends,

Jason and I are on our way back to Austin after being in Houston overnight.

We just got results for yesterday’s PET scan, and they’re overall very good. Most of the metastatic activity from the last PET scan is resolved, and what’s still there is greatly improved. The original cancer (in the stomach) looks similar to the last scan with a smidge of additional tracer uptake (the “glow” on a PET scan).

Because things are overall improved, and because Jason is feeling so good, he’s staying on his current line of treatment. That’s great news!

I’ve been thinking lately about how “good news” feels to me when treatment is ongoing. There’s definitely a sense of relief when we find out that the cancer is responding. But the relief is tempered by weariness—the cancer isn’t cured, and treatment continues. Nothing really changes on a practical level—we just have assurance that the hard stuff Jason’s going through is worth it. We’re so grateful for the time together that good news gives us—and at the same time, we’re both willing to admit that this is a very hard journey.

Jason is still handling treatment very well. Fatigue and other symptoms have been manageable, and he continues to work full time (and yes, he’s still mowing our lawn!)

As we were walking to our car in the hotel parking garage this morning, I razzed Jason about the parking spot he’d chosen. We both laughed, and it struck me how much we’ve done that on this trip.

Case in point: we went to lunch yesterday at a restaurant that has board games available for patrons. I pulled out some Trivial Pursuit cards, and we took turns asking each other questions. Whenever one of us got a question right, we got to keep the card. There was a lot of laughter and a lot of groaning. We both got a whole stack of questions right! I won’t tell you who won (though you’re welcome to guess based on the photo. 😉)

We’re 15 months into this journey. We always appreciate those who reach out to us. We feel your love!

-Beth and Jason

You're always welcome to look at past emails here. Just be aware this site includes my author and narrator newsletters as well as my emails about Jason; I can't split them up!