4/28/20 Update on Steven from Olivia:
Friends and family,
As some of you already know, Steven was hospitalized 3 times in the last 2 weeks due to various reasons (pulled muscles, dehydration, and pneumonia). Last Thursday night he was admitted due to blood clots found and was able to come home this past Sunday. Unfortunately we received some devastating news regarding Steven’s overall health and how the blood clots are affecting his body.
To use the doctors words, it’s ‘a catastrophic situation’. The clots have already shut off blood supply to his spleen, and it has died. The reason for this, is that the veins that drain the spleen and other major organs (liver, intestines, etc) are so clogged with clots that it’s causing a major slowdown and backup. Essentially, this is creating arterial clots and shutting down his organs (or will). It hasn’t majorly affected any other organ yet but they expect it to.
They’ve put Steven on blood thinners to help with blood flow and maybe dissolve any clots it can. However, they’ve clearly stated there is no procedure or drug that will really reverse or improve the situation. It will only hope to stabilize it temporarily. Considering that cancer patients are much more likely to develop clots, they don’t see it really helping much at all, except for some pain relief and extending some time.
As far as cancer treatments, chemotherapy would be off the table going forward as it would be just too toxic for him in the current situation. We don’t know for sure if immunotherapy is working; however, considering how quickly this came on in just four weeks, his oncologist feels he only has weeks left, not months…Unfortunately, Steven feels like he agrees with her.
So, in light of this, we’ve chosen to discontinue any cancer treatments and call in hospice. We feel it is time to focus on quality of life, comfort and being with family. Definitely not where we hoped to be or the news we wanted. We don’t understand and we are devastated. We do know that God is good. He’s taken care of us so far, and He will continue to do so going forward.
Thank you all for your love, support, generosity, and encouragement. It has meant the world to Steven and I during this season. My husband has fought with such courage and strength. For now we will enjoy spending time with family and visiting friends, making memories with Will, and clinging to each other. Please pray for the Weavers and Mangrums, for overflowing peace, and clarity as we navigate this difficult time.
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