all this and more

a great report

^{We had our appointement with Dr. Gonzalez yesterday morning and all is well! My numbers improved and the cancer is dying off. My Cancer Mass Index went from a 25 to a 22-, which is a great. This is the big number that I am watching, once it is below 10 I will be considered cancer free. You can see why the program takes approximately 2 years, your numbers move a few digits every 6 months. This has certainly taught me a lot about patience :o) But we are absolutely thrilled with the results and so is Dr. Gonzalez. Luckily, I was not as nervous about this visit due to the fact that I feel so incredibly good on his program. No coughing, no problem breathing, no pain. I still have a lot of work ahead of me, but he said as long as I continue to do the program my numbers will continue to improve.  Dr. Gonzalez is such a blessing, I only wish more people knew about him. He saves lives everyday and does it in a way that restores the body instead of breaking it down. Giving thanks on this beautiful day for my health and for Dr. Gonzalez.}

^{The test is a two page report, tracking how every organ and gland in your body is functioning. Here are a few of my other numbers that we are watching closely. Toxins went from a 16 to 12 and my DNA Damage went from a 17 to 15 (10 and below is normal). My lungs went from an 85 to 86+ and my total body function went from an 82 to 85 (these numbers need to get above 89).} 

 ^{Also, New York with the girls has been wonderful. Yes, it is cold and Yes, there is complaining (these Florida girls are not used to the cold)... but we really are having a great time together. I will be sure to post pictures when we get home.}

great news

Hallelujah!!!!! 

My lab results came back today and they looked GOOD. The program is working and we are moving in the right direction.... as you can imagine we are on cloud 9. Overjoyed!!! Prayers are being answered... so please continue lift up all those in your life that are battling cancer and join me in a prayer of thanksgiving for my good report... and for Dr. Gonzalez, he is truly doing God’s work.

Give thanks to the Lord, 

for He is Good

 be happy when this is all behind us

back from mayo

We returned late last night from our trip to Rochester. My MRI came back normal , my blood work looked good, and my liver and kidneys are clear. The CT Scan of my lungs had changed a bit, but was to be expected since there was more than a month between my April scan and when I started on my new protocol in May. Our game plan is the same and I will continue to work on ridding my body of this disease through the diet, detox and enzyme program. I have a renewed drive and am looking forward to seeing the results of my hair sample I sent to Dr. Gonzalez this past Saturday. We should know something within the next 2 weeks or so. Keep you posted as always.

Many thanks for your prayers (and cards, calls, emails, text sending love and support)... You all continue to lift me up and I am so grateful for each and everyone of you. 

On another note, I have just downloaded the pictures I took this summer and there were just shy of 1200 pictures taken in June and July. Is that normal? Pretty sure it’s not. So with that said, here is a teaser.... many more to come.

Miss Julia - such a trip...she's the comedian in the family. And she loves her sunglasses! Fun fact about this little lady, she has a Jersey accent. Not all the time, but enough of one that I've been asked on more than one occasion where she picked up the New Jersey accent when she was born and raised in the South. She's such a doll - LOVE her to pieces!

headed to mayo

Okay, lots going on here. Last night around 4:30 AM we woke to someone frantically ringing our door bell... you know it can’t be good when someone comes knocking at that hour. We come down stairs to find two police officers on the front step, another out in the street and Chris’ car parked sideways in the middle of the street - driver door open and the engine running. Turns out someone tried to steal his car last night... along with a couple of others in the neighborhood that had been left unlocked (they found a spare key that must have fallen between the seats - we were completely unaware there was an extra key in the car). The funny thing is, his car had zero gas. Our elderly neighbor across the street woke and called the police when his dog went crazy and noticed our car in the middle of the road. So I was up at 2:30AM with Julia, then again at 3:30AM to take my pills, and 4:30-6:00AM filling out police reports and fingerprinting the car. Good times :o)

As for the month of July, it was great! We spent a lot of time together as a family, and honestly just took it easy. Anna Grace lost two more bottom teeth, both girls have for the first time (ever) slept through the night in their own beds... we are still working on it, but they are doing really well with the “new rules”. Miss Julia has also learned to swim, she can even do a back flip in the water with no assistance - so cute - she’s very proud of herself. That’s pretty much the highlights for the month of July.

Now that August has arrived it is time for my 3 month visit to Mayo. Chris and I fly to Rochester in the morning and will return Wednesday night. My blood work, CT Scans and MRI are on Tuesday (starting at 8:00 AM) and then we meet with my doctors on Wednesday morning to review everything. I must say that I am very optimistic that everything is going to go well. I really think we are going to see clear scans - or at the very least see that we have this disease under control. I will be sure to update you all on Thursday when we return home (I will also post summer pictures of the girls next week).

Please keep our family in your prayers as we face another visit to Mayo. Also, I ask you to continue to lift up sweet Ava - that she may be completely healed.

Happy Moments, PRAISE GOD.

Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.

Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.

Painful moments, TRUST GOD.

Every moment, THANK GOD.

-Rick Warren

Here are some pictures of Mayo in Rochester, MN...I must say I have a very special place in my heart for the Mayo Clinic, the doctors and nurses are amazing. It's crazy to think this medical marvel is located in the middle of corn fields.These are pictures of the Gonda Building where I have my doctor visits and CT Scans.

 

grand finale

Yesterday was the fifth day of my liver flush, the grand finale if you will. The first four days of the liver flush are fairly easy, but the last day really puts your system into motion, or should I say into detox. I started after lunch with a cup of epsom salt and water; followed by another two hours later; then for dinner I had a mixed berry and heavy cream smoothie (yum - pretty sure I consumed about 60 grams of fat); a 1/4 of a cup of bentonite liquid 30 minutes before bed; and 1/2 cup of olive oil at bedtime - then straight to bed on my right side, knees drawn up.

Doesn't sound all that bad on paper, but not so fun in person. I won't give you the gory details (you would all stop reading my blog if I did) but lets just say that I had to stay close to home all afternoon, you can imagine what is going on with the digestive tract. I can honestly tell you I had to gag down the epsom salt water, bentonite liquid and especially the olive oil (which almost came back up). Little did I know the best was yet to come.

About 3:00AM I woke up with a fever, chills all over and extreme nausea. Luckily, I knew from speaking with Dr. Gonzalez and many of his patients that this was the process of my body detoxing, the cleansing of my liver. After about 30 minutes I couldn't hold it together and started vomiting. A short time later most the symptoms subsided, with the exception of the nausea - that lasted until this morning.

Not sure if you could consider it a success since much of what I drank came back up, but hopefully I will do better next time. Still doing my two a day enemas (good times - these also make me feel very sick and are not fun) ...from now on I will just refer to it as the " Big E". But all in all, things are going well. I will probably be a home-body for a while until I get the hang of this. (Please note - that as I share all these experiences, I know that others with cancer that are having to endure chemo and radiation and have symptoms far worse - I cannot begin to imagine what they are going through).

But I thank you again for your support and prayers during this transition. I am grateful to all those that have forwarded doctors name, drug trials, etc... I'm keeping them all in notebook. With all that said, I would like to ask everyone to respect my decision to go with Dr. Gonzalez and choose an alternative treatment. I do not wish to receive any negative opinions or advise on what you or anyone else thinks I should be doing. It only causes me more stress and fear - two things I don't need right now. I know that the advise is given out of concern, but again if you would please refrain from sharing it with me at this time I would appreciate it.  I have complete confidence in Dr. Gonzalez and his program - spoken with several patients that are survivors, and know in my heart that this is the right decision for me and that I will win this battle.

Also, one more thing... I would like to ask you all to pray for another young mother with two girls that is battling cancer. She and I have connected through facebook and I have drawn great strength from her journey. Her name is Jamie Cagle, please take a moment to add her to your prayer list and lift her up this morning. Thank you.

Peace & Love to you all on this Tuesday morning!

(Hoping to post some updated pictures soon, plus I have a great recipe for you - with tons of cancer fighting ingredients)

my new normal

This is my new daily schedule - My new normal. The protocol: 20 days on the enzymes and supplements, then 5 days off… for the rest of my life. During those five days, I will alternate between the liver flush, clean sweep and a carrot juice fast, doing one of the three each month. I started the protocol with the liver flush and have now finished day two. I begin my pills on Tuesday. I have been doing the enemas as well… don’t worry I won’t go into detail. We are also having a reverse-osmosis water system installed on Monday, and changed our pots & pans to stainless steel. As well as, trying to eliminate all aluminum from the house (or at least as much as we can). My diet is 50% raw and 50% cooked. Several servings of certain organic fruits & vegetables each day, plus 5 servings of grass feed red meat, 2 servings of chicken and 2 servings of fish each week. Absolutely no soy, peanuts, sugar, white flour, cow’s milk… along with many other foods to steer clear of. This is a glimpse into my new life... one that I am ever so grateful for.

 

6:15AM: Drink Apple Cider Vinegar & Coffee Enemas (2)

 

7:00AM: Enzymes (14)

 

7:15AM: Skin Brushing & Shower

 

8:15AM: Breakfast (14 Grain Cereal w/Molasses), 10 Almonds, Supplements (30), Fish Oil, Vital-10, Green Tea, Juicing (Apple, Celery, Carrot – 8oz)

 

10:30AM: Enzymes (14)

 

11:30-12:30PM: Lunch, 10 Almonds, Supplements (27)

 

1:30PM: Enzymes (14)

 

2:30-3:30PM: Snack

 

3:30PM: Drink Apple Cider Vinegar, Coffee Enemas (2), Shower

 

4:30PM: Enzymes (14)

 

5:30-6:30PM: Dinner, Supplements (30), Juicing (Apple, Celery, Carrot – 8oz)

 

7:30PM: Enzymes (14), Walk, Make Coffee for next day w/Molasses

 

9:30PM: Skin Brushing, Bath w/Apple Cider Vinegar (3 a week)

 

10:00PM: Bedtime – Enzymes (14), Supplements (6)

 

3:30AM: Enzymes (14)

 

I must also mention what an incredible mother I have.  She is completely selfless and 100% devoted to her children. She has been my full time nurse and my rock during this entire ordeal. If you only knew the things she has had to do for me you would join me in calling her a saint.

Mom, if you read this – I love you to the ends of the earth.

 

(Please note that while all cancer patients can do the coffee enemas, skin brushing, and juicing… it is not advised that you follow my diet or consume things like the apple cider vinegar, red meat, etc… This was formulated specifically for my type of cancer and based on my test results. This type of diet/schedule could cause other types of cancers to grow. Dr. Gonzalez has an interview posted on his website that you can listen to that gives advice to cancer patients on things we can all do to stay healthy and detox our bodies.  Go to www.dr-gonzalez.com for more information)

John 15:4-5  Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

 

Lord it is good for us to be here

Joshua 1:9

Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

 

I am overcome with JOY & HOPE…. our trip to New York was amazing. Dr. Gonzalez is amazing! After two days of appointments and reviewing all of my tests, he is confident that if I follow his program to a T, that I will be able to cleanse my body (lungs) of this cancer…or at the very least manage it (keep it from growing).  This program is a very big commitment; it is a complete lifestyle change… where I will be taking capsules all day (188 pills), eat only certain organic foods, and following various procedures to cleanse/detox my body. The program is non-toxic so it won’t make me sick like chemo.  He was also able to confirm with one of the test that it is in fact the sarcoma growing in my lungs. He did say that I was in much better health than most patients he treats… and that is definitely going to make things a little easier. I asked how long until I was back to full health, he said that it could be a couple of years (maybe less). Even then, I will stay on a similar program for life to be sure the cancer does not reoccur.

 

Dr. Gonzalez is a kind, humble and brilliant man. He does God’s work because it is his life’s calling. He is a man of strong faith, and brings hope and health to his patients… all in the name of the Father.

 

After our first appointment, Shannon and I went into this gorgeous old church about a block from his office to give thanks for this wonderful news. As I was praying, I looked up and there was this huge inscription that read “LORD IT IS GOOD FOR US TO BE HERE”. Shannon and I both began to cry… My savior has been by my side every step of the way, guiding and leading me down the right path. I knew at that moment everything was going to be okay and we were exactly where he wanted us to be.

 

It is with a thankful heart, I send all of you my deepest gratitude for the prayers you have lifted up for my family and my healing.  I cannot begin to put into words how much your prayers and kind wishes have meant to us. “Rich is the person who has a praying friend” ~Janice Hughes

 

A huge thanks to Darby for posting my story on her blog, I have received so many wonderful messages from “new” friends that are praying for us; To Mary for starting the Prayers for Montye Facebook Page;  To my dear friends that have prayed over me the past couple of weeks (You all know who you are :o); To my loving family for holding me together and lifting me up above the devastation; To my Heavenly Father for the abundant blessings he has bestowed upon me, and for the Love and Peace that has washed over me.

 

Psalm 25:4-5

Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.

sad news

My Dear Friends and Family,

 

As many of you know my follow up CT Scan and MRI were this past Monday. We meet with the doctors on Tuesday and sadly things do not look good. My lungs are covered in several tiny spots (the one they saw on the January scan has grown). The Medical Oncologist said at this point he could not say 100% that it was the synovial sarcoma, but that he was pretty sure that it was. We opted not to have a biopsy since they were so small and he wasn't sure he could get a good sample, plus the larger one is very close to my heart and we all agreed not to attempt to biopsy that mass.  We then decided that the best option was to wait until June and do a follow-up CT Scan of my chest, the doctor said at that time he could be sure.... because the tiny spots would have grown and there will be additional new spots, but he would still do a biopsy to be 100%.

 

So here comes the scary part... if the cancer has metastasized to my lungs, the long-term (5+ years) survival rate is very low. The Oncologist said that with the chemo and then surgery to remove the masses as they appeared might buy me 3 years give or take (being very sick for the remainder of my life)... or I could choose to feel good and stay healthy as long as I could (maybe 2 years) until the cancer took over. The kind of cancer I have just does not respond well to chemo - the doctor flat out said that the chemo will not save my life.... only buy me time.  As you can imagine I am sick - completely devastated, but having to hold it together for the sake of my girls. We will not be discussing any of this with them until it is absolutely necessary.  I am clinging to my faith and my family. I really don't know what to think right now, there are so many emotions and they change from moment to moment. I still have that fight inside and I plan to do everything in my power to battle this horrible disease.

 

Luckily, I am going to see Dr. Nicholas Gonzalez on May 5th & 6th. He has cured many stage IV cancers and I am hoping and praying that he will help me save my life. 

http://www.dr-gonzalez.com/case_reports.htm

 

Please, please, please pray for my complete healing and the peace of the Lord to wash over me and my family. Also, I ask that you pray for all those battling cancer - that they too may have good health and the strength needed to fight this war we are all up against.

 

I have so much more to say, but to be honest I am sick to my stomach just writing this email... so with that - I will keep you all updated.

 

With Love,

Montye

 

This will be my last post for a while - I have decided that I will only update when I have new information to share. If you would like to get those updates via email please click on the subscribe link (right side of the blog). Thank you for joining me over the last couple of months, but I will now be soaking up every minute with my girls and my family.

little milestones

Celebrating – I have been cancer free for 6 months as of yesterday, April 12th! Little milestones mean a lot. We leave this Sunday for Mayo… my follow-up scans are Monday morning. Feeling great and expecting all good news. I’ll keep you posted.

 

Hope is that thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops... at all.  ~Emily Dickinson

 

Romans 5:2

through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

 

The Curtonian Code of Honor

Courage - Help those who cannot help themselves

Faith - Know that you are never alone

Mercy - Show compassion to those who offend you

Nobility - Be of sound character, spirit, and mind

Humility - Do every task with cheerfulness and grace

Generosity - Give without any thought of return

Hope - With bravery, trust in your King at all times

Truth - Never break your promise

Loyalty - Be faithful to your principles

{This was written by my cousin-in-law, Mrs. Curto... she's a teacher. It is her Code of Honor for her classroom. Just thought I would share her pearls of wisdom with you.}

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Update: I am scheduled to be back at Mayo for my next follow up scans on April 19th & 20th. Was feeling pretty crummy until my friend, Raquel, dropped off the sweetest card and picture from my dear friends at M.O.M.S. (Ministry of Mothers Sharing). I love you all, thank you for the prayers and words of encouragement :o)

"Seven Angels for You" - another one of my favorite Kendall Boggs paintings.