Peter's Page

Lots to report

Ty — Mon, 17 May 2010 18:45:38 +0000

Hello all,

It has been since Feb. since our last posting and many exciting things have happened.

First, Ellie, Erika and Peter all had birthdays! Ellie turned 6 and celebrated with her cousins and friends at Pump It Up! Peter turned 8 and had a skating party at The Pond! Erika on the other hand quietly celebrated her birthday without going to Pump It Up or The Pond. It was a crazy couple of weeks, but we survived and had a lot of fun.

Second, Peter and Erika left for NYC today for his 3 month scans and tests. As far as we can tell, he is doing great with his energy, appetite, attitude and all else physical. So we will keep praying for clean tests and scans and hope the trip to NYC is uneventful from that perspective. Hopefully the weather will be good and Erika and Peter can have a little fun. I know he brought some birthday money to spend at the NHL Store, so that should be fun.

Third, we are moving again. Yes, you heard that correctly. I have accepted an assistant coach position at Bowling Green State University. I have always wanted to get into college hockey and to have a chance to do it at my alma mater was an opportunity we could not pass up. The next few monthes will be a little crazy, but we are used to that. We are nervous and very excited about this new chapter in our lives.

Also, keep praying for Mary Virnig as she continues her battle with neuroblastoma. She is one of the most couragous young women we know and her family is priceless. She is currently at the U of M awaiting another transplant. Also, add Jackie Bishoff to your prayer list. She is the mother of 4 and was recently diagnosed with Lung cancer. She is a fighter and an overachiever and we expect her to take this battle head on.

Finally, thank you all so much for all the prayers and support for Peter and our family. We are truly blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Results from NY

Ty — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:05:31 +0000

Hello All,

We are thrilled and blessed to report that ALL of Peter’s scans and tests came back clean! Erika and Peter had a rather uneventful trip. The weather was not as bad as they thought it was going to be, which was great since they were going to be walking around NYC for three days. Once again, we can never thank all of you enough for all of your thoughts and prayers. As for the day to day, we are busy day to day with school, hockey, swimming, gymnastics, baseball, playdates work and we would not have it any other way! Although, it does make the weekends go by rather fast. Finally, continue to keep praying for strength and peace for the Ludwinski family as they move forward after Erik’s passing. And continue to pray for Mary Virnig as she patiently waits for her second transplant. She has been on a real roller coaster lately not only dealing with her own situation, but also support the Ludwinski’s.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Back in NY

Ty — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:45:55 +0000

Hello All,

It hardly seems possible that Peter is already due back in NY this week. He and Erika beat the snowstorm and flew out Monday afternoon. Peter was less than thrilled about going, he cried in the morning and said “why do I have to keep going to NY” We think as he gets older, he understands more about what this is all about. Anyway, he got settled down and went to school for a few hours and then they flew out. He got a headache on the plane and threw up when he and Erika got to the Ronald McDonald House in NYC. He slept for a long time and was much better this morning when I talked to him. He told me, “Dad it is like summer out here, it’s like 30 or 45 degrees.”

He and Erika will go to the clinic today and Wednesday and he will have blood work, CT scan, MIBG test, Brain MRI, Bone Marrow Biopsy and other tests over that time. All in all he does remarkably well considering all he goes through each visit. Kate, Ellie and I will hold down the fort back home and see if we can’t shovel a little snow while they are gone. We had 8 inches yesterday!

Also, please pray for Erik Ludwinski and his family. Erik is 21 and was diagnosed with neuroblastoma at age 4. He was NED for 15 years, then he relapsed. For the past 2 years he has been getting many different treatments. Recently it has has progressed and is not responding to any treatment and Erik and his family are doing an incredible job handling his situation. Erika and I went to see him Monday, it was an incredible experience. Erik was interacting with all his visitors and his attitude was amazing. He and his family are spending whatever time he has left enjoying each other and getting the most out of every day! His mother is one of the most positive people I have ever been around and she has been unbelievably helpful to tons of families affected by neuroblastoma.

Finally, thank you for keeping Peter in your prayers this week while he is in NY. We are so blessed to have so many people praying for Peter and our family.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Final Test Results

Ty — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:53:19 +0000

We recieved the rest of the test results, and they too came back negative! We are so thankful for the results as well as all of your prayers. This will certainly be a very “thankful” Thanksgiving. We are planning on spending it in the Twin Cities with the rest of the Eigner’s. I will keep this short, as it seems that there is a lot to do to prepare to host this event. Again, thank you so much for your prayers and support and may you and your families have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

news from ny…

Erika — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:42:10 +0000

SO FAR SO GOOD on the scans! Dr. Kushner sent an email last night to say the CT scans and the MIBG both look great! We are so thankful. We LOVE getting emailed results as opposed to a tap on the shoulder in clinic or a phone call! Ty said that right when he told Pete that the scans looked great so far, Peter asked “then why do I need the liver MRI tomorrow?” Good question Pete… We know he still needs it (MRI could pick up different things than the CTs) but who can blame the kid for not wanting to lay in that machine for an hour & a half! We will keep you posted; won’t have bone marrow results until next week i’m sure. Take Care!

scan week – November

Erika — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:08:15 +0000

In some ways it seems like forever ago that we were back in cancer’s grip (July) when we spent a couple weeks in NY learning of suspicious spots in the liver, more testing, confirmed abnormal, back home, back to NY…. biopsy, waiting, waiting, followed by an enormous sense of relief. And in other ways it feels like yesterday. We sort of teeter on this line between staying ‘in’ the world of children’s cancer, where we are still traveling every 3 months + for Peter’s tests, the intermittent ‘scare’, still seeking knowledge about new treatments, the search for a cure, keeping tabs on the children who are beating it and those are fighting it, some over & over, those who are not so fortunate but get the ultimate cure, not ever wanting to lose the perspective we have gained on life and how quickly things can change; and ‘moving on’ to where it doesn’t consume our lives. There is no easy way to balance it so we just do. Not really sure where I’m going with that, but I think about it every time one of us leaves the rest of the family behind for 3-5 days and the feelings of stress it conjures up no matter how long it’s been, how long Peter has been “NED”.
This morning was one such day… Ty and Peter flew out and are now safely at the Ronald McDonald House of NYC. Pete called earlier and told me there was a carnival in the playroom downstairs… and he made sure to let Dad know that it is open until 9pm! There is nothing better than seeing him excited / distracted upon arrival, because there is definitely stress involved for Pete when a trip to NY is on the horizon. He doesn’t complain about going, ever, nor does he associate what the stress is, but there are headaches, tummy aches, etc that preceed every trip.
They will start Tuesday by going to the clinic for the IV placement, blood draws, visit with the NPs/Doctor. Then he will have CT scans (head/neck/chest/abdomen/pelvis), MIBG injection, and an Audiogram. On Wednesday he has MIBG scan and Bone Marrow Biopsies, followed by a Liver MRI on Thursday. Barring any flight delays they should be back home late Thursday night.
Of course we welcome your thoughts and prayers for a successful, uneventful visit. We are especially thinking of our friends Erik & Mary, who couldn’t be more deserving of being honored at the Children’s Cancer Research Fund gala on Saturday evening. They are both incredible, determined young adults who are trying to kick this stubborn, sneaky disease for the fourth & first time, respectively. And an adorable little guy we met in NY in July from WI, same age as Pete, who has learned of possible relapse and is having surgery this week.
All on caringbridge – erikludwinski / marycatherinevirnig / jackbartosz
Will post as we have news this week!

October update

Ty — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:44:00 +0000

Hello All,

We hope all of you are enjoying the fall. Peter, Ellie and Kate are all enrolled in 2nd grade, Kindergarten, and Pre-School respectively and really loving school. They are involved in hockey, gymnastics and swimming along with all of the other things that kids their age do. All three of them are really excited about Halloween of course. Peter is going as Wolverine from X-men, Ellie is going to be a cheerleader and Kate is going to be a Princess, Ariel, Barbi or basically whatever she decides on that day! Also, congrats to Erika, Auntie Meese’s and Auntie G for fininshing the Twin Cities 10 mile. They all trained very hard and did really well. Away from school and all the activities, Peter is doing great health wise. He has lot’s of energy, appetite is good and he is growing which are all great things!

Also, please keep Erik Ludwinski and Mary Virnig in your prayers. They are young adults who we have met along this journey who are still in the middle their battle with this awful disease. Erik is truly a hero to all parents and children with Neuroblastoma and Mary has more determination than any young lady I have ever met. Your prayers for them will be greatly appreciated.

Peter is due back in NYC the first week of November for scans and tests, and as always we can’t thank you enough for all of your support and prayers. We know that we are so lucky to have all of you on Peter’s team.

God Bless,

Ty, Erika, Peter, Ellie and Kate

Scan Results

Ty — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 13:22:17 +0000

Hello to all of you,

Well Peter and Erika had a rather uneventful trip to NYC (YES!). They went back and Peter went through a battery of tests that he has become all to used too familar with. Anyway, the great news is they all came back negitive! Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers, as I have mentioned many times before, we can never thank you enough. He is going to continue to go out to NYC every 3 months to do scans and be seen by the Doctors. We were hoping that it would be a little longer time between visits, but hey we will make it work. We are going to try to enjoy the last few weeks before school starts now that we are back home for a while. The good thing is all three kids are really excited about school starting. We are so happy that they all love going to school and are excited to start up again. Since the summer is almost over, I will keep this short. Again, thanks so much for keeping Peter and our family in your prayers and God Bless all of you.

Back to NY (again)

Erika — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 04:18:42 +0000

Wow! Has it been 4 weeks already? Peter & I will take to the skies again early Tuesday morning. After the scare with the liver lesions, they want to see him again and repeat most of his scans this week.
We will start with a clinic visit on Tuesday, then Wednesday and Thursday will be full days with an ultrasound, MIBG scan, CT scans, and another liver MRI. If all goes according to plan, we will fly home on Friday.
It is amazing how much of a rollercoaster the last month has been. We are feeling good about where Peter is at. We will find out what exactly the lesions are and if any treatment is required, and of course, more than anything we want to hear that Peter is still NED (No Evidence of Disease)! It sort of feels like we’ve stepped off the rollercoaster again. We would like to stay off the rollercoaster please!! This has been a very real & sickening reminder of just how elusive and nasty this disease is.
And we ask that you would join us in cheering on a couple of our dear friends. Erik (caringbridge/mn/erikludwinski) was diagnosed at the age of 6, then relapsed at 20 and again at 21 & has been in treatment but stable for 3 years, while excelling at Bemidji State, volunteering, attending camps & being generally about as busy as a guy can be! His disease has progressed and they will now be in NY this week seeking treatment options. And Mary (caringbridge/marycatherinevirnig), another young adult, who was diagnosed the same time as Peter, is a phenomenal person, also from an amazing family, has been at war with this disease for 3 straight years, while going to college full time at UW-River Falls. She has scans this week at the U of M. It is one thing to fight this disease as a young child, when you don’t fully grasp what is happening, how much you are missing out on, etc. But to be in the thick of it as a young adult and handle it with the grace these two do, is very inspiring.

Biopsy Results!

Uncle Matt — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:18:21 +0000

I just received this text message from Ty.

NY just called, the spots are BENIGN!
Praise the Lord,
Ty

I was immediately covered in goosebumps. If that doesn’t make your day, I don’t know what will.

Further tests are scheduled for the week of August 10th. The scans will be repeated. If the tumors grow, they may require treatment, but it’s too early to predict.

On behalf of the Eigners, thanks for all the prayers and support!