Rehab update

Steve is making excellent progress in rehab. I am just so proud of how hard he's working and how much he's accomplished so far.

In physical therapy, he's been able to walk with a walker on flat surfaces and on steps with rails. His PT uses a stretchy bandage to wrap his foot and calf, which gives him an artificial way to keep his foot from dropping and dragging.

Steve and M, his cheerful PT (grainy photo with my Blackberry)

In occupational therapy, he's focusing on that stubborn left arm. His movement has improved a great deal, and the therapists are pushing him to push and pull and lift.

All the activity is definitely taking its toll. He was exhausted Sunday but had more energy this morning, which he spent right away on three hours of exercise.

Steve was wheeled away for about an hour this morning for another sonogram of his right leg. The blood clot is bigger now than it was last week, which is what Dr. N expected would happen.

There are still risks that parts of the clot could break off, even with the filter in place, so we're paying close attention for shortness of breath and chest pains. He's had shortness of breath, most likely related to physical activity, but no chest pain. Yesterday he had a chest X-ray that returned clear -- no signs of concern.

The team meets tomorrow to discuss all the current rehab cases and make recommendations about continued care. I expect they'll request about another week of therapy, but that's just based on my intuition and putting together clues.

We're also waiting to hear the status of this week's previously scheduled MRI and when Avastin and Carboplatin can be administered again. One of our many current prayers is that the timing of the next treatment is precisely correct -- that we don't wait too long and that we don't rush and risk a poor healing process.