Chili's Fundraiser

One of Felicitas' awesome team partners, Jennifer French, has put together a fundraiser through Chili's in Chula Vista for her. The Rayray family is so appreciative of all of the hard work and long hours she put into organizing this event. Felicitas feels extremely lucky to have such a wonderful friend to share so many laughs with at school. Thank you so much Jennifer! If you can come out to support the Rayrays, they would be so grateful! We all need to eat, so why not have a meal at Chili's in support of Felicitas? 

Here are the details:

How: Click on the link below "Chili's Fundraiser Flyer" 

          Print out the flyer and present it to your server. 

          15% of the sales you bring in will go directly to Felicitas.

          Good for both dine in and take out orders.

When:  One day only! Wednesday, April 6, 2011   11am - 11pm

Where: Chili's Rancho Del Rey

             800 Paseo Del Rey

             Chula Vista, CA 

             (619) 656-2910

Chili's Fundraiser Flyer

Chemo #5: Nana Janet

It was such a wonderful experience being with my goddaughter during her 5^th chemo treatment this past Friday. She approaches each treatment with conviction, kindness, faith and a sense of humor. As many of you know, she has many gifts, and is becoming quite popular at the Infusion Center. Felicitas calms everyone’s nerves through her laughter, humor and stories.

Felicitas and her Nina, Janet

During treatment we met Dee, a lovely and kind woman, who was having a hard time with her chemo. She, like Felicitas, is part of the ISPY2 study, she is actually assigned to the same ARM of the trial as Felicitas but was just beginning her second treatment that day. She shared that since her first chemo was so difficult that she actually dropped out of the study. Felicitas immediately encouraged her not to give up and shared how important it was to be a part of a study of a few select women. Since Felicitas is 3 weeks ahead of Dee in her treatment, she was able to calm her down and reassure her that she could do it. Every three weeks the treatment would be harder with both the carboplatin and taxol, but in between, it wouldn’t be as bad. Dee was smiling and very appreciative of Pita’s words. She remarked at Pita’s beauty, strength and courage for such a young woman and left the center, determined to stay with the study. Observing this interaction and the compassion that Felicitas communicates to others are rare gifts that she can use to discover a new path in her life of serving others. I am extremely proud of her and admire her strength and compassion. She is definitely forging a new path in her life.

New hair!

Felicitas is tired after her chemo, but finds it difficult to sleep with the Decadron (taken on Thursdays and Fridays) that keeps her awake. But she always makes special time with each of her children. Felicitas and Junior are amazing parents and spend important time with their children, loving, listening, guiding, and nurturing them while honoring family time in spite of all they are going through. I am so thankful to all of their friends and family who have been so supportive with time, gifts and love that have kept them focused and positive. They are awed by your kindness!

Lastly, the special blanket that Felicitas packs away in her pink bag that she takes with her to chemo, filled with books, treats, I-pod, are all symbols that remind her that she is never alone on this journey. I feel anxious when I’m away from her, but I remember all of you and then I thank God for you and your love and remember she is well loved and cared for. Thanks from the bottom of my heart. Nana Janet.

Chemo #4: Genetic Mutations, Hair Loss & St. Patrick's Day Tutus

Last Friday, I went through my 4^th round of Chemotherapy. It was a double dose so it was a longer session. My friend, Viviane and sister-in-law Cindy were there to make the time in the infusion center a little more pleasant. Thank you, girls!  Things are going pretty smoothly on Fridays. I am learning the routine and becoming friends with the staff. I also have a plethora of technology with me at all times so I can watch movies, play games (words with friends-hit me up!), Facebook etc. I really don’t know how people survive 6-7 hours of infusion without these things!  They are like the must-haves for all Chemo treatments.  Oh, and the Toms! Can’t forget the Toms!  Comfiest shoes ever.  So, far I am the only one in the infusion center who has them but I think they are going to catch on.

So, through this whole Cancer ordeal I have really tried to remain positive and look at the bright side of every situation. But, let’s be honest, you can only do that to a certain extent.  I mean, of course I feel like this should not be happening to me. How could this be happening to me?  I mean, I have 3 really cute kids, a good career (aside from the pink slip I was given this month), a happy marriage and super cool friends! I always ask Junior, is this really happening? The answer is yes, but he is always very calm and collected and always reminds me of the positive things that will come of this.  He reminds we how lucky we are that we were able to participate in this trial and that we have a phenomenal medical team. We really do. He also reminds me that we are seeing such miraculous results. He’s got a good point there. So, after our conversations, I get back on the happy bandwagon. Thanks, Jun!

Felicitas and Cindy during her treatment

This week, I also spoke to my genetic counselor. She informed me that I have a pretty rare genetic mutation in my BRCA 1 gene. Apparently, I am completely missing an entire allele of the gene. The fact that it has been deleted makes me predisposed to breast and ovarian cancers. I actually had and 87% chance of getting breast cancer and a 44% chance of getting ovarian cancer. So, I guess you could say this was inevitable. Had I known, I could have started the appropriate screenings at 25 years old. So, now when I ask myself why this is happening, I actually know. I know that it was nothing I did. It wasn’t the donuts in the lounge or the Chamango’s (if you don’t know about them, you need to) at lunch.  Now that we know, a lot of people in my family, including my own children, can be tested for the same mutation. Now, I feel good. Like I have helped my family and hopefully because of me, my whole family will be more proactive and have the information they need to take better care of themselves.  The genetic counselor also said that it was more than likely that my mom carried the same mutation, but that it wasn’t until recent years that they were able to test for this specific mutation- the deletion of an allele. This news also changes the course of my surgeries. With this mutation, the chances of reoccurrence are extremely high, so I am guessing that we are looking at a double mastectomy and removal of ovaries. I have not spoken to my surgeon since these results, but I am positive this is the direction in which she will head.

This week I have been feeling a little more sick physically and a little more down in the dumps about the hair loss.  But, I know that this means that the chemotherapy is working and that this is part of my cure.  I have to get through this to get to my cure.  Besides, Nikki at The Lab Salon is taking care of me today.  I told her I just wasn’t ready to go GI Jane, but I was ready for Halle Barry.  We will see.

Viviane and Felicitas at Chemo

On another note, the girls are very excited for St. Patricks day!  The Rayray girls love any excuse for a free dress day. We are working on some very festive tutus for them to sport at their preschool tomorrow. This mama needs to get crackin’.

Thank you for all of your continued love and support, prayers and good thoughts. I cannot tell you how uplifting the cards and notes and packages are.  This week I had my friend Cheli and Karla visit on two separate nights to help with dinner, the kids and give Junior a little break.  Thanks, girls!  We are also very anxiously awaiting the arrival of my godmother, Nana Janet!  She arrives tomorrow and everyone is really excited! 

Chemo, Week 3

I stayed with the Rayray's for four days last week. It was so great getting to spend such quality time with my funny, sweet, beautiful friend. We've had girls getaway weekends over the past years and she's brought her girls to stay with me for a night or two, but it's been a long time since we've been able to spend so many days together. I mean, how often do you get to move in with one of your best friends? We had so much fun! We spent the time organizing her linen closet, running errands, spending time with the kids, making dinners, going out to lunch, doing laundry, and we even got to shop a little bit! Somehow doing all the day to day chores was much more enjoyable at her place than at mine! But honestly, my favorite part was just getting to sit and talk to one of my favorite people every night.

Felicitas and I during her chemo infusion

We also went to her appointment with Dr. Parker on Thursday and I went with her to her third round of chemotherapy on Friday. It was hard for me to see how Felicitas' life has changed. She walks around UCSD Moores Cancer Center with such familiarity now. After all, she's in the Infusion Room every Friday and all of her doctor appointments are there. Of course I wasn't surprised to see her nurse Martha, cheering when she found out Felicitas was her patient and another nurse disappointed that she wasn't going to be treating her that day. She has such a positive attitude. People just want to be around her. She's the only patient joking and laughing her way down the infusion room. This week was the shortest infusion yet, but it was still 6 hours. The first thing the nurse does is draw blood for her labs. She then has to wait anywhere from 1-2 hours for those results. Then she receives her premeds, Benadryl and Decadron (a steroid) and finally chemo. This week she was given only one type of chemotherapy, Taxol.


The Rayray's continue to be amazed with the amount of support they've been receiving! The dinners people have been providing are such a huge help! Thank you! Also, Felicitas has been getting cards in the mail everyday. She really looks forward to these and has enjoyed hearing from you all! Especially all the memories and stories you've been including. She's also received such generous donations and gifts.  Thank you again for all your love and prayers!!! Like Junior said, "3 down, 17 to go!" With all your support, our girl is going to beat this!! Love you Felicitas!!

Visit with Dr. Parker

Yesterday, Felicitas had an appointment with her oncologist, Dr. Parker and received some more great news! Her tumor, which originally measured 8cm x 8cm, has shrunk even more to about 5 x 5 cm in size and feels much less dense. Her left axillary lymph node, in her armpit, has also reduced in size from 3.5 cm to 1.5 cm. The biopsy and MRI she'll have done next week will provide more precise measurements, but the Rayrays are feeling encouraged since the tumor is continuing to shrink after only two treatments.

Dr. Barbara Parker

Dr. Parker was surprised that Felicitas still has a full head of hair! Since she's receiving a lower dose of the Taxol every week, the process is taking a little longer than normal. But over the next few weeks, she will begin to lose her hair. She was given a prescription for a wig, so she'll get to go "hair shopping" soon.

Results from her blood draw showed that she has Neutropenia, a common side effect of chemotherapy that causes her white blood cell count to be low. She can continue with chemo, but it does mean she is more susceptible to infection. So the doctors advised her to be really careful and try to limit her outings in crowded places where she could be exposed to germs. To help raise her count, she'll now begin getting injections of Neupogen.

Since Felicitas has been feeling well and hasn't lost her hair, she was joking that she should be the "poster child" for the I-SPY 2 trial. Well, yesterday she got her wish! Dr. Parker mentioned that they were looking for a patient participating in the trial to be interviewed on the news, and possibly create informational videos on YouTube. Of course, this is right up Felicitas' alley and she agreed. So she'll be our own little celebrity!

Chemo, Week 2

After only 1 week of chemotherapy, Felicitas received some fantastic news! After a manual check, her doctor could tell that her tumor had already shrunk approximately 2 centimeters in size and was less dense than the previous week! The lymph nodes are also smaller by about 1 centimeter. So the Rayrays had plenty to celebrate this past weekend between Mateo's 1st birthday and this positive news!

For the second week of chemotherapy, Felicitas' brother Vinicio traveled from San Jose to be with her. This treatment was a little shorter since she only received Taxol this time. So far this week, she's been feeling much better. Her appetite is back and she's not feeling as tired. She said she should be the "poster child" for breast cancer! So it seems that the weeks she gets the two types of chemo, the Taxol and the Carboplatin, are going to be much harder on her than when she only receives the Taxol.

On March 8, she'll have a biopsy and an MRI as part of her clinical trial, to see the exact measurements of her tumor and lymph nodes.