route2outsmartcancer

A Note From John Thompson

     Merry Christmas To Everyone
     I would like to thank everyone for all the cards, calls, gifts, and prayers. They have meant a lot to me and brought back many good memories. The last 16 months have been rough, and hopefully they are behind us now. I still cannot swallow, and have a feeding tube for now. I can't wait for that 1st meal in a long time.

     A lot of people are asking what happened and what is going on now, so I will try to make this as short as possible. Last year on August 10th was the 1st surgery, 12 hours I think to remove a tumor in my mouth/throat. It was a major neck dissection to remove the tumor, soft palate, 40 lymph nodes, ½ tonsil and part of my tongue. After 6 weeks of radiation followed by chemo I was told another surgery was needed, as the tumor had come back. This time I talked to other doctors for a 2nd opinion and found Dr. Larian (a referral from my neighbor who also is a patient) who I felt very comfortable with to do the surgery.

     So on July 3rd, 2006 , five days after Tracy was laid off from her job, the 2nd surgery was performed, by Dr. Larian and a facial plastic surgeon, Dr. Azizzadeh. Another 12 hours to remove the tumor, replace lower jaw on left side with a carbon fiber plate, major portion of my tongue, more of the palate and the rest of my tonsil. Basically everything in my mouth. A skin graft from my left forearm and upper thigh was used to replace the tongue and rear palate.

     In early November 2006 my 1st checkup was ordered and there was something in my left lung and sinus. Surgery was needed again, this time to remove a tumor in my sinus and remove what was in my lung. So on November 29th, it was another 12 hours. The upper jaw and cheekbone was removed and sinus cleaned out. Another skin graft and muscle graft from the right upper thigh. The lung was just a sore, thank God, but my ribs hurt for weeks. A retainer was made for my upper jaw and will be replaced with a permanent one in approximately 6 months, so it is hard to understand what I am saying, and hard to eat and swallow. Now it is therapy time and hopefully everything is behind us now.

Merry Christmas and thanks again.
Love,
John Boy

          

Immeasurable Grief

Beloved John Joseph Thompson Jr. 

August 17, 1958 - May 5, 2007

Memorial services will be held today and tomorrow, May 9-10th in Costa Mesa, CA.

                                                                                                                                           Viewing May 9th 5-9pm
Harbor Lawn-MT Olive Memorial Park and Mortuary              1625 Gisler Avenue Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (714)540-5554   

Funeral Mass Thursday May 10th at 11:00 AM                        Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church                               1015 Baker Street Costa Mesa, CA 92626  (714) 557-5060                                                                                                                                           

It is with profound sadness and immeasurable grief I write to share with you that on May 5, 2007 we lost my dear brother John.

Since we last posted, John's cancer recurred. He underwent another radical surgery last Monday, April 30th, at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, CA in which he endured 14 hours of surgical procedures. The tumor grew back for the 3rd time in the same location, and was discovered to be more aggressive than ever. The good news, we believed, was that the cancer continued to recur in his mouth/throat and had not spread, as oral cancer so easily does. The doctors removed his jaw for the second time, the tumor, and reconstructed his mouth, using skin grafts from his leg and muscle from his arm. John pulled through the surgery with flying colors. While recovering a doctor in the ICU told him, "I saw them take you apart and put you back together again. I have never seen anything like that before. You have an amazing team of doctors." John agreed. He truly loved his doctors for fighting with him, and in his usual form, he was ready to fight again.

The entire hospital staff fell in love with my brother as a patient, and he was progressing, recovering enough to be moved from the ICU to a step-down floor at the hospital.  Although he couldn't speak (due to a temporary tracheotomy) he continued making us all laugh, writing notes and communicating on his dry-erase board. He wanted ice cream.

The plan was to release John in a few days.  He would begin simultaneous rounds of radiation and chemotherapy.  He knew it was going to be 6 weeks of hell, but said he was ready, determined to beat the cancer. There was no doubt in our minds, since he had already won so many battles with this disease, he would prevail once and for all this time. On Saturday, May 5, John did prevail, but in a more profound way.

At approximately 3:15pm on Saturday, May 5, John experienced an unexpected complication from the surgery.  He had just finished watching the Kentucky Derby with his wife, Tracy, and was waiting for the rest of us to arrive.  Our sister Donna, brother-in -law Charlie, his wife and I had been with him throughout the week, visiting and sleeping at the hospital. I had left the hospital that morning to take a shower and pick up a change of clothes.  His nurse Angela was wonderful. I knew he was in good hands that day.  John needed rest and my hope was he would sleep for awhile. The last thing I said to my brother was "I'll see you later!" As I left his room I told the nurse's aide helping him get washed, "Be gentle with him."  Off I went, which I now deeply regret, not knowing that was to be our final farewell.

Tracy arrived around 1pm and John was awake and ready to visit. They watched the NASCAR race together, the Derby, and then the unthinkable happened.  We have been told a suture broke, causing an artery to rupture in his throat.  John's heart stopped and despite every effort, the team at the hospital could not bring him back. Instead, God brought him home.

John spent the last few hours of his life with his wife, whom he deeply loved, as it should have been. Tracy had the chance to share with him the news that Christina (his step-daughter) had been accepted into the University of California Berkley. He was elated, extremely proud. 

The shock and grief is beyond words for our parents, siblings, aunt, cousins, and friends, but his inspiration and life will live on in each of us. He has endured unimaginable challenges for the past 2 years, always with a smile, extraordinary courage and faith. In his honor, we will try to walk through this difficult time by his example.
 
Many of you have asked for information regarding the memorial service. My family would be honored to have you join us if you are in the area and wish to do so. John loved life. We hope to make the next 2 days a celebration of my beautiful brother.

~Michelle Thompson

Update from John & Tracy, Jan. 1

The Thompson Family wants to thank everyone that made this happen. We cannot thank you enough. This will be a Christmas we will never forget. Our angel and the Lord gave us a gift from above that money cannot buy. The family bond is the strongest thing we all share. Hold onto that with both hands. We hope everyone has a good new year and many more to come...With all our love to all of you!
Love,
John, Tracy & Christina   

About John

My brother John is the kind of guy who knows no strangers. He is quick with a joke, knows his way inside and out of a car, and is our family "go-to man" when anything breaks, whether it’s the car or the dishwasher. He is the only Thompson who knows what all the tools are called, how to use them and where to find them in his garage.

You can count on the fact he is the first one to sign up and show up, whenever any of us have needed a hand. No job is too big or small. When he and his family traveled to Chicago for our parent's 50th anniversary celebration, he went from looking at a temperamental appliance door to making centerpieces for the party. Now that's a good brother.

While growing up John was always surrounded by friends and fun. He makes every occasion memorable and typically has more than a few surprises up his sleeve. He is the kind of brother that never misses a birthday, no matter how busy life becomes or the number of miles that separate us. His philosophy in life when it comes to the barbecue: "You need to grill enough to feed the entire neighborhood and a grilling machine large enough for the job!" 

Looking through our family photo albums there are many pictures that depict John's love for life and family. I recall the Irish Jig he danced with our grandmother at our parent's 25th anniversary celebration. There are pictures at the summer county fair, just as he is about to compete in the Demolition Derby (My mom was sick with worry, hence his name for his car, "Mother's Worry"); wedding pictures with his wife Tracy and step-daughter Christina; and pictures of us fishing, looking for the illusive "Norman," the bait-eating fish yet to be reeled in! (The photos here show two of John's passions through the years: boating on Kentucky Lake and fishing anywhere he could. Click on photos to enlarge.) 

John makes a great Christmas Morning Bloody Mary and when our Uncle Bill retired the annual Santa Claus visit, John took the torch, (and I believe a Miller Lite) dressed in the suit and beard, and kept the Jolly Old Man alive for our family to enjoy.

There are two things that I think we all remember in life, our first bicycle and our first car. John gave me both.

My first bicycle was red and black with a banana seat. In giving it to me, John explained I needed a "cool bike." The pink frilly ones with the flowered baskets clearly did not qualify. So I was to ride a boy's bike. In my mind that was quite alright, since my older brother's word was "as good as gospel" to me.

There was a hitch, however. Staying vertical on two wheels. As my frustration built as a result of the inordinate amount of time (in the mind of a six year old) it was taking to learn to ride, he took me to a small incline in front of our parent's house. I was terrified. A hill! But he promised the incline would make it easier to ride the bike, swore not to let me fall, and ran beside my little machine. He was right, of course, and I was proudly pedaling around the block for the rest of the day.

For my seventeenth birthday, he became the leading contender for "Brother of the Next 30 Years to Come Award." He did something so extraordinary I assumed there was some sort of blackmail involved; that I would have to wash his car for the rest of my life or clean his house, but of course there were no strings attached. As John pulled into the driveway, after driving from his home in California to Kentucky Lake, Ky., where my parents and I were vacationing, I remember standing on the deck, completely speechless. I believe you would have been too. Imagine a brown truck pulling up the drive with a white, 1965 Mustang hitched to the back.

I remember saying to our cousin, "Omigosh. Do you think that could be for me?" We both looked at each other and screamed. It should come as no surprise, that was my all-time favorite childhood vacation.

What John didn't realize at the time, was that in giving me that beautiful car, he gave me a chance to see Europe. When an opportunity came my way to study in Rome for a college semester, the extra expense was greater than what I could earn over the summer. Selling the Mustang made that dream a reality, and John understood.  It was a difficult choice, made easier by the fact it went to a family friend who loved it as much as I did.

In return, I experienced things I had only read about in class: Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel, the lights of Paris from the top of the Eiffel Tower, the awe-inspiring Colosseum, and Oktoberfest in Munich. I received a blessing from the Pope and experienced European culture. Most importantly, I met some of my dearest friends in the process. In a nutshell, and please forgive me if this sounds cliche, my brother John gave me the world.

To spend 10 minutes with my brother you would understand why this journey is so important to me. I hope with the help of the route2outsmartcancer community I can help him win the battle he faces today and honor the inspiring man he has become. I am so proud to call him my brother.

  ~Michelle Thompson, November 2006