Help Get Keith Dudley Well
Keith Dudley is awaiting a Bone Marrow Transplant
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Last August 2010, Keith Dudley was diagnosed
with CLL - Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia.
Sadly Saturday August 6th, 2011
Born in 1956, his friends always joked that he had the energy of 12 fourteen year old boy scouts. To the Real Estate community, he was known as the owner and builder of the Help-U-Sell Colorado Region, innovative in marketing and a lover of the business. He is survived by his beloved wife Martha; father Robert E. Dudley, sister Joyce Grawet and her husband Bob Grawet, his brother Steve, Stepdaughter Ashley and favorite adopted son Dan Parsons and his wife Natalie, and last his puppy Duchess. Keith was preceded in death by his son John Dudley who he rest in peace with now. Services are Thursday August 11, 2011, 10-11am at Olinger Chapel Hill Mortuary, 6601 S. Colorado Blvd. in Littleton. Please bring your notes, thoughts or wishes with you on a small piece of paper (to attach to a balloon to be released by you) in remembrance and honor of Keith following the services. Special request - any pictures you might have of Keith and/or your special thoughts or notes could also be forwarded to Martha@MarthaDudley.com for possible inclusion in the Chapel services. From I-25, Take the E. Arapahoe Rd Exit West to S. Colorado Blvd. North, Cemetery and Chapel on West side of Street.
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Keith Dudley’s Progress Blog
Keith Dudley – August 4, 2011
Today was a quiet day - I like quiet days! Keith has slept a lot which is good. His BP and heart rate have been good. He coughs occasionally and Nancy the nurse and I laugh saying that he is calling out each of our names. He is still on dialysis and they have gotten lots of fluid off so he looks somewhat normal again. For those wondering, he still has all his hair – AND he has about a ½ inch beard! Today he got a new air bed to make him more comfortable since he has been in bed so long. Apparently it tilts and does all kind of things. My biggy today was to find out I am a naughty girl – I put an open ice cream back in the freezer. I bought some Ben and Jerry’s New York Super Fudge Crunch and ate half last night and put the covered container back in the fridge to have the other … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – August 3, 2011
Hard to believe that tomorrow Keith will have been in the hospital 1 full month. Seems like yesterday. I know we have been here a long time because I have gotten to know the nurses. I went home for 2 nights and today everyone was welcoming back. So funny that such a tough time can have a silver lining of warmth vs. isolation. I have laughed with my friend Jamie that Women “usually” want to stay in the hospital because they have folks to wait on them where Men want to go home as soon as possible because they have their “Wives” to wait on them. To me, I think as a woman it is nice having the support of other women – and men – nurses vs. being alone. To all those that have called and texted to follow up on me these last months – Judy, Debra, Mickey, Jamie and everyone else – … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – August 2, 2011
Keith is Same – Same. Sorry I did not get anything posted yesterday. I came home for the first night Since July 3rd and just crashed. Got to see the puppy – it was great to hug her. Right now Keith has a 24 hr dedicated nurse so I decided that this was the time I needed to go home and take care of some things. Right now he has Nancy during the day and Katie at night and they both know how his body works, so I feel comfortable enough to take a break. I talked to Nancy and she said they tried to start to wean Keith off the ventilator but was not successful. They had the lung doc in and he suctioned a good size clot out so that might have been the issue. Tomorrow they will try again. Other than that, all is the same. Last, I want to thank everyone for being there. The outpour of love … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 31, 2011
Today was a quiet day. They gave him more blood and to do that they have to give him Benadryl which totally puts him to sleep for the day. The nurses here are great and are constantly moving him so he won’t get bed sores so I don’t worry that he is not alert – if anything I am glad that he is not alert and does not know as much. They did do dialysis today, but worked to keep fluid withdrawal even with the intake vs. getting extra fluids off. This has caused some swelling, but tomorrow they should start back up again to draw more fluids off. I wish I had more news, but I don’t. The only good thing is with the weekend they have brought up some different nurses from the regular ICU and they have brought some comfort tools to help make Keith a little more comfortable. As for me, I … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 30, 2011
I can’t believe it is 11pm already. Today was really an uneventful day. Keith slept a lot. They stopped being so aggressive with the dialysis and though they are not taking all the fluid off they need to be, his blood pressure is getting a chance to level out with new meds they have given him for it. He has had his eyes open more and has even been able to crack a small smile if I make a joke. For those that know me, I am yacking with all the nurses and sometimes I think he rolls his eyes – or closes them – as if to say “there she goes again”. Other than that the day was talking to this doc and that doc and everyone having a different “piece” of the puzzle. Keith has an oncologist, a kidney doctor, a lung doctor, an endocrinologist, a heart doctor, oh and a nurse for the … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 29, 2011
Today has been a good day in some ways for Keith, and a somewhat hard day for me. They have been able to keep him more awake which is a good marker for him. I know mentally that he won’t remember any of this, but it is hard to look into his eyes knowing that he knows more about what is going on. He has been able to shake his head Yes and No to questions and let us know if he is in pain. When he gets frustrated because we don’t understand him, he can open his eyes really wide as if to say “come on how hard is it to understand what I am saying”. Still he is a trooper and is cooperating with the nurses and doing a great job. On the humor side, I feel like I have a lot of R2D2 robots like in Star Wars. Each machine has a beep or other sound to let us know what is happening. The … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 28, 2011
I am late on posting this. I actually passed out at 5pm and slept through the night except for a few glimpses at the movement in the room. Keith is pretty much the same. He is on continuous dialysis which is keeping input and output balanced. No major temps, no major heart changes. He is definitely a fighter. A friend of ours created a great video he is sending to his contacts. If you are in real estate you might want to share it with friends as he is offering a special FREE subscription to those that contribute $150 or more. http://thatinterviewguy.com/keith-needs-your-help ‘Til tomorrow. Martha … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 27, 2011
Today they switched to a 24 hr dialysis method to help control his fluid balance better. This will really help them control electrolytes perfectly like his potassium, phosphorous, calcium, magnesium, sodium, etc, monitoring them on an hourly bases. This way if one gets high, they can change and rebalance everything. For those familiar with Kidney dialysis, this is not the same and does not mean that his kidneys are failing. It means that his body is not balancing all that it needs to to get better. Other than that, the day has been quiet and uneventful. My biggy was the hospital let me bring one of my desk chairs from home so I can work more. The chairs here are stiff back wood chairs and well let’s say it was not conducive to thinking. One would not think that bringing a chair into … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 26, 2011
Keith completed his second dialysis treatment with flying colors today. His current nurse – they change every 3 days – noticed yesterday that one of the meds was really impacting his blood pressure so they changed the med and his blood pressure was much more stable today, making the dialysis go even smoother. While he is still on the respirator and really does not know what is going on – I hope – Keith does have times of responsiveness as they lower one of the meds enough to make sure he can still respond to him. Who knew that raised eyebrows and fingers that twitch could be as loud as the loudest spoken words. Alex Elliot stopped by today to say HI! She was so shook up to see Keith, but she really enjoyed her time with him. It is just such as shock to see someone that was … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 25, 2011
Before I start with the status of Keith, I just want to share with you how lucky I am. I so love my puppy Duchess and have been blessed to have the help from Dogtopia and from our friend Russ who has been staying at the house to take care of her. Tonight I had an email from Darien the owner of Dogtopia letting me know that from the donations from other dog owners at Dogtopia and the staff, I have enough for her to have care there for the next month and a half. I am so eternally grateful to them. Now for Keith’s status: It is so hard to believe it is nighttime again. Keith is still holding his own. They did their first round of dialysis today. This also included putting in ports and lines for everything. The day started out with the doctors worried that he would bleed out as they … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 24, 2011
Today is a new event day for Keith. They had to intubate him to help him with his breathing. He has an infection in his lungs – which is what brought us to the hospital in the first place – and that along with the chemo has really put a strain on his breathing. He stands a good chance of getting it removed later in the week. This is a common thing done to help folks as sick as Keith let machines do the work so the body can focus on other things. Fortunately he is not awake and was not awake when they did it. Right now his kidneys are starting to struggle a little because they have all the chemo backing up in them. This again is another reason for the intubation. Tomorrow they may do a dialysis to help him some. This DOES NOT mean that his kidneys have failed – jus that they need a … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 23, 2011
Today was a pretty relaxed day with no major events – which in this situation is a good thing!!! Tonight they did give him a unit of blood, but that is to be expected after the chemo. He is getting frustrated with the oxygen mask they have him on because no one can understand him – particularly me. It seems odd that no one has put a microphone in these as this is the same CPAP mask like so many with Sleep Apnea use. I know that Keith is getting so bored but I don’t know how to address it. He is laying down most of the day and it is just not convenient to watch the TV – not that there anything worth watching on it. Tomorrow I am going to try to run home and get his computer and hook it up to the TV in the room and see if I can down load some things from Hulu or other similar … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – Friday July 22, 2011
Today has been a pretty good day. More doctors in, including a Kidney Doctor to make sure his kidney functions stay in good working shape and an Endocrinologist to make sure all of his different hormones like testosterone and thyroid stay in good shape after the heavy chemo. It is actually fascinating to see the whole group work together – particularly after all the years Johnny was sick and the doctors had a “not my job” attitude. This is what medicine SHOULD be like. And the best part is all of the doctors take the time to explain and train you as they actually view me as a critical part of the care to provide the bridge between doctors coming in and new nurses coming into the picture. Today Keith has only had 3 smaller fevers. The 2 this evening – one around 6 and one now … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 21, 2011
Keith had a pretty good night last night with lots of sleep. He only spiked one fever around 6am and they now know how to get it under control within 30 minutes so it is getting better. It is 9:30 pm and he has had a pretty good day. A lot of pain and feeling sick, but it goes with the territory. He finished this round of chemo around 1pm. Tonight John Bauer and Keith’s Brother-in-law Bob came by to as he is in from Washington. Last night was Debra Duvall and Judy Curtis. At this point he is now in the no immune stage so he won’t have visitors for a few weeks. I am so grateful to all that reached out to share your love with him. For those worried about me staying at the hospital, I just wanted to share a little. It actually has been a vacation – no dishes to wash, no clothes to wash, … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 20, 2011
Today is the last 24 hrs of Keith’s chemo. The morning was great – he was even alert enough to each breakfast some. Tonight around 6pm he started spiking a fever again and he had a rough hour there, but has settled down and is sleeping now. The next week is the worst “danger zone” for him. He now has no immune system and is still fighting an infection going into it. The fevers really are tough on him and his heart starts racing. Fortunately the staff is so great that they can get on top of things. For those that know this stuff, His heart rate yesterday went to 220. Today it is between 110 and 145. Breathing rate 24 to 45. BP 124/64. Bottomline, he is still fighting the fight. On the humor side, for those that really know Keith, this morning they were asking the usual “what day … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – July 19, 2011
The morning started out good. Keith slept through the night and like a mother with a new baby, I was floating on cloud nine with the extra sleep. Still, at one point it was hard to get him to wake up and I became concerned. Finally around 9:30 I was able to get him alert enough to eat then he was tired and went back to sleep. Around 11:30, I noticed his hands and fingers were swelling. The nurses started working with him for the swelling and around 1:30 he started having serious tachycardia. While he was not having a heart attack, it CAN BE as serious. The staff at Presbyterian St. Luke's was fantastic and got things handled fast. Tonight he is resting fine and I am praying for a better day tomorrow. The one silver lining in today is we got a MUCH bigger room to the point I feel like I am … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – 7/18/2011
Today was a very rough day for Keith – the roughest yet. Around 8:30am he spiked a fever of 103.8 and began shivering really bad. This made his heart race and breathing rough it is was quite scary for about 2 hrs until they got everything under control and the fever broke. They say that in the normal person, when we spike a fever, our immune system sends out white blood cells to work and attack the infection. In Keith’s case, there are not enough of these cells and his immune system is so tanked that his body will shake really bad as its way of finding something to cope with the fever. His heart raced and oxygen kept going up and down through the 2 hrs until it finally settled back down. We are very fortunate that our good friend Dan – second son as we call him –was able to come … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – 7/16/2011
Sadly, this is not a good post. Last week they did a biopsy on some new growths on Keith's liver and Friday we were told that his CLL has transformed into a more aggresive blood cancer - a type of lymphoma know as "diffuse large B cell" lymphoma. This is called "Richter's transformation" and is very serious. When we met with the doctor on Friday, they have us 2 optoins: Option 1: Go home. They projected 2 - 5 weeks because the cancer has mutated into a very aggressive new form Option 2: Take another more aggressive chemo treatment. The problem is Keith is so worn down they do not expect him to make it through. As they said, this can either make you better, or hasten the end of your life. Looking at the 2 options, we both felt the best choice was to put up a good fight. For those … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – 7/12/2011
Quick Update on Keith Dudley - This morning they did a biopsy this morning on some new growths on his liver that have shown up since 6/2. He is really out. Doc stopped by and said they will have results back in a few weeks. So far it just looks like they are CLL growths. They have decided not to continue with the current chemo treatment and will be looking as other more dramatic treatments so they can move him to Bone Marrow Transplant. The biggy is one of the treatments must work some, or no transplant. Prayers welcome. … [Read More...]
Keith Dudley – Sunday 7/10/2011
Another update from Martha: Keith is somewhat the same - not good. Tomorrow they will do a biopsy on one of his lymphnodes to check their status. I got here at noon and he has been sleeping. They have added a cable to monitor his heart because whenever he gets up his heart rate goes up so much. For those that know how active he always is - the energy of 12 boy scouts as Mike Kennedy said - this is scary. His fever was a little better last night, but still there. Since I have been here, he has been going through sweats. Well gotta go try to get some work done. Prayers welcome … [Read More...]