Dad in North Carolina, Starts Treatments

Dad and Mom arrived last evening in Wilkesboro, NC and Dad began his "official" treatments today.

He will be doing 2 weeks on, 1 week off, 2 weeks on, 1 week off, and then 2 weeks on. By mid-September his treatments should be "complete." He will have regular blood work done, and they are closely monitoring his liver since this is the area most affected by the cancer.

Mom and Dad send their thanks for all of the prayers, love, and support that they have received. It is true that God answers prayers! It is because of all of YOU that they are able to go forward and continue his treatments. Thank you all so much!!

I will be keeping everyone up to speed. God bless.

Dad Being Discharged from Mary Washington

After being in the hospital again for 6 days, Dad has been discharged and should be going home this afternoon. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers and the tremendous outpouring of support that our family has gotten!

Please continue to pray that Dad and Mom can make it down to North Carolina (that is the plan) next week to begin Dad's treatments. Pray for strength, peace, and comfort for them during their trip.

If anyone would like to visit them while they are in North Carolina, please contact me or Paulie and we can get more information for you.

Dad Still in the Hospital

Dad was going to be discharged from Mary Washington over the weekend, but they wanted to keep him there and continue monitoring his heart.

Yesterday, he had a small amount of swelling around his left elbow. After looking into it, they found out he had a small blood clot in his arm. Throughout the evening the nurses applied moist heat to help it dissipate. They are not concerned about it and are confident it should clear up completely soon.

They have given him a new medication that helps to regulate his heart rate, but they want to be sure that it will continue working properly after he gets released. Chances are he will be on this medication for the rest of his life. The direct cause is still not known.

He has been sleeping better, and when I last spoke with him he was walking the halls with Mom. Don't know how much longer he will have to be in the hospital, but he is in good hands there.

Update on Dad at Mary Washington

Dad is still stable, right now he is getting additional testing to determine the cause of the heart racing. Just talked to the nurse's station and more than likely he will be kept at the hospital through the night to be monitored. Thanks everyone for everything, you are all amazing friends.


As of right now, Mom and Dad are still planning on going to North Carolina this coming week to continue Dad's treatments.

Metro Union Members Taking Action

This past Wednesday at a Metro Union meeting, the chairman and members of the Union began collecting contributions to assist Dad in his struggle.

Dad Taken to Mary Washington Hospital This Morning

Dad was taken back to Mary Washington Hospital this morning at around 1:00 am. He was having an erratic heartbeat and tightness in his chest.

Thankfully, they were able to get his heart rate down around 3:45. There is no fluid around his heart, no pneumonia, but they are going to do an electrocardiogram of his heart to make sure there is no blood clot in his heart.

A chest X-ray showed a slight increase in the size of the lung tumor compared to the last chest X-ray.

There was no heart attack. He is stable right now, and once we know more from the electrocardiogram we will let everyone know.

-Mark-

The Fight Dad is Fighting

As many of you know by now, my father Paul Ludwig III, just found out he has Stage 4 Adenocarcenoma cancer. There is a lot of information that only immediate family members are aware of, but this information needs to be passed onto friends, family and anyone whose life has been touched by Dad.

Dad had a slight cough that he suspected was bronchitis approximately 2 months ago. After a PT scan, they found cancer throughout his body. The Oncologist explained that this is irreversible, terminal, and chemotherapy will not stop this cancer. Dr. Sherwood put his head down in a meeting with our family and said, “I’m sorry.” Mom and Dad were run over by a train.

What many of you do not know is approximately three years ago, Dad's retirement pension from Metro Transit Police Department in Washington, D.C. was reduced from $2800.00 a month down to only $770.00 a month because of a flaw in the disability pension. This flaw in the retirement was addressed years ago by my father who questioned the department. The senior benefits representative of the department wrote a letter to my father stating, “Your retirement will never be reduced, you will keep your pension along with cost of living increases for the rest of your life. Don’t believe what you are hearing, I’m the one who dispurses the pension checks each month and you will never be reduced.” Needless to say, his pension was still dramatically reduced, and the benefits department stated, “Sorry, but we made a mistake.” He immediately took this letter to the department and demanded his retirement be reinstated. They agreed this was wrong and was a major flaw in the pension plan, but said there is nothing they can do. He demanded the department reinstate his pension or he would contact a lawyer and take legal action against them to correct their mistake. The department replied “Sue us.” This pending lawsuit has been going on for over two years now, and for almost the last three years, he has been receiving only a $770 pension check per month. This was the first train that crushed my parents.

They were forced to sell their home of 16 years in Deep Creek Lake under market value so they would not have to lose it to foreclosure. They moved into my basement so they could survive this financial crisis. Six months ago, Mom and Dad went from never making a late payment, to filing Bankruptcy. They were devastated.

After recently finding out about his illness, he contacted his lawyer to ask the department to speed up their civil case, taking into account the terminal prognosis of his disease. After this request, they just received a letter last week from the department that stated the mediation hearing is set March of 2011 (Next Spring!!!). They are delaying on purpose knowing how dire his situation is. As you can sense I am infuriated with what the department has done to him.

Within a month of reducing his pension, my father met with the Chief of Police who became irate when he was enlightened to what happened to Dad's pension and stated, “No! That’s not right! We will take care of this right now!” It wasn't something that could be taken care of then. The Chief's hands were tied since it was a contractual issue. That meeting was two and a half years ago. NOTHING was ever taken care of by Metro. The FOP Union was also contacted and all parties agreed that this is a major “Wrong” in the pension, unfortunately their hands were also tied at that point. Metro is dragging its feet hoping that my dad will just go away. I still have to work for this department, and it makes me sick that they will let “one of their own” suffer like this. And on top of this ongoing financial injustice, they just found out he may only be on this earth for a few more months, and are still dragging this on instead of rectifying the situation. This entire situation has left our family shocked in disbelief.

My father has always been a very proud man and would give the shirt off his back to even a stranger. This financial stress and discovered illness has just about killed him. He does not want to die. He does not want to leave his loved ones. But he is in tremendous pain at different times throughout the day. He is fighting and wants to fight. He told me the other day the he does not want to let anyone down if he cannot fight this fight any longer. He is more concerned with his family and friends and how they are dealing with this than he is for his own well being.

One month ago he could barely breathe and was passing out from pressure in his chest. He was suffering from a pericardial effusion (fluid around his heart) which would not allow him to get sufficient oxygen. This triggered a 911 call which eventually sent him into emergency surgery. A chest tube was inserted to relieve the fluid from around his heart. He was intubated and sedated and kept alive on a ventilator for 5 days. Dad survived this trauma when most would have not. Doctors were amazed that he came off the vent and was able to come home after going through these medical procedures. The family and friends that came to the hospital were amazing. There were so many people that came to see him and many stayed during the nights to hope to get to talk to him one more time. It was extremely emotional and moving for my Mom and my siblings. Dad is now home with me trying to get his strength up and trying to enjoy every moment that he has left.

Since this last episode, we have found a treatment center in North Carolina (The Holistic Medical Clinic of the Carolinas - http://www.holisticmedclinic.com/) that uses supplements, and existing low dose medications that are having amazing results with people with similar Stage 4 cancers. These options are the only options left to keep his immune system high and his physical strength maximized. We traveled to NC last week and stayed for 5 days supporting him as he received treatment. Dad seems to be responding well. We are keeping him positive and focusing on holding the existing cancer at bay, while getting his body strong to battle this cancer for him. But we need help. I have a travel expense and treatment fund set up for them and I want anyone who wants to help, to please help. I don’t want his remaining time with us stressing about money. I want him and my mom to know that they need to enjoy their time together and take everything in. He gets very emotional when he hears how he meant so much to someone or how he influenced someone in their life. He is against me asking everyone for financial help. He has always been a hard working man, and extremely proud. I told him last night, he has touched the hearts of so many in his lifetime that he really is one of the richest people in this world, so let people help you now.

Email address:

Ludwig4@gmail.com

Home Address for Dad:

8548 Sandy Beach Lane

King George, VA 22485

(Make checks out to Paul or Linda Ludwig)

That is where we are at right now. We are leaving to go back to NC on Sunday for another 2 weeks of treatments. We will keep everyone updated with everything. Please keep Dad in your prayers and help if you can.

Additionally, If anyone wishes to write a reflection, or a great memory about Dad, please send it or email it to me. I am putting together a collection from everyone to read to Dad and Mom. He loves hearing from everyone and he needs to know how much he has meant to you.

Sincerely,

Paulie

Dad and Mom Need Help

For those of you who have expressed interest in helping Dad, he has asked that I write to family and friends and ask for immediate financial support.

As many of you know, Metro Transit Police Department cut my Dad's pension 2 years ago by 70%. Dad and mom are currently in legal proceedings fighting to get his pension reinstated.

Dad and Mom have decided to not pursue chemotherapy. They have found a Holistic Medical Clinic in Wilkesboro, NC that specializes in Alternative Medications. Unfortunately this treatment route is not covered by insurance. In order to continue treatment they need enough expenses to cover their travel costs, lodging while in North Carolina, and the cost of the treatments and supplements.

Dad has made it very clear to me and to all of us that when his settlement has gone through he fully intends on paying everyone back what they have given.

We also understand that there will be those of you who cannot help financially, but there are still other ways you can help. Mom and Dad will be going down to North Carolina on July 18 to start his first 2 weeks of treatments. He will be doing 2 weeks on, 1 week off, 2 weeks on, 1 week off, and then a final 2 weeks on.

The will have to be in North Carolina for 12 days at a time and they would feel more comfortable if there is someone from the family or close friend that would be able to spend time with them while they are there. While Dad is back at home in Virginia, they always appreciate help around the house.

For those of you that would be able to help with Dad's financial needs, you can contact me, Paulie, or Eric in order to get Dad's address. We are also working on setting up an online account that would enable you to donate directly to him using this blog. When we have more information on this feature we will be posting about it.

Please share this information with family and friends.

Thank you in advance to everyone for your continued love, prayers, and support. Anything you can give will help them.

-Mark-

About this Blog

This blog will update family and friends about Paul Ludwig and his fight with Adenocarcinoma. The family will be posting updates and information about Dad from time to time. Thanks for the continued thoughts and prayers!