Casebolt-Hayes, Diana Jean, 51, went to be with the Lord on Tuesday, May 12, 2009, following her 9 month battle with leukemia. Diana had a passionate love for people, especially the elderly which was manifested perfectly in her service as Vice President of Independent Living for Larksfield Place. She received a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work followed by a MBA from Southwestern College.

Diana had an innate ability to see the good in everyone and was known for her incredibly giving spirit and infectious smile. She was a faithful child of God who truly accomplished the purposes that He had for her in this life as a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister, daughter and loyal friend.

Visitation with the family will be from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, May 14 in the Garden Chapel of Watson Reflection Pointe, 3201 S. Webb Rd. with services scheduled for 10 a.m. on Friday, May 15 at East Point Church of Christ, 747 N. 127th St. East. She is survived by her loving husband, Robert L. Hayes, daughter, Terra Erb and her husband Michael of Misawa, Japan, son, Anton Hayes and his wife Mercedes and their son Hunter Henry of Andover, KS, parents, Marvin and Margie Casebolt of Wichita, siblings Cindy (Justin) Abraham of Valley Center, KS, Jody (Chuck) Northrop of Wilbur, MO, Keith (Jody) Casebolt, Valley Center, KS, Suzie (Joel) Newton, Las Cruces, NM. Memorials have been established with Sunflower Lane at Larksfield Place, 7373 E. 29th St. North, Wichita, KS 67226 and The Alzheimer’s Association, 347 Laura, Wichita, KS 67211.

The Lord's Calling Her Home

My precious mother has fought an incredible battle, but now the battle is coming to an end. Today, after speaking with mom's doctor, we have decided to not prolong her suffering in this life, with medical support. It was my mom's expressed wish that she not be kept alive by artificial means and we are honoring her wishes today.

We have been able to extend our heartfelt goodbyes today, and offer you the same opportunity. She will be moved to a room later today on 7SW, that provides more comfort for everyone as they wish to say goodbye. Though we do not know how much longer we have with her on this earth, we welcome you in joining us as we love her to God.

Prayers in Dire Need!

The next 48 hours are extremely life critical. Fervent prayers are needed.
Please no visitors.
Mercedes

Dip in the Roller Coaster

Mom was moved to MICU last night. She is having difficulty breathing, is currently unresponsive, and has unknown infections spreading. Please continue your fervent praying. God is good and she is a fighter, so we are confident this is just another dip along the way. Please also keep Rob in your prayers. What an example of a wonderful christian man. I don't know how he does it. Thank you to everyone that has been fighting for Diana through prayers it means more than our family can express!
Mercedes

A MATCH HAS BEEN FOUND!!!!

Dr. Dahkil had great news to report to mom this morning, a stem cell match has been found. Make that, two matches have been found! We are just so tickled that we are just beside ourselves! Mom is still recuperating from this last doozy of a chemo treatment at St. Francis...Praise the Lord, a match has been found!

Back to Seven...

Mom has moved back to the 7th floor. She is as weak as a kitten but is extremely glad to be back with "her" nurses. The guys and gals on seven have become like family over the past months, so it very comforting to be back with them and their exceptional care!

She is still fighting the infections and non-existent blood counts, so as always, keep those prayers coming!

Thank you to everyone for your love and support!
~ Terra

Prayers Needed...

Not that our needing prayers is anything new...however, mom was transferred to CICU last night. She has had a rough past couple of days and they have not been able to stabilize her blood pressure. The doctor and nurses decided a transfer was in order where they can keep a better eye on her. Please pray that they are able to get her vitals under control and find the underlying cause for her issues (aside from the massive doses of chemo). She is also currently fighting an infection, which they have been treating...but it likes to revisit and reek havoc every time she has chemo.

Please keep her in your prayers as well as my dad and family. It is so hard to see the pain that she must endure to get through to the other side....for remission.

Thank you! ~ Terra

Bad News, Good News

So far, we don't have a stem cell match for my transplant. We do have a web sit that anyone between 18 and 60 can apply for a kit to be placed on the registry. There is a $52 fee, but I have some precious Wheatheart friends that are not eligible and have generously offered to pay for someone that would like to join the registry. You can't do it just for me, but you would be put on the National Registry and I am included in that search. If you are interested, just go to Be the match.com. It gives a brief summary of what is involved...no needles, just a cheek swab. Woohoo!!! I know a lot of you have asked about this, so I hope this helps. Hugs to all!

We made it through the first round of chemo with minimal side effects at this point. Now, I am on saline and then we will do the Ari-C for three continuous days on Monday. My fatigue level is super high, so if I drift off or don't make sense, we'll just blame it on the chemo. Thank you to everyone for your offers of support and help. Tony mowed our yard and taught Hunter how to plant the garden. We have tomatoes, peppers, onions and potatoes. He is going to be such a great little gardener. This will short as I am wiped out. Hugs to all!

The Vampires are Here

My counts are already low enough that I have to have two units of blood today. That didn't take long. I still feel wonderful, too wonderful to be in here! I do have to mask up when I have visitors, so just use the foam on your way in and that gives me plenty of time to get the mask on. No one under 12, that means our little Hunter, no fruit or fresh/dried flowers. As always, my nurses are the best and doing a great job. Thank you for all of your visits, calls, cards and especially the prayers. There are several of you that I know specifically pray at certain times of the day for me. One is in his morning shower (love it), another at 4:00 p.m., and another at 8:00 p.m. It is so wonderful to have so many prayer warriors. Love you all! Hugs!!!

Home Away from Home

I am finally settled into my room at the hospital. Spent most of the day in a semi-private room while mine was being "prepared." Prepared for what, I'm not sure, but it sure is nice to be unpacked and settled. It looks like I have three days of two kinds of chemo with four days off, followed by three more days of the final chemo. Then, we wait. They are still having some trouble finding a stem cell match for me, so please keep that in your prayers. We can't do anything without that. Our church has really been supporting us in this next endeavor. They had a special prayer session last Wednesday night before church, then the Elders, Preachers, and their wives came to the house Friday for prayers. Finally, Easter Sunday, all of us on the prayer list and our families went up front for congregational prayers on our behalf. I don't think there was a dry eye in the house. As hard as it was, it was one of the most uplifting experiences that I have ever had. Thank you to each and every one of you that keep praying. That is what it will take to get this done. Well, supper just arrived.

Kansas City, Here we Come!

I will try to give a condensed version of our flying trip to KU Cancer Center. We met with a great team, the team that will be with us for the next five months. We will start with a triple chemo treatment at St. Francis on the 13th. I will be in the hospital for 5-6 weeks while the chemo does its thing and we get in some kind of remission. The first two weeks usually aren't too bad, so visits will be welcome. Someone will let you know when I am in isolation and can no longer receive visitors.
Next, we go to K.C. for two days of intense counseling with a psychiatrist, psychologist, social worker, four doctors, numerous nurses and the finance guru. Then, I get seven more days of chemo with one day off before the transplant. If all goes well, I spend the next three weeks in the hospital in K.C. before being transferred to Hope Lodge, the home for cancer patients. One entire floor is dedicated to transplant patients. While I am there, I have to have a 24-hour caregiver. This can be anyone that can "read" the changes in me. Good luck with that! I will be at Hope Lodge for at least two months before I am ready to come home. By that time, the hospital visits will probably be every three days instead of every day.
As of this time, they do not find a match for me, but they are still trying. Big prayers needed here!
I know this is a lot of information. We are still trying to sort through it all. I was just reminded by a precious sister that "God can move mountains." I know this is true and he has certainly worked miracles in my life over the last six months. I'm not sure what he has in mind, but I'm ready to "git 'er done!" Hugs to all of you!

Bump to a Mountain

We went back to the doctor today (04-06-09) for the results of the bone biopsy. First of all, the rash is still a mystery. It is not on my face, but has spread over the rest of my body. It looks like it tried to connect the dots and has become one big mass. Doc did start me on an anti biotic along with the steroid, so we'll see what happens.
The big news is that the leukemia is back, worse than ever. In three weeks, my blasts have grown from 3% t0 42%. As if that wasn't enough, I have not one, but two kinds of leukemia. We just couldn't believe it. We are headed to K.C. first thing in the morning to meet with the stem cell surgeon and to be placed on the National Registry for transplants. None of my four siblings were a match. Unbelievable! The doctor at the KU Cancer Center will set up the protocol for chemo treatments, which will probably start on Monday, the 13th. I will have to have my Hickman surgically put back in some time later this week.
That is probably enough information for now. Please, please keep us in your prayers. I don't know what God has in mind and it is awfully hard to understand/accept all of this. I'm not always as strong as I seem, so please pray, especially when I can't. Love you all! Hugs!

Prayers needed

We hit a bump in the road. I was truly doing wonderful, so wonderful that we were able to dye Easter eggs with Hunter and take him on his first ride behind the tractor on a sled. Then, I woke up Wednesday with my face completely covered in a rash. I went to the doctor on Thursday and my doc was gone, so another prescribed some steroids and scheduled a visit on Friday. When Dr. Dakhil saw me, he couldn't figure out what in the world was going on. By then, it had covered my entire body. I look awful!!! He decided to do an unscheduled bone marrow biopsy, with a little extra morphine. Apparently, a rash is one of the first signs of Leukemia. I didn't have one with the initial diagnosis and they were surprised. No one ever said that, of course, so I didn't know. Anyway, now we are "patiently" waiting for the results of the biopsy, praying that it is something else. The "good" news is that I also have vomiting and diarrhea, which usually does not go with the rash. I never thought I would be thankful for vomiting and diarrhea. Please keep us in your prayers. Hugs!

She made it

Terra called this morning and she made it safe and sound back home to Japan. She will find out if her luggage made it "safe and sound" later today. She had it shipped to their home so she wouldn't have to handle it on the bullet train. We had a great time in KC before her flight. We got to do a little shopping and ended with dessert from the Cheesecake Factory. What a wonderful way to celebrate.
I am doing amazingly well. My strength is getting better every day and I am feeling much more confident. They picked up all of the oxygen equipment today and that felt wonderful to get all of that out of here. I am really starting to feel normal, again.
The doctor says that there is a 50/50 chance of staying in remission for these next three years, so please keep me in your prayers. Those are the best odds that we have had through this entire process, so it sounds pretty good to me. Hugs to all of you!

Miracles do Happen!!!

We received a surprise phone call from the Cancer Center on Friday afternoon. I am in REMISSION!!! There is so much more to this drama, but I will save you from that and only share the important/positive stuff. I am in remission!!! I think what happens now is that I go in for blood work every three months for the next three years. If I stay in remission, I will never get leukemia, again. Sounds good to me. I am so ready to get back to a normal life.
Terra will really leave for home on Tuesday morning. We will take her to KC on Monday to do a little last minute shopping, of course. One more trip to the Cheesecake Factory and then off she goes. Who would have ever believed that we would have spent the last six months together like this. It is truly bittersweet.
There just aren't the right words to express all of our thanks and gratitude for the incredible prayers and support, not only from our friends and family, but from people that we don't even know. We are all God's children and he listened. Love to each and every one of you. Hugs!

Still Waiting...

Hi! Terra here with another update for you. I am still in Kansas, as I am sure many of you expected. I just couldn't leave mom the day before her biopsy. We made it through the biopsy...and now we are waiting for the results. We were originally told we would have the results in 48 hours, then by Thursday afternoon or early Friday. Well, now, after another blood draw this afternoon, it is looking like either late Friday or even Monday before we will have the results back.

Please keep those prayers coming! (Except, if you are praying for patience for us, maybe you could lay-off of that request for awhile as we are at our whits end!)

Thank you! ~ Terra

Update

We have just finished seeing the doctor and this is the plan...for now. We will continue with the current protocol, including meds and trying to get stronger. He reassured us that the shortness of breath, the pain, the fatigue, the nausea, the fevers, etc. are all normal for where I am at in this process. So much for wanting to be "normal." Next Monday, he will do my bone marrow biopsy. Of course, Terra goes back to Japan on Sunday. This will be a huge test of my ability to do this without her. I reminded him to have the morphine ready. I do love morphine. After this big of a dose, I am really out of sorts and am even funny to me. Great blackmail opportunity:)
We will be taking Terra to KC to go back to Japan this weekend. I can't believe that she has been here for six months. We never could have made it without her. I am really going to miss her. She anticipates my needs and more importantly, she knows when to "bully" me into doing a bit more or trying a little harder. We will be taking many of you up on your offers to help as I am not driving and I will still have all of my appts. Get ready!
As always, thank you for your constant prayers. We all know that they have truly worked miracles and are the reason I am still here today. Keep them going! Hugs.

Breaking Free

Don't go looking for us at the hospital...because you won't find us there! After another two and a half weeks in the joint, they finally let mom go home. Please continue to pray for her as she still has a lot of recovering to do. But, it is so nice for her to be able to do that at home!

Thank you! ~ Terra

My life is ...

I don't even know what to say. It changes so quickly and I certainly don't seem to be in control. We are still fighting the pneumonia and they will insert a tube to keep the fluid draining later today. They drained off 400 ml off my lungs, but it came right back. Our biggest challenge is pain control and yesterday there wasn't any. At this point, today is better. We had hoped to be home by our anniversary on Saturday, but it doesn't look like that will happen. Good news...I am off all IV stuff at this moment, just oxygen. That is huge. I did walk two rounds with PT this morning. First time in almost two weeks. I figure when this is all over, I will need to join Celebrity Rehab! Wouldn't that be a hoot! My brain is fuzzy, so I better go for now. Hugs to all!

And...She's Back!!!

Mom is doing so much better, thanks to the doctors & nurses, medications and God's grace. She is now breathing without the use of any supplemental oxygen (in other words, on her own). Thank you for all of your prayers! She still has a ways to go, but she has taken great strides!

Thank you! ~ Terra

Update...

Thank you so much for your continued prayers...they are indeed working. Mom's blood pressure has stabilized and that medication has been able to be discontinued. We have also been able to keep her off of the ventilator thus far. She is using a BiPap machine to help with her breathing, but even that usage has been downgraded to nightly instead of constantly. She is receiving mass amounts of antibiotics and steroids to help her fight the pneumonia. These medications have also helped to reduce the fluid around her heart. So, great things...with great bounds to go. But, God, is good! Our prayer is that these medicines are working in her lungs (and wherever else they are needed) and that her own cell counts will begin to rebound soon so that her body can begin to do some of the fighting on its own.

Thank you! ~Terra

Please Pray

We just met with mom's lung doctor and found out that she has pneumonia. This diagnosis is incredibly heart-wrenching. We predict that she will need to be intubated either tonight or tomorrow morning as her breathing is rather labored. Hopefully, this will buy her enough time for her cells to start to recover so that she can start to do some of the healing on her own.

She is currently on high doses of morephine to help with pain control, as to provide a little bit of comfort.

Please pray for her comfort and return to health. Also, please pray for my family as we are all struggling to understand this. Thank you. ~ Terra

Update...

Terra here again. You know that since I am posting, things have gone awry. Well, awry is a bit of an understatement. After a rough morning of...never mind, I will spare you the details...Mom was admitted to the hospital on Friday for possible neutropenic fever. This is a fever that can develop due to infection because of the non-existence of her white blood cells.

By Friday evening, she was relocated to the MICU where she is still spending her time. She was relocated due to issues with her blood pressure (80/40), lack of oxygen, and a heart that doesn't seem to want to cooperate...physically that is. They have found that she does have an infection and are treating that with high doses of antibiotics and tomorrow they will be doing a sonogram of her heart and possibly a CAT Scan to see if the problems can be detected further. She is currently in a lot of pain and is receiving morphine to help provide comfort.

Obviously, we are requesting your prayers LOUD AND CLEAR for the Lord to hear. She is so close...yet so far away.

Thank you! ~ Terra

Five of Five

We were able to start our last round of chemo this week. This is our fifth treatment of the five that I will receive. When we finish on Friday, we will continue to come in for blood draws to check for the need for platelets and blood. My hemoglobin is already low as is my white blood count, so it will probably be a very busy week. Then, when we hear the wonderful words "remission" once again, I will come back in for checks every month for the next three years. This is how we understand it at this point in time. As always, this is subject to change, but it is nice to have a plan. It will be so wonderful to have all of this behind us. Thank you so much for all of your support and prayers. The next two weeks will be my worst, so please keep praying. Hugs to all!

I'm back...maybe

It has really been a rough trip, this time. I was able to celebrate Christmas with family, which was such a blessing. We were able to spend a few hours at my mom's and got to see a lot of family and eat wonderful food. Her chicken and noodles are the best!!! After that, my counts really got to dropping and I haven't been able to do anything or go anywhere. That, of course, meant that we missed Hunter's first birthday party. It about broke my heart, but I think he had a really wonderful time and thoroughly enjoyed being the center of attention. Jody came to stay with me for almost a week and ended up watching me sleep 90% of the day. She was able to finish a quilt and make tons of cards. It is so hard to believe that I can really sleep that much. She took me to my doctor appts. and was able to meet my "little tornado," Dr. Dahkil. We have had to have blood or platelets at almost every appt. By the time we are finished at the hospital, I just want to come home and go to bed. Unbeleivable!
They are trying to work on my pain control. He added a medication and increased it. If we could get that under control, I might feel human. In addition to keeping this in remission, I ask for prayers of comfort. The pain is exhausting and I am sure I get cranky. Me? Can you imagine?
I hope you all have a wonderful New Year's. Hugs to all!