James Coppede – In Memoriam
James Coppede, 80, of Kersey, northeastern Pennsylvania, died Wednesday evening, Sept. 27, 2006, at the Elk Regional Health Center after a lengthy battle with GIST.
James Coppede, 80, of Kersey, northeastern Pennsylvania, died Wednesday evening, Sept. 27, 2006, at the Elk Regional Health Center after a lengthy battle with GIST.
Betty was a very active senior citizen. She spent her time with her family, friends, and church. She was a 47 year retiree from Danskin, post-retiree parttimer at Kohl’s Department Store and an active member of several church and senior citizen social groups.
I started Sutent in August 2004. After three days I got blood clots in my lungs. Even though I am sure these were not caused by Sutent, I was told by Pfizer that I needed a Greenfield filter, that I’d have to take Lovenox daily, and my Sutent dosage was cut to 37.5 mg. This first cycle I had a 35 to 50 percent reduction in my largest tumors. From cycle 2 in September 2004 to cycle 9 in August 2005, my tumors were stable. However, during cycle 10 my largest tumor started growing and pressing into my right leg.
And there I was, in late May 2004 on a 43-mile backpacking trip of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore trail along Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The trail starts out with 23 miles of easy walking in forests and on sandy bluffs next to the water. Then it climbs steeply for the final 20 miles section along the edge of cliffs that drop 100 to 200 feet straight down into the cold, blue waters of the lake. At the time of this trip I was a fit, forty-six year old with my only significant physical complaint being painful joints from past injuries that I accumulated during past adventures. Although I was hiking alone, the only significant concern on my mind was preventing sore feet.