A military funeral will be held for Nathan Berry at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, WA on Tuesday -- Apr 18, 2017.
His obituary and some tribute pictures can be found at CascadeMemorial.com/obituary and selecting his name or searching for him. Please visit the site and add or leave comments if you so wish.
On behalf of Nathan, I want to thank everyone who read his blog updates and posted comments. Nathan fought valiantly and did everything possible to recover from AML. He deeply appreciated everyone's support and God's mercies which helped him struggle on.
Monday, April 17, 2017
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
Nathan's New Life
Nathan passed from this life on the early afternoon of
April 11, 2017.
In looking back at this treatment at the VA hospitals in SF and Seattle, the technical care he received and VA resources have overall been exceptional. The centerpiece reason for his health demise involves one complication, the fact that his body rejected the bone marrow donation (GVHD). Even though the bone marrow match was stated to be 100% perfect based on 7 medical factors, Nathan’s body discerned that the bone marrow transplant was foreign and fought it. There might have been other issues if there was no GVHD but this disease over time was deadly for him.
The GVHD resulted in a constant prescription of immune suppressive medicines which lowered his immunity so his body would not constantly battle the transplant. But a lower immunity resulted other common illnesses attacking his body. Common bugs and viruses which normally would be fought off by healthy white blood cells developed into threatening illnesses and weakened his overall health.
Even though he and the people around him were diligent in cleanliness, these tiny deadly agents would creep into his environment and attack him. For example, he had a portacath inserted into his chest to make it easier to administer medicine, draw blood and for dialysis treatments. The port is mostly made of plastic. But plastic can become breeding grounds for fungi over time when not consistently cleaned while mixed with air, water and fluids. Therefore, if a port was not used for some time, the doctors wanted to remove it even if it was sealed. The doctors could never predict if the GVHD would ever be fully resolved, meaning, to some degree, it could last a lifetime.
On a personal note, we will miss Nathan greatly as we loved him so much. He strove for a different outcome as he fought hard and overcame many issues to live for over 3 years since the initial AML diagnosis. He fought for life up the the last hour but the multiple complications overwhelmed his exhausted physical tent. We have many memories of him during his life and particularly these 3 years which will live on in our memory. The Bible is clear that Nathan’s new life is free of cancer and illness – his family and all creatures groan for this new life which he now enjoys.
In looking back at this treatment at the VA hospitals in SF and Seattle, the technical care he received and VA resources have overall been exceptional. The centerpiece reason for his health demise involves one complication, the fact that his body rejected the bone marrow donation (GVHD). Even though the bone marrow match was stated to be 100% perfect based on 7 medical factors, Nathan’s body discerned that the bone marrow transplant was foreign and fought it. There might have been other issues if there was no GVHD but this disease over time was deadly for him.
The GVHD resulted in a constant prescription of immune suppressive medicines which lowered his immunity so his body would not constantly battle the transplant. But a lower immunity resulted other common illnesses attacking his body. Common bugs and viruses which normally would be fought off by healthy white blood cells developed into threatening illnesses and weakened his overall health.
Even though he and the people around him were diligent in cleanliness, these tiny deadly agents would creep into his environment and attack him. For example, he had a portacath inserted into his chest to make it easier to administer medicine, draw blood and for dialysis treatments. The port is mostly made of plastic. But plastic can become breeding grounds for fungi over time when not consistently cleaned while mixed with air, water and fluids. Therefore, if a port was not used for some time, the doctors wanted to remove it even if it was sealed. The doctors could never predict if the GVHD would ever be fully resolved, meaning, to some degree, it could last a lifetime.
On a personal note, we will miss Nathan greatly as we loved him so much. He strove for a different outcome as he fought hard and overcame many issues to live for over 3 years since the initial AML diagnosis. He fought for life up the the last hour but the multiple complications overwhelmed his exhausted physical tent. We have many memories of him during his life and particularly these 3 years which will live on in our memory. The Bible is clear that Nathan’s new life is free of cancer and illness – his family and all creatures groan for this new life which he now enjoys.
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