Craig Hayes Update:

4/5/08:

Hi Everybody!

Craig is on his last chemo session!!!!  His number this time is 1-800-362-9567 x54300. We should have been at Jefferson, TX and the AHRMA national this weekend. (Good Luck to everyone who is going. Brooks - Don't let Ginger drink all your beer!) Craig says the only good thing about not going is that it will be wet there. We will be going to the Warm-up ride in Arkansas later this month. Craig will get another cat scan later this month, and then in May start a maintenance program (an IV drug for about 4 hours, 1 day a week for 4 weeks; repeated every 6 months for 2 years). That's much better than a bone narrow transplant.

Thank you so much for your support and prayers. It has really meant a lot!!!

Becky

3/14/08:

Hi everybody!!

Good news! Craig is now officially in remission!  Now if we can just keep it that way. He still has to finish the chemo sessions. Only 1 more to go after this one. Hopefully, the snow will be gone by the time he is done with #6, and he will be free to ride. He will be in the hospital until Sunday morning. He phone number is 1-800-362-9567 x54301.

Becky

2/23/08:

Hi Everybody!

Craig is doing his 4th session of chemo. Only 2 more to go! They will be doing another cat scan next month. I'll let you know the results. He caught a cold Monday, but was better by Thursday. We'll see what the chemo does to him. Otherwise, he has been tolerating the treatments well. We had fun at the Indianapolis motorcycle dealers show. Saw lots of stuff and visited with friends. You can only imagine how grumpy he is with all this snow and cold (with no end in sight). He really, really needs to get out and ride!!!

Becky

2/1/08:

Craig got the results of the CT scan he took Wednesday. The doc says about 50% of the cancer is gone after only 2 chemo sessions. Good news! He is grinding out his 3rd session now and will get out the hospital on Sunday. 

We had lots of fun Saturday at the indoor MX. It was really good to get on a bike again.

Becky

1/15/08:

Hi Everybody!

Craig got back from his second session of chemo Sunday. Monday, he had to go back to the clinic for some blood tests. Those results looked good. He seems to have tolerated this session better than the first. The beard is gone now, but the mustache is still hanging in there. He goes back for some more blood tests on Thursday. The CT scan is scheduled for Jan 30, and Jan 31 is the next chemo session.

Becky

1/10/08:

Some of you may already know that Craig has Mantle Cell Lymphoma (cancer). It was discovered just after Thanksgiving when he had his tonsils removed. The surgeon said they were enormous. A normal tonsil is 2-3 grams. Craig's were right - 18 grams; left - 41 grams.

Bad - There is no cure for Mantle Cell Lymphoma, and the average length of survival is 5 years.
Good - People are usually 65-70 years old when they get this cancer. So Craig should be stronger to fight this. He feels fine. If it wasn't for the tonsils, we may not have found it for a long time.  It does respond to treatment. Craig is in a clinical trial using the drug Velcade. Velcade has been effective as a secondary treatment, and now they are trying it as a first line of treatment. The trick is to put the cancer in remission and keep it there.

Craig's chemo requires 4 days in the hospital every 21 days for 6 times. He's first session was just before Christmas. Can you imagine 4 days in a hospital, not feeling sick, and with a rotten TV channel selection? Torture! His second starts this Thursday. We will know more when they do a CT scan next week. His hair is falling out now. (I've never seen him without his beard.)  He is upset that 1 of the chemo sessions is on the same weekend as the AHRMA Nationals in Texas (Sorry, Tim K., no factory ride this year.)

We will be at Waterman, IL- Jan 26- for the indoor motocross. Yes, Craig plans on riding!

I'll try to keep everybody updated.

Becky

Just in case any of you want to drop Craig an note his mailing address is below:

Keytime Motorsports
28702 County Hwy EW
Warrens WI 54666
608.378.4290
www.keytimemotorsports.com