Doc Kellogg was the warehouse manager at Azure Standard for many years.
He thought he might have pneumonia. It was March of 2020 when the whole world seemed to be closing down, and my dad (“Doc” Kellogg, as everyone calls him) was struggling to breathe.
My daughter (who is a massage therapist) and I went to care for Dad, and tried to restore his health. We used “hot and cold” therapy for a full week to clear his congestion. He was also in a lot of pain with bladder, lower back and sciatic issues. We tried various home remedies for kidney and bladder support as well as massage, but it became clear to me that there was something more going on. “Dad, you need to set a date. If you’re not well by that date, you probably need to see a doctor. You really shouldn’t be sick this long.” We talked about doctors he should go to, but it wasn’t something Dad was eager to do -- after all, Dad had managed to live almost his whole life without seeing a doctor.
Diagnosis
His pain, which he believed to be a bladder infection, was so severe that by mid-May 2020 he did visit a local urgent care clinic, and a large mass was discovered in his prostate.
There were indicators that the mass had spread, but the doctor didn’t have a good picture yet of how extensive that spread was. Almost immediately, Dad was seen by a urologist, then an oncologist, and a biopsy was taken to see what his body was dealing with. The results rocked us. It was prostate cancer. At age 75, the daddy I loved so dearly, the man who I viewed as a bulwark of strength and self-reliance, was diagnosed with stage 4 metastasized prostate cancer. To say we were shaken is an understatement. The prognosis: we were told the cancer was too advanced. They offered chemo and radiation to prolong his life a few more months, but even then they gave him 6 months to live.
Finding Envita
I began praying for wisdom. Where could we take him and who could we trust with his care? We wouldn’t accept just six months – Dad had way more life in him than six months’ worth. He was too young to die! As I was doing research, I discovered Envita Medical Center in Arizona, and I felt led to contact them. With a mixture of trepidation and hope, I placed that first phone call on June 10, 2020. From that moment, I felt a peace and confidence that Envita could offer the help we knew Dad required; that this was where Dad needed to be.
Danielle, a Patient Care Coordinator (PCC), answered the call. She spoke with me like we had been lifelong friends; she was so warm-hearted and caring. For over an hour, she listened. I never felt she was in a hurry to wrap up the call. She made me feel as if she could have talked all day with me. Somehow, beyond understanding, I knew she loved my dad already. In my heart, the decision was made.
Dad’s Arizona Experience
Doc spent a lot of time in a recliner receiving IV treatments at Envita. The staff was very supportive every step of the way.
Danielle took all the details of Dad’s condition to Envita’s team of doctors for consideration. He presented with a PSA (prostate-specific antigen) of 10,000, which was extremely high. (For reference, normal PSA for a 75-year-old is up to 5.5). So, we were downright jubilant when Danielle informed us that a senior doctor wanted to take the case. It was about a 3-week process to begin treatment. We packed our bags and headed to Arizona on the 24th of June.
All of us sisters involved in his caretaking rented a condo where we could stay near Envita for Dad’s treatment for the months ahead, while our brother held down the fort at home. Treatment was a full-time commitment -- five days a week, for as long as needed. My sisters and I took turns staying at the condo with Dad and Mom so we could cook and care for them. Mom needed support as well as Dad since her inadequate health kept her from being the sole caretaker. Together our family committed to supporting each other, and Dad, for the best possible outcome on this journey of incredible hope, growth and healing!
While we were there, we stocked our condo with all the life-giving foods Dad would need. He had a new diet to follow… he was to be on a strict Ketogenic diet. No more Pepsi and other empty carbs (which was really hard for him!). We found a wonderful Azure drop nearby in Phoenix, and we learned how to cook Keto for Dad. It was challenging to limit his intake to 30g of carbs per day, but my sisters and I pressed on. Everything for Dad was Keto and organic. While mom enjoyed the new Keto dishes she helped us prepare, she wasn’t convicted to stick to the diet to the same degree herself.
While at Envita as a family, I watched Dad grow in so many ways, and my sisters and I were able to spend so much quality time being with him and Mom in Arizona those months. We weren’t necessarily close growing up, and the opportunity we had to bond and make memories together was a priceless gift. There was no doubt: what made Dad’s heart beat was every one of us. He loved us dearly, and that love grew with intensity as we walked with him hand-in-hand. We found so much joy in helping to lighten the burdens of his trying journey.
Our experience at Envita seemed different from other medical facilities where we had been. Faith permeated everything about it. The staff members were not bashful about their faith and their reliance on the Lord’s goodness and healing. They prayed with us. They encouraged us. And above all, they were hopeful -- their hope was contagious! Our PCCs, Danielle and Anna, were so phenomenal that when Susan Booth later needed to go to Envita, we specifically requested their care for her as well.
Treatment Success
Doc and his wife, Shirley, leave their rented condo in Scottsdale, Arizona and head to daily treatments at Envita Medical Centers.
How Envita partnered with us, and with Dad, to accomplish healing (physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually) was remarkable. He stayed on a strict Keto and organic diet (in contrast to his normal high carb diet which in fact was a huge contributor to his cancer, according to the Envita doctors). And, with a combination of holistic and cutting-edge semi-conventional treatments that you can read about on their website, my dad saw progress right away. His treatment began June 30th and incredibly, by August 14th, blood tests showed the circulating tumor cells had reached 0. Likewise, his PSA went from a high of 10,000 in May to only 92 by August 14!
On September 2, his prostate tumor had decreased in size by 80%. An MRI showed no evidence of metastasis in Dad’s pelvis, lymph, or wall of abdomen. By September 20, his PSA was at 30! Dad’s doctor was so excited when he brought the paperwork to show what we, as a team, had accomplished.
Dad continued treatment a bit longer because he had lesions on his bones from the cancer -- areas where the cancer had eaten away the bone. He was determined to stay at Envita until he was completely free of cancer. So, family came to celebrate Thanksgiving with him in Arizona. Finally, on December 19 we were overjoyed that he got to go home.
Dad was at Envita from June 30 to December 19, 2020 -- a period of 6 months. Before he left Envita, he recorded a video review telling about what a great experience he had there.
Going Home Again
Doc sits in the lobby at Envita surrounded by his patient care coordinators (Anna and Danielle), his three daughters, his wife, and his nurse.
My dad returned to Envita for a week in January 2021 to do planned follow-up therapy. At that time, his circulating tumor cells were still at 0. He had a full MRI, which looked great. He still had a couple lesions on his bones that they were continuing to watch, which made Dad hesitant to claim his full recovery. However on March 12, 2021, Dad was able to “ring the bell” at Envita, signifying that he had made miraculous progress in his healing and celebrating God’s mercy and grace! Ringing that bell also meant that treatment would become home-based. We believed it was up to us now, to carry on the good results Dad had achieved with his team at Envita.
Dad’s Envita care team sent us home with a comprehensive plan for how to continue his healing at home. We were instructed to carefully follow a thorough protocol including:
- Vitamins and supplements
- A Keto diet full of clean, healthful foods
- An atmosphere of positivity.
When Dad first got home, my sisters and I cleaned out the pantry and got rid of all the unhealthy non-organic foods. We then filled it with organic foods to support his healing, just as we had done for him in Arizona. Seeing all of his favorite (yet unhealthful) foods get pitched out really made Dad upset that first day. But, he knew it was the right thing to do and went along with it… for a while. As time went on, Dad had a hard time continuing the comprehensive plan the Envita doctors had prescribed. Like many people, my dad had been addicted to some unhealthy eating habits for much of his life. I returned to my own family, and once he was on his own to continue the process, he slowly started to slip back to his old lifestyle.
Envita also instructed us to find a homecare doctor for Dad -- someone he should see four times a week. Dad tried to take this suggested path and traveled an hour to see a local physician who offered some similar treatments to Envita. But, he didn’t feel like the quality of care was as good as what he was used to at Envita. He saw them 5 or 6 times over a 2-month period. After all, he was pretty healthy now. Instead of 4 times/week visits to a local doctor, he opted for Envita’s option to return to the clinic in Arizona once every 6 weeks for a check-up and tune-up. He trusted them and felt this was the right decision. Looking back, we see that this 6-7 week visit to Arizona just wasn’t enough.
The Challenges
When Dad went home, it was a “crash” for him. Getting ready to go home, the Envita team warns you about “Envita blues.” The patient often experiences depression as they leave the support team and the extensive family care provided to them at Envita. In my dad’s case, I think, he didn’t have the same degree of confidence in our care for him at home, as he had with his doctors and nurses at Envita.
I think Dad believed he was well, and did not realize how crucial it was that he follow a cancer-remission lifestyle. Dad understood that his doctors believed his cancer grew slowly, over a period of 10-15 years. He probably thought it would take a long time to come back.
I had returned to my own family and wasn’t there to see the creeping compromises as they happened. Little by little, Dad fell back into some of his old habits. He thought he was doing the best he could, but I began to notice that I wasn’t needing to order his supplements as often because the bottles weren’t emptying. He assured me that he was taking them, but the proof didn’t add up. He got tired of his “healthy” smoothies and I would hear that after a trip to the doctor, he would take mom out to eat. Going out to a fast food joint with family once in a while wouldn’t bring the cancer back, would it? His previous eating habits and lifestyle were comfortable to him and what he knew as normal. The occasional treats became more often and ironically in the very end his number one beverage was Pepsi.
The good food from Azure that we had stocked in the house needed preparation. Neither Dad nor Mom had the energy or determination to do that. He went from walking 3 miles a day, when he first returned from Envita, to doing a lot of sitting on the couch and watching TV. His pain increased, which didn’t help, and the whole situation was like a vicious cycle. Pain brought pain meds which caused depression and lack of appetite which caused no stomach for supplements etc. Negativity and family stresses began to weigh on him. I will always wonder if his choices to slip back into his old ways of eating and living are what led to his downturn just ten months after leaving Envita. Envita had warned us that going back into the exact same situation as before getting cancer, would likely bring the cancer right back.
In September 2021, after being home for just 10 months, Dad was losing blood; his hemoglobin was low. He needed blood transfusions every 6 weeks when we took him back to Arizona for his check-ups at Envita. Those blood transfusions were done at a clinic next door to Envita. But, when that clinic closed, we were forced to find a place for blood transfusions back home. In early February 2022 his deteriorating condition made travel too difficult to return to Envita for any treatments. He kept asking for a few more days to get stronger and then he would go. At the end of February, the bleeding just wouldn’t stop.
My father left his earthly home on March 7, 2022. He died at 76, just shy of his 77th birthday.
The Questions
I know we all did the best we could as we navigated uncharted territory through Dad’s illness. But at nighttime, doubts creep in, and I awaken to haunting questions running through my mind. Did he lose his will to live? Did he have too much dis-ease in his life to allow healing? Were his old habits too hard to let go of? Were the local blood transfusions somehow different from the ones he had gotten in Arizona? Was the outcome inevitable, since his Grandfather died of stage 4 prostate cancer and two brothers struggle with it? Were Dad and his brothers all exposed to chemicals near the military base where they grew up? Were the high lead levels in his body caused by the lead glaze on the dinnerware he used at home? Could I have done more to help him with diet or encouragement? Or did we do too much for him, and should we have encouraged him to take more responsibility for his own care from the beginning?
I suppose most of us question ourselves when we face the gaping emptiness left by the death of a loved one. Perhaps there was nothing more we could have done to change the circumstances. But, we can encourage one another and continue to trust that God knows our hearts, and He will lead us as we diligently seek Him.
What I Learned
In closing, there are four points that I want to share with others who are walking a similar journey. It is my hope that by emphasizing these lessons, your journey is impacted in a way that, God willing, might end a bit differently than our story.
Make a personal commitment. The patient must want to get well enough to be actively involved in the journey to wellness -- not just be a patient.
Make a strong plan for the return home. If the patient returns to exactly the same situation and circumstances they had at home before they got sick, they are likely to become sick again.
Be surrounded by positivity. Be under the contagious influence of people who believe the patient will continue to heal and stay healthy once home. The patient will need others to affirm and remind them (often!) of their purpose for living!
Supply your body with only wholesome, organic food. Make sure the food available is without GMOs and dangerous chemicals so it doesn’t poison the body. Choose organic. Then, make the food so delicious that the recovering cancer patient won’t miss the old way. Make those diet changes permanent. Reverting to the old lifestyle, habits, foods, and stress will yield the same results. Please realize this. It must be a whole-life change.
The Call To Serve
Kimberly Stelzer stands with Doc Kellogg when he rang the bell at Envita to celebrate his health success to that point.
There came a point as Dad was failing, when I knew there was nothing more we could do. But, I have come to believe there is more that we can do now, after his death, to help others. Maybe part of the silver lining of our journey is to share what we know in an effort to help others walking this path. I am reminded that it is in answering the call to serve and love others that our greatest purpose is fulfilled.
I’ve become involved with projects here at Azure to help support present and former cancer patients with encouragement, sharing our experiences, and sharing our expertise with quality, wholesome, organic foods. Many families are overwhelmed trying to access appropriate foods for a Mediterranean or Keto or other specialized diet. We aim to help others find success staying on track after cancer treatment is done.
It is my hope that Dad’s life, the story of his care at Envita, and my family’s experience with life-giving, healthy foods can help you care for your loved one and support their journey to restored health and abundant life. I know Dad would have wanted it that way.
In an endeavor to help people who have been through cancer treatment and need help sticking to their prescribed diet, we at Azure have made helpful shopping lists for the Diets that Envita typically recommends to their patients. This idea was inspired by Doc's journey. We hope you find it helpful! See details about these Envita Diet Lists here.
Kimberly Stelzer and Susan Booth recount the story of Doc Kellogg's struggle with prostate cancer and how that ultimately lead to an amazing journey for Susan and Azure, too.