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       1968 
  dad begins smoking as a teenager, leading to an assortment of medical problems down the road.
  
       1979 
  cancerous secondary growth discovered and removed. primary growth never discovered.
  
   apr 1999 
  after suffering from a collapsed lung three times in five years, dad has an operation to remove damaged portions of his lung.
  
       2001 
  dad is diagnosed with type ii diabetes. medicines are ineffective at keeping his blood sugars down, and he starts taking insulin shots.
  
   oct 2004 
  dad begins to suffer from jaundice. tests indicate he may have pancreatic cancer, but surgery will be needed to confirm the diagnosis.
  
02 nov 2004 
  dad goes into surgery. doctors confirm that he has a tumor in his pancreas blocking his bile duct. the doctors decide on whipple procedure, and remove a third of his stomach, the head of his pancreas, gallbladder, bile duct, lymph nodes, and surrounding intestine. the operation lasts only two hours, but leaves an 11 inch scar across his stomach area. my dad's fight with pancreatic cancer officially begins.
  
23 nov 2004 
  dad is released from the hospital early due to his speedy recovery.
  
   dec 2004 
  first round of chemotherapy begins. for four months, he gets infused with cisplatin and gemsar every other friday. side effects are relatively mild.
  
   jun 2005 
  some bright spots show up on the cat scans. dad goes through his second chemotherapy treatment, combined with radiation. five days a week, he was treated with radiation and either 5fu or cisplatin. treatment lasted six weeks.
  
17 aug 2005 
  dad is admitted to hospital to investigate his persistent nausea. doctors discover sever ulcers and gastritis. he shows signs of recovery, and is released just two days later.
  
06 sep 2005 
  our trip to san diego is cut short after it becomes clear dad is not recovering. he is readmitted to the hospital. doctors discover fungus growing in his esophagus.
  
19 sep 2005 
  our dad is diagnosed with gastroparesis, or paralysis of the stomach.
  
29 sep 2005 
  dad goes into surgery again, this time to insert a g-tube (peg) and j-tube (pej).
  
07 oct 2005 
  finally! dad gets to go home, after a month in the hospital.
  
08 nov 2005 
  dad starts his third round of chemo (oxaliplatin).
  
15 nov 2005 
  dad has a paracentesis to relieve some excess fluid in his abdomen (right side). tests show signs of infection. about 1250ml of fluid was drained.
  
16 nov 2005 
  another paracentesis, this time to drain fluid from his left side. only 500ml drained this time.
  
17 nov 2005 
  due to increasing pain and signs of infection, dad is admitted to the hospital.
  
19 nov 2005 
  dad is discharged from the hospital with a pca pump to control his pain.
  
21 nov 2005 
  dad gets another paracentesis on his left side again. another 1000ml is drained, providing him some much needed relief.
  
07 dec 2005 
  dea has chemo again, having both oxaliplatin and avastin.
  
20 dec 2005 
  dea celebrates his 50th birthday (a few days early) with his family and friends.
  
21 dec 2005 
  dea gets another dose of chemo, this time with oxaliplatin, avastin, and a bolus of 5fu.
  
23 dec 2005 
  dea is admitted to the emergency room due to high fever and vomitting (most likely pneumonia from the bacterial infection). dea gets released from the hospital on christmas day.
  
05 jan 2006 
  blood cultures still show signs of infection, and dea is readmitted to the hospital. he stays until the 11th.
  
13 jan 2006 
  dea falls pretty hard, and ends up with a fractured shoulder. he is taken to the hospital in an ambulance.
  
17 jan 2006 
  dea peacefully passes away in his sleep sometime after 4pm. chin, dannielle, and sophie were by his side - and charlene arrived moments later.