We started experiencing a big turnaround this morning as Suzie started coming out of a stupor she has been in since getting home last Thursday. Long story short, the move to fight GVHD with prograf versus prednisone was the uderlying cause of her lethargyt. They started out by giving her too much prograf too soon which gave rise to many side effects, none of them good, and she exhibited most of them. Most worrisome was an increase in sugar with both the prednisone and the prograf acting as catalysts. I thought she was headed for another stay in the hospital but she's pulled out of it and will be home for Christmas. Less prograf going forward, for a while, and much hope for continued remission of the cancer.
Merry Christmas to all,
Mike
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Suzie was discharged late Thursday because we can treat the GVHD at home as well as they can in the hospital. She's tired, although less so than the day she was admitted, but glad to be here where she's a bit more comfortable. Doctors are trying a new 'cocktail' to see if they can help control the GVHD using less Prednisone. They will check her blood levels on 12/21 and again on 12/23 when we visit with her oncologist.
Semper Fi,
Mike
Semper Fi,
Mike
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
What a week! With Suzie's blood pressure stabilized and her immune system fortified, Graft versus Host decided it was its turn to mess with her. The rash appears on her scalp, face, neck, hands, legs and feet and she is suffering lots of pain and discomfort in many of her joints. Will she never get a break?
Monday, December 14, 2009
As background to yesterday's post, Suzie's oncologist had ordered tests to determine the level of IgG antibodies in Suzie's body. FYI, we've since learned, via WebMD, that IgG antibodies are found in all body fluids. They are the smallest but most common antibody (75% to 80%) of all the antibodies in the body. IgG antibodies are very important in fighting bacterial and viral infections. In a normal person, you would expect to find 565–1765 mg per deciliter. The hospital determined that Suzie had only 41 mg per deciliter! Not good, so they decided to inject her with Gamma Globulin and give her immune system the temporary boost it needed.
Turns out that infusing Gamma Globulin can be tricky. She flushed heavily at first, so they stopped the drip for an hour, gave her an additional round of preparatory drugs, and began anew. She did not flush this time, but it appears that this round of injections, plus the high levels of prednisone she is taking, precipitated the rapid and dramatic rise in blood pressure. Not fun!
Anyway, she remains in the hospital and will probably be released on Wednesday. Her BP is still fluctuating, but has not gone above 170, and needs to be weaned from her IV medications and back onto pills.
Love to all,
Mike
Turns out that infusing Gamma Globulin can be tricky. She flushed heavily at first, so they stopped the drip for an hour, gave her an additional round of preparatory drugs, and began anew. She did not flush this time, but it appears that this round of injections, plus the high levels of prednisone she is taking, precipitated the rapid and dramatic rise in blood pressure. Not fun!
Anyway, she remains in the hospital and will probably be released on Wednesday. Her BP is still fluctuating, but has not gone above 170, and needs to be weaned from her IV medications and back onto pills.
Love to all,
Mike
An event that seemed minor at first turned a little ugly Saturday afternoon when Suzie's blood pressure began rising. Went over 200 around 5:30 and climbed as high as 217. Several attempts with different medications to bring the systolic down failed and doctors were about to move her to intensive care when, at 2:30 Sunday morning, they decided to try one more medicine. Her systolic fell to 190 by 3, to 150 by 3:30 and to 142 by 4, thus ending the crises. We thank God because the last thing she needs is to suffer a stroke!
Friday, December 11, 2009
Suzie was admitted to the hospital yesterday afternoon because she was lethargic and running a very high fever. This is not surprising given that this is flu season and that her immune system is compromised. The good news is that this is not the cancer, all of her red blood counts look good, and it is not COPD, the concentration of oxygen in her system is 98%. Doctors think we caught her in the early stages of a bacterial infection and are treating her accordingly. It does not look like she is in danger, we'll post again once she is released from the hospital.
Mike
Mike
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
We're delighted to report that our meeting with Suzie's donor went well. We met him, and his parents, at a restaurant in St. Louis where Bruce and Suzie had well over an hour to both eat and learn more about each other. He's as kind as we hoped and is even willing to spend time counseling a donor brought into the fold by the drive Lisa engineered earlier this year. This is all so amazing.
Last week, we traveled to Boston to spend time with Lisa, to participate in a 'Light the Night' fund raising walk for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and to help raise funds for the MPD Foundation. Although back to back Northeasters forced us to cancel on the walk, Suzie and Lisa raised more than $500.00 selling hand crafted items donated for this purpose by friends and family and/or items they'd made themselves. All who participated by crafting the items sold or in the sales effort are pretty kind themselves!
Talk about courage: all this has been achieved in spite of an acute bout of graft versus host disease. Left untreated, this caused a significant rash as well as painful swelling and itching in both of Suzie's feet. Doctors were able to offset these symptoms through the aggressive use of Prednisone but these treatments led to the loss of body weight and muscle tone as well as a significant increase in her sugar levels. We're tapering off now and are prayerful that we won't have another bout with steroid induced diabetes.
We'll keep you posted!
Mike
Last week, we traveled to Boston to spend time with Lisa, to participate in a 'Light the Night' fund raising walk for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and to help raise funds for the MPD Foundation. Although back to back Northeasters forced us to cancel on the walk, Suzie and Lisa raised more than $500.00 selling hand crafted items donated for this purpose by friends and family and/or items they'd made themselves. All who participated by crafting the items sold or in the sales effort are pretty kind themselves!
Talk about courage: all this has been achieved in spite of an acute bout of graft versus host disease. Left untreated, this caused a significant rash as well as painful swelling and itching in both of Suzie's feet. Doctors were able to offset these symptoms through the aggressive use of Prednisone but these treatments led to the loss of body weight and muscle tone as well as a significant increase in her sugar levels. We're tapering off now and are prayerful that we won't have another bout with steroid induced diabetes.
We'll keep you posted!
Mike
Monday, September 21, 2009
We've enjoyed good news and good times during the last couple of weeks. News that Suzie no longer needs to be on Bi-Pap therapy and approval from Blue Cross to replace a large, heavy, noisy oxygen concentrator with a lightweight portable that makes much less noise were followed by an enjoyable visit with Diana and Jeff, Suzie's sister and brother-in-law.
But the fun does not stop there! Suzie and I leave tomorrow for St Louis where Suzie will meet, and thank, the man kind enough and generous enough to donate the bone marrow products that have kept her alive since the transplant just over two years ago. Needless to say, this is EXCITING!
Love to all,
Mike
But the fun does not stop there! Suzie and I leave tomorrow for St Louis where Suzie will meet, and thank, the man kind enough and generous enough to donate the bone marrow products that have kept her alive since the transplant just over two years ago. Needless to say, this is EXCITING!
Love to all,
Mike
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Today we received a mixture of disappointing and good news from M D Anderson:
There is no sign of the donor's cells in Suzie's bone marrow and the number of cancer cells continues to increase. %$@&^%@.....
Revlimid is helping us manage this disease.
Signs of rejection continue and our transplant doctor is of the opinion that some of the graft is still active. He hasn't given up hope that Suzie might experience a rebound.
Suzie's alive thanks to the transplant and we've enjoyed many moments together that would have never happened were it not for the donor's act of kindness.
There is no sign of the donor's cells in Suzie's bone marrow and the number of cancer cells continues to increase. %$@&^%@.....
Revlimid is helping us manage this disease.
Signs of rejection continue and our transplant doctor is of the opinion that some of the graft is still active. He hasn't given up hope that Suzie might experience a rebound.
Suzie's alive thanks to the transplant and we've enjoyed many moments together that would have never happened were it not for the donor's act of kindness.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
Sorry it has been a while since you've heard from us but everything has been
slow moving, we don't want to raise false alarms or false hopes and it's hard to
know just when it is the right time to share. That said, here's where we stand
on both fronts:
Cancer
Twelve months after the bone marrow transplant, which took place in August 2007,
Suzie underwent routine testing to determine the success of this procedure. The
biopsy results indicated that no measurable signs of the donor’s DNA were
observed in Suzie’s bone marrow, devastating news because it meant that the
transplant was not leading to a cure of her cancer.
Suzie began taking a new medication, Revlimid, in November 2008. The role of
this drug is to manage her cancer and the results thus far are remarkable: each
of the all important red blood, hematocrit and hemoglobin counts improved
dramatically and have remained within their normal ranges for the past few
months. In addition, the persistent rash on her skin indicates that rejection
is still an issue and that the fight may not be over.
We just returned from Houston for the testing she undergoes every six months to
measure how much of the donor’s DNA is in Suzie’s bone marrow. When we asked why
there were still signs of rejection while there was no sign of the donor, we
were told that there have been instances, for other types of cancer, when the
donor ‘recovered’ and the transplant took root. Our transplant physician
reminded us that Myelofibrosis is a rare disease and that there is not a large
body of knowledge to draw on. He noted her attitude, courage and ability to
overcome the multitude of obstacles she’s encountered during the past three
years, then stated that there is a slight chance that she might experience such
a turnaround. Obviously, we are looking forward to the results of this month’s
biopsy and should have them in the next two to four weeks. We will post the
results on the blog,
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
as soon as we have them!
Finally, per our doctors, none of this would have been possible, were it not for
the transplant, because Suzie wouldn’t have survived this long had she done
nothing.
COPD
We discovered that Suzie suffered from this condition, attributed to smoking as
well as exposure to second hand smoke, six months after we discovered that she
had cancer. We did not focus major amounts of energy here because the fight
with cancer was all consuming. We’ve learned, the hard way, that we can not
ignore this disease: with little more than 40% lung capacity, she has a
difficult time exhaling enough carbon dioxide to keep her blood chemistry in
balance; doctors feel that she would not be able to handle the rigors of a
second transplant, and; she has no immune system and is a sitting duck for
infectious diseases, especially those impacting the respiratory system.
Overall, she’s a proven fighter that has overcome the odds four or five times
since this saga began. Your prayers and support have sustained her and we would
not be where we are without your help.
Show Previous Message Prev | Next Show Next Message
slow moving, we don't want to raise false alarms or false hopes and it's hard to
know just when it is the right time to share. That said, here's where we stand
on both fronts:
Cancer
Twelve months after the bone marrow transplant, which took place in August 2007,
Suzie underwent routine testing to determine the success of this procedure. The
biopsy results indicated that no measurable signs of the donor’s DNA were
observed in Suzie’s bone marrow, devastating news because it meant that the
transplant was not leading to a cure of her cancer.
Suzie began taking a new medication, Revlimid, in November 2008. The role of
this drug is to manage her cancer and the results thus far are remarkable: each
of the all important red blood, hematocrit and hemoglobin counts improved
dramatically and have remained within their normal ranges for the past few
months. In addition, the persistent rash on her skin indicates that rejection
is still an issue and that the fight may not be over.
We just returned from Houston for the testing she undergoes every six months to
measure how much of the donor’s DNA is in Suzie’s bone marrow. When we asked why
there were still signs of rejection while there was no sign of the donor, we
were told that there have been instances, for other types of cancer, when the
donor ‘recovered’ and the transplant took root. Our transplant physician
reminded us that Myelofibrosis is a rare disease and that there is not a large
body of knowledge to draw on. He noted her attitude, courage and ability to
overcome the multitude of obstacles she’s encountered during the past three
years, then stated that there is a slight chance that she might experience such
a turnaround. Obviously, we are looking forward to the results of this month’s
biopsy and should have them in the next two to four weeks. We will post the
results on the blog,
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
as soon as we have them!
Finally, per our doctors, none of this would have been possible, were it not for
the transplant, because Suzie wouldn’t have survived this long had she done
nothing.
COPD
We discovered that Suzie suffered from this condition, attributed to smoking as
well as exposure to second hand smoke, six months after we discovered that she
had cancer. We did not focus major amounts of energy here because the fight
with cancer was all consuming. We’ve learned, the hard way, that we can not
ignore this disease: with little more than 40% lung capacity, she has a
difficult time exhaling enough carbon dioxide to keep her blood chemistry in
balance; doctors feel that she would not be able to handle the rigors of a
second transplant, and; she has no immune system and is a sitting duck for
infectious diseases, especially those impacting the respiratory system.
Overall, she’s a proven fighter that has overcome the odds four or five times
since this saga began. Your prayers and support have sustained her and we would
not be where we are without your help.
Show Previous Message Prev | Next Show Next Message
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Had a little scare Thursday when Suzie's temperature suddenly spiked to 102.4, a fact we did not discover until we were checking into the pulmonary's office. Good news is that her oxygen and carbon dioxide levels checked out OK and her blood levels, from a cancer persepective, still look good. Treated her with levaquin and increased her prednisone to guard against respiratory failure and we were able to have a great visit with Kathi and Don Massey, good friends from GA, from Thursday PM until Saturday AM.
Mike
Mike
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Our reunion last week was physically demanding but I'm delighted to report that everything went well and Susie is not suffering any ill effects. In fact, she has moved on and is now busy creating a quilt for a younger friend pregnant with her first child. There are times that I wish I had her energy!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Well, Suzie's been home for almost a month and her recovery is well underway. She now walks without the use of a walker and her energy level is high. She's managed to sew a pair of curtains for Lisa, continues working on her quilting projects and has been quite busy preparing for a visit from our son, daughter and grandchildren as well as all 16 members of her sister Diana's family. She's amazing!
Will post again after the 'reunion' and let you know how she held up.
God Bless,
Mike
Will post again after the 'reunion' and let you know how she held up.
God Bless,
Mike
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Today, Lisa, her good friends and The United Church of Christ in Ridgefield, CT sponsored/hosted an event to raise awareness of the need for more people to volunteer to donate blood products needed for transplant purposes. The good news: this event, which was held in Suzie's honor, resulted in 20 new volunteers!
You too can help by logging on to 'Be the Match™' and giving an amazing gift. Go to:
www.bethematch.org
Click on “join the registry”, then on “join now”!
To avoid the standard $52 fee you MUST use Suzie’s promo code: CM579
You too can help by logging on to 'Be the Match™' and giving an amazing gift. Go to:
www.bethematch.org
Click on “join the registry”, then on “join now”!
To avoid the standard $52 fee you MUST use Suzie’s promo code: CM579
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Be one to save a life.
As you know, Suzie was diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a chronic malignant blood disorder, in September of 2006. As a result of her disease, she underwent a bone marrow transplant in Augustof 2007. This amazing gift from a then anonymous donor has enabled her to continue her fight and enjoy life with friends and family.
Although Suzie found help, 70% of people in need of a transplant will not go forward because they won't be able to find a matching, but unrelated, donor. With this drive, we want to honor Suzie and her donor by raising awareness of the need and recruiting more potential donors to the Registry. Be the Match™ and give an amazing gift.
www.bethematch.org
Click on “join the registry”, then on “join now”!
To avoid the standard $52 fee you MUST use Suzie’s promo code: CM579
As you know, Suzie was diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a chronic malignant blood disorder, in September of 2006. As a result of her disease, she underwent a bone marrow transplant in Augustof 2007. This amazing gift from a then anonymous donor has enabled her to continue her fight and enjoy life with friends and family.
Although Suzie found help, 70% of people in need of a transplant will not go forward because they won't be able to find a matching, but unrelated, donor. With this drive, we want to honor Suzie and her donor by raising awareness of the need and recruiting more potential donors to the Registry. Be the Match™ and give an amazing gift.
www.bethematch.org
Click on “join the registry”, then on “join now”!
To avoid the standard $52 fee you MUST use Suzie’s promo code: CM579
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Thought it might be worth a minute to bring everyone up-to-date on Suzie's condition:
* She has been home for one week now and she is growing stronger, slowly, every day.
* Whereas of our focus for the past 2 and 1/2 years has been on her cancer, we have treated her COPD in a secondary manner.
* We now realize that the COPD is as dangerous to her health and well being as the cancer is. This is especially true because she has no immune system and she cannot yet receive any innoculations to protect her.
* She is still weak and uses a walker to get around the house. Knowing her, this will not be the case by the end of the month.
* Going forward we will be as active as we can because she wants to live life and I support her in this. This is the hard one: if anyone we are planning to visit with is ill, please let us know because it will be best if we do not visit with you. Suzie is extremely susceptible to bacteria and viruses and any further damage to her lungs will not be a good for her.
God Bless all of you,
Mike
* She has been home for one week now and she is growing stronger, slowly, every day.
* Whereas of our focus for the past 2 and 1/2 years has been on her cancer, we have treated her COPD in a secondary manner.
* We now realize that the COPD is as dangerous to her health and well being as the cancer is. This is especially true because she has no immune system and she cannot yet receive any innoculations to protect her.
* She is still weak and uses a walker to get around the house. Knowing her, this will not be the case by the end of the month.
* Going forward we will be as active as we can because she wants to live life and I support her in this. This is the hard one: if anyone we are planning to visit with is ill, please let us know because it will be best if we do not visit with you. Suzie is extremely susceptible to bacteria and viruses and any further damage to her lungs will not be a good for her.
God Bless all of you,
Mike
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
This crises is over! Nurses are removing all kinds of plastic tubing from Suzie's body and physical therapy is helping to assure that she has enough body strength as all of us prepare for her return home on Thursday or Friday of this week. The major change going forward is that she will now have a machine to help clear the carbon dioxide from her lungs as she sleeps.
Three years ago we thought Suzie was reasonably healthy. In September 2006, we learned that she had a rare cancer that was thought to be untreatable. In March 2007, we learned that she also had COPD but we never thought that this disease was life-threatening. What this experience has taught us is that the COPD, which we were not worried about, is as much a threat to her survival as is the cancer. And that really sucks!!!
Going forward, we plan to continue spending time with friends and family and to living our lives to the fullest extent possible. We must avoid crowds and we must be extremely diligent when it comes to washing our hands and to avoiding those who are ill.
Mike
Three years ago we thought Suzie was reasonably healthy. In September 2006, we learned that she had a rare cancer that was thought to be untreatable. In March 2007, we learned that she also had COPD but we never thought that this disease was life-threatening. What this experience has taught us is that the COPD, which we were not worried about, is as much a threat to her survival as is the cancer. And that really sucks!!!
Going forward, we plan to continue spending time with friends and family and to living our lives to the fullest extent possible. We must avoid crowds and we must be extremely diligent when it comes to washing our hands and to avoiding those who are ill.
Mike
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Another turnaround yesterday as Suzie's CO2 level dropped to 49 and the Doctors concluded that they would not have to attach her to a respirator. (Allelulia!!!)Still no word on the blood cultures so we have no idea what caused this episode in the first place.
She's not out of the woods, yet, but the trees are thinning out and, if all goes well, she may be on her way home this coming Thursday. Then, hopefully, we can have another 8-9 months of remission and the joys that come with it.
God Bless all of you,
Mike
She's not out of the woods, yet, but the trees are thinning out and, if all goes well, she may be on her way home this coming Thursday. Then, hopefully, we can have another 8-9 months of remission and the joys that come with it.
God Bless all of you,
Mike
Friday, May 22, 2009
Suzie’s carbon dioxide levels, which were 70 (twice the normal level of 35) when first measured, were lowered to 51 yesterday so Suzie was transferred from the critical care unit to a standard hospital room. Regarding the cancer all of her blood work, with the exception of her white blood count, is within the normal ranges. We celebrated our good fortune over lunch today before learning that the CO2 had jumped back up to 59 and that she is not out of the woods. This means that she will remain in the hospital and continue respiratory treatments over the Memorial Day weekend. Her spirits are good and she continues fighting both the COPD and the Cancer as hard as she can. It’s good thing that living with me for 40 years did much to prepare her for these encounters! (Thanks Craig.)
Next test of her CO2 levels is scheduled for tomorrow morning. We’ll use the blog to keep everyone advised of significant changes. This document can be accessed at the following URL:
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
Next test of her CO2 levels is scheduled for tomorrow morning. We’ll use the blog to keep everyone advised of significant changes. This document can be accessed at the following URL:
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Just when you thought....
Suzie and I have had a marvelous 8-9 month period where she was in remission and we were really able to get out and enjoy life. Most recently, we traveled to Atlanta to visit with Dave and his family and to participate in Gwinnett County's Relay for life. This is a huge fund raiser for the American Cancer Society with Gwinnett County's being the country's largest. (These fundraisers, Rebecca, Cindy, fellow teachers and all the students are phenomenal!) Suzie walked the 'Survivor's' Lap, a very emotional undertaking, and did herself proud. From there, we journeyed to Savannah, Charleston, Parris Island and Beafort and celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary with her sister Diana and her husband Jeff.
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, Suzie managed to acquire a new infection which resulted in an acute COPD event. She was inhaling enough oxygen but her lungs were not ventilating properly and she was not exhaling enough carbon dioxide. This resulted in a loss of strength and energy and made it almost impossible for her to breathe in. Long story short, we went to the emergency room this morning and she was admitted to the critical care unit where she will remain until they can remedy the situation. Please keep her in your prayers!
Mike
Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, Suzie managed to acquire a new infection which resulted in an acute COPD event. She was inhaling enough oxygen but her lungs were not ventilating properly and she was not exhaling enough carbon dioxide. This resulted in a loss of strength and energy and made it almost impossible for her to breathe in. Long story short, we went to the emergency room this morning and she was admitted to the critical care unit where she will remain until they can remedy the situation. Please keep her in your prayers!
Mike
Saturday, May 2, 2009
We have not been aggressive about posting to this site recently because Suzie is more or less in a state of remission and life for the past eight months has approached normalcy. We're taking advantage of the break and are squeezing as much living as we can into this time period. In April, we hosted a reunion of good friends we made during the short time we lived in Plymouth, got together with our son Dave and his family for Easter and traveled to Boston to visit with our daughter Lisa, her friends, and good friends of ours from our days in Massachusetts and Connecticut. Next week we'll travel to Georgia to walk in the Relay for Life sponsored by Dacula Elementary School, then venture off to Savannah, Charleston and Beaufort to celebrate 40 years of marriage with Suzie's sister and her husband.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Life is good
Suzie and I celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary today and are we happy or what!!!!
:-)*Infinity
Mike
:-)*Infinity
Mike
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Suzie had a blood draw today and we learned that, for the first time since we discovered she has cancer, with the exception of platelets, all of her blood counts are within the normal range! This is WONDERFUL news! Her cancer may not be gone but God has blessed her because, for the present time, it is under control.
:-)
Mike
:-)
Mike
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
We spoke with our nurse at M D Anderson yesterday and learned two things: there are no longer any donor cells in Suzie's blood and the Revlimid she is taking seems to be an effective agent for managing her cancer. Although we are no longer looking forward to the cure that the transplant promised we are thankful that we pursued this course. Suzie is alive, her quality of life is much improved and there is hope that the Revlimid, and other potential treatments, will help her stay this way.
Best to all of you,
Mike
Best to all of you,
Mike
Saturday, February 7, 2009
And the beat goes on...
Suzie's strength is holding and her blood work continues to improve--that shot she got last month and the Revlimid she is taking appear to be helping. We're on our way to Houston next week and the testing they do there will tell us if the donor's cells are on the rebound. We should learn the results of these tests by the end of February.
God Bless,
Mike
God Bless,
Mike
Thursday, January 22, 2009
We received good news on Suzie's blood-work today: her WBC continues to fall, there has been a dramatic decrease in her platelets and, for the second straight week, her RBC, HGB and HCT edged upward. Looks like the Revlimid is effective and that shot she received two weeks ago is doing its’ job.
We aren't going overboard, given the ups and downs she's experienced over the past two and one half years, but we are savoring the moment!!!
:-)
Mike
We aren't going overboard, given the ups and downs she's experienced over the past two and one half years, but we are savoring the moment!!!
:-)
Mike
Thursday, January 15, 2009
We learned today that Suzie has the same amount of fluid in her lungs as she did last week, that her red blood count rebounded somewhat and, at present, she is not in need of a transfusion and that her lack of energy can be attributed to the chemotherapy drugs she stopped taking a week ago.
She is starting her second round of chemo tonight and we will return to the Oncologist next Thursday so they can determine how the drugs are affecting her blood.
Until then, God Bless!
She is starting her second round of chemo tonight and we will return to the Oncologist next Thursday so they can determine how the drugs are affecting her blood.
Until then, God Bless!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Greetings!!
We’re delighted to open this posting by saying that we had a FANTASTIC time in November and December celebrating birthdays and holidays with our children, grandchildren and good friends. Our only regret is that everyone who reads this entry was not there to celebrate with us!
Unfortunately, Suzie is encountering new road blocks: an upper respiratory infection that a z-pack was unable to conquer and a sudden, and significant, decrease in her red blood count.
The fear with the infection is that it will go into her lungs and further inhibit her ability to breathe. We are hoping that a weeks worth of Levaquin will resolve this issue.
The fear with the decrease in her red blood count is that the decrease is permanent and that she will be dependent on blood transfusions because she will no longer be able to produce red blood cells on her own.
We are both praying that the Levaquin works and that the sudden decrease in red blood cells is a temporary phenomenon due to the upper respiratory infection and/or the recent introduction of new drugs to her system.
We will keep everyone posted, as change occurs, on our blog:
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
God Bless,
Mike
We’re delighted to open this posting by saying that we had a FANTASTIC time in November and December celebrating birthdays and holidays with our children, grandchildren and good friends. Our only regret is that everyone who reads this entry was not there to celebrate with us!
Unfortunately, Suzie is encountering new road blocks: an upper respiratory infection that a z-pack was unable to conquer and a sudden, and significant, decrease in her red blood count.
The fear with the infection is that it will go into her lungs and further inhibit her ability to breathe. We are hoping that a weeks worth of Levaquin will resolve this issue.
The fear with the decrease in her red blood count is that the decrease is permanent and that she will be dependent on blood transfusions because she will no longer be able to produce red blood cells on her own.
We are both praying that the Levaquin works and that the sudden decrease in red blood cells is a temporary phenomenon due to the upper respiratory infection and/or the recent introduction of new drugs to her system.
We will keep everyone posted, as change occurs, on our blog:
http://nanisgreatadventure.blogspot.com/
God Bless,
Mike
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