Eric's heart got shocked today around 2:30 and everything went fine. His EKG now shows a small P wave indicating that the atria are contracting. He is still on the heart medicine to keep his heart rate low and in the normal sinus rhythm. The dialysis continues to clean Eric's blood and is starting to remove some excess fluid. They are going slowly -- only 50 ml per hour -- to make sure that his blood pressure does not drop. Little steps at a time! He has about 20 liters to lose, so it will take a while.
Thanks to everyone for the supportive comments and cards. Keep praying that Eric's body gets a nice break so he can have some time to recover from all of this excitement. (It'll give ALL of us a little time to recover from all of this excitement.)
Love,
Melissa
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Calm after the excitement
Hi all,
During the afternoon yesterday Eric started to have irregular heart beats. They call it atrial fibrillation, aFib for short. In atrial fibrillation, the regular electrical wave in the heart does not occur in the upper chambers of the heart.
For more info on aFib.
http://www.heartpoint.com/afib-tellme.html
The doctors aren't overly concerned with the aFib, because they see it frequently in ICU patients from all the strain the body is going through. Eric has no other heart issues, so they don't believe this will be anything permanent.
Then, we had some excitement around 10pm last night. The hematologist warned us the day before to watch for Eric's heart rate to jump extremely high while his blood pressure dropped. This would be a sign that his heart is pumping blood really hard because the pressure was not being maintained in his veins. This could mean a fatal bleed internally, because it can't be stopped. My dad kept comparing it to a leak in a hydraulic system. So, around 10pm Eric's heart rate jumped from ~85 to ~125 and his blood pressure dropped from 121/75 to 88/30. The night doctor was quick to respond giving him medicine to raise his blood pressure and lower his heart rate. The medicine worked very quickly, but this was one of the scariest hours of Eric's hospital stay. I can't even describe the helplessness we all felt.
During the night they were able to wean Eric off the blood pressure medicine, believing the drop in blood pressure was from the aFib condition. His body is now maintaining normal blood pressure on its own. His heart is still in aFib, so they are keeping him on the heart rate medicine. The doctor last night said that aFib will usually correct itself in 24-48 hours. We can't wait for that to happen.
Also, on the positive side, the dialysis is really working for Eric. This morning's lab results showed Eric's Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN) and Creatinine (the two measures that tell us how Eric's kidneys are working) showed reduced levels. The kidney doctor this morning said the dialysis was really helping Eric.
Explanation on Measures of Kidney Function
http://www.lifeoptions.org/kidneyinfo/labvalues.php
So overall positive progress overnight after the scare...it will be a slow road to recovery, but as long as we keep moving in the right direction we are happy.
Love,
Sara
During the afternoon yesterday Eric started to have irregular heart beats. They call it atrial fibrillation, aFib for short. In atrial fibrillation, the regular electrical wave in the heart does not occur in the upper chambers of the heart.
For more info on aFib.
http://www.heartpoint.com/afib-tellme.html
The doctors aren't overly concerned with the aFib, because they see it frequently in ICU patients from all the strain the body is going through. Eric has no other heart issues, so they don't believe this will be anything permanent.
Then, we had some excitement around 10pm last night. The hematologist warned us the day before to watch for Eric's heart rate to jump extremely high while his blood pressure dropped. This would be a sign that his heart is pumping blood really hard because the pressure was not being maintained in his veins. This could mean a fatal bleed internally, because it can't be stopped. My dad kept comparing it to a leak in a hydraulic system. So, around 10pm Eric's heart rate jumped from ~85 to ~125 and his blood pressure dropped from 121/75 to 88/30. The night doctor was quick to respond giving him medicine to raise his blood pressure and lower his heart rate. The medicine worked very quickly, but this was one of the scariest hours of Eric's hospital stay. I can't even describe the helplessness we all felt.
During the night they were able to wean Eric off the blood pressure medicine, believing the drop in blood pressure was from the aFib condition. His body is now maintaining normal blood pressure on its own. His heart is still in aFib, so they are keeping him on the heart rate medicine. The doctor last night said that aFib will usually correct itself in 24-48 hours. We can't wait for that to happen.
Also, on the positive side, the dialysis is really working for Eric. This morning's lab results showed Eric's Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN) and Creatinine (the two measures that tell us how Eric's kidneys are working) showed reduced levels. The kidney doctor this morning said the dialysis was really helping Eric.
Explanation on Measures of Kidney Function
http://www.lifeoptions.org/kidneyinfo/labvalues.php
So overall positive progress overnight after the scare...it will be a slow road to recovery, but as long as we keep moving in the right direction we are happy.
Love,
Sara
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Dialysis and new drugs
Hi everyone,
Eric looks to have stopped (or slowed down considerably) the bleeding into his stomach and lungs. His blood counts (red blood cells and platelets) are holding. The numbers to indicate how his kidneys are functioning continue to rise, meaning Eric's kidneys are not filtering everything out of his blood. So, Eric started dialysis tonight to help his kidneys clean up his blood. We are very hopefully that this will help the rest of his body repair.
Eric continues to need a lot of breathing support. They currently have him set at 90% oxygen and 20 PEEP. The doctor tonight reinserted an artery line to take frequent blood gas numbers.
Our hematologists is on vacation for a couple weeks, so we have a new one today. The switch made us nervous, but after talking to the new hematologist we feel comfortable with him.
The new hematologist is going to start Eric on new medicine that will kick start his bone marrow into producing blood again. On average, after chemo treatment, a person's bone marrow doesn't start to produce blood until 3 weeks after the chemo started. This new medicine will start his marrow producing blood sooner, with the hope that his own fresh blood will help heal his body.
Eric's still fighting the good fight.
Love,
Sara
Eric looks to have stopped (or slowed down considerably) the bleeding into his stomach and lungs. His blood counts (red blood cells and platelets) are holding. The numbers to indicate how his kidneys are functioning continue to rise, meaning Eric's kidneys are not filtering everything out of his blood. So, Eric started dialysis tonight to help his kidneys clean up his blood. We are very hopefully that this will help the rest of his body repair.
Eric continues to need a lot of breathing support. They currently have him set at 90% oxygen and 20 PEEP. The doctor tonight reinserted an artery line to take frequent blood gas numbers.
Our hematologists is on vacation for a couple weeks, so we have a new one today. The switch made us nervous, but after talking to the new hematologist we feel comfortable with him.
The new hematologist is going to start Eric on new medicine that will kick start his bone marrow into producing blood again. On average, after chemo treatment, a person's bone marrow doesn't start to produce blood until 3 weeks after the chemo started. This new medicine will start his marrow producing blood sooner, with the hope that his own fresh blood will help heal his body.
Eric's still fighting the good fight.
Love,
Sara
Another day
Hi - Eric made it through the night. (As of 7:45AM ET).
Eric is needing much breathing support, but at least he didn't seem worse this morning.
So starts another day. Thanks to God for keeping him through the night! Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and prayers.
- Kathy
Eric is needing much breathing support, but at least he didn't seem worse this morning.
So starts another day. Thanks to God for keeping him through the night! Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and prayers.
- Kathy
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Turn for the worse
Hi all,
Eric has taken a turn for the worse. He is experiencing bleeding into his stomach and into his lungs. The hemotologist, who was more positive yesterday, says we should probably stay in the hospital tonight. He can't predict if Eric will pull through this or succumb to it.
We are very hopeful that Eric will fight this and pull through. He is young, strong, and has too much to live for to let this take him down.
Pray.
Love,
Sara
Eric has taken a turn for the worse. He is experiencing bleeding into his stomach and into his lungs. The hemotologist, who was more positive yesterday, says we should probably stay in the hospital tonight. He can't predict if Eric will pull through this or succumb to it.
We are very hopeful that Eric will fight this and pull through. He is young, strong, and has too much to live for to let this take him down.
Pray.
Love,
Sara
Several Rough Days
His lungs continued to get worse last night. Right now, he is requiring full support from the ventilator (100% O2, 15 PEEP, 30 breathes per min) and his oxygen saturation is ok. It just gets scary when he gets agitated and his oxygen saturation goes down, because they can't go any higher with their ventilator settings. They are thinking about switching around his medicines again to help speed the recovery of his lungs, but the only option left has bad side affects for the kidneys. We just really need him to be breathing better. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Love,
Melissa
Love,
Melissa
Tough days
Hi everyone,
Sorry we haven't posted in a couple days. Eric's had a rough 3 days, which translates to a rough 3 days for his bedside team too.
Eric has been receiving red blood cells and platelets the past couple days. There haven't been any additional problems with the blood transfusions, which is good.
We aren't sure if the blood clot is still in Eric's left arm. The doctors haven't ordered a second Doppler ultrasound to check on the clot. I imagine this is because there is really nothing they can do to treat it. We were told that a clot in the arm is better than a clot in his leg, because clot sizes in arms are generally smaller.
Eric is still on the ventilator. He seems to bounce around needing a lot to a little breathing support. He is currently at 100% oxygen support and a PEEP of 15, which is a lot of support.
The doctors are now worried about Eric's kidneys. There are two numbers they look at in the lab tests. Eric's numbers have jumped up twice in the wrong direction since yesterday. This is now a new concern for us. We aren't sure if there is a treatment they can do to help his kidneys.
Eric's hematologist was back in the hospital on Monday, and we truly missed him over the weekend. The critical care team (basically the doctors that staff the ICU) had some very scary things to say to us on Fri, Sat and Sun. They were indicating to be prepared for the worst, including questioning how long do we want to fight.......which was shocking yesterday.
Later in the day yesterday, we saw Eric's hematologist. We explained what we were being told by the critical care team, and the hematologist reassured us that Eric is right on track. The hematologists said Eric's current condition is exactly what is expected of a Leukemia patient. We have completely wiped out his immune system, white blood cells. We had to do this to kill off the cancerous cells. With no immune system, Eric can't fight off basic bacteria and fungi. The hematologist had a conference with the critical care doctor to clarify Eric's progression and treatment.
The hematologist called in a couple different specialists; an opthamalogist, an infectous disease doctor, a kidney doctor, and heart doctor. These specialists had some treatments that will help Eric.
On a positive note, Eric's temperature continues to drop. He is currently at 99 degree F.
We are hoping Eric makes progress on his breathing an his kidneys today.
Love,
Sara
Sorry we haven't posted in a couple days. Eric's had a rough 3 days, which translates to a rough 3 days for his bedside team too.
Eric has been receiving red blood cells and platelets the past couple days. There haven't been any additional problems with the blood transfusions, which is good.
We aren't sure if the blood clot is still in Eric's left arm. The doctors haven't ordered a second Doppler ultrasound to check on the clot. I imagine this is because there is really nothing they can do to treat it. We were told that a clot in the arm is better than a clot in his leg, because clot sizes in arms are generally smaller.
Eric is still on the ventilator. He seems to bounce around needing a lot to a little breathing support. He is currently at 100% oxygen support and a PEEP of 15, which is a lot of support.
The doctors are now worried about Eric's kidneys. There are two numbers they look at in the lab tests. Eric's numbers have jumped up twice in the wrong direction since yesterday. This is now a new concern for us. We aren't sure if there is a treatment they can do to help his kidneys.
Eric's hematologist was back in the hospital on Monday, and we truly missed him over the weekend. The critical care team (basically the doctors that staff the ICU) had some very scary things to say to us on Fri, Sat and Sun. They were indicating to be prepared for the worst, including questioning how long do we want to fight.......which was shocking yesterday.
Later in the day yesterday, we saw Eric's hematologist. We explained what we were being told by the critical care team, and the hematologist reassured us that Eric is right on track. The hematologists said Eric's current condition is exactly what is expected of a Leukemia patient. We have completely wiped out his immune system, white blood cells. We had to do this to kill off the cancerous cells. With no immune system, Eric can't fight off basic bacteria and fungi. The hematologist had a conference with the critical care doctor to clarify Eric's progression and treatment.
The hematologist called in a couple different specialists; an opthamalogist, an infectous disease doctor, a kidney doctor, and heart doctor. These specialists had some treatments that will help Eric.
On a positive note, Eric's temperature continues to drop. He is currently at 99 degree F.
We are hoping Eric makes progress on his breathing an his kidneys today.
Love,
Sara
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Steps Backward
Hi all,
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. The Linker and Lonn families had a nice Christmas lunch here at the hospital.
Eric had some set backs the past couple days. The doctors warned us that we would be taking 2 steps forward and 1 step back along the way to recovery. The steps backward are hard for us to watch.
Eric had a bad reaction to a red blood cell transfusion last night. The nurse immediately discontinued the tranfusion and sent the remaining blood to the lab for analysis - guessing there were some antibodies in it that he was sensitive to. They performed an EKG and concluded Eric's heart was fine. This reaction caused his heart rate and blood pressure to sky rocket. Having a little elevated blood pressure is actually good in his current condition, but he went over 200 breaking a blood vessel in his left eye. They had to give him blood pressure medicine to lower his blood pressure.
The doctors performed a doppler ultrasound, a technique that evaluates blood velocity as it flows through blood vessels, this morning. They found a blood clot in Eric's left arm. This is a concern because Eric can't have the medicine used to disolve a clot due to his leukemia. We just have to anxiously wait for the clot to dissolve on its own.
The doctors are no longer talking about taking Eric off the ventilator anytime soon. His lungs are needing more support to get the right amount of oxygen.
On a positive note, Eric's temperature has come down slightly. He is still fighting an infection and a fungus with his weak immune system. He is currently at 101.5 degrees F. This has been reduced from the 103 degrees he was running yesterday. Hopefully his temperature will continue to drop.
Your thoughts and prayers are needed. Thank you for the continued support.
Love,
Sara
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. The Linker and Lonn families had a nice Christmas lunch here at the hospital.
Eric had some set backs the past couple days. The doctors warned us that we would be taking 2 steps forward and 1 step back along the way to recovery. The steps backward are hard for us to watch.
Eric had a bad reaction to a red blood cell transfusion last night. The nurse immediately discontinued the tranfusion and sent the remaining blood to the lab for analysis - guessing there were some antibodies in it that he was sensitive to. They performed an EKG and concluded Eric's heart was fine. This reaction caused his heart rate and blood pressure to sky rocket. Having a little elevated blood pressure is actually good in his current condition, but he went over 200 breaking a blood vessel in his left eye. They had to give him blood pressure medicine to lower his blood pressure.
The doctors performed a doppler ultrasound, a technique that evaluates blood velocity as it flows through blood vessels, this morning. They found a blood clot in Eric's left arm. This is a concern because Eric can't have the medicine used to disolve a clot due to his leukemia. We just have to anxiously wait for the clot to dissolve on its own.
The doctors are no longer talking about taking Eric off the ventilator anytime soon. His lungs are needing more support to get the right amount of oxygen.
On a positive note, Eric's temperature has come down slightly. He is still fighting an infection and a fungus with his weak immune system. He is currently at 101.5 degrees F. This has been reduced from the 103 degrees he was running yesterday. Hopefully his temperature will continue to drop.
Your thoughts and prayers are needed. Thank you for the continued support.
Love,
Sara
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Christmas Eve
Hi everyone,
It's Christmas Eve, and I seem to be getting another lesson in patience. They've completely weened Eric off of the strongest sedative, and had been making progress with the second sedative/pain killer. However, Eric started getting more agitated and trying to push out the ventilator tube with his tongue, so they went back to the full dose of the second sedative. He's resting much more comfortably now. I'm just anxious to have him awake. They say that this is how all patients are with the process of getting off of the ventilator. They have to find the happy sedative level where he is as calm and comfortable as can be and still awake enough to respond to them. I think each morning the doctors will come by to "test" him. They'll have him open his eyes, squeeze their hands on command, wiggle his toes and be able to cough. If he passes all of these tests, they'll take the tube out. Apparently this morning he only passed about half of those, so maybe tomorrow!
In the mean time, his fever has crept up to 103.6 deg F. They've added an anti-fungal to the rest of the medicine that they are giving him. The doctors all say that this is pretty standard. We've completely obliterated his immune system, so all of the natural bacteria (and I guess fungus) that are in everybody start causing problems. They've added 4 IV lines to him so that they could take the PICC line out of his arm, which they think was causing most of the problems. They will add a more central line in his neck either tomorrow or the next day. They wanted to give his body a chance to fight the infection before adding another semi-permanent line. Once they add the central line, they'll remove all of the IVs again. So between the extra meds and the PICC line, hopefully his fever will start going down soon.
I got to the hospital this morning to find a slew of new cards. Thank you all so very much!! We have a whole stack of cards to show Eric when he wakes up. Once we get to the oncology ward, we're planning on taping them to the walls to make the room a little more warm and inviting.
I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas tomorrow! Enjoy being around friends and family, eating lots of good food and drinks, and giving gifts. (Adam Keyster, I KNOW your family will be having wonderful Brandy Alexanders -- drink one for me!) We don't have a fireplace in our hospital room, but I have a feeling Santa won't skip over us. Eric's whole family is already here, and my family is heading down in the morning. So we'll have a nice little celebration!
Love,
Melissa
PS I just went back and re-read all of the previous posts. I swear I read everything at least 3 times before posting, but I still found all sorts of spelling/grammar errors. Sorry! I think I'll just chalk it up to being sleep deprived. : ) At least, that sounds like a good excuse to me!
It's Christmas Eve, and I seem to be getting another lesson in patience. They've completely weened Eric off of the strongest sedative, and had been making progress with the second sedative/pain killer. However, Eric started getting more agitated and trying to push out the ventilator tube with his tongue, so they went back to the full dose of the second sedative. He's resting much more comfortably now. I'm just anxious to have him awake. They say that this is how all patients are with the process of getting off of the ventilator. They have to find the happy sedative level where he is as calm and comfortable as can be and still awake enough to respond to them. I think each morning the doctors will come by to "test" him. They'll have him open his eyes, squeeze their hands on command, wiggle his toes and be able to cough. If he passes all of these tests, they'll take the tube out. Apparently this morning he only passed about half of those, so maybe tomorrow!
In the mean time, his fever has crept up to 103.6 deg F. They've added an anti-fungal to the rest of the medicine that they are giving him. The doctors all say that this is pretty standard. We've completely obliterated his immune system, so all of the natural bacteria (and I guess fungus) that are in everybody start causing problems. They've added 4 IV lines to him so that they could take the PICC line out of his arm, which they think was causing most of the problems. They will add a more central line in his neck either tomorrow or the next day. They wanted to give his body a chance to fight the infection before adding another semi-permanent line. Once they add the central line, they'll remove all of the IVs again. So between the extra meds and the PICC line, hopefully his fever will start going down soon.
I got to the hospital this morning to find a slew of new cards. Thank you all so very much!! We have a whole stack of cards to show Eric when he wakes up. Once we get to the oncology ward, we're planning on taping them to the walls to make the room a little more warm and inviting.
I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas tomorrow! Enjoy being around friends and family, eating lots of good food and drinks, and giving gifts. (Adam Keyster, I KNOW your family will be having wonderful Brandy Alexanders -- drink one for me!) We don't have a fireplace in our hospital room, but I have a feeling Santa won't skip over us. Eric's whole family is already here, and my family is heading down in the morning. So we'll have a nice little celebration!
Love,
Melissa
PS I just went back and re-read all of the previous posts. I swear I read everything at least 3 times before posting, but I still found all sorts of spelling/grammar errors. Sorry! I think I'll just chalk it up to being sleep deprived. : ) At least, that sounds like a good excuse to me!
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Bye-Bye Sedation!!!
That's right! We just talked to the critical care team of doctors, and they decided that since he's been initiating all of his breaths and needing very minimal support from the ventilator, they're going to start weening him off of the sedatives!!! They're going to go slowly (he's on three different sedatives right now) and monitor his oxygen to make sure he's still getting enough. They said that it varies from person to person on how quickly they become fully aware. Some people can take up to a few days. I'm just so happy that the end is in sight!!
He still has a fever of 102. They've been giving him antibiotics, and continue to monitor the cultures to see if they are making headway with that. They've narrowed it down to the PICC line being the culprit. (A PICC line is like a more permanent, bigger IV that goes in the arm.) If that specific bateria does not go away, they will take that line out and either put another one in at a different location, or go with a more central line. They also said that the pill that he's taking now, ATRA, can cause a fever, and the leukemia itself can cause fevers, so it may be a lot of things combined that is causing this.
All in all, the doctor said that he will probably feel "crummy" when he wakes up, but at least he's finally going to be awake!!!
Love,
Melissa
PS. His white blood cells are down to 1000, now.
He still has a fever of 102. They've been giving him antibiotics, and continue to monitor the cultures to see if they are making headway with that. They've narrowed it down to the PICC line being the culprit. (A PICC line is like a more permanent, bigger IV that goes in the arm.) If that specific bateria does not go away, they will take that line out and either put another one in at a different location, or go with a more central line. They also said that the pill that he's taking now, ATRA, can cause a fever, and the leukemia itself can cause fevers, so it may be a lot of things combined that is causing this.
All in all, the doctor said that he will probably feel "crummy" when he wakes up, but at least he's finally going to be awake!!!
Love,
Melissa
PS. His white blood cells are down to 1000, now.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Tuesday Morning
Hi Everyone,
Eric continues to hold his clotting capabilities steady, and his white blood cells have dropped low enough to start giving him the second medicine in his treatment. It's a pill called ATRA, and it's a derivative of vitamin A. I don't think it's supposed to be as tramatic on his body as the chemo was, but I need to ask a few more questions about it. Two days ago, the doctor warned us that Eric has 100% chance of getting an infection, and sure enough, he started getting a fever yesterday and kept it up all night. Right now, it's at about 102 deg F. They've been giving him a broad spectrum of antibiotics, but now they're also taking cultures of his blood to try to target a specific one. In the meantime, it's Tylenol, cold packs, and and a cooling blanket for Eric. Again, I'm glad he won't remember this along with all the other nasty things from this past week. On the bright side, they have knocked his % O2 ventilator setting down to 50% (from 55%). Slow and steady wins the race, right? Also, they switched one of his sedatives yesterday to another one that is easier to ween people off of. This is in preparation of him waking up. I have my doubts it will be before Christmas, but that's ok. We'll just have to extend Christmas this year for as long as we need to. I'm quite alright with leaving my Christmas tree up all year... it was hard enough putting it up, none-the-less taking it down! Ok ok, I only put the tree up. My wonderful brother and soon to be sister-in-law decorated it while I did quality control from the couch. My two high school friends, Minh-Bao and Becky, helped with ornaments, and Mom took care of getting all of the supplies. Thanks again to everyone.
We've been getting so many nice cards from people. Thanks for your thoughtfulness; it really does brighten the day.
Love,
Melissa
Eric continues to hold his clotting capabilities steady, and his white blood cells have dropped low enough to start giving him the second medicine in his treatment. It's a pill called ATRA, and it's a derivative of vitamin A. I don't think it's supposed to be as tramatic on his body as the chemo was, but I need to ask a few more questions about it. Two days ago, the doctor warned us that Eric has 100% chance of getting an infection, and sure enough, he started getting a fever yesterday and kept it up all night. Right now, it's at about 102 deg F. They've been giving him a broad spectrum of antibiotics, but now they're also taking cultures of his blood to try to target a specific one. In the meantime, it's Tylenol, cold packs, and and a cooling blanket for Eric. Again, I'm glad he won't remember this along with all the other nasty things from this past week. On the bright side, they have knocked his % O2 ventilator setting down to 50% (from 55%). Slow and steady wins the race, right? Also, they switched one of his sedatives yesterday to another one that is easier to ween people off of. This is in preparation of him waking up. I have my doubts it will be before Christmas, but that's ok. We'll just have to extend Christmas this year for as long as we need to. I'm quite alright with leaving my Christmas tree up all year... it was hard enough putting it up, none-the-less taking it down! Ok ok, I only put the tree up. My wonderful brother and soon to be sister-in-law decorated it while I did quality control from the couch. My two high school friends, Minh-Bao and Becky, helped with ornaments, and Mom took care of getting all of the supplies. Thanks again to everyone.
We've been getting so many nice cards from people. Thanks for your thoughtfulness; it really does brighten the day.
Love,
Melissa
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Calm Sunday
Hi everyone,
Eric had a very calm Sunday...no major problems. Eric had his 4th and final chemo treatment today. It's a good thing he will have no memory of the chemo treatments. The nurses were able to lower his oxygen help to 55% O2 and 10 PEEP (Goal: 30% O2 and 8 PEEP). This is the right direction to get him off the ventilator. We are really hoping he will be off the ventilator on Wed. It's hard to believe none of us have talked to him in over a week. Or I guess I should say, we've talked to him, but he hasn't talked back.
The hematologist warned us today that Eric is very, very likely to develop an infection because his white blood cell count is so low. The chemo has done its job killing off the white blood cells, but this leaves his body open to infections. We are hoping he amazes them again and skips the infection phase.
As Eric's condition has improved, we have started to catch up on sleep here. We are all starting to feel better.
Love,
Sara
Eric had a very calm Sunday...no major problems. Eric had his 4th and final chemo treatment today. It's a good thing he will have no memory of the chemo treatments. The nurses were able to lower his oxygen help to 55% O2 and 10 PEEP (Goal: 30% O2 and 8 PEEP). This is the right direction to get him off the ventilator. We are really hoping he will be off the ventilator on Wed. It's hard to believe none of us have talked to him in over a week. Or I guess I should say, we've talked to him, but he hasn't talked back.
The hematologist warned us today that Eric is very, very likely to develop an infection because his white blood cell count is so low. The chemo has done its job killing off the white blood cells, but this leaves his body open to infections. We are hoping he amazes them again and skips the infection phase.
As Eric's condition has improved, we have started to catch up on sleep here. We are all starting to feel better.
Love,
Sara
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Hematologist is "very happy with Eric's progress"
Hi everyone,
We've had a progressive Saturday here. Eric's numbers continue to improve. The hematologist said at 2:30pm today that he was very happy with Eric's progress. Eric hasn't needed blood products (red blood cells, platelets, or plasma) in over 12 hours. His body is holding its own.
Eric has one more chemo treatment scheduled for Sunday. The doctor expects Eric's cancerous cells to drop to the point (from 20,000 blasts today to 5,000 blasts) where they can begin phase two of the treatment mid-next week.
The primary objective today is to reduce the fluid his body is retaining. They have been pumping him with 6000 ml of fluid every day, and he is only getting rid of 2000 ml of fluid. Due to the fluid retention, his weight has gone up by 40 lbs. They know this because his bed can measure his weight. And yes, Eric has cankles. : ) For the first time in my life, I'm not the only one in my family that gains 40 lbs the week of Christmas.
Eric is still struggling to get enough oxygen. The doctors are now thinking that his lung inflammation (causing the breathing problems) is just a side effect of the excess fluid. The same swelling we are seeing in his feet and arms is also happening in his lungs. We hope that is true. Once the fluid retention is under control and breathing becomes easier, Eric can come off the ventilator. Which means he can wake up and talk to us.
Thank you to Louis & Vera Stumpf and Becky May for the cards. We received them yesterday and today.
Melissa is feeling better. She is trying to stay away from the hospital to protect Eric. I know it's really hard for her. Hopefully she is feeling well tomorrow and can come back.
Love,
Sara
We've had a progressive Saturday here. Eric's numbers continue to improve. The hematologist said at 2:30pm today that he was very happy with Eric's progress. Eric hasn't needed blood products (red blood cells, platelets, or plasma) in over 12 hours. His body is holding its own.
Eric has one more chemo treatment scheduled for Sunday. The doctor expects Eric's cancerous cells to drop to the point (from 20,000 blasts today to 5,000 blasts) where they can begin phase two of the treatment mid-next week.
The primary objective today is to reduce the fluid his body is retaining. They have been pumping him with 6000 ml of fluid every day, and he is only getting rid of 2000 ml of fluid. Due to the fluid retention, his weight has gone up by 40 lbs. They know this because his bed can measure his weight. And yes, Eric has cankles. : ) For the first time in my life, I'm not the only one in my family that gains 40 lbs the week of Christmas.
Eric is still struggling to get enough oxygen. The doctors are now thinking that his lung inflammation (causing the breathing problems) is just a side effect of the excess fluid. The same swelling we are seeing in his feet and arms is also happening in his lungs. We hope that is true. Once the fluid retention is under control and breathing becomes easier, Eric can come off the ventilator. Which means he can wake up and talk to us.
Thank you to Louis & Vera Stumpf and Becky May for the cards. We received them yesterday and today.
Melissa is feeling better. She is trying to stay away from the hospital to protect Eric. I know it's really hard for her. Hopefully she is feeling well tomorrow and can come back.
Love,
Sara
Friday, December 18, 2009
Quick Friday Night Update
Eric remains in a stable condition. The doctor is able to back off on how many blood products he is receiving, also! He had his third dose of chemo this afternoon and his white blood cells are down to 31.5 thousand -- it just keeps dropping! He has only one more dose in this round of chemo on Sunday. He had some more minor complications with his ventilation tubes last night, so he is back up to a high percentage of oxygen being delivered. The respiratory therapist said that the chemo could make his lungs worse for a little while till the rest of his body catches up, so this is to be expected. Overall, he seems to be resting comfortably, which is absolutely great and is following all the right trends.
As for me, I left the hospital last night when my throat started feeling strange, and it turns out I came down with strep throat... fantastic timing, right? The good news is that I was able to start taking medicine today and have been getting a lot of sleep at home in Lafayette. I just hope I didn't pass anything on to the rest of the family. I shouldn't be contagious for too much longer, so that is good, too. I promise to give a more thorough update once I get some more sleep and get back to the hospital.
Melissa
As for me, I left the hospital last night when my throat started feeling strange, and it turns out I came down with strep throat... fantastic timing, right? The good news is that I was able to start taking medicine today and have been getting a lot of sleep at home in Lafayette. I just hope I didn't pass anything on to the rest of the family. I shouldn't be contagious for too much longer, so that is good, too. I promise to give a more thorough update once I get some more sleep and get back to the hospital.
Melissa
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Another move and more good news
They just now moved Eric back up to the MICU on the 6th floor (room B8). If you sent a card to the other room, it will still find him.
The nurses on the new floor are qualified to give him chemo. The other floor we had to request nurses to give him the chemo drip. He continues to be stable and is looking much more comfortable. I think getting the new bed and having no more problems with the ventilation tube has helped out a ton! Plus, the new bed is just cool! I think Sara talked about it in her previous post.
I don't have new updates on his blood counts other than the white blood cells. They are now down to 53,000 (from 100,000+ when he checked in) and continue to drop. The doctor said that his other counts remain fine and they are doing everything they can to pump more blood products into him. The doctor looks more confident everyday he comes in to see him, which is also reassuring. He explained to us yesterday that the cancer cells cause a reaction in his body that attacks the platelets and clotting factors, so that whole problem will start getting easier and easier to manage as the chemo keeps working. They did mention that they don't think he will get off the ventilator until mid next week. Obviously, we had hoped that he'd be off it sooner so that he can be awake, but if that is what it takes (and the worst news we get), I'll take it!
We also discussed more about what will happen once he is moved to the oncology ward. (This will happen once he is off the ventilator.) They said that they really encourage family and friends to come visit him. Obviously if you are sick, you will not be allowed inside, but otherwise it really helps patients get through the recovery period. They even allow pets to come visit, so he'll get to see Bailey! While he is in the ICU, though, they limit the number of people that can see him to two, so please wait to come visit until he is more stable and able to be off the ventilator. Other than that, there are no more updates. We just need to continue to wait and monitor his blood to get him everything that he needs. This is a big lesson in pantience for me. I feel like I can't wait to hear the latest blood counts, can't wait for the next round of chemo, can't wait till they drop the settings on the ventilator a little more, can't wait till he gets to wake up. I really don't want to rush him, but I just want things NOW! Somehow I don't think stomping my foot and throwing a temper tantrum like I used to do as a kid will speed anything up, though.
I also wanted to thank everyone for your posts, emails, phone calls and cards. It really is very cheering to hear from everyone and know that we are cared for.
Love as always,
Melissa
PS the doctor also mentioned that he's really excited to see Eric stand up. He honestly didn't believe us at first when we told him Eric's height and weight. He had to see how his legs were tucked up in the bed to confirm it for himself.
The nurses on the new floor are qualified to give him chemo. The other floor we had to request nurses to give him the chemo drip. He continues to be stable and is looking much more comfortable. I think getting the new bed and having no more problems with the ventilation tube has helped out a ton! Plus, the new bed is just cool! I think Sara talked about it in her previous post.
I don't have new updates on his blood counts other than the white blood cells. They are now down to 53,000 (from 100,000+ when he checked in) and continue to drop. The doctor said that his other counts remain fine and they are doing everything they can to pump more blood products into him. The doctor looks more confident everyday he comes in to see him, which is also reassuring. He explained to us yesterday that the cancer cells cause a reaction in his body that attacks the platelets and clotting factors, so that whole problem will start getting easier and easier to manage as the chemo keeps working. They did mention that they don't think he will get off the ventilator until mid next week. Obviously, we had hoped that he'd be off it sooner so that he can be awake, but if that is what it takes (and the worst news we get), I'll take it!
We also discussed more about what will happen once he is moved to the oncology ward. (This will happen once he is off the ventilator.) They said that they really encourage family and friends to come visit him. Obviously if you are sick, you will not be allowed inside, but otherwise it really helps patients get through the recovery period. They even allow pets to come visit, so he'll get to see Bailey! While he is in the ICU, though, they limit the number of people that can see him to two, so please wait to come visit until he is more stable and able to be off the ventilator. Other than that, there are no more updates. We just need to continue to wait and monitor his blood to get him everything that he needs. This is a big lesson in pantience for me. I feel like I can't wait to hear the latest blood counts, can't wait for the next round of chemo, can't wait till they drop the settings on the ventilator a little more, can't wait till he gets to wake up. I really don't want to rush him, but I just want things NOW! Somehow I don't think stomping my foot and throwing a temper tantrum like I used to do as a kid will speed anything up, though.
I also wanted to thank everyone for your posts, emails, phone calls and cards. It really is very cheering to hear from everyone and know that we are cared for.
Love as always,
Melissa
PS the doctor also mentioned that he's really excited to see Eric stand up. He honestly didn't believe us at first when we told him Eric's height and weight. He had to see how his legs were tucked up in the bed to confirm it for himself.
Big Boy Bed and Stable Condition
Hi everyone,
Overall, we had a successful Wednesday in the ICU. We are still in TICU Room 4A.
We started Tues night with a new bed, so Eric's feet no longer hang off the end. :) Our excellent night nurse found this longer bed that also rotates his upper body to move the fluid in his lungs around. This has made Eric much more comfortable.
We continued to fiddle with the breathing tube during the early Wed morning hours, finally changing the tube for the 2nd time. This 3rd tube is longer, has a larger diameter, and is working well. They are just not use to someone of Eric's height. A normal size tube didn't work for him. So...some early morning hours of frustration and anxiety on our part, because we were fighting the equipment not the actual lack of oxygen. In the end, this 3rd tube has resolved the equipment issues.
Eric continued to receive sedation meds, pain meds, plasma, and platelets throughout the day. He is also on Insulin to counteract the sugar in the meds. Eric continues to get multiple X-rays daily to check the fluid in his lungs. It's funny, they have a portable X-ray machine that rolls into the room. They have to take two X-rays, because the usual one picture can't capture the entire length of his lungs. In general Eric was very relaxed all day enabling Melissa to take a short nap in the afternoon.
Eric received his 2nd chemo treatment around 1pm. He is taking the chemo treatments very well, having zero negative reactions/symptoms to the treatment. This is a real benefit of being heavily sedated.
Eric started a feeding tube around 3pm, the first food since Sunday. Also we were able to bump down the % of oxygen being feed into the breathing tube from 100 to 70 to 50%. This is good news, meaning Eric is able to breath in more oxygen on his own. We need to be able to get down to 30% oxygen feed before the breathing tube can be removed.
Around 5pm, Eric's hematology doctor (who we really like) added an additional drug to help blood clot in the digestive tract. All the breathing tube issues caused bleeding that the doctor was concerned about. The doctor informed us that Eric's white blood cells (or leukemic cells) are down from 80,000 to 50,000. This is great news!!! We want to be around 5,000. The doctor also called Eric stable, which we were excited to hear.
Melissa is getting a much needed good night sleep on Wed night. I am so grateful to have such a loving, dedicated, strong sister-in-law; who has weathered this with grace, intelligence, and very very little sleep. Melissa is amazing. Eric is so lucky to have her. Thank you for all the emails, phone calls, and support. It is so wonderful to have great friends and family.
Love,
Sara [Eric's older and wiser (or so I keep telling him) sister]
Overall, we had a successful Wednesday in the ICU. We are still in TICU Room 4A.
We started Tues night with a new bed, so Eric's feet no longer hang off the end. :) Our excellent night nurse found this longer bed that also rotates his upper body to move the fluid in his lungs around. This has made Eric much more comfortable.
We continued to fiddle with the breathing tube during the early Wed morning hours, finally changing the tube for the 2nd time. This 3rd tube is longer, has a larger diameter, and is working well. They are just not use to someone of Eric's height. A normal size tube didn't work for him. So...some early morning hours of frustration and anxiety on our part, because we were fighting the equipment not the actual lack of oxygen. In the end, this 3rd tube has resolved the equipment issues.
Eric continued to receive sedation meds, pain meds, plasma, and platelets throughout the day. He is also on Insulin to counteract the sugar in the meds. Eric continues to get multiple X-rays daily to check the fluid in his lungs. It's funny, they have a portable X-ray machine that rolls into the room. They have to take two X-rays, because the usual one picture can't capture the entire length of his lungs. In general Eric was very relaxed all day enabling Melissa to take a short nap in the afternoon.
Eric received his 2nd chemo treatment around 1pm. He is taking the chemo treatments very well, having zero negative reactions/symptoms to the treatment. This is a real benefit of being heavily sedated.
Eric started a feeding tube around 3pm, the first food since Sunday. Also we were able to bump down the % of oxygen being feed into the breathing tube from 100 to 70 to 50%. This is good news, meaning Eric is able to breath in more oxygen on his own. We need to be able to get down to 30% oxygen feed before the breathing tube can be removed.
Around 5pm, Eric's hematology doctor (who we really like) added an additional drug to help blood clot in the digestive tract. All the breathing tube issues caused bleeding that the doctor was concerned about. The doctor informed us that Eric's white blood cells (or leukemic cells) are down from 80,000 to 50,000. This is great news!!! We want to be around 5,000. The doctor also called Eric stable, which we were excited to hear.
Melissa is getting a much needed good night sleep on Wed night. I am so grateful to have such a loving, dedicated, strong sister-in-law; who has weathered this with grace, intelligence, and very very little sleep. Melissa is amazing. Eric is so lucky to have her. Thank you for all the emails, phone calls, and support. It is so wonderful to have great friends and family.
Love,
Sara [Eric's older and wiser (or so I keep telling him) sister]
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Tuesday December 15th
Eric had mentioned a couple days ago that it would probably be beneficial to create a blog of his progress.
For those of you who haven't heard, Eric was officially diagnosed with leukemia. The type of leukemia is called Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) subset M3. This subset is also called promyeloid leukemia, so sometimes you will see APL in literature. Discovering that he had this subset was really good news for him, because they have a very good success rate with curing this disease, and will probably only need a few rounds of chemo. This disease comes on very fast.
Thurs Dec 3 - Thurs Dec 10
We had first really started noticing bruises around the beginning of the month (a week ago Thursday). By Saturday, he started getting pretty bad headaches that wouldn't go away, and feeling a little feverish. He felt well enough to go to work all last week, and only occasionally complained of headaches. Although, Eric never really complains much about ANY sort of pain. By Tuesday, he had gotten a lot more bruises and red spots on his legs, for no reason. I've since learned that these spots are called purpura (1-3 cm in diameter) and the little pin prick red dots are called petachiae.
Fri Dec 11
We started getting worried, and he went in to see the family doctor mid-day on Friday (Dec 11). They right away put him in the Clarian-Arnett hospital in Lafayette to do some blood work, since those signs could have meant any number of things. He was still feeling really well, and I basically had to wrestle the keys away from him to drive him to the hospital. I also had to put my foot down NOT to bring his work laptop into the hospital with him.
Later that night, we found out that night that his platelet count (one of the things in blood that is used to form clots) were VERY low (he had roughly 10,000 per dL when normal is 150,000) and his white blood cell count was VERY high (he had a little over 100,000 when normal is 5,000 - 10,000). The oncologist there came to see us and tell us that he suspected leukemia, and that a bone marrow biopsy was needed to confirm the diagnosis. He was very nice and answered a lot of our questions. Obviously we were surprised and shocked, but you know Eric, he took it in stride and wouldn't let it bring him down. He kept joking around with the nurses (yes, some of them were cute).
Things moved pretty fast then. He was transported to Indiana University Hospital in Indianapolis to get the best treatment in the area. Of course he had all sorts of stories about the ambulance ride on the way down (apparently it maxed out at 85... he WOULD be the one thinking of this kind of thing) and complained at the end that he didn't get any cool meds on the way down (joking of course). We spent the night in the ICU, where they started giving him blood products (platelets, plasma (blood juice with clotting factors in it) and cryoprecipitates (more clotting factors with fibrinogen)). These were all to get his blood to clot better, which is why he had been bruising.
Sat Dec 12 - Sun Dec 13
They decided the next day (probably after another one of his jokes) that he was entirely too healthy for the ICU and moved us to the PCU, which is a step down. We had a fairly uneventful couple of days where they kept giving him blood products to improve his numbers and a drug called hydroxyurea that is supposed to attack the bad white blood cells that are cancerous. Sunday night, he took a couple speedy laps around the PCU floor, and when I say speedy, I mean SPEEDY.
Mon Dec 14
Early Monday morning (around 2 am) he started having trouble breathing. Apparently, the cancer had caused some problems with he lungs and was blocking off part of it. So even though he was taking breaths, he was not getting enough oxygen in his blood. This all meant that he had to be sedated and had a ventilation tube put down his throat. I have to admit, this was pretty scary. I don't want to go into too much detail, because he is doing much better now and I'd rather not think of it anymore. He is still on the ventilator and uncounscious, but I guess he is more comfortable that way. They were able to do his bone marrow biospsy -- they said that his bone was so strong that it actually bent the needle, which they had never seen before. He is such a stong, healthy guy. The hemotologist that is working with us is very nice, and is good about explaining everything to us and letting us ask questions. He was very honest and said that this week is the highest risk for him. Since his blood's clotting capability is not good at all, if he starts to bleed, he will not be able to stop. However, since they've been giving him the blood products, he is doing much much better.
Tue Dec 15
The doctor said Tues morning that with his blood counts, he could take him to surgery if needed and be alright, but his body is not maintaining these numbers and will not be able to maintain them until the white blood cell count is brought down with chemo. He already had one dose of chemo yesterday at 1 pm, and is scheduled for more doses on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. This should kill off pretty much all of the cancer, and he'll be given 3 to 4 more weeks of recovery time in the hospital. They said that they used to send patients home at this time, but always had complications with bleeding and infection, so they want to keep him here to watch his more carefully. He can get what he needs a lot faster that way. We are paying close attention to his blood numbers, and as of right now (5 pm on Tuesday) they are:
Platelets (clotting): 78,000 (normal number is 150,000 but they are happy with 50,000)
Fibrinogen (clotting factor): 162 (they want anything higher than 150)
INR (internation ratio for clotting capability): 1.57 (they want it to be less than 1.4) Since it is a ratio, normal is 1, and anything higher means thinner blood.
White blood cells, WBCs (these include the cancerous cells, called blasts): 97,200 (normaly is 5 - 10 thousand)
Once we get his WBCs down with the chemo, the cancerous cells will stop attacking the platelets and other clotting factors, which will get us out of this high risk time. Also, they can start giving him the vitamin A derivative pill (also called retinoic acid or ATRA) which will help the chemo even more.
All in all, it has been rough the last couple of days. It is hard seeing him like this, but I know he is much more comfortable this way. I'll be really happy when he is breathing well enough on his own to take him off the ventilator. We've been talking to him and holding his hands. He does respond to us, which is comforting. The nurses occasionally bring him up enough for him to open his eyes, squeeze his hands, wiggle his toes and move head just to make sure he is alright. This morning, when he was more aware, he was able to shake his head no when we asked if he was in pain, and to nod his head when I said I loved him.
Luckily, he will not remember any of these last couple days, which includes the biopsy and his first round of chemo. I'm just anxious to see him awake and able to talk with me once more. Every day that goes by makes us that much closer to getting out of the high risk time. We've been getting so many well wishes and love from so many people. We really are blessed with having so many good people care for us. People are asking about what to do or send. We cannot receive fresh fruit or flowers, and right now your support and prayers are what we need.
He is currently in room A4 of the TICU on the 4th floor. They are really limiting the number of people who can see him due to risk of infection and the fact that he needs so much care. He is type A negative. People have been asking about how to go about donating for him. I believe everything is done through the Red Cross, and I'm not sure if you can request a recipient. But I know first hand how desperately people can need blood products and every little bit helps.
I love you all, and I'll try to keep this updated as time goes on.
Melissa
For those of you who haven't heard, Eric was officially diagnosed with leukemia. The type of leukemia is called Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) subset M3. This subset is also called promyeloid leukemia, so sometimes you will see APL in literature. Discovering that he had this subset was really good news for him, because they have a very good success rate with curing this disease, and will probably only need a few rounds of chemo. This disease comes on very fast.
Thurs Dec 3 - Thurs Dec 10
We had first really started noticing bruises around the beginning of the month (a week ago Thursday). By Saturday, he started getting pretty bad headaches that wouldn't go away, and feeling a little feverish. He felt well enough to go to work all last week, and only occasionally complained of headaches. Although, Eric never really complains much about ANY sort of pain. By Tuesday, he had gotten a lot more bruises and red spots on his legs, for no reason. I've since learned that these spots are called purpura (1-3 cm in diameter) and the little pin prick red dots are called petachiae.
Fri Dec 11
We started getting worried, and he went in to see the family doctor mid-day on Friday (Dec 11). They right away put him in the Clarian-Arnett hospital in Lafayette to do some blood work, since those signs could have meant any number of things. He was still feeling really well, and I basically had to wrestle the keys away from him to drive him to the hospital. I also had to put my foot down NOT to bring his work laptop into the hospital with him.
Later that night, we found out that night that his platelet count (one of the things in blood that is used to form clots) were VERY low (he had roughly 10,000 per dL when normal is 150,000) and his white blood cell count was VERY high (he had a little over 100,000 when normal is 5,000 - 10,000). The oncologist there came to see us and tell us that he suspected leukemia, and that a bone marrow biopsy was needed to confirm the diagnosis. He was very nice and answered a lot of our questions. Obviously we were surprised and shocked, but you know Eric, he took it in stride and wouldn't let it bring him down. He kept joking around with the nurses (yes, some of them were cute).
Things moved pretty fast then. He was transported to Indiana University Hospital in Indianapolis to get the best treatment in the area. Of course he had all sorts of stories about the ambulance ride on the way down (apparently it maxed out at 85... he WOULD be the one thinking of this kind of thing) and complained at the end that he didn't get any cool meds on the way down (joking of course). We spent the night in the ICU, where they started giving him blood products (platelets, plasma (blood juice with clotting factors in it) and cryoprecipitates (more clotting factors with fibrinogen)). These were all to get his blood to clot better, which is why he had been bruising.
Sat Dec 12 - Sun Dec 13
They decided the next day (probably after another one of his jokes) that he was entirely too healthy for the ICU and moved us to the PCU, which is a step down. We had a fairly uneventful couple of days where they kept giving him blood products to improve his numbers and a drug called hydroxyurea that is supposed to attack the bad white blood cells that are cancerous. Sunday night, he took a couple speedy laps around the PCU floor, and when I say speedy, I mean SPEEDY.
Mon Dec 14
Early Monday morning (around 2 am) he started having trouble breathing. Apparently, the cancer had caused some problems with he lungs and was blocking off part of it. So even though he was taking breaths, he was not getting enough oxygen in his blood. This all meant that he had to be sedated and had a ventilation tube put down his throat. I have to admit, this was pretty scary. I don't want to go into too much detail, because he is doing much better now and I'd rather not think of it anymore. He is still on the ventilator and uncounscious, but I guess he is more comfortable that way. They were able to do his bone marrow biospsy -- they said that his bone was so strong that it actually bent the needle, which they had never seen before. He is such a stong, healthy guy. The hemotologist that is working with us is very nice, and is good about explaining everything to us and letting us ask questions. He was very honest and said that this week is the highest risk for him. Since his blood's clotting capability is not good at all, if he starts to bleed, he will not be able to stop. However, since they've been giving him the blood products, he is doing much much better.
Tue Dec 15
The doctor said Tues morning that with his blood counts, he could take him to surgery if needed and be alright, but his body is not maintaining these numbers and will not be able to maintain them until the white blood cell count is brought down with chemo. He already had one dose of chemo yesterday at 1 pm, and is scheduled for more doses on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. This should kill off pretty much all of the cancer, and he'll be given 3 to 4 more weeks of recovery time in the hospital. They said that they used to send patients home at this time, but always had complications with bleeding and infection, so they want to keep him here to watch his more carefully. He can get what he needs a lot faster that way. We are paying close attention to his blood numbers, and as of right now (5 pm on Tuesday) they are:
Platelets (clotting): 78,000 (normal number is 150,000 but they are happy with 50,000)
Fibrinogen (clotting factor): 162 (they want anything higher than 150)
INR (internation ratio for clotting capability): 1.57 (they want it to be less than 1.4) Since it is a ratio, normal is 1, and anything higher means thinner blood.
White blood cells, WBCs (these include the cancerous cells, called blasts): 97,200 (normaly is 5 - 10 thousand)
Once we get his WBCs down with the chemo, the cancerous cells will stop attacking the platelets and other clotting factors, which will get us out of this high risk time. Also, they can start giving him the vitamin A derivative pill (also called retinoic acid or ATRA) which will help the chemo even more.
All in all, it has been rough the last couple of days. It is hard seeing him like this, but I know he is much more comfortable this way. I'll be really happy when he is breathing well enough on his own to take him off the ventilator. We've been talking to him and holding his hands. He does respond to us, which is comforting. The nurses occasionally bring him up enough for him to open his eyes, squeeze his hands, wiggle his toes and move head just to make sure he is alright. This morning, when he was more aware, he was able to shake his head no when we asked if he was in pain, and to nod his head when I said I loved him.
Luckily, he will not remember any of these last couple days, which includes the biopsy and his first round of chemo. I'm just anxious to see him awake and able to talk with me once more. Every day that goes by makes us that much closer to getting out of the high risk time. We've been getting so many well wishes and love from so many people. We really are blessed with having so many good people care for us. People are asking about what to do or send. We cannot receive fresh fruit or flowers, and right now your support and prayers are what we need.
He is currently in room A4 of the TICU on the 4th floor. They are really limiting the number of people who can see him due to risk of infection and the fact that he needs so much care. He is type A negative. People have been asking about how to go about donating for him. I believe everything is done through the Red Cross, and I'm not sure if you can request a recipient. But I know first hand how desperately people can need blood products and every little bit helps.
I love you all, and I'll try to keep this updated as time goes on.
Melissa
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