… of every moment. That’s pretty much how Austin lives his life. We checked in yesterday morning, after a quick trip to the out-patient clinic to verify that his platelets were indeed high enough for chemo. Everything has gone smoothly and we expect to be released shortly after lunch tomorrow. (I probably shouldn’t even say […]
Mark and I went to the Rainbow Babies & Children’s Gala this past Saturday and while we were there, I bumped into a mother I had met on the floor during Austin’s first round of cancer. Her daughter also had Wilms but was diagnosed at a much older age, which is unusual for this disease […]
Austin’s GFR results were 34. Right … no typo there: 34. Almost as bad as the result last month that necessitated a retest. And not nearly the still-not-fabulous-but-definitely-acceptable 66. Here’s what this means in the world of kidneys: He can still get this next chemo, which is scheduled to start on Thursday, but it needs […]
I have some answers to the what-can-I-do-to-help question and this time not one of them involves going bald! First, and this one is relatively easy no matter where you live, give blood. Austin has been using up his fair share from the blood bank lately so it seems like we ought to refill the coffers […]
It’s not all doom and gloom around here, folks. We’ve had a great week. Austin went to school every day (well, his school is only Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, but it’s been a while since he’s done even that “full week”). And not a tear out of him. Only many many smiles. Especially on Wednesday […]
I know, you’ve been waiting for some big revelation or major announcement after yesterday’s meeting. Well, we’re mulling, with no decision yet. Although I will tell you that both of us walked in there leaning towards stopping chemo and both of us walked out leaning towards continuing. It’s not what we want, of course. More […]
Surprise, surprise, Austin needed platelets again today. But until after a lovely morning at school. He didn’t even cry when I left him, which is a rarity. It’s been a struggle to fully acclimate him to preschool since every time he gets into a groove there, he’s pulled out again for a three week “vacation.” […]
First of all, yes, we are home; Mark and Austin were released by 10 o’clock this morning after several good blood pressures in a row. His nephrologist noted that the overnight hydration coincided with the spike in his BP, which makes sense because those fluids are basically saline, containing, duh, sodium! So after all that […]
This is like some big cosmic joke. Last night was fine: typical, long, with many interruptions for checking blood pressure and administering medications. In between the two bags of blood, he was given a diruetic to lower his blood pressure so he peed through his diaper (twice) and we neeeded to change the sheets at […]
Three guesses where I’m spending the night … We went in this morning for labs and found that his platelets have risen, slightly. His hemoglobin was a bit lower though, so he needed both blood and platelets. It’s not unusual, you know, to need blood products when you’re receiving chemo — it does destroy blood […]