Three months since diagnosis

Rockin' out revisited

The boys taking a break

To many people the past three months may have just flown by, to us it has been the slowest three months of our lives. It’s hard to recall where we were (mentally) when this all began. I think each one of us in our family has changed a bit. Unfortunately, a little of the innocence has vanished from the boys because they’ve had to face this very serious situation head-on. As much as Matt and I have tried to make things as normal as possible, our daily routine is not what we used to do or what anyone else we know is doing. It’s pretty incredible the things we never imagined being able to do or endure, which we do on a regular basis now. People email and write letters to us all the time saying they can’t believe what we are going through and they wouldn’t be able to do it, but you do. There is no other choice. And from the beginning we knew we would accomplish nothing if we took the approach of “why us? or why Carter?” We just know what needs to be done, and we are taking it day by day to get it accomplished. It is Carter who is leading the way. As he is being pumped full of chemo drugs and has several IV tubes coming from his body, he is the one joking around with us. He is making light of the situation, because that’s what kids do. Carter doesn’t know how to be negative or feel sorry for himself, so why should we.

We spoke with CHOC today and got great blood work results from our Wednesday lab work. Carter’s ANC (the one that was zero for 5 days and we couldn’t leave the hospital) is the highest it has been since beginning treatment. It is 7,200! No wonder he seems to feel so good right now. Matt and I think the G-CSF is probably helping this as well. Unfortunately, tomorrow is our last day taking it. Most patients have their lowest point 7-14 days after the first day of chemo in a cycle. This would mean Carter would be through this low point on Monday. Well, from the past three previous rounds of chemo Carter’s low point was the following week. This is when we always ended up in the ER with a fever. So, we are very apprehensive about ending this drug tomorrow, especially with a transplant call that could happen at any moment. Fortunately, the doctors know our concern and are going to be checking his blood work closely in case we need to go back on G-CSF. We’ll be going to the clinic for blood work on Monday, then back on Wednesday for chemo and more blood work. In the meantime, we’re hoping to just enjoy a nice and calm weekend…unless, of course, a liver comes calling!