Day 25 - So long February

I have never been so happy to say GOODBYE to a month.

Dad will start his fourth night of chemo tonight. He is running a fever and had a headache today while we were there. He was really trying to eat something and got some turkey and stuffing down and some cherry slushy. I think his mouth has improved and his will is there to want to eat, but his head was just brutal.

The numbers are holding. He will get transfused some blood tonight if the fever can come down some. His white blood cells are back down to .2, which is pretty much 0. They had gone up to 1.5 or so earlier in the week, which is okay, I guess, considering he started out at 43.0 and above.

They are really monitoring his fluid intake and outake and have given a diuretic again. He was on oxygen part of the day too, which seems to go hand in hand with the fever.

That's about it for today - nothing huge, which hey! I'll take it.

Let's hope March holds true to tradition - comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.

Day 24 - Chemo Back Up and Running

They actually re-started Dad's chemo last night and then they'll run another round through him tonight. That would be day two and three of this five day sequence.

I didn't get up to visit until 4:30 today and brought another slushy. The first thing Dad asked me was if I had my computer with me and I didn't. He wants to check out this blog - so people he'll be reading this one! ha ha! Send me some comments for him and I'll show him the posts.

The only other news is he ate a baked potato today and iced teas, gatorade, and some slushy. He dissed my Peanut Butter cup that I brought in. I swear, I didn't know he didn't like those. Oh well!

He is back to running a low grade fever, which seems to be typical with chemo treatment (at least for him). His kidney results must have come back normal or else they wouldn't have done the chemo last night. They did another EKG today to check his heart and are constantly checking his oxygen levels and vitals. The chemo last night really took a lot out of him today, I guess, because he was pretty sleepy. He didn't fall asleep while I was there, but I heard he was dozing on Ethan's visit (ha ha! See I am the favorite! Just kidding!).

Anyways, we're inundated with girl scout cookies at our house, so if you ordered from us, we'll be hitting you up soon - or else, you risk the chance of your order being eaten around here!

Day 23

Nothing much new to report. Dad had his Doppler today and they're awaiting those results. Until that happens, everything is kind of on hold. The number that jumped was his Creatinine number. It went up to a 2 something and normal is under 1.5, I think. Anyways, that's what tipped them off to the kidney issue.

Dad is growing a little peach fuzz back on his head - pretty good. His hands are pealing really bad from that red hand side effect last week.

He managed to get down some of a slushy from Sonic that I brought in and said it tasted pretty good. He commented that the fish fry I'm going to tonight sounded good, too, so maybe his appetite is coming back a little.

Just another day in oncology, so check back later for something more exciting.

Thanks for all the prayers and support - we know you are all there for us.

Day 22 - Chemo Interrupted

First of all, Happy 6th Birthday to my niece Mia. I can't believe she's 6!

Okay, the daily report. Apparently, the doctor who's been on my Dad's rotation this past week (Dr. Walters) came in today and said they were going to stop the chemo for now. Dad's kidney numbers came back with some concerns (I think that's his creatinine levels, but will check tomorrow when I can go up to the hospital). They are doing some tests to see what's going on and change up his antibiotics. The doctor assured them that stopping the chemo wouldn't inhibit his progress. Personally, I don't understand that, but okay - they're the experts. They are going to do a Doppler to rule out a blockage too.

Dr. Walters also told them that he was switching rotation again - they do this every week or so and that Dr. Cashon was coming back on to Dad's case. They liked her too. He also said Dr. Cashon would be the oncologist Dad saw in clinic as an outpatient.

Just as an information point - the new chemo cocktail they did last night was cytarabine, mitoxantrone and etopicide. They might switch that once they figure out the kidney issue because some of those drugs have adverse side effects on the kidneys in some patients.

Thanks for your thoughts today and for straying onto the blog to see what's new. Keep the cards coming for my Dad, he enjoys them and visitors too.

Evening Edition - (last night, posted this AM)

Talked to Mom a little more tonight. This round of chemo is a series of two and a half hour treatments, once a day. So Dad will start them at 9:30pm and they'll go until midnight. Three different drugs will be given during that time.

The doctors told them that he has a chromosomal mutation called FLT3. You can look it up for more detailed info, but basically, the FLT3 is extremely resistant to chemotherapy.

I don't know where all this leaves us. I think too much info is not always good because it blocks what we should really be focusing on. I know, for me, it's been way too much to process today. I am also going to block all websites to AML and just listen to the doctors - TMI - too much information.

More tomorrow.

Day 21 - Conference with Doctor

My parents met with the doctor this morning and they are going to start a second round of chemo today for five days. After that, he'll have to wait three weeks to have another bone marrow drawn to see if they got it all. Right now his blasts are at 30% from his bone marrow last Friday.

So, we're looking at another month in the hospital and then we'll see.

Day 20 - part deux

The doctor came by tonight to talk to my Dad. He is meeting with my parents tomorrow morning to discuss a treatment plan from here on in. Basically, the bone marrow results were not what we had hoped for. The blasts were still at 30%. Dad mentioned they may start back on the chemo tomorrow. I have a lot of questions and I'm hoping that after the meeting, they will have some more answers.

This second round of chemo they are talking about would be a combo of 3 or 4 drugs for 5 days. It would bring Dad's system even further down and open him up for even more infection. There are obviously some risks here, but what else do you do?

More tomorrow when we hear more.

Day 20

Here's the quick update. Dad's throat is still sore. Imagine a million canker sores and that's what he's dealing with. His hands are starting to peal from his yucky red hands last week. He looks kind of tired, but is holding his own. He managed to eat some jello today and drink some iced tea.

The good news is his white blood cells hit .7 today! Yeah! They were .4, remember, yesterday. That's a good sign and hopefully the neutrophils will show up soon and help him out with his sore throat.

When I left this evening, they were starting to transfuse platelets. That takes 30 minutes.

More tomorrow!

Late Numbers

Today's numbers were better.

WBC - .4
Plt- 13
Hb - 9.9
Hct - 28

He still doesn't have any neutrophils showing up which are a specific type of white blood cell that fights infection and would help him get over this throat agitation. Come on neutrophils - do your thing!

Day 19 - KOKO

A friend clued me in on the KOKO - it means Keep On Keepin' On. That's what we're doing. Went up to see Dad this morning and got him out of bed and into his recliner. I ordered some breakfast for him (an appetizing Italian ice and sherbert and a gatorade) and watched him choke down a handful of meds. HIs throat is still raw as razors.

They hooked him up to a pain pump (he finally conceded) and I'm hoping it gives him some relief today. It has to get better soon, right?

They are pushing him to get some food in him and it's hard. His energy level will begin to wane if he doesn't start putting something inside to feed his metabolism. I told him to order chicken broth for lunch and I was going to call and see how much he finished. He just laughed at me.

I know we're all nervous about his bone marrow results which should come in on Wednesday. Cross your fingers and pray for the best. Realistically, I am not expecting the first round of chemo to have completely destroyed all the blasts, but the optimist in me is still secretly hopeful that it did!

Send up a wish and a prayer today. : )

Day 18 - Weekend Follow up

Well, the bone marrow test went much better than last time on Friday. In fact, they used so much anesthetic that my Dad was pretty out of it all evening, which was good.

His throat condition has not really improved. It's actually a bad case of herpes. We all get cold sores (Herpes), but this is that, but all over your throat and mouth. I don't know if I could handle that as well as he does. Just one cold sore does me in.

Note the new pic of my Dad on the blog page. It's a good look for him - no hair. I made him a "doo rag" for experimental head coverage and it didn't fly. He thought he looked like aunt jemima - so he's going au natural.

Here are the current numbers :

WBC - . 3

Hb - 8.3

Hct - 23.6

Plt - 9

Cr - .65

Looking at the last batch of numbers I posted on Day 12 - everything is about the same except Dad's WBC (white blood cells) went up a little. They were actually a .4 on Saturday and came down to a .3 - which is normal. They are going to go up and then down a little and back up for a while. The good thing is they are starting to climb.

He will be receiving a couple units of blood tonight, platelets, potassim and magnesium in addition to the pain meds, antibiotics and other fluids. He's a pharmacy all unto himself, really.

He was tired and Mom is determined to get his butt out of bed tomorrow and walking the halls. She will too! We keep pushing the food element even though he can't swallow it easily. I was suggesting Italian ices, cottage cheese, ice cream, and gatorade. He didn't go for any of it. I am just hoping by the end of this week his mouth has improved so he CAN eat something.

More tomorrow! : )

Day 16 - Bone Marrow Test #2

Two weeks ago, they did the first bone marrow test which determined the leukemia was rampant. Today, we're hoping the results will be that the leukemia blasts are annihilated. We won't have those results until next Wednesday.

Last time, the experience was so traumatic for my Dad, that today, they told him they would knock him out - hopefully they really do. If not, I teasingly told him to "Go to your Happy Place!". He said, "the Locker Room for a beer and wings."

More later, if anything new develops.

Have a Great Weekend!

Pray for annhilation! (yes, that sounds weird, but do it)

Day 15 - My Dad, the Skinhead

So, I walked in today and low and behold, he's bald! They had just shaved his head this morning. Shockingly, he has a nice bald head. Me, I'm not so sure I could carry the look off, but Dad does it nicely.

He said he thought he looked like the little guy in the Six Flags commercials! He kind of does!

Good news, he was talking! Yeah! The steroids and the pain meds were controlling his sore throat, swelling and tongue issues. His hands also looked great. Not perfect, but much improved.

They think he'll need blood and platelets tonight based on yesterday's numbers and that seems to be the pattern - a night with them, a night without.

He's still in semi-isolation due to the bacteria he has going on.

We did take a little walk with a rest at the half way point in the family lounge. We met another family who's story about their loved one just wanted to make you cry. They are dealing with so much more - which is hard to believe, but we all (Mom, Dad and I) came out of there thinking, we were the lucky ones! Again, irony is so ever present lately.

Say a prayer for that family tonight.

The biggest news of all was Dad ate half a pancake today! YEAH! That is half a pancake more than he's eaten in 2 weeks.

Day 14 - evening report

Mom said by this evening, the steroid was kicking in and Dad was feeling some relief in his mouth. He was sitting in the "recliner" at the hospital and said it felt good to be out of the bed.

The ended up not putting the pain medication on his IV stand that had a button on it where he would control when it was administered. That's fine.

A "funny" happened apparently when the resident doctor came in to check on Dad before she left. She asked to see his tongue and when he showed her, it was black! She freaked out thinking "what is wrong with this guy now!?" and said, "oh my, your tongue is black!". My Mom started laughing and said, "he just had some purple popsicles!" and they all laughed.

Good to have some humor here!

Mom talked to the doctor about the upcoming, dreaded, bone marrow draw on Friday and expressed her concerns about how traumatic the first one was and wanting to improve this experience. The doctor didn't have much to say that appeased her. I'm pretty worried for them - it's not going to be FUN.

Day 14 - Happy Birthday Dad!

Well, this is not the easiest week my Dad will ever have. It's his birthday today, though! Yeah!

I went to visit this morning and the nurse came in right after I got there. She told me he was having a lot of swelling in his mouth and the sores were really bad. She said they were concerned since it seemed worse than usual. They took him off the lidocaine rinse he was using and the lozengers. They also put him on some IV benedryl and pain meds. They decided to switch any oral meds he is taking to IV administered versions so that he didn't have to swallow anything more than he needs to. I think they were also adding a steroid.

He can't talk because it hurts so bad and he was advised not to really eat solids because if his windpipe is swollen at all, he might choke (not good). He is on liquids and ice cream for a little while now.

They think that the mouth and throat and hands will resolve as soon as his body starts to "bounce" back from the chemo and produce some good white blood cells. In the meantime, he has to suck it up, really, which is not easy to do. They were going to give him a button on an additional pain med IV that he could push as needed. I hope that gives him some relief.

The benedryl was making him sleep some while I was there and that's the best for him, so I hope they keep giving that.

The good thing is his hands have improved. They weren't nearly as red, although the welts are there still. Mom said yesterday, he couldn't even touch anything to get up or sit down because they hurt so bad.

He is still fever free and they have him off the oxygen too. All of that is good.

Another hiccup was he tested positive for some bacteria that lives in all of our digestive tracts but in his case with all the antibiotics going in him and nothing else helping them to fight any infections (no immunities), this bacteria goes wild. All that means is people entering the room have to wear yellow plastic gowns and gloves to help him and if he goes into the halls, he'll have to wear one too and gloves. Right now, with his hands, that means he's on isolation in his room because he can't get gloves on. In a day or so, this should resolve too.

Otherwise, the hospital sent him a birthday cake (kind of ironic since he can't eat it!) and the kids made him some birthday posters which we hung in his room. Thanks for checking in with us! Keep the prayers coming!

Day 13- Striking A Balance

I can see how easy it is to become so wrapped up in a situation that you begin to have tunnel vision. Everything recedes into the background in your life except for the person affected or the actual disease afflicting someone. I have to say that the first 13 days of this journey have been like that for all of us. We've pretty much, with good reason, focused on my Dad. Well, I'm here to say that as the waters begin to calm a little bit for me, at least, I'm feeling the new rhythm of our world set in and a balance being struck.

It feels so much better to find that balance a little bit because I know we are not the only people in the world who are in "crisis" mode with their families. It's hard to remember that somedays, but it's important that we do. I just want to send a shout out to my friends on my prayer list with cancer affecting their lives and say "God bless, Good Healing, and Good Humor".

So, no news today, just keep on prayin' and givin' good medicine to us in the form of email, phone calls and notes to my Dad. Love ya!

Day 12 - Red Hot Hands

Today there is good news and side effect news. First the side effects. Dad is experiencing a really sore throat and his ears hurt because that's all connected (of course). He also has red (I'm talking - like he stuck his hands in red paint) hands. They have a few welts on them too and they are pretty painful. He got some topical ointment to try and I hope that works. They predict his skin will peel off of his hands from this. UGH. Another side effect that is starting is hair loss. He pulled a clump out while I was there and I said, "quit pulling it out! That's gross!" and he just laughed.

The good news are his numbers!

WBC - White blood Cells .2 - Which is really zero.

HB - Hemoglobin 9.6
normal is 12-16

Hct - Hemocrit 27.6
normal is 36-45

Plt - Platelets 140,000
normal is 150,000-45,000

Cr - Creatinine .78
normal is below 1.5

So, looking at these numbers - he won't need any blood or platelets tonight. If his HB was under an 8, I think, and if his Hct was under 24, then he gets transfused.

Okay, so here's the best news - his BLASTS are at ZERO. The nurse said, technically, that means he's cancer free. So, yeah. The chemo is working.

Keep the prayers going that the chemo keeps plugging away.

Thanks for everything! Love - A

Day 11 - status quo

Saw Dad this afternoon. He actually seemed to be a little "better". He didn't fall asleep once while we were there and had good color. His swelling is going down a little in his hands and feet. He is back on an antibiotic (or two) because he's consistently running a low grade temp, but they say that can be normal. The body has no immune system so it runs a low fever trying to fight anything that comes along.

The latest plan (and who knows? It seems to change daily) is that he'll finish his 28 days here and providing he is leukemia free after his bone marrow draw next Friday, will go home for "a few days" before starting another round of 28 days.

We won't know results from the bone marrow test Friday until the following Wednesday probably - so send good thoughts and prayers this week people!

Love ya!

SO cute!

Hayden has been calling kleenexes "bless yous" for a couple days and I think it's the cutest thing. She will need a kleenex and come up and say, "I need a bless you". We always say, "bless you" when they sneeze, and I guess that's where it came from. Either that, or she's really trying to say, "tissue", but I think we'll keep calling a "bless you".

Day 10 - Wireless

My Dad was unhooked from the chemo Christmas tree (or the IV stand) today. I walked in and nothing was beeping, the heart monitor was off, and I thought - ahhh, silence. But, he is running a fever and they still have him hooked up to the oxygen.

The latest counts were that his WBCs were at .2 and his Blasts were at 19%, down from 30% yesterday. We want 0% remember! He will be getting more platlets and blood tonight to keep his red blood cells sustained and hemaglobin etc.

The excitement tonight was that he was promoted back up to the sixth floor. He had come down to the Leukemia/Bone Marrow Transplant Unit last Saturday because his heart went "a-fib", but tonight, someone sicker than he needed his space. He got moved because he was the healthiest on the floor (which doesn't say much - but we'll take it!). His new room is much larger and the view is better from the window. The chairs seem better too - I am reading as I'm typing and can't believe I'm saying this stuff! Anyways, he got resettled and was going to sleep.

The first thing he said when they were moving him was "I better get to keep my bed". That was because it took a week to get an extender put on it and he can finally stretch out. He wasn't going to leave without it!

The only bummer was the old room had a hook hanging from the ceiling and my Mom had strung some Mardi Gras beads on it - the new room didn't have the hook, so no hanging beads right now. When I walked in the old room, I said, "what did you have to do to get those beads?" and he said, "NO, not me. It's what you have to do to get those beads!" I'm sure he used that on all the nurses today! : )

Day 9 - Last day of chemo

Today, Dad will get hooked up to his last bag of chemo and finish it tomorrow afternoon. Then we wait. One of the nurses came in and talked to Mom and I for a while this afternoon. She was very nice.

Basically, the bone marrow results from last week told us that my Dad's white blood cells (WBC) were 87% infected by the leukemia when he was admitted. That means that 87% of the WBC's were blasts, which are abnormal cells. I was pretty surprised to see that number, but then I was relieved that it wasn't worse too.

Since last week, on the chemo, they "estimate" that the blasts are down to 30% in his WBC. The reason I say "estimate" is that they are pulling those numbers from blood that is drawn through a port, not bone marrow (which is 100% accurate). The blood has circulated and so it isn't a perfect result.

The nurse also filled us in a little on what we face going forward. She said, depending on the bone marrow draw next Friday, we will either stay in the hospital another couple weeks while Dad's WBCs hopefully reproduce and build up his immune system that's completely destroyed right now, or we could start another round of chemo if the blasts are still there (potentially).

She also said, if we do reach remission and go home at the end of 28 days, Dad will get a break (a couple weeks) and then he'll have to check back in for another round of what we're doing right now (another 28 days). That was not what I expected to hear, but am glad for the reality check, so I know what is going to happen. That session of therapy (chemo round 2) is called consolidation.

Otherwise, Dad took a little jaunt through the halls (only one lap today). I think he was pretty tuckered from yesterday. They did give him some blood and platelets overnight to help sustain some of those numbers. He's doing okay. They are trying to wean him off the oxygen and have kept at the diuretics for the excess fluid (which he absolutely loves! Not).

Hang tough and much love!

Day 8 & Quinn's 8th Birthday (crazy 8s)

My Mom said my Dad rode the stationary bike for 15 minutes this morning and took a walk with Ethan through the halls. He has come off the oxygen for the most part, but they did have him back on it while he was "working out". The chest x-ray from yesterday showed that the left side of my Dad's lungs still have some fluid (pneumonia), but the right was clear.

They are still monitoring his fluid intake and output religiously and everything else.

His WBC count was down to a .6 today - which is good. It's getting there.

Yesterday the managing head nurse (formerly known as head honcho nurse in a previous post) came in and answered a bunch of questions for my parents. Basically, best case scenario - my dad will complete this phase of induction (chemotherapy), wait, and see what happens next week with his body reacting to the chemo, do another bone marrow draw (next Friday), and test for the presence of the bad WBCs again. Hopefully, they won't find any and we can continue to monitor his progress another week or so and go home. He will then come back for maintenance therapy for several months.

If they do find the bad WBCs again after the bone marrow test next Friday, we go back to square one and start chemo all over again.

All in all, though, today is about Quinn's 8th birthday. We have done the donuts for class thing, I went up to school and ate lunch with her, and we're going to bake her a cake and make tacos for dinner (her fave). All of that and a couple gifts too. I want it to be a banner birthday for her. Wish me luck!

Thank you again for the blessings, notes, and prayers. Keep them coming. That is all GOOD MEDICINE for our family. My Dad needs the medicine the doctors can provide, but he also needs the MEDICINE we can provide, so thank you!

Day 7

Went up this morning to visit. Dad was starting his physical therapy session. He had to pedal on this dilapidated little machine for 15 minutes. He did it, no problem. Then he had to arm pedal with the same machine on a table for 15 minutes. He did that too, no problem. He's really lobbying for hall priveleges where he can get up and walk, so he was determined to get through the whole 15 minutes of each exercise. He didn't seem like he couldn't do it, but he was tired afterwards. The PT tech was impressed and said he'd put in a good word for him! : )

My Mom said a nurse (we'll call her head honcho nurse) came in last evening and talked to them for about a half hour. I guess my Dad would not be a good candidate for bone marrow transplant down the road, which is disappointing. His age and the fact that his brother (who would only have a 1:4 chance of matching) has health issues pretty much narrow his chances of being suitable.

They said head honcho nurse was pretty vague about everything - which seems to be the way they all are. They don't want to say too much for fear of freaking you out or being wrong. Right now, we are still working towards remission and then next week, hopefully we'll be getting there. The following week, we'll be building back up his immune system and hopefully, the final week, going home. He will have to come back for several days of chemo, possibly, in the next several months, at varying intervals. But that chemo will be to target the specific kind of AML that my Dad has - it will be his own special cocktail of drugs.

One day at a time. I am sure they told my parents a lot more, but they are still processing and like all parents, want to protect me (or their kids), so they don't tell me everything (which drives me batty).

His WBC count yesterday was at a 1. It could go to 0, we'll see. He did get a couple bags of blood transfused yesterday too. They want to keep some good WBC's going in since the chemo kills both the good and the bad.

He was told to back off the liquid intake. He has some fluid on his lungs, so they're using diuretics to try and diffuse some of that, but he keeps drinking so much that they are doing no good. So, he's on sips and ice for a while. We got some lifesavers and hopefully that will help with the dry mouth.

His heart is still in "a-fib" and they've pretty much determined it could just stay that way. Apparently people live with that for years and never know. He's getting another EKG today.

Other than all of that - he seemed in okay spirits. He's definitely turned a corner and is in fight mode, thank GOD. When I left he was working on eating a scrambled egg and a piece of toast (yes, one egg and one piece of toast!) and a chocolate shake.

One week down, three to go. Thanks for the prayers!

Day 6

I didn't make it up to the hospital today - I'm feeling a little under the weather, so better not be around Dad. After talking to my Mom around 1:30pm, she said he had managed to get up and take a walk with the physical therapist (which is great!) and that PT was going to be bringing him some kind of machine for him to work on to keep him moving. Dad ordered breakfast for himself this morning, which is good (he hasn't eaten in 6 days, really).

We hadn't heard anything new from his blood counts at that point and I don't know if that has changed yet or not. The nurses said not to obsess about the counts, but it's hard not to.

Otherwise, Mom thought he sounded a little better and just getting to shower again was a huge spirit booster.

They have told us that Dad will probably lose his hair (I'm thinking next week), so that will definitely be interesting. We were kidding with my cousin that he could get a bad ass tattoo on his skull. Anything is possible. That's my new mantra.

Visit Day 5

Went up to hospital around 3:00pm - they were doing a chest x-ray when I arrived. They had switched antibiotics to a different one earlier in the day and reduced Dad's oxygen (although his levels were still low 90-even 89 and you want in the 90s). The x-ray showed some pneumonia, so they were happy they switched antibiotics because he's probably had this for a couple days (since he's had a fever) and they hope the new antibiotic gets rid of it. They also gave him a diuretic to keep excess fluid from collecting.

The good news was his WBC count was 13,000 from yesterdays draw and earlier today, they were in the 4000s (YES!). Remember normal is 0-10,000. Of course, these white blood cells are not all normal cells, but we need to get rid of them. Numbers dropping right now is what we want (eventually, we'll want them climbing, but not yet).

Another count they are watching determines if he needs any blood transfused. I am not sure of what the measurement stands for, but below a 24, you need a transfusion. He's borderline, running just above 24 and once dipped into the high 23s. The reason for a transfusion is the chemo is killing good and bad cells. The transfusion replaces some of the good that is destroyed.

That's where we're at right now. He did say it "hurts" and that sucked to hear. He said he just feels awful and I said, "if you feel bad now, wait til next week." and he laughed and said, "aren't you the voice of cheer." It was funny, even though it won't be later .

mid day - day 5

Mom said Dad's WBC count was down to 13,000 from yesterday's blood draw (prior to starting day two of chemo, they took blood). That is great news! We want that number to keep going DOWN! On Saturday, before starting chemo at all, his WBC was 35,000 - so, we're making some progress.

Days 4- 5

Overnight on Saturday (day 3), my Dad had some pulmonary problems sneak up on him. They swarmed his room in the middle of the night like a swat team and freaked him out. Apparently his heart had gone "a-fib" - it wasn't pumping right, so he got moved to a different floor for better monitoring. It was scary because the floor they moved him to wasn't just a regular floor, it says Bone Marrow Transplant and Leukemia Floor when you get off the elevator - much more intense.

He made progress yesterday in that his heart kind of stopped freaking out and he was able to switch from two cardiac drips (in addition to the other 5) down to one and he started taking the one he dropped in an oral form. Last evening they droped the second cardiac medication and were hoping to get him off the monitor last night too. His rhythm was evening out. I think it was a reaction to stress and the chemo starting up. I am hoping we don't have any more unexpected hiccups like that.

I saw my Dad yesterday afternoon and I thought he looked better (spirit wise) and sounded a little more "in the fight" than before, but my Mom thought he seemed a little more down. I am sure when I visit he's a little perkier than when it's just he and Mom.

They drew blood before putting up his second day of chemo (another drip), so I am curious to hear those results today. We are still waiting on more info from the bone marrow draw, so again, waiting on more information.

No matter what, the course of treatment they are doing right now is what they would do no matter what. It is only once they start to further pinpoint the disease that they start tweaking chemo and drugs later. So, for now, these seven days are the way to go.

Tried to get up there today and was a couple minutes from the hospital when school called -Quinn wasn't feeling well, so I had to turn around and go all the way back to get her. Don't know when I'll get up again with the snow and the week we have ahead (Quinn's birthday on Thursday etc).

Day 3 - chemo up and running.

Went to see my Dad today. Spent about three hours at the hospital. He had his bone marrow samples taken last evening - apparently, that was not a walk in the park. He was joking about it today that the tech was using the needle like a jack hammer looking for his bone.

While I was there we got some good tidbits of news - well, when you're in this position, you take every sliver of positive information you can get. Basically, they said his white cell count after his second feresis (can't spell that) session today was at 35,000 (down from 77,000 this morning and 55,000 mid session). That is great. That meant they could start the chemo this afternoon. We also heard that his red cell counts were good, so he didn't need a transfusion and/or another round of feresis. All good. Keep in mind, normal white blood cell counts are under 10,000. We still have a ways to go.

BUT, he was still running a temperature and that was a little concerning. They started running the anti nausea drugs and what I called a "pre wash" for the chemo around 3:15 and they actually got it all up and running around 3:45pm. I was there until 4:00pm. I just wanted to see it all get going and see what they were going to do.

It was a relief to see that the meds were getting administered. It means we're doing what we can to fight this son of a gun.

Tonight, my Mom called around 9:15 and said Dad had to move rooms. His heart was racing, so they were concerned enough to move him. Dad didn't want her to come down, but I am sure she wanted to. I went online (of course - you know me - doctor of the internet) and it said that rare side effects and reactions to the two drugs he was given (the chemo) was heart palpitations. They did numerous tests on his heart to make sure he could handle it all and the all came back fine, so I'm hoping that whatever they give him to settle it down, works over night.

So, he'll get three days of the drug cytarabine and 7 days of the drug Idarubicin (the first three days he'll get both drugs - so it's a 7 day course.)

Keepin' the faith to fight another day. I'm going to go back up tomorrow, I hope. It's my birthday and although, I'm really in no mood to celebrate, it will be a gift to visit my Dad and just keep living one day at a time. I'll take it.

shitty week

There are only so many "shitty" weeks in a lifetime that you remember, or that really matter. This one tops the list so far. My Dad has been ill and I'll spare you all the details, but he was admitted Wednesday night to Barnes-Jewish - the Siteman Cancer Center. They think he has acute myelogenous leukemia or AML. Now, there are several subtypes of this leukemia and they're trying to pin point what he has.

Yesterday, I visited for a couple hours while he was awaiting a port line to be put in his neck. He teared up when I walked in the room and I swear it was the worst thing. My Dad has always been the strong, tall, pillar of strength and now he was so beat down. He did sound better than on Monday and Tuesday when I talked to him, and he had his sense of humor with him - which is a curse and a blessing. : )

This disease has come out of the blue. I mean, it's really rocked our world and now I feel like the center of my world is this disease. It's new to us, so I can only pray that as my Dad starts treatment this weekend, I hope, that we all calm down a bit and find a little more peace and confidence that he's in the best care possible.

So, in the meantime, lift us up in your prayers.