August 10, 2016

Everything is going "well" right now. 😊

This past week has been recovery time - our immune system was crushed so we've been working on that as well as combatting the throat sores and the nausea/vomiting.
While everything is relative of course, the past two days have been "good" days for Cole. He hasn't gotten sick, the throat sores are feeling better finally, we've been taking the variety of medications for various reasons, working on the immune system, feeds, and other things too much to break down.

We went 72 hours without a fever and then had one each night since last Wednesday except for last night. The fevers can be attributed to a variety of things so it's too hard to pinpoint. The fevers could just be from the tumors (like before), the chemo, from being neutropenic (low white blood cell count), all of the above, or something else. But overall, the fever trend has improved generally speaking which is great. And we still aren't needing oxygen except for an occasional "blow by" which is fantastic.

We started chemo a day late, today, because one must go 24 hours without being neutropenic before starting chemo. Here's your educational moment of the day: 🤓

Neutropenia is a low level of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell. All white blood cells help the body fight infection. Neutrophils fight infection by destroying harmful bacteria and fungi or yeast that invade the body. Neutrophils are made in the bone marrow.
Neutropenia is a common side effect from chemo so it is expected. People who have neutropenia have a higher risk of developing serious infections. This is because they do not have enough neutrophils to destroy organisms that cause infection. This has happened after our last two rounds of chemo so Cole takes shots each night until his white blood count is back to normal along with antibiotics.

OK, educational moment over. :-) So Cole's body was as ready as it could be to start chemo today so we were ready to rock and roll. He will have it today and tomorrow for this week and then we work on recovery again. His doctor added a more aggressive medication to combat nausea/vomiting, which is controlled by anesthesia, so we're hoping it helps him more this time and he won't feel or get as sick.

While there are still ups and downs, we are definitely focusing on the positives. And to see Cole more "active" the past two days, playing games, talking more, and just more engaging, has warmed our hearts. We have even seen moments of the "spirited" Cole that we know, and seeing him smile and act more "normal" has been wonderful.

We know the chemo will bring his body back down again, but we must believe that things are working on the inside. We may have a CT scan in a few weeks if there's a chance we get to go home. We just have to take it a week at a time, but mostly a day at a time. Clinically, Cole looks good and it doesn't "appear" that things are worsening. But again, only the scans will tell. So we will anxiously await that time and pray that we see even a small positive difference from his previous scans, and that things haven't spread or grown. We still have a ways before we test the bone marrow so we don't even want to think about that still.

The continued support we've received from everyone has been amazing. We are beyond grateful and blessed for the numerous prayer warriors Cole has on his side. We appreciate you all!