Braces Are Back

Morgan has had a good week. She limits the amount of time she spends on her feet. She has learned how to manage when dealing with health issues. The most amazing thing, she never complains.
On thursday she saw her orthodontist and he put her braces back on. She had only been in braces for 11 months when they had to be snapped off at Children's Hospital. Braces and chemotherapy aren't a good combination.

While sitting in the waiting room at the orthodontist, I met another woman who happen to mention that when her daughter was 14 she was diagnosed with Fibrosarcoma. This is a cancer in the soft-tissue. Her daughter is now 22 and working as an X-ray tech at a local hospital. I was so inspired by her story. It reinforced the notion that Morgan is not alone. There are many teenagers who have battled cancer and won.

I still don't have the results from her blood work. Her doctor is usually very good about calling with the information. Tomorrow I plan to call and request copies. I am confident that if something were not right I would have heard from them. I am sticking to the notion that "no news is good news".

Psalm 91:1 (one of my favorites) He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

Morgan's doctors visit

Today Morgan had an appointment with her oncologist. I had spoken to him by phone while in Kansas City last week to let him know about the symptoms Morgan is having. After talking with him today, he agreed that it does appear to be some form of neuropathy. Neuropathy can be a disease or any abnormality of any part of the nervous system. Morgan's could be caused by chemotherapy. The chemo drug that she took, Cisplatin, has been known to cause neuropathy during the course of treatment but goes away when therapy is stopped. There have been a few documented cases where Cisplatin-induced neuropathy occurs months after treatment. This seems to be the case for Morgan.

Morgan decided that she did not want to take any drugs to help with this condition. She wants to try and manage it on her own. Currently, only the bottom of her feet and palms of her hands are affected. If it gets worse, she will go back to Children's Hospital to see a neurologist. My hope is that this is temporary. Morgan is taking it all in stride. She handles these things much better than I do.

In spite of her condition, she still had a fun time in Kansas City. She was able to go bowling on thursday and check out their new Crate & Barrel on friday. We enjoyed spending time with our dear friends. We even caught a glimpse of the folks who bought our home.

Thanks for praying for Morgan. She is so tough. She inspires me daily.

Her hair is coming back in. I am hoping she will allow me to take a photo to post on the blog very soon : )

Prayer Needed

Dear family & friends,

Morgan & I are in Kansas City this week. Morgan has been looking forward to this trip for weeks. But we have hit a bump in the road. Over the last 3 weeks Morgan has developed neuropathy type symptoms in her feet and hands. It has become very difficult for her to walk or stand. Her feet are extremely red. They burn and ache and she is miserable.

It is possible these symptoms are a delayed reaction to chemotherapy. I have emailed her oncologist and hope to see him as soon as we get back to Cincy. Please pray for Morgan. She is trying to keep a brave face but she is extremely miserable. Pray that these symptoms are not permanent and relief will come quickly.

Love to you all.

Reena

A Good News Week

This week Morgan had her PET & CT scans and they looked good. Her oncologist told her that she was doing great. Although her white blood count is still a bit low at 3.2, Dr. Wagner said this is to be expected. The white blood counts are the slowest to rebound after chemotherapy.

White blood cells help fight bacterial and viral infections. One type of white blood cells are called neutrophils. A persons absolute neutrophil count is an indication of their ability to fight germs. Morgan's absolute neutrophil count is still on the low side at 1.42. The normal range is 1.80 - 8.00. Please continue to pray that her white blood counts will keep on climbing. They will be checked again in June.

When Morgan was diagnosed with cancer in June, Dr. Durrani told her that when she was finished with her chemo and surgery he wanted her to visit that place on her shirt. She looked down to see that she was wearing a tee shirt that said Hawaii. Well, we learned this week that Morgan IS going to Hawaii. The good folks at the Make-A-Wish Foundation give all children who have been diagnosed with cancer a wish. Make-A-Wish called Morgan this week and told her the good news. As far as we know at this point, she will travel this summer along with her mom, dad and brothers for a week in Hawaii. Morgan is so excited. This is truly a blessing. Now, Morgan can focus on the upcoming summer and allow last summer to become a faded memory. Brighter days are ahead for her.

Morgan's arm is regaining strength every week. I admit it is a slow process but she makes progress every day. Her arm may never be 100%, but she is functioning great at approximately 60% - 70%. Her spirits are great and I know it is because of all the faithful prayer warriors who lift her up in prayer on a regular basis :)

Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.