Treatment complete

Thankfully, Morgan's treatment no. 5 is over and things went smoothly. She is receiving hydration fluids today to help flush the kidneys and bladder. Her hemoglobin was low yesterday so they gave her two units of blood last night.

Now begins the difficult part---keeping her healthy this week while her counts are critically low. By Friday, they will be at or near zero which will make it difficult for her body to deal with its own bacteria. Please pray that she stays healthy this week and is able to avoid coming back to the hospital.

If today goes as planned she will receive the Neulasta shot around 5:30, get mediport de-accessed and off we go (Max will be glad to see Morgan. He wears a sad face when she is gone). Morgan's spirits are good but I can tell you that she misses hanging out with her friends. Morgan has some very sweet and supportive friends. I have been so impressed with their outpouring of love and encouragement.

May God continue to richly bless you!!

Treatment no. 5

Morgan began the chemo treatment yesterday. Things went well. Her nausea is being controlled by the four anti-nausea meds. She completed the treatment at 5:30 and was able to eat dinner about an hour later. Her spirits are good and overall she feels well. She had her routine PET & CT scans last week and the results were good for both. Her oncologist was very excited that nothing new showed up on the lung CT. The very small "dot" that has been showing up since July in that right side of the lung may not be cancer after all. The thought was if it was cancer the chemo would kill it, it would fall apart and "get sent out with the trash". But, it is still sitting there, faded a bit but still there. It is too small for the surgeon to take out. I would love to have it removed just to get clarity on what exactly it is.

Ever since Morgan was diagnosed with cancer in 2008, I have spent a fair amount of time reading and researching cancer related issues. Not only is cancer on the increase for our society as a whole but so is autisim, attention deficit disorder, depression and downs syndrome. Why? Well, no one knows for sure, but I am convinced our food supply has a lot to do with it. Our food contains things that 15 years ago it did not. Our milk supply for example is probably the most "contaminated". Cows are being pumped full of antibiotics and steroids all in the name of profits. If you haven't already done so, I encourage you to switch to organic milk. Kroger and Target both carry their store brands of organic milk and it doesn't cost much more than the regular milk and it doesn't come from cows that have been given antibiotics and steroids or other growth hormones.

Please continue to pray for Morgan. We appreciate your support more than words can express. Also, please pray for my dad this week. He has had a terrible cold/allergies and has pulled something in his back while coughing. He is having a miserable week.

Isa 40:1
"Comfort, O comfort My people," says your God.

back home

Thankfully Morgan is feeling much better and she was discharged Wed. at 3:00 pm. The antibiotics really did the trick and I am so thankful.
It was a bummer for Morgan to be back in the hospital when it was her time to be home in between treatments but she has handled it well. This will not delay next weeks chemotherapy and that is a blessing. We do not want to drag this treatment out any longer than necessary. Thanks for all the prayers. We couldn't get through all this without them.

Infection

It seems that as hard as we tried we just couldn't keep Morgan from developing an infection. Jonathan, however, is not to blame. He has done a great job of taking his medicine and washing his hands. Apparently, because Morgan's blood counts were so low (zero) she developed an infection in her colon. The pain became too much for her to take yesterday so I had to call the oncologist who told me to bring her back to the hospital. They are pumping her full of antibiotics and she is already feeling some better. We are hoping to go home Wed.

At Home

AHHHH, it's good to be home. Morgan was discharged Sunday afternoon as planned. Before the discharge she received 2 units of blood because her hemoglobin was 8.6. This was the first time she has received blood before being discharged. I am curious to see how low her hemoglobin will be this Friday when her blood counts bottom out. I am hoping her hemoglobin is more than 9 that way she will not have to go down to Day Hospital for blood.

She is feeling pretty good this week and staying busy with school work. But, Jonathan has a cold. Which could be tricky for Morgan later this week when her immunity is low. So please pray for Jonathan that he gets over his cold quickly and doesn't spread it around to the rest of us.

Treatment No. 4

Morgan is currently in the middle of this weeks treatment. She is doing well. She is a bit tired but she has had no facial flushing, night sweats or vomiting.

The home health care visit went very well. The nurse accessed Morgan's port and taught me how to hook her up to fluids. I hooked her up around midnight so she received about 2 1/2 liters overnight. When we got to the hospital Morgan was hydrated and ready to begin her chemotherapy at 11:40 am. Things couldn't have gone more smoothly. This was truly an answer to prayer.

If all goes according to plan, she will be discharged Sunday afternoon after she receives her Neulasta shot. This shot will boost her blood counts for a few days. Her counts will still drop to critical levels by next Friday but the shot helps her to make a quicker rebound.

The hospital is now under strict visitor restrictions. Parents are the only visitors allowed at this time due to the seasonal flu and the H1N1 flu. Morgan was also told to stay in her room as much as possible and I was advised to limit my trips downstairs. These restrictions are in the best interest of all the patients and I am glad to see the hospital stepping up their efforts to protect everyone here. But, like with all good things there is a downside. No visitors means David & Jonathan can't visit. When the boys come to visit they usually put on quite a show for Morgan. They can be quite the comedy team at times.

My sister-in-law, Danette, sent me this scripture yesterday via a text message-----

Psalm 28:6-7

Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the voice of my supplication. The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall thank Him.