Sam Conquered A.L.L.: December 18, 2008

December 18, 2008

PRAYER REQUEST

Today I took Sam to the hospital to get some blood work done. His white blood cell counts are extremely low which means his body cannot fight infection. We are given a list to know what signs we need to watch for in case he gets an infection.

Please pray that Sam will be protected from all the bugs, flu's, colds, etc. that are so prevalent this time of year as well as any internal infection that may be triggered in his body during this time. Sam is not interested in spending 10 days in the hospital receiving antibiotics...which is what would happen if he gets sick.

Several Christmas activities Sam was hoping to attend this week will not happen for him...too much risk while being with groups of kids and adults.

His scalp is shedding like crazy and he is sporting toques and hats in and outside the house! It is really cold here and will be for awhile apparently. What strange timing. You know that song, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth?" I think Sam's lyrics might be, "All I want for Christmas is my thick, long, hair!"

4 comments:

Heather said...: Hey there!
It's looking like Prince George here - we've got more snow than we know what to do with. More than our city street clearing folks (or their civic bosses) know what to do with, certainly. Mayor Bronco doesn't believe in clearing our streets. So the worst part of your commute is trying to escape your neighbourhood! No parade of graders clearing these cul-de-sacs.

We used to laugh at the Canadian Tire-like snow plowing dance, but we'd sure welcome it here. No end in sight to the snow and cold! So, for the first time in ? don't know how many years, we'll have a white Christmas here. So skating and sledding will be the order of the day - maybe an oldies vs youngsters hockey game at the park.

Sorry to hear that Sam had to miss the Christmas doings at school. That's a hard one. Bizz has missed only a week, and she's missing her peeps. Kind of opposite reasons, eh? She doesn't want to share her germs - and Sam doesn't want to be the recipient of this kind of holiday giving.

We're hoping for a break in the cold snap to get some boarding/skiing in this season, we'll see!

Cam and I are heading to York, Pennsylvania in January. He's there on business at a testing facility, and I'll join him for a long weekend. He also has a great aunt and some cousins nearby. I had no idea how close Baltimore (home of the largest collection of Matisse's paintings outside of Russia) and Washington D.C. are (Can you say, Smithsonian Institute - with 19 museums, 9 research centers and over 140 affiliate museums around the world?) I think I'll peruse the art galleries by myself on Thursday and Friday while Cam's at work - and we'll hit some mutually agreeable pre-researched spots on the Saturday and Sunday before we head home.
He can only take so much!! I'll be in heaven. Beach-shmeach, give me a street full of galleries and a latte, and I'll be good.

Hope you have a good germ-free weekend and holiday. Sorry about goldie's lock losses, that's a bummer. Can't wait to see you grow your new batch, Sam. We're counting those days with you.
Love from Heather & Cam, Chantel, Bizz & Chyenne. Oh yeah - Kohl says "woof".; December 19, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Unknown said...: Hi Debbie,

Sorry to hear about Sam's low WBC count. He is always in our prayers!

By the way, I saw a notice at the clinic a few days ago about patient confidentiality (cannot remember the exact wordings...but something like...don't share a patient's information with another family without the family's consent; don't share the information on Facebook/CaringBridge or personal blog without the family's consent etc). I then realized that I have mentioned about Sam in Jayden's blog a few times without first having your consent. I also had the link of Sam's blog listed on the side bar of Jayden's blog (but I have removed it now) without first obtaining your consent. I am so sorry!!! Please accept my sincere apology!

Evelyn; December 20, 2008 at 12:45 AM
Unknown said...: Hi Debbie,

Thank you so much for your assuring words. I feel relieved! :-) And you are right...we also hope that through Jayden's experience, God will be glorified. It is amazing how God works...my husband came to Christ when Jayden was diagnosed and my father-in-law has just recently came to Christ also! Praise God! However, I haven't shared that wonderful news on Jayden's blog because my father-in-law hasn't personally shared that with us. I only found that out through my pastors. I think that's the greatest gift in this season as we celebrate Jesus' birth!

Hope Sam is doing well!

Evelyn

P.S. Yes...we are getting some very cold weather and a LOT of snow!!!; December 22, 2008 at 2:35 PM
Anonymous said...: HI Sam,
Are u pumped for Christmas?; December 22, 2008 at 7:49 PM

Raining

The flower with all the petals and leaves on it is the healthy flower. It has a sad face because it is raining. The wilted, bald flower is the cancerous flower. It may be a little wilted and have no petals or leaves but it is happy to be alive even if it is raining. The healthy flower doesn't know how lucky it is to be alive and have all its petals. All it's worried about is the rain. This is true in real life as well. When I was getting my chemo in the hospital I would listen to what people were complaining about and I would think "If that's all you have to worry about then you are doing pretty well." People would act like it were the end of the world if the fan was blowing too hard on them or if they would get home in time for dinner but I was worrying about whether I would get better or would I die?
Melinda, age 13

Consolidation "Summer"

Day 1: (June 25) - LP- IT Methotrexate, IV - AraC, Mercaptopurine, Septra
Day 2-4: IV Ara-C, Mercaptopurine
Day 5-7: PO - Mercaptopurine
Day 8: LP- IT Methotrexate, IV - AraC, Mercaptopurine, Septra
Day 9-11: IV Ara-C, Mercaptopurine
Day 12 - 14: Mercaptopurine
Day 15: LP- IT Methotrexate, IM - PEG-Asparaginase, IV - Vincristine, Septra
Day 22: LP- IT Methotrexate, IV - Vincristine, Septra
Day 29 - 60: Repeat Day 1-29 except without the IT Methotrexate
Day 61: Recover and Wait for Counts to Improve to start Interim Maintenance Stage - Probably 1 week, maybe 2

Prayer

We have all enjoyed having a yard. We have played many games of croquet with friends and family.
We are really enjoying our second "home " here in Vancouver. It is close to the hospital, lots of trails to walk, run, and bike in, and just a few minutes from the beach.
We are thankful for the exceptional people we are surrounded with who are supporting us in prayer and in so many practical ways...you have blessed us tremendously.
Pray that Sam will not get an allergic reaction to the Asparaginase injections on August 13.