Good morning all. Mom is doing fine this morning. We are at the point where everything is very stable and things are moving in a very positive direction, but we have to wait (and wait and wait) until her counts come up so that she can go home. The team of doctors that came in this morning were happy with how Mom feels. They are focusing on finding medicine that will help with her nausea. She's had a very difficult time eating since they have very strong antibiotics going in her iv since before her chemo started. They said they don't expect her counts to start coming up for another week since she has had this heavy chemo numerous times.
We still want to encourage people to come and visit. She's feeling fine these days and loves to sit and chat, so it would be a great week for friends to come spend some time with her to help pass the week by.
Prayer requests: Continue to feel stronger/better everyday, counts start coming up, clean bone marrow & in remission.
Thanks! Love you all.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Thursday, September 26, 2013
"Mary Legend"
As many of you know our family eats and sleeps basketball...one of the greatest players of all time is Larry Bird - aka Larry Legend. There is another "Legend" who is still occupying room 1596 at Prentice and today I decided that we're just going to think of her as Mary Legend!! Just when you think she has done it all and she's fought through so much...she finds a way to keep going and wowing everyone including the doctors...thus why her new name is Mary Legend!
Amy and I drove up this morning to see Mom and hope that we would finally hear the results of her bone marrow biopsy. Sue was there from staying with her last night and Mom looked great when we came in. She's much more alert, talkative and generally stronger each time that I am there with her. About an hour after arriving Dr. Nye came in and was finally able to share the news with us.
You'll have to be patient because it's not a simple yes or no answer, as you know it's hard to understand all of the things that these doctors spend their entire career trying to figure out. She said that the samples reveal that her bone marrow has been wiped out, which is a positive thing because that means her body is still responding to the therapy (chemo). She also indicated that they did see a few leukemic cells present but that they are unsure if they are dying and just on the way out or if they are actually still active and reproducing other leukemic cells. This bone marrow biopsy was done much earlier (day 14) than other rounds that Mom has had treatment, and that is due to them wanting to try and figure out if they could give her some medicine to help boost her white blood cell production.
After you go through treatment your body ends up starting fresh/new within the bone marrow and hopefully producing good stuff again. Due to them seeing some leukemic cells they feel it is not a good option to give her the medicine to boost her white cell production and therefore her body will have to just build that on her own. After they see those numbers come back up they will then do another bone marrow biopsy to give them better results...maybe 1 - 2 weeks. Mom was very disappointed with this news and was visibly upset because she is ready to get out of the hospital more than anything. But, there were several very good signs that the doctors were excited about, mainly that her body is responding to treatment and her pneumonia is still very much under control at this time. Like I said above, she looks stronger and stronger each time we see her and the doctors are very encouraged by what her body is showing them. Sometimes after you've been through as much as she has your body just stops responding to treatment, and I think it was apparent that they had their doubts that the treatment would even work at all. Surprise, Mary Legend has different plans...she's going to find a way to walk out of there, even if there is a delay of a few days or weeks - I can see that determination in her eyes now.
Please pray that her white cells counts and marrow respond quickly and that her emotions can stay strong, and keep the cards and comments on the blog coming. Thank you again, I tried my best to explain but I know it's hard to figure out...it's still the case that they only person in control is God and we have no control and little understanding of the why's and how's...but that's ok. Pray for that peace to know that God is in full control. Love to you all, we'll update you again soon,
Adam
Amy and I drove up this morning to see Mom and hope that we would finally hear the results of her bone marrow biopsy. Sue was there from staying with her last night and Mom looked great when we came in. She's much more alert, talkative and generally stronger each time that I am there with her. About an hour after arriving Dr. Nye came in and was finally able to share the news with us.
You'll have to be patient because it's not a simple yes or no answer, as you know it's hard to understand all of the things that these doctors spend their entire career trying to figure out. She said that the samples reveal that her bone marrow has been wiped out, which is a positive thing because that means her body is still responding to the therapy (chemo). She also indicated that they did see a few leukemic cells present but that they are unsure if they are dying and just on the way out or if they are actually still active and reproducing other leukemic cells. This bone marrow biopsy was done much earlier (day 14) than other rounds that Mom has had treatment, and that is due to them wanting to try and figure out if they could give her some medicine to help boost her white blood cell production.
After you go through treatment your body ends up starting fresh/new within the bone marrow and hopefully producing good stuff again. Due to them seeing some leukemic cells they feel it is not a good option to give her the medicine to boost her white cell production and therefore her body will have to just build that on her own. After they see those numbers come back up they will then do another bone marrow biopsy to give them better results...maybe 1 - 2 weeks. Mom was very disappointed with this news and was visibly upset because she is ready to get out of the hospital more than anything. But, there were several very good signs that the doctors were excited about, mainly that her body is responding to treatment and her pneumonia is still very much under control at this time. Like I said above, she looks stronger and stronger each time we see her and the doctors are very encouraged by what her body is showing them. Sometimes after you've been through as much as she has your body just stops responding to treatment, and I think it was apparent that they had their doubts that the treatment would even work at all. Surprise, Mary Legend has different plans...she's going to find a way to walk out of there, even if there is a delay of a few days or weeks - I can see that determination in her eyes now.
Please pray that her white cells counts and marrow respond quickly and that her emotions can stay strong, and keep the cards and comments on the blog coming. Thank you again, I tried my best to explain but I know it's hard to figure out...it's still the case that they only person in control is God and we have no control and little understanding of the why's and how's...but that's ok. Pray for that peace to know that God is in full control. Love to you all, we'll update you again soon,
Adam
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
No news til Thursday
Sue text us from the hospital that the doctors are still waiting on more information. We should know something tomorrow.
It's been a long day waiting but it hasn't seemed to bother my mom. She's been sitting in the chair talking and seems to be feeling ok. Still upset stomach and not eating much but doing ok.
Thanks for all your love.
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
No news yet
Just wanted to let you all know that we don't know anything on the results of the bone marrow biopsy yet. We are anxiously waiting to hear and will update tomorrow. Praying for good news, clarity for what's to come, and peace for mom.
Monday, September 23, 2013
Bone Marrow Biopsy
Sorry for the wait, everyone!
Want to start with congratulating my parents on 38 years! They celebrated their anniversary last Friday :)
Results from the CT Scan (done Thurs): The lung "spots" looked better, as in they are shrinking. This is an encouraging sign! But in the left lung they said that because of some fluid build-up, she has a damaged lung. The repair of this will take some time and will be slow moving (as counts come up it will help repair this). The doctors say that what they have been doing to treat the pneumonia and lung issues seems to be working and they plan to stick with it. She is not feeling any pain or does not have any issues breathing, coughing & is not on oxygen, so that's good! Clinically this is good for them to see, but if there are any changes with these things, then they will take the next steps. Basically, they are keeping a close eye on the infected areas of the lungs and there is a cause for concern like there has been since we've been here - but we are happy with the positive progress & report that things look better and she has shown no signs of clinical effects (breathing, coughing, fevers are down)!
Because of the pneumonia - they decided to perform a bone marrow biopsy today. It was done at 11:30 am and it went really well! We should have results by tomorrow afternoon or Wed morn. Praying for clean marrow! If she is clear of leukemia, they can start giving her other medicine to help her white cell production and fight the pneumonia better! This is the obvious prayer for today! For the chemo to have worked and put her into remission - leukemia free!
Counts are the same since the last time we updated - no specifics on when she will be coming home yet, but hoping soon! It would just be so wonderful to get her out of this room ;) We anticipate that day!
Thanks for the prayers and we will try and update ASAP on the results of the bone marrow biopsy when we get it.....
Want to start with congratulating my parents on 38 years! They celebrated their anniversary last Friday :)
Results from the CT Scan (done Thurs): The lung "spots" looked better, as in they are shrinking. This is an encouraging sign! But in the left lung they said that because of some fluid build-up, she has a damaged lung. The repair of this will take some time and will be slow moving (as counts come up it will help repair this). The doctors say that what they have been doing to treat the pneumonia and lung issues seems to be working and they plan to stick with it. She is not feeling any pain or does not have any issues breathing, coughing & is not on oxygen, so that's good! Clinically this is good for them to see, but if there are any changes with these things, then they will take the next steps. Basically, they are keeping a close eye on the infected areas of the lungs and there is a cause for concern like there has been since we've been here - but we are happy with the positive progress & report that things look better and she has shown no signs of clinical effects (breathing, coughing, fevers are down)!
Because of the pneumonia - they decided to perform a bone marrow biopsy today. It was done at 11:30 am and it went really well! We should have results by tomorrow afternoon or Wed morn. Praying for clean marrow! If she is clear of leukemia, they can start giving her other medicine to help her white cell production and fight the pneumonia better! This is the obvious prayer for today! For the chemo to have worked and put her into remission - leukemia free!
Counts are the same since the last time we updated - no specifics on when she will be coming home yet, but hoping soon! It would just be so wonderful to get her out of this room ;) We anticipate that day!
Thanks for the prayers and we will try and update ASAP on the results of the bone marrow biopsy when we get it.....
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Super-Mom
The day started out early for Mom today after a very good night of sleep...about 6:30am her nurse came in and said that she had some good news for us. I normally operate on "banker hours" so I was thinking that she better have some good news to be disturbing us at 6:30 in the morning when me and Ma are trying to get our beauty sleep!! But the news was good...Mom's white cell count was finally hitting their radar, it showed up at .1 - it's not much but it's a big deal knowing that for the last two weeks or so it has been at zero.
So what does that mean, you ask? Well, like the previous times that she has been able to go home, they are going to be looking for certain numbers in order to feel like she can walk out of Room 1596 and not look back! One of the key indicators is her white blood cell count because our bodies use those white cells to fight infection...and more specifically the body uses neutrophils in order to aid in that process. When those neutrophils are at a certain level it gives the doctors the comfort level to allow her to go home and function on her own, and in an environment that is not as controlled as her hospital floor. So seeing that at .1, although it's very small, shows that she is on her way!
The other things they will be looking for will be whether she needs blood and platelet transfusions. They are wanting her to get to the point where she only needs one or two of those per week in order to feel like they can let her go home...currently she is getting those almost every day. As her body starts to recover those transfusions should start to spread out more and even if she were to need those once or twice a week she could still be at home and come to the hospital when/if she needs them. The key word in all of that is still HOME...she just wants to go HOME!! I stayed with her last night and my siblings and I were talking about this during the coarse of this evening...she's just sick of that bed, sick of being bothered all the time, sick of not having an appetite and having to eat hospital food when she does feel like having something to eat...she sick of being sick! If any of you have stayed in the hospital for more than a night then you know what I'm talking about, but having to be as sick as she is and endure that is something that very few people have the willingness to do.
I will end with this; Today when the nurse came in with the good news Mom sat up and was very excited to hear what she had to say, especially since she was able to have such a good night of sleep. After the nurse left the room Mom said "There is only one reason why this is happening...it's because of everyone out there praying and because Jesus is answering those prayers." Mom can't explain it in detail because she's still not talking too much, but she GETS IT! She knows that we won't be able to explain, and the "Team" of doctors won't be able to explain or truly understand why she is now gaining strength again and showing every sign that she is going to beat both the Leukemia and the Pneumonia. Two weeks ago they gave her a 10% chance to do those things...so please keep praying that her miracle continues and that she continues to defy the odds. Last time we checked neither God, nor Mom anymore, gives one care about "odds"! After the team left today she looked at me and said "I honestly don't really care what they have to say, they are just looking at numbers"...exactly Momma, exactly! Thanks again for your prayers, and your visits...so many of you have come up to see her or sent her cards and we can't thank you enough. Love to you all - from Mom and our entire family!
So what does that mean, you ask? Well, like the previous times that she has been able to go home, they are going to be looking for certain numbers in order to feel like she can walk out of Room 1596 and not look back! One of the key indicators is her white blood cell count because our bodies use those white cells to fight infection...and more specifically the body uses neutrophils in order to aid in that process. When those neutrophils are at a certain level it gives the doctors the comfort level to allow her to go home and function on her own, and in an environment that is not as controlled as her hospital floor. So seeing that at .1, although it's very small, shows that she is on her way!
The other things they will be looking for will be whether she needs blood and platelet transfusions. They are wanting her to get to the point where she only needs one or two of those per week in order to feel like they can let her go home...currently she is getting those almost every day. As her body starts to recover those transfusions should start to spread out more and even if she were to need those once or twice a week she could still be at home and come to the hospital when/if she needs them. The key word in all of that is still HOME...she just wants to go HOME!! I stayed with her last night and my siblings and I were talking about this during the coarse of this evening...she's just sick of that bed, sick of being bothered all the time, sick of not having an appetite and having to eat hospital food when she does feel like having something to eat...she sick of being sick! If any of you have stayed in the hospital for more than a night then you know what I'm talking about, but having to be as sick as she is and endure that is something that very few people have the willingness to do.
I will end with this; Today when the nurse came in with the good news Mom sat up and was very excited to hear what she had to say, especially since she was able to have such a good night of sleep. After the nurse left the room Mom said "There is only one reason why this is happening...it's because of everyone out there praying and because Jesus is answering those prayers." Mom can't explain it in detail because she's still not talking too much, but she GETS IT! She knows that we won't be able to explain, and the "Team" of doctors won't be able to explain or truly understand why she is now gaining strength again and showing every sign that she is going to beat both the Leukemia and the Pneumonia. Two weeks ago they gave her a 10% chance to do those things...so please keep praying that her miracle continues and that she continues to defy the odds. Last time we checked neither God, nor Mom anymore, gives one care about "odds"! After the team left today she looked at me and said "I honestly don't really care what they have to say, they are just looking at numbers"...exactly Momma, exactly! Thanks again for your prayers, and your visits...so many of you have come up to see her or sent her cards and we can't thank you enough. Love to you all - from Mom and our entire family!
Monday, September 16, 2013
A good Monday...
Hi Everyone!
A week ago...we couldn't have imagined hearing the words that came today from mom's team of doctors...and we are happy to share with you a positive report - They are very pleased with how well mom is doing! She is neutropenic, however she has had no fevers for the past couple of days, her nausea is better, lungs are sounding good, and even though she's sleeping a lot, she is up and moving more and eating better. There is a CT Scan scheduled for Thurs to check the status of the pneumonia, and they expect to see no change (which is good!). So we are happy today! Mom is too!
Pray for a good week - she is at her lowest (counts) and may still spike fevers due to being neutropenic, but it's to be expected. Pray for the CT Scan to show no growth of the pneumonia. Pray for the chemo to do it's work on the leukemic cells and rid her body of them! And pray for rest!
Thanks again for your loving & supportive prayers and encouragement. We are blessed beyond belief by all of you and can't thank you enough.
A week ago...we couldn't have imagined hearing the words that came today from mom's team of doctors...and we are happy to share with you a positive report - They are very pleased with how well mom is doing! She is neutropenic, however she has had no fevers for the past couple of days, her nausea is better, lungs are sounding good, and even though she's sleeping a lot, she is up and moving more and eating better. There is a CT Scan scheduled for Thurs to check the status of the pneumonia, and they expect to see no change (which is good!). So we are happy today! Mom is too!
Pray for a good week - she is at her lowest (counts) and may still spike fevers due to being neutropenic, but it's to be expected. Pray for the CT Scan to show no growth of the pneumonia. Pray for the chemo to do it's work on the leukemic cells and rid her body of them! And pray for rest!
Thanks again for your loving & supportive prayers and encouragement. We are blessed beyond belief by all of you and can't thank you enough.
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Last Day of Chemo
It's Saturday and the last day of chemo. I'm visiting Mom with David and his friend, Erick. Julie is here and Dad just went to work out. Mom is having a pretty good day. She seems very sleepy and is moving at a slow pace, but she feels ok. She's sitting up in her chair right now talking with us. She has done very well this week and has been fever free for the past couple days. Fevers are the main way they measure how she's doing, both with the chemo and with her pneumonia.
She still has her most difficult days ahead. We are on day 5 (day 1 chemo starts) and usually days 7-10 are the most challenging for her health. The doctors have been pleased with how she's handling things. We are praying that the next week goes as well as it can for her.
She's had a good amount of friends and family visit her over the past few days and this has helped her pass the time. Thanks to all of you who have sent cards or visited. It means so much to Mom.
Love you all!
She still has her most difficult days ahead. We are on day 5 (day 1 chemo starts) and usually days 7-10 are the most challenging for her health. The doctors have been pleased with how she's handling things. We are praying that the next week goes as well as it can for her.
She's had a good amount of friends and family visit her over the past few days and this has helped her pass the time. Thanks to all of you who have sent cards or visited. It means so much to Mom.
Love you all!
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Chemo is starting
Adam was with my mom at the hospital overnight and sent out this text this morning because they will be starting chemo today:
"Team of doctors were just in (they come in every morning to check on her and report anything new). Things are still very stable with her pneumonia. They said they will do whatever Mom needs through her therapy over the next few weeks. They said that this chemo will be challenging and not easy in any way. They don't see a point in treating her disease and making her go through this without getting rid of the leukemia. That means the chemo has to be intense."
He also text: "She's ready to fight and I like her attitude today. We had a good talk this morning and she is showing me she's ready. One other cool thing is that when we woke up this morning I asked her how she was doing and she said "doing good," and for the first time since arriving at the hospital she asked me "How are you doing?" I liked that!!"
Amy and Julie are with her today and she's had many amazing visitors over the past few days! We are so thankful for each one of you who have spent time with her in the hospital. Even though she's tired and doesn't interact like normal, she perks up and is re-energized with each visit. We still encourage anyone to visit. As long as you're not sick, anyone is welcome. It helps Mom pass the time and feel a little less cooped up.
We can't thank you enough for all of your love, support, and prayers. We will continue to trust in God's plan through each step.
"Team of doctors were just in (they come in every morning to check on her and report anything new). Things are still very stable with her pneumonia. They said they will do whatever Mom needs through her therapy over the next few weeks. They said that this chemo will be challenging and not easy in any way. They don't see a point in treating her disease and making her go through this without getting rid of the leukemia. That means the chemo has to be intense."
He also text: "She's ready to fight and I like her attitude today. We had a good talk this morning and she is showing me she's ready. One other cool thing is that when we woke up this morning I asked her how she was doing and she said "doing good," and for the first time since arriving at the hospital she asked me "How are you doing?" I liked that!!"
Amy and Julie are with her today and she's had many amazing visitors over the past few days! We are so thankful for each one of you who have spent time with her in the hospital. Even though she's tired and doesn't interact like normal, she perks up and is re-energized with each visit. We still encourage anyone to visit. As long as you're not sick, anyone is welcome. It helps Mom pass the time and feel a little less cooped up.
We can't thank you enough for all of your love, support, and prayers. We will continue to trust in God's plan through each step.
Saturday, September 7, 2013
Saturday.
Another quick update to let you all know that my mom has not started the chemo treatment yet. I guess you would say that it's a pretty "delicate" decision due to the pneumonia; and because she does still have a few good fighting cells in her, they want to get the pneumonia as "better" as they can get it before they start the chemo. Again...the chemo will take away all the bad leukemia......but it will also take all the good fighting stuff with it too, and this pneumonia can kick back into gear much faster and more aggressive if there is nothing there to fight it with. The tests have yet to determine the type of pneumonia it is - no "fungal" pieces of this puzzle have yet to come out in the lab but the meds they put my mom on seem to be working, so......we are waiting for the go ahead. It's important that you all understand the seriousness of this situation and again, we thank you for the prayers and love because she really feels them and it!
Prayers for strength & endurance.
Prayers for her mental state - gearing herself up for treatment.
Prayers for the combination of meds they will be using and for her body to withstand it all better than they would expect it to.
Prayers for her nausea (from all the meds she's on) and because it will get worse with the chemo.
Prayers for the doctors determining the next steps.
Prayers for us here as we urge her on.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!
Another quick update to let you all know that my mom has not started the chemo treatment yet. I guess you would say that it's a pretty "delicate" decision due to the pneumonia; and because she does still have a few good fighting cells in her, they want to get the pneumonia as "better" as they can get it before they start the chemo. Again...the chemo will take away all the bad leukemia......but it will also take all the good fighting stuff with it too, and this pneumonia can kick back into gear much faster and more aggressive if there is nothing there to fight it with. The tests have yet to determine the type of pneumonia it is - no "fungal" pieces of this puzzle have yet to come out in the lab but the meds they put my mom on seem to be working, so......we are waiting for the go ahead. It's important that you all understand the seriousness of this situation and again, we thank you for the prayers and love because she really feels them and it!
Prayers for strength & endurance.
Prayers for her mental state - gearing herself up for treatment.
Prayers for the combination of meds they will be using and for her body to withstand it all better than they would expect it to.
Prayers for her nausea (from all the meds she's on) and because it will get worse with the chemo.
Prayers for the doctors determining the next steps.
Prayers for us here as we urge her on.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Quick Update
Mom is feeling a little bit better each day this week. I'm up here with her today encouraging her to take walks and eat a few bites here and there. She's very tired still, but has shown much improvement since the weekend. The doctors say her lungs sound a little better today, and by seeing her activity level, they believe the antibiotics are treating the pneumonia properly. She will have a ct scan tomorrow evening, and if her pneumonia is not showing expansion, they hope to get the chemo started in the next couple of days.
Thank you for continuing to pray. She needs the Lord's strength so much right now. It has been quite a roller coaster of a week. Please check out Adam's post below if you haven't already.
Love you all! You are the best support system anyone can hope for!
Thank you for continuing to pray. She needs the Lord's strength so much right now. It has been quite a roller coaster of a week. Please check out Adam's post below if you haven't already.
Love you all! You are the best support system anyone can hope for!
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Monday, September 2, 2013
Toughest Lady I've Ever Met!!
It's Monday night and my family apologizes for not updating the blog sooner...it's been a very busy and challenging couple of days but I'm going to try and get you caught up...
This is Adam, Mary's son, and I took over for Julie and David on Thursday night and got the chance to stay with her until my Dad came up on Friday. Friday was a very tough day, I'm not going to sugarcoat things...the Team of doctors came in that morning and had some pretty challening things to say to Mom (and partly to me as well). They explained to us that the pneumonia that Mom has is a very challenging form and they believed it was a "fungal" pneumonia. As you probably already realize, Mom's immune system is non-existent because of her leukemia and she's been having to get transfusions for blood and platelets since arriving at the hospital over a week ago. Viral pneumonia would have been challening enough for her to deal with due to her condition but to know that she's facing a steep uphill battle with this fungal pneumonia had us all very nervous. Thankfully you all were praying for her and although you might not have known specifically what to pray for, your prayers were still paying dividends!!
My biggest concern when we woke up on Friday morning was making sure that Mom was ready for the current battle that she was facing. The previous few days as well as Friday morning had her feeling very lethargic and the medicine that she was taking was making her very weak and sleepy most of the time. I knew I had my work cut out for me that day because they were telling her that she needed to have a bronchoscopy which is where they take a camera down her throat into her lungs in order to look at her lungs and get a sample to find out the specific type of fungal pneumonia she had. Talking her into that was NOT going to be easy because she already told Dad the day before that it "wasn't going to happen!" Well, after her and I got back from her CT scan she was getting some rest and God sent a little Angel into the room, her name is Dr. Jessica Altman, mom's leukemia doctor. She was a sight for sore eyes because any time she comes in to see Mom you can instantly see Mom's mood and attitude change for the better. It was no different on that Friday afternoon, Dr. Altman has a way about her and a calmness that gives Mom and our entire family confidence that she can move forward and dominate whatever hurdle is ahead of her.
Dr. Altman looked right at me and said "she can beat this pneumonia, I have no doubts about that". So then I said "Dr., I believe in her as well, she's about the toughest person I've ever met!" Apparently I was "way off" because Dr. came right back and said "Adam, let me correct you...she IS the toughest person that I have ever met!!" She went on to say that she has treated a lot of patients during her time as a leukemia doctor and she's never seen anyone who has been stronger and more determined than Mom. We've learned a lot more about what she means over the last few days...Mom's not supposed to be here right now, there is no data to support her making it through 3 other rounds and now going on to beat it for a 4th time. She's in uncharted territory because there is no data on her chances of survival to beat this leukemia again...and when the doctors told us on Sunday that they give her a 50/50 chance to beat the pneumonia I figured those odds are pretty incredible!! Much higher than any odds she's had before! In all seriousness, she is already our "miracle Mom", and we had/have no doubts that she can make it past all of this again. God has used her in so many ways over the past 4 years, and she's touched lives that we probably don't even know about. We haven't been able to figure out why God "chose" her to carry this disease, but the farther along we go the more we realize that He is the only one in control. He alone knows the reasons, but we have hope that He will continue to use her for his glory no matter what her outcome might be!
Later on Friday she ended up moving forward with the bronchoscopy after getting the encouragement that she needed from Dr. Altman. All of my siblings and spouses joined me at the hospital so that we could all be there with her without the kiddos. And while I'm thinking about it...thank you to all of you who have reached out and either offered support and actually taken a role in helping in some way, you are amazing and we can't do this without each of you! That visit seemed to jumpstart her mood and a shift started to occur...she had perked up some and was talking and interacting more...which was a great sign to all of us. Saturday then came around and we ended up bringing the kids up to see her, and it was like we were at 213 E. Lincoln St....kids running around everywhere, people eating food and candy, conversations that were way to loud for a hospital...and right in the middle of it all was Mom, loving every second of it! Uncle Joe and Aunt Cheryl came by with their daugher Sarah, and then later her sister Sue visited with her daughter Jenni and husband Mark (Sha right!), and I know she enjoyed that as well. All the while my Dad was there all weekend, helping her in any way that he could...I've been very proud of him each and every time she's been through this, but especially this time because this is definitely the toughest it has been for her...and he's barely left her side!
I'm almost done, hang in there!! Sunday was the reunion, and I know Mom was really looking forward to that day, but she obviously could not be at Sue's for the festivities. Thanks to technology we were able to Facetime her and everyone got a chance to say hello even if it was just for a second or two. It was a great time being together but it wasn't the same without my Mom and Dad there. We were able to update the family and prayed together, about 100 people strong!! It was decided that day that all of my Mom's siblings were going to try and get up there today to see her, and I'm told that many of them were able to go and spend some quality time with her. It must have paid off because while Bre and I were at dinner with our kids we received a picture from Julie that showed my Mom, her niece Kim, and her best friend Kathy taking a walk with her around her floor!!! It was an awesome sight to see because that can only mean one thing...she's getting stronger and continuing her fight...remember, she's the toughest lady that we've ever met!!! Needless to say the weekend ended very well to see Mom moving around, conversing with friends and family, and eating some food in order to get her strength back. We still don't know what type of specific pneumonia she has but just keep praying that it goes away because they cannot start any chemo to treat her leukemia until she has overcome this pneumonia.
That's all for now, thanks for being patient, and thanks for your love and support. Get up there to see her when you can, she would love to see you...and if you can't make it then write something on her blog or send her a text. We'll update again soon, God Bless and love to you all - DO WORK MOMMA!!
This is Adam, Mary's son, and I took over for Julie and David on Thursday night and got the chance to stay with her until my Dad came up on Friday. Friday was a very tough day, I'm not going to sugarcoat things...the Team of doctors came in that morning and had some pretty challening things to say to Mom (and partly to me as well). They explained to us that the pneumonia that Mom has is a very challenging form and they believed it was a "fungal" pneumonia. As you probably already realize, Mom's immune system is non-existent because of her leukemia and she's been having to get transfusions for blood and platelets since arriving at the hospital over a week ago. Viral pneumonia would have been challening enough for her to deal with due to her condition but to know that she's facing a steep uphill battle with this fungal pneumonia had us all very nervous. Thankfully you all were praying for her and although you might not have known specifically what to pray for, your prayers were still paying dividends!!
My biggest concern when we woke up on Friday morning was making sure that Mom was ready for the current battle that she was facing. The previous few days as well as Friday morning had her feeling very lethargic and the medicine that she was taking was making her very weak and sleepy most of the time. I knew I had my work cut out for me that day because they were telling her that she needed to have a bronchoscopy which is where they take a camera down her throat into her lungs in order to look at her lungs and get a sample to find out the specific type of fungal pneumonia she had. Talking her into that was NOT going to be easy because she already told Dad the day before that it "wasn't going to happen!" Well, after her and I got back from her CT scan she was getting some rest and God sent a little Angel into the room, her name is Dr. Jessica Altman, mom's leukemia doctor. She was a sight for sore eyes because any time she comes in to see Mom you can instantly see Mom's mood and attitude change for the better. It was no different on that Friday afternoon, Dr. Altman has a way about her and a calmness that gives Mom and our entire family confidence that she can move forward and dominate whatever hurdle is ahead of her.
Dr. Altman looked right at me and said "she can beat this pneumonia, I have no doubts about that". So then I said "Dr., I believe in her as well, she's about the toughest person I've ever met!" Apparently I was "way off" because Dr. came right back and said "Adam, let me correct you...she IS the toughest person that I have ever met!!" She went on to say that she has treated a lot of patients during her time as a leukemia doctor and she's never seen anyone who has been stronger and more determined than Mom. We've learned a lot more about what she means over the last few days...Mom's not supposed to be here right now, there is no data to support her making it through 3 other rounds and now going on to beat it for a 4th time. She's in uncharted territory because there is no data on her chances of survival to beat this leukemia again...and when the doctors told us on Sunday that they give her a 50/50 chance to beat the pneumonia I figured those odds are pretty incredible!! Much higher than any odds she's had before! In all seriousness, she is already our "miracle Mom", and we had/have no doubts that she can make it past all of this again. God has used her in so many ways over the past 4 years, and she's touched lives that we probably don't even know about. We haven't been able to figure out why God "chose" her to carry this disease, but the farther along we go the more we realize that He is the only one in control. He alone knows the reasons, but we have hope that He will continue to use her for his glory no matter what her outcome might be!
Later on Friday she ended up moving forward with the bronchoscopy after getting the encouragement that she needed from Dr. Altman. All of my siblings and spouses joined me at the hospital so that we could all be there with her without the kiddos. And while I'm thinking about it...thank you to all of you who have reached out and either offered support and actually taken a role in helping in some way, you are amazing and we can't do this without each of you! That visit seemed to jumpstart her mood and a shift started to occur...she had perked up some and was talking and interacting more...which was a great sign to all of us. Saturday then came around and we ended up bringing the kids up to see her, and it was like we were at 213 E. Lincoln St....kids running around everywhere, people eating food and candy, conversations that were way to loud for a hospital...and right in the middle of it all was Mom, loving every second of it! Uncle Joe and Aunt Cheryl came by with their daugher Sarah, and then later her sister Sue visited with her daughter Jenni and husband Mark (Sha right!), and I know she enjoyed that as well. All the while my Dad was there all weekend, helping her in any way that he could...I've been very proud of him each and every time she's been through this, but especially this time because this is definitely the toughest it has been for her...and he's barely left her side!
I'm almost done, hang in there!! Sunday was the reunion, and I know Mom was really looking forward to that day, but she obviously could not be at Sue's for the festivities. Thanks to technology we were able to Facetime her and everyone got a chance to say hello even if it was just for a second or two. It was a great time being together but it wasn't the same without my Mom and Dad there. We were able to update the family and prayed together, about 100 people strong!! It was decided that day that all of my Mom's siblings were going to try and get up there today to see her, and I'm told that many of them were able to go and spend some quality time with her. It must have paid off because while Bre and I were at dinner with our kids we received a picture from Julie that showed my Mom, her niece Kim, and her best friend Kathy taking a walk with her around her floor!!! It was an awesome sight to see because that can only mean one thing...she's getting stronger and continuing her fight...remember, she's the toughest lady that we've ever met!!! Needless to say the weekend ended very well to see Mom moving around, conversing with friends and family, and eating some food in order to get her strength back. We still don't know what type of specific pneumonia she has but just keep praying that it goes away because they cannot start any chemo to treat her leukemia until she has overcome this pneumonia.
That's all for now, thanks for being patient, and thanks for your love and support. Get up there to see her when you can, she would love to see you...and if you can't make it then write something on her blog or send her a text. We'll update again soon, God Bless and love to you all - DO WORK MOMMA!!
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