First, let me apologize for the delay between updates. After I received a few emails this week asking about Chase, I was quickly reminded that I needed to post! :)
Chase completed this round of chemo last Wednesday. It was only 8 days in total length, with 2 of the 3 meds only lasting 5 of the 8 days. Thankfully, he handled it all very well, only becoming ill (vomiting) once. From what we could tell, it was due to him not having enough food in his stomach.
I don't know what it is about the boy, but you literally have to make him eat as he rarely requests food. Ensuring that his weight doesn't drop below 100 lbs is a daily battle. He tends to flex between 99 and 101 daily. Lately, he has taken a liking to the grilled cheese sandwiches that he can order in the cafeteria and also to the French Toast sticks for breakfast. I discovered by accident one morning that you HAVE to order the syrup with the sticks. What?? Who would order French Toast sticks and not want syrup? Regardless, we've had to be pretty vigilant about his eating. Sometimes that means getting a nurse on our side (Robert is great about this.) to prevent him from calling room service.
Chase really didn't like going out of the room or going downstairs to the cafeteria the first week he was here because he was still tethered to his pole. The dreaded, detestable pole!! But when the chemo was over? He was like a new kid! He's gotten to where he's wandering off on his own to the play room (which is right across from his room this time) and meeting some of the other patients on the Aflac floor. He's been spending a lot of time in there, which I think is great for him to have some sense of independence.
The first month we were here, he was still recovering from the surgery for his CVL (central line) and also suffering from the effects of the leukemia, both of which lasted a while, and he didn't feel much like leaving his room. Now that the effects of the leukemia aren't bothering him as well as his CVL, he's got a lot more energy and desire to get out of the room. Actually, he's also complained about being bored a bit, too. I'm glad that he's gotten bored!! I see it as motivation for him to spend more time out of the room - the very SMALL room. Yes, we are still in the small room and looks like we'll be here for the rest of this round.
Okay, but on to the more interesting aspects in Chase's life - the cute nurses!! As you might recall in the last update, I mentioned that I had let it slip about Chase liking the physical therapist. Come to find out her name is Hartley. Well, during the nurses' rounds (where they sit at a table and discuss the patients), his doctor mentioned that Chase liked Hartley. Robert was there and spoke with Chase about it. Chase thought that Robert had told Hartley that he liked her. So, the entire rest of the day when he saw Robert, he was pointing at him and drawing his finger across this throat. Robert would turn to Rebecca and make her look at Chase, who would simply smile and wave innocently. Chase didn’t realize that was why he was getting her to look over there. He was hoping to catch Chase in the act, but had no luck, so Chase was being devious without even realizing it.
I was at work when all of this was going on, but by the time I arrived, Robert was joking around with Chase about being threatened and needing protection. Robert finally managed to get Chase to realize that he had NOT spoken to Hartley, which led the two of them to discuss which other nurses Chase thought was also cute. He didn't mention Rebecca until after Robert had left though. I kind of figured that he thought she was pretty. He threatened me if I breathed a word though!
And who showed up the next day?? Hartley to ask Chase if he wanted to go down to the gym. I don't believe I have ever seen him leave his room quite so quickly.
And speaking of the cute nurses? Chase had requested some Axe body spray so he could "smell good for the ladies". I brought him a bottle of it and I should have brought myself a gas mask, too. Good grief! If you have never smelled any of the Axe products, go get yourself a whiff. They're quite strong and Chase has the whole suite of products - body wash, deodorant, and body spray, the last of which I've seen him apply several time a day. I can tell just how "cute" he thinks a nurse is by how much he'll talk to her.
Okay, now onto the medical news.....
We (FINALLY) got Chase's bone marrow aspiration molecular results back and the Philadelphia chromosome is almost completely gone!! It's basically insignificant. It can come back, but given how well it responded to the chemotherapy, everything looks very good that it won't. They've sent off Chase's records to doctors all over the US and they all agree that they should treat Chase's leukemia as AML (not CML). Unless something drastic changes, there will NOT be a need for a bone marrow transplant!!! This is wonderful news!! Should he ever need one, we do have William, which is a blessing.
Now what does all of this mean? It means that Chase will only undergo the 5 rounds of chemotherapy. He has already completed two (but not the waiting period yet of the 2nd), and then he'll have three more after this. Dr.Woods, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Director, was making rounds this past weekend. We had yet to meet him, but he was very well acquainted with Chase's case and said it was very nice to finally meet him in person. He said Chase looked really good - always nice to hear from a doctor! He did caution us that the 2nd round of chemo is the easiest because he isn't battling the effects of the leukemia or recovering from surgery, and his bone marrow will take longer to recover after future treatments.
As for this round of chemo, we're estimating that he may be able to come home in a little less than 2 weeks if he follows the same pattern as last time, but it's all a matter of what his counts say. Until then, he'll keep himself quite occupied with the cute nurses, Hartley, oh, and Kristina in Child Life - she's cute, too. She's actually learning how to play chess so she can compete against him.
We've been extremely blessed with his prognosis and how he has responded to treatment. We thank you very much for your continued prayers!!
God Bless,
The O'Bannon Family
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