In case this message is the first word you've received about Chase's health, I'm going to provide a brief overview of what has happened in the past week. January 13, 2010, Chase went in for his monthly appointment at Egleston. They always take blood and vitals at these appointments to track his blood counts. Later that day, we were told there were Leukemia cells in his bloodstream. Apparently, the tech who first took a look at his sample saw cells that didn't "look right". She referred his sample to Dr.Keller who ordered them to be looked at under a stronger microscope, which confirmed that Chase's Leukemia has come back.
Thankfully, his relapse was caught very early. The percent of "blast" cells in his bloodstream is very low, which means that they are not affecting Chase's health at this point. The rest of his counts are still low and would not be within normal ranges (like ours are) for another four months at least due to his prior treatment. However, almost all of his counts are out of the "low" range, so overall between his counts and his current weight, he is a great deal more healthy than he was at his initial diagnosis last March. That in itself will help Chase during this course of treatment.
Chase, because he has relapsed, will automatically have a bone marrow transplant. We are so blessed that William is a match for his brother and will be able to provide that for him. Only 25% of siblings are a match, and transplants from a matched sibling have a higher survival rate and less complications than unmatched transplants.
Before he can have a transplant, Chase will undergo chemotherapy again, but not to the extent that he did last time. Chase responded so well the first time, the doctors expect him to respond well this time as well. He will have one round at first and be in the hospital for three weeks and then home for a week or two. If he goes into remission, then he will be "turned over" to the transplant team. If he does not go into remission, then he will have to have another round of chemo.
Once turned over to the transplant team, he will have a far stronger chemo that will destroy his bone marrow to prepare his body for the transplanted marrow. At this time, I can't explain how William's marrow cells will be donated or the time frame. We will learn more once we have met with the transplant team in the coming weeks.
When we told Chase that his Leukemia had returned, he was shocked like we were - both he and William. Chase, because he had such a horrible time with his CVL (central line) the last time, was immediately concerned about having to get another one and the duration of his treatment. Once he learned that he wouldn't be in the hospital for another seven months, he was visibly relieved. We explained to Chase that he is far healthier now than he ever was back in March, and that his current health would make his treatments easier to withstand. Although he didn't want to discuss his impending hospitalization and treatment, he has been in good spirits overall.
William is understandably nervous about his role in all of this. The last time he had to give blood (two vials) he almost hyperventilated on me. He said, and I quote "They better put me to sleep whatever they do." I assured him that as soon as we knew more about the procedure, that we would let him know.
The first step was for Chase to get his CVL (central line) put back in, which happened today, Tuesday January 19th. His surgery went extremely well and he was in recovery about 45 minutes ahead of schedule. They also did a bone marrow aspiration and a spinal tap while he was under.
I went to his room on the Aflac floor before he was brought up and was greeted by Rebecca, his primary nurse on his team. She came up to me right away and gave me a huge hug. I can't express how good it felt to walk in and have people here who know and care about us. It makes a huge difference! Rebecca said she learned yesterday about Chase coming back and insisted she be here for him. I thanked her for being here for him, and judging from Chase's interaction with her, I think it helped him a great deal to have someone who he is so familiar with be here when he arrived.
After we got everything unpacked, Rebecca told us that Dr.Cooper would be coming up to speak with us. We asked if Chase could wait until tomorrow to begin chemo, so I assumed he would be going over the schedule for his therapy. However, what he had to say was unexpected. Apparently, when you have Leukemia blast cells in your bloodstream, you typically find a high saturation percentage in the bone marrow as well. But this isn't the case with Chase. He only had about 5% saturation in his marrow, which is NOT typical at all. That being the case, he did not want to begin chemo treatment right away without knowing all of the facts from the detailed test results. Those tests are only done on Mondays and Thursdays at Emory, so we will not know the full results until next Monday. So what does this mean? Chase will spend tonight in the hospital, and then get to go home until next Tuesday when the results are in. At that time, he will more than likely begin chemo.
Dr.Cooper feels that there is a 95% chance that this is a relapse. He did mention the chance that the Leukemia cells they're seeing could be particularly stubborn ones that were resistant to the initial treatment. Until we have the molecular level results back, there is a lot of speculation going on right now, which warrants NOT beginning therapy at this time.
Personally, I am both relieved and let down. On the one hand, I had geared myself up for this mentally. However, I am VERY pleased Chase now has time for his CVL to heal before chemo, and to get a better grasp on his situation so his treatment plan can be adjusted accordingly. He certainly wasn't a textbook case during the first go around, and it doesn't appear that he will be this time either. Dr. Cooper added that at this low concentration level, the blast cells are not causing him any harm, and he will be okay to wait another week.
So, Chase and I will spend the night tonight and return home tomorrow. Some of the test results will be in on Thursday, but I'm not sure if they'll call us or wait until both are available. I will keep everyone posted on what will happen next as the news comes in.
As always, thank you so very much for all of your continued prayers and support!! We draw so much strength from them!!
Caroline
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