Wonderful News!!! 4-25-09

Posted Apr 25, 2009 11:08am

Yes, yes, I know I should have posted this two days ago, but it's been pretty busy around here. So what is this good news?

Well, Thursday morning Chase had his appointment at the Aflac Outpatient Clinic for his bone marrow aspiration. What is an aspiration? It's where they take an actual sample of the bone's marrow. We knew this was the procedure that they would be doing since they're trying to determine if he has two leukemias (AML AND CML) or if the AML is actually driving the CML. Remember we're hoping that the Philadelphia chromosome will be gone. What we didn't expect was the news that they were also going to do a spinal tap and a chemo treatment to his spinal fluid. Granted, his last sampling of spinal fluid was clear of leukemia cells, but it is possible for leukemia cells to enter into the spinal fluid if they do not continue to administer preventative treatments.

Before they started the procedure, Dr.Keller, one of Chase's oncologists came in to speak with us for a moment. He reiterated that Chase's counts had come back up very rapidly, and that he had been surprised just how quickly they had rebounded. We were given his counts for Thursday within 10 minutes of them drawing his labs, and it was amazing to see Chase's blood counts within "normal ranges". Yes, we know that he'll start chemo again next week, which will wipe these counts out once again, but it is still very promising to see his counts at such positive levels. That means he is trying to go into remission, but without further chemo treatment the Leukemia will come back.

The best news that he could give us though was that William is a match for Chase!!!!! I can't begin to tell you what a weight that was lifted off of us! What an incredible miracle and blessing. I know that we've had thousands of people praying for this to happen, and I thank each and every one of you who did! William only had a 25% chance of matching Chase, but he did. What this means is that once they determine IF Chase actually NEEDS a bone marrow transplant, that William will be able to offer his brother his bone marrow. The process is not surgical in nature. Instead, it is much like giving blood.

We were also given MORE good news, which is that Chase doesn't have to go back into the hospital until Tuesday morning!! We were hoping that he could stay home long enough to go to his Boy Scout Court of Honor Monday night,and he will be able to do that! This will be the first Boy Scout function that he has attended in over a month!

Back to Chase's procedure on Thursday...

The same doctor who administered the anesthesia to him in the PICU when he got his femoral artery line (in his leg) came in to administer the anesthesia for this procedure as well. Chase recognized him, too which surprised me since that was so many weeks ago. Chase was given a milky substance in his IV line that quickly knocked him out. It's a short-term anesthesia that quickly wears off. I was worried that he would be really groggy afterward, but he was up and walking around within 30 minutes.

Before we left the hospital, Chase got a craving for a strawberry-banana smoothie. I have been telling him for the longest time that there is this little stand in the hospital that makes the best smoothies, teas, and coffees. So, when we was released, we went downstairs and got him his smoothie. While the woman was working on it, Chase felt a little tickle on his ear and turned to see Rebecca!! It took him a second to realize that it was her because he never sees her face-to-face up close. Typically, he is in bed, so she looks much taller to him. In fact, they were the same height which surprised us both. He lit up when he saw her and didn't hesitate to tell her that he was going to "get" her when he got back. I thought it was very nice of her to stop and say hello to him and ask him how he was doing. Given that she was on her way out (to lunch I assume) she could have easily kept walking. To me, it's just a sign of the exceptional people this hospital has and a hallmark of the culture of the hospital, as well.

Jumping back to his procedure, it turns out that the anesthesia and any aftereffects of that shouldn't have been our concern. Instead the actual chemo treatment to his spinal fluid was the "kicker". Chase's personality was temporarily altered and it was as if NOTHING pleased him. If he could complain about anything or make a comment about it - he did! Oh boy! Needless to say the ride home was very interesting. He complained about the air in the car, the traffic, the fact that we went through the drive-thru for food, etc. It became a bit comical to see if he would actually make some kind of negative comment about anything we might say. I warned William about him and in typical brother fashion, he went straight to Chase and started to bother him, just to see if he could get a reaction out of him, too.

Other than the procedure this week, everything has been calm. Chase and William are really enjoying their time together. Chase realized last night that he's going back into the hospital in a few days. I'm hoping that might prompt him to ask to leave the house more. He's been a big homebody this week other than going out a few times, but I can understand him wanting to stay in the house since he's been away from it (and his things) for so long.

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who has been keeping up with Chase's story and praying for him. We're so very thankful for all of the support. We're hoping that we'll get the results of this bone marrow aspiration back in 7 to 14 days. This should tell us more about his Leukemia and allow the doctors to nail down a specific treatment path for Chase, which we are all anxious to hear.

Thank you so much and God Bless!

Caroline

Home Sweet Home!

Posted Apr 21, 2009 3:01pm

Chase has been enjoying his time at home VERY much!! He hates that he can't hug and kiss on Maya (his Doberman/Beagle) the way he's used to, but he's thrilled to be back with her regardless. Oh, and she's happy, too! The first night he was home, Chase slept in William's room on an inflatable mattress and Maya stayed outside their room for a bit crying because they closed the door. She loves those blow up mattresses because she feels that she has the right to jump up on them, and didn't like it that she couldn't join them. We have to watch her though because she likes to "paw" for attention, something we can't let her do to Chase.

Monday, tearing Chase away from XBox Live almost required a crowbar!! He really missed speaking with all of his online friends. I'm hoping he'll change his mind about taking his Xbox back to the hospital next week.

Chase is eating really well! I found that after he had gained some weight back, that he lost it again! He was down to 98lbs. Thankfully, he's been eating really well since being at home. We're hoping to fatten the boy up before he goes back into the hospital. One of his favorite foods is Bar-B-Q, so we ate at Uncle Betty's last night. He almost finished his entire plate of food. At this point, we really don't care what he eats as long as he eats and as long as it's fattening and somewhat nutritional.

Chase had a visit with a traveling nurse this morning. I had to "flush" his line - one of them. She did the other. I had to wake Chase up when she got here around 10:30. He told me that he and William made a "mistake" and stayed up talking until 2am!! Yeah, I guess you could say they missed each other. I wanted to throttle them both for staying up talking when they need to sleep, but I'm glad they're reconnecting.

Chase has to go back to the hospital Thursday morning for a bone marrow aspiration (sampling of marrow). He'll be heavily sedated for the procedure. I imagine he'll be sore as well afterward, but I hope it won't restrict him from doing whatever he may want to do. Right now, we don't know which day he has to go back in for his second stay (and round of chemo). We're keeping our fingers crossed that he can stay here through Monday night so he can attend his Boy Scout Court of Honor, but that will be up to the doctors.

So for now, we're enjoying his time at home. Other than ducking into Best Buy (with a mask) last night to peruse the video games, he hasn't asked to go anywhere in particular. I would think that he would have cabin fever, but he's just happy to be in his room and playing his games. The simple pleasures!!

Thank you for your continued prayers and positive thoughts!! I probably won't post again until later this week just because it's Spring Break, but if anything arises, I'll be sure to update.

Thank you all and God Bless!!

The O'Bannon Family

Coming Home!!

Posted Apr 19, 2009 3:10pm

Chase is coming home TODAY!! William and I are on the way to the hospital to get him and bring his things home. He'll only be home a week though. We're praying he won't have any fevers or anything else that will cause him to need to go back into the hospital. He will have to go back for an outpatient procedure to have his bone marrow aspiration probably Tuesday or Wednesday, but he should be able to be home through next Monday we hope!!

God Bless!!

The O'Bannon Clan!

4-18-09 Day of Visitors and Great (Possible) News!

Posted Apr 18, 2009 3:47pm

Last night Chase and I didn't do a whole lot. We basically sat around and watched a movie while I got a bit of work done and took pictures of the Boy Scout patches that have come in. He has received SO many from all over the United States, and he is incredibly proud of them, too. I'm still processing them and uploading the pictures to Flickr for everyone to see.

Weight Loss:

As you may remember, Chase's weight loss has been a big concern of ours. When he was admitted into the hospital on March 25, 2009, he weighed 103 lbs. In less than 2 weeks, he had dropped six pounds, eventually losing 7 lbs total. Well, when he was weighed recently, he was up to 101.9 lbs!!! Woo-hoo!!

I'm sure having Easter candy and donuts around here doesn't hurt either. That and Chase has developed a massive craving for milk. The hospital keeps pints of milk in the fridge here for everyone to use and he has been going through about 6 a day (two at a time). Given that he's acquired a taste for whole milk instead of the non-fat that we use at home, he's chugging down some fat and calories as he drinks.

Visitors:

Today, Chase has had quite a few visitors. Mr. Jason, Mr.John (two of his Scout leaders) and their teenage sons Ryan and JD stopped by. They all went through Chase's patch collection and Mr.Jason, who was in Cub Scouts as a boy, was admiring some of the vintage Cub Scout pins and other items that Chase recently received in the mail. It was interesting to hear how things have changed so much over the years.

Well, the visit didn't take long before it began to degenerate. Before I knew it, one of them had found the nerf crossbow and then arrows were being thrown back and forth across the room. Chase got into it as well whenever an arrow would fall on his bed. He would take the opportunity to launch it right back. Let it be noted that the "adult" males in the room were also active participants. That is until they chose to take blue surgical gloves and see if they could pull them over their head and blow them up while wearing them. Yes, there are pictures. Be sure to check them out in the gallery!

Great progress!:

Anyway, while all the mayhem was going on in the hospital room, Dr.Keller stopped by with some GREAT news! Chase's counts are coming back VERY nicely, especially within the past day. He said that it looks like Chase's leukemia is trying to go into remission. Does that mean no more chemo if that is the case? No. Two rounds of chemo is the minimum. Also, much will depend on the results of his next bone marrow aspiration and if one of us is a match for him as well.

Dr. Keller cautioned me by saying that they're looking for trends in his counts, but thus far everything looks very promising. Even though he had a fever last weekend, ALL of his lab cultures came back negative for infections (Woo-hoo, again!), and because he hasn't had a recurrence of the fever, he took Chase off the antibiotic, which he called a "bold move", but entirely prompted by Chase's progress.

For the past week, we've been told that he probably wouldn't be able to come home for a short break until late next week, which would be the end of my Spring Break. However, today Dr.Keller said that although he can't promise anything, if Chase's counts continue to rebound as they are, then he could be discharged MONDAY!!!! That would be so incredible if that happens since my Spring Break begins Monday as well!! I'm not going to get my hopes up just in case, but I'm so very thankful for all of this wonderful news regarding his counts!! It's amazing!

After all of that excitement, Chase and I went to the library to return a couple of movies and to get me a bite to eat. When we returned, Debbie, one of our cousins on David's side of the family, dropped by for a visit. Chase had not seen her in a while, so it was great for him to be able to reconnect the name with the person once again. She promised to teach him Chicago Poker the next time they're together. It sounds like a crazy game. I have not a clue how to play poker myself, so I may need to sit in on that game, too.

Debbie had not been gone long before we heard ukulele music. I opened the doors and there were CLOWNS across the hall. We ran into them on the way back to the room and Chase spoke to them briefly, but we didn't think they would be back around. Actually, the conversation in the hall was funy. One of the clowns told Chase that he was an inventor and that he was working on something that would make him very rich - those things that keep the ceiling from falling to the floor - walls!

Well, back in Chase's room, the invention conversation continued. He was also inventing a new kind of car. The other clown began to take "notes" of this new car, too. This car would be made entirely of wood. Chase started asking about all kinds of the parts, just to egg him on a bit, and the clown enthusiastically explained how the body was made of wood, the engine of wood, the tires of wood. But then they discovered one thing about the car - "It wood-n't go."

Chase missed the joke completely, but the clown continued.

So, when that car "wood-n't" go, they got the idea of putting steel on the car. "But it 'steel' 'wood-n't' go."

Again, Chase missed the joke.

He tried two more times, but those also went over his head as well. Then the 2nd clown (the one taking notes), suggested that they put snails all over the car that way when it was driven down the road, people would point to it and say, "Look at that es-car-got!" **Cue groan**

Clown #2 told him that the idea needed to go one place. With that, he tore off the paper he had been writing on and put it in the trash. Clown #1 told him that at least he still had his "wall" and "floor" invention. Chase said that he couldn't make any money off of it and that someone would steal the idea unless he patented it, which prompted him to "pat" the wall and floor. "See, now I've patented them!" He then left the room and told Clown #2 that he knew of a cake he wanted to invent, too, so he better go "patty cake" it.

It's been a full day thus far to say the least. I have to get lessons on how to change Chase's dressing over his central line, which I imagine I'll have to do at some point today and then again tomorrow. They have a mannequin to practice on though instead of Chase. Thank goodness for that!

I'll update if we get any further developments regarding when he might go home. In the meantime, thank you to each and every one of you for keeping Chase and our family in your thoughts and prayers! Prayer works and I see it in Chase every day!

God Bless!

The O'Bannon family!

4-15-09 Not much news is GREAT news!

Posted Apr 15, 2009 11:51pm

I know it's been a couple of days between updates...okay,okay,okay - MORE than a couple, but I do want to say upfront that Chase has been doing VERY well.

Yes, Chase did have his first fever spike this past Saturday night, but by Easter Sunday it was over with, which I was very thankful for since he was expecting visitors with Easter dinner on Sunday.

We did have one minor problem that was corrected today. He has this biopatch disc over his central line where it goes into his chest. There has been a blood clot directly on the line and the stitch there once it ceased "oozing", but this past week the biopatch became attached to the clot - not good. The biopatch has to be changed weekly since it slowly releases antibiotics to prevent infection. Sadly, this was Easter Sunday and right as my (Caroline's) parents, a cousin, and William were arriving, that's when they were trying to get the old patch to dislodge. It happened to be a bit painful, too. They kept at it for about five minutes until they finally decided to hold off and just re-bandage it.

Chase really enjoyed having his brother here. I can tell how much they missed each other, which made me even more resolved to get the two of them together for a sleep over in the hospital. After Chase ate some ham and dressing, he, my Dad, and William played a few hands of 5 Card Draw Poker and then William and Chase played a round of Chess - Chase won.

On Monday, the Atlanta Zoo brought by a few animals for the kids at the hospital to view. Chase, unfortunately, couldn't touch them, but since he loves animals, I'm sure he enjoyed getting so close to them regardless.

David reported that Chase only had one additional fever lapse, but it was only 100 degrees F. Since then he hasn't had any other fevers. He has had a slight cough, but it hasn't been persistent. The only other thing that I would say Chase has been complaining about is some pain in his left leg beneath his knee. Since he's had this pain (only when he is in a certain position) for almost a week, they went ahead and did an ultrasound just to make sure there wasn't a blood clot forming. I'm pleased to report that he's okay. It may have just been a swelling of the blood vessel, which can be a temporary side effect, great news.

On to Wednesday...

William is spending the night tonight. This is something that both of them have been looking forward to. It will be the first day that they've spent more than 2 hrs together since Chase's diagnosis. As I type, the two of them have been hanging out in Chase's hospital bed playing Xbox 360, watching "Yes Man!" with a small break in between to go downstairs and get food from the cafeteria.

Oh, and the two of them have been plotting against Rebecca. Fortunately for her, they had her working on the other hall, so Chase and William won't have the chance to attack the poor woman. On our way down to the cafeteria, I looked through the doors at the end of our hallway and noticed Rebecca and Robert speaking with each other and then she was waving with a somewhat devious smile on her face. It took me a second to realize that she was waving at Chase, and when I turned around he was pointing at her with slanted eyes. Chase and William didn't bat an eye before talking about how there was "two" of them against her.

Robert and Rebecca started talking about how they would just wait for Chase to go to sleep and paint his nails purple, put some lipstick on him, and then they'd round up that blond wig they have around here, put it on him, and snap a few choice pictures to post on Chase's carepage.

Let the record show, that I will make SURE my camera batteries are FULL and my memory card EMPTY if the two of them want to arrange for a little late night mayhem against Chase, especially once he gets toward the (final) end of his hospitalization. It will have to be the end, because as Chase has already pointed out to Robert that if he tries anything on him, Chase WILL be back after his week away from the hospital and he won't forget.

Did I say already how much I LOVE the nursing staff here???

That's all for tonight. It may be another couple of days before my next update, but in the meantime, enjoy the new Blue Bunny Blackmail pictures. I took these the other day and used them to bribe Chase. However, he realized he could add some LOLCats titles to them and had a bit of fun adding his own spin to the pictures.

Thank you very much for your continued thoughts and prayers!!

The O'Bannon Family

For Our Brave Son

Posted Apr 14, 2009 2:01am

Lately I've been winning battles left and right
But even winners can get wounded in the fight
People say that I'm amazing
Strong beyond my years
But they don't see inside of me
I'm hiding all the tears

They don't know that I go running home when I fall down
They don't know who picks me up when no one is around
I drop my sword and cry for just a while
'Cause deep inside this armor
The warrior is a child

Unafraid because His armor is the best
But even soldiers need a quiet place to rest
People say that I'm amazing
Never face retreat
But they don't see the enemies
That lay me at His feet

They don't know that I go running home when I fall down
They don't know who picks me up when no one is around
I drop my sword and and cry for just a while
'Cause deep inside this armor
the warrior is a child

They don't know that I go running home when I fall down
They don't know who picks me up when no one is around
I drop my sword and look up for a smile
'Cause deep inside this armor
Deep inside this armor
Deep inside this armor
The Warrior is a Child

Performed by artist Twila Harris

Happy Easter! - It's a longish update today.

Posted Apr 12, 2009 10:45am

First, I would like to wish everyone a VERY Happy Easter! Chase woke up this morning before 7am to go to the restroom and I woke up as well. When I realized that Sunrise Service was a little more than 30 minutes away, I decided to attend. The service was held in the garden area of Egleston Hospital, which is really beautiful. I need to take some pictures of it. I would say there were about 20 people in attendance - a mixture of both parents of children and Egleston staff. It was a beautiful morning, not too cold either, and it was a wonderful service.

On a somewhat funny note, the pastor told us that his two "songbirds" weren't able to make it this morning, so we were left singing a capella. There weren't many there who could carry a tune without accompaniment, myself included since the songs weren't familiar, but a joyful noise we made regardless!

Okay, so let me back up a couple of days to Friday before I arrived. Chase had a great night the evening before. He did have a nosebleed, but it occurred before he went to bed, which I was very thankful for. I know how much he hates having them after he has gone to bed, so at least he didn't have to be woken up by it.

Chase's platelets and white blood cell count continue to lower, but David was told that we didn't need to focus so much on the WBC any longer, but look at the ANC instead. That stands for Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC). The ANC is "a test used to measure the amount of WBCs you have to fight infections" (source http://www.reddlegg.com/Leukemia/what_is_leukemia.htm). 1000 or below means the immune system is compromised. 500 or below exposes you to a high risk for infection. Chase's ANC on April 10th was 300. The doctors have been telling us that typically leukemia patients have developed fevers and/or other illnesses by this time. The fact that he had not was pleasantly surprising to all of them. I'll come back to talk a bit more on this later.

Visitors!
David's good friend Lance and his wife Tera came by for an extended visit and brought a box of Krispy Kreme donuts. I heard that Chase and Tera played a few rounds of Pente together, but I can't recall who won. I know Chase and David both enjoyed the visit. Chase seems to get a nice little surge from them!

Honestly, when I arrived Friday night, I expected to have a bald child. Robert, one of Chase's associate nurses who has loads of experience cutting hair, came by on Wednesday and said that he could shave Chase's head. I thought he had mentioned doing it on Thursday, but when I showed up, he still had a head full of hair.

Friday night, Robert dropped off the "clippers" box along with a few extra towels for when he had a bit of time to shave Chase's head. Just when we thought he might have a lull in his schedule, the hospital came under a tornado warning! Oh joy! We all had to be moved into a central waiting area away from hallways. Thankfully, we weren't there long at all.

Chase and I started watching "Meet the Parents", which he loved (such a great movie) as I was Plurking a bit. We both got distracted by a YouTube video that Kymberli M suggested Vdub144 (Dan) watch when he made a comment about singing in a round by yourself. Impossible? No, it's not. Watch this incredible movie. This guy is amazing and Chase and I forgot about the movie for a bit as we watched it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk5_OSsawz4 - Hint: Let the movie load before watching it!

Once that distraction was out of the way, we got back to the movie and then Robert showed up!! Shaving time!!! Needless to say, I have pictures and movies. And if you read this before I have had a chance to post the pictures, trust me, I'll post a few on here before and after. Chase was ready to go and pretty much had a smile on his face most of the time. He did have one small request and that was to have his troop's number cut into his hair before it was all shaved off. Now, given that Robert didn't have a small, fancy shaver for doing intricate designs, I thought he did a pretty good job and Chase was very pleased.

Although his hair has yet to begin falling out, Chase has always like his hair ultra short. It's never been THIS short, but he's really pleased with how he looks, and his his words, "I looks goooood." Yes, my child doesn't have a vain bone in his body - ahem. As a mom, I just can't wait to see him alongside his brother, William, who HATES having his hair cut. So, now I have Shaggy and Curly for sons :)

His haircut was really late, but we finished our movie. He went to bed around 1am, but I couldn't get to sleep. It probably had something to do with that Starbucks London Fog (black tea latte concoction - yummy) that I had on the way to the hospital. I just couldn't get to sleep! I discovered that the only time you can count on a hot shower/bath around here is late at night or really early in the morning. Since I was awake, I indulged in a nice bubble bath with Eucalyptus-Mint Stress Relief aromatherapy bubble bath - Ahhhh!

Saturday, my mom came over. I was going to keep on sleeping, tried to at any rate, but then Dr.Alexander and Dr.Cooper came by for a visit. As I've written before, Chase has two different types of leukemia (CML and AML). They (the doctors) had told David some information about one driving the other and how it would affect Chase's treatment, but I was a bit confused about it all. Things seems to shift as new information arises, so I was so pleased they both were here for me to ask questions.

It was explained to me that the Philadelphia chromosome (consistent with CML and treated with an oral drug Gleevac), although present, may be a "driven" by the AML. I'm still not quite sure what that means, but from what they were saying (and I'll see if I can learn more about it today), the Philadelphia chromosome may not be "formed" exactly as they are used to seeing with CML patients. Again, let me say that I may have misheard that, but will see if I can get some further clarification.

Keep in mind the Philadelphia chromosome occurs within AML patients only occasionally. This is a rare occurrence, especially for a pediatric patient. I've mentioned before that they were going to consult with some Emory doctors who treat adult CML leukemia. I was told that they have done that, and then some. When I asked them what the next steps for Chase would be, they said right now there is no clear path. They have not only consulted with Emory leukemia specialists, they've been consulting with specialists from ALL over.

A few friends of mine have been saying that perhaps Chase's situation would draw a lot of attention among leukemia doctors since it is so rare, and from what I was told yesterday (Saturday), that sounds like it's true. Dr.Cooper mentioned a couple of times that doctors all over the United States are being consulted. Granted, no parents wants their child to be diagnosed with anything like this, but I'm pleased that he has so many experts consulting on his case.

Both doctors continued to emphasize how incredibly well Chase is responding to treatment. They've mentioned this just about every time that I've seen them, which does my heart SO much good! The power of prayer!!!

What they will most likely do is perform another bone marrow aspiration (sampling of bone marrow) in a couple of weeks to look once again at the chromosomes and leukemia cells. If they determine that the AML is "driving" the CML, then we could be looking again at the 5 rounds of chemo with a possible bone marrow transplant. If he does indeed have true CML, then he'll still need another round of chemo, but if we have a family match for bone marrow, then they'll look at a transplant after the 2nd treatment.

All of us have been tested, and we should find out our results by the time they would schedule Chase for his bone marrow aspiration. If my sleep addled brain is putting all of this information together correctly, we'll have a much better picture of what his treatment will be in 2 weeks.

Now if there is not a family match, then they'll have to go looking for a donor and I would assume the treatment plan will be altered from what I provided above.

Please pray that one of us is a match for Chase! I know everyone has been praying for Chase up until now, but I'm asking for a bit of "refinement" if I may?

Oh, I forgot!! Chase received a blue and white bunny as part of an Easter basket from some of the Boy Scout leader wives. They were teasing Chase about me "planting" the bunny on him as he slept and snapping a couple of pictures. Well, I tried doing that was caught!! I waited a bit longer and ended up with two pictures. Once Chase realized what I had done, he practically jumped out of bed to get to my camera to delete the pictures. The wise and slightly twisted mother that I am, I promptly used the images to bribe Chase into a series of tasks - eating, drinking plenty of fluids, and getting up to walk around a lot. Oh, and his fluid "output" has been decreasing a bit, so the threat of him going back on the IV fluids also helped with my cause.

Chase drank very well yesterday, I'm pleased to report and when asked what he wanted for breakfast - even though it was already past 12pm - he asked for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I had no problem with that! He ate most of it plus two cartons of milk and then it was Happy Tails time. No, not story time - tails...as in the ones that wag!

Chase LOVES dogs, and once a week this group of people who have specially trained dogs come to the hospital for the patients to spend some time with. Let me just say how beautiful and sweet these dogs are!! I think Chase would have taken them all home if he could. His favorites were the two pugs, a Newfoundland, and a Great Pyrenees. Again, pictures will be posted. I thought the Newfoundland and the Great Pyrenees dogs were amazing. HUGE dogs, but incredibly gentle and sweet. It was the Golden Retriever "Samantha" that I liked a lot. She reminded me of Maya, just loving having the sides of her face scratched.

After the dogs, we returned back upstairs and hung out and got two bags of platelets until friends of my parents, Mark and Judy, dropped by for a visit. They brought Chase a 3-tiered round box of Easter candies. Chase has received quite a bit of candy around here this past week, but since he's lost 6 lbs to date, I and the hospital aren't fussing about what he consumes. I try to balance as much fruit into his diet as I can though, and we shared an apple with peanut butter - one of his favorite snacks and mine, too - Friday night.

As has become our habit, Chase and I were snuggled up together on his bed as we watched a bit of TV. I leaned over to kiss his stubbly head and realized it felt hot. I took his temperature and it was 38c, which is just over 100F. Leukemia patients aren't considered to be having a fever "spike" until 38.5, but by 11:00pm, hit temp was at 38.6. It's not a bad fever spike (thankfully) and not unexpected. This is part of the process in rebuilding is WBC. He's going to be susceptible to fevers and such and so far, he's held them off quite well!

Unfortunately for Chase, this means he's BACK on the IV pole for constant fluids and antibiotic infusions. He's not thrilled about that at all since that seriously hinders his mobility, but he's handling it. As of this morning, his fever is down to 37!!! Normal!!! Yes!!!

So, now he's back to getting labs drawn for 3 days to scan for infections. He's getting blood today, but nothing else planned except for an Easter family visit to share lunch. I'll update quickly if his condition changes, but so far, so good.

Please enjoy your family time this Easter Sunday and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your continued prayers!!!

The O'Bannon Family
c/o Caroline

04-08-09 Just nosebleeds

Posted Apr 9, 2009 5:05pm

Dad (David) was on duty yesterday. He and Chase had a pretty good day together. A nosebleed was the only down part to the day thankfully. They attended a Home Depot boat building workshop together. Now that the paint is dry, he can put the sails on it, but I did have one small complaint...he had to go and paint the thing orange and blue!! Gator and Auburn colors!! I'll have to forgive that little transgression given his condition.

The clowns came for another visit as well. Chase remarked that they weren't AS funny on their second visit as they were the first time he met them, but entertaining nonetheless.

He and Dad played chess yesterday. I just asked him who won and he said that he did, and added, "Dad's not very good." Not so sure I want to play him again myself out of fear at what he might say about me!

A couple of friends from work, Scott and Julie came by the hospital to take me out to dinner. Scott's wife recommended this great little place called Wahoo. From the outside it might not look like much, but once inside it reminded me of one of those cool little family restaurants that you might stumble across in Europe. We ate out on the covered patio in view of this great garden area they have. Let me just say first of all that the food was FABULOUS, but even had it not been, the company and ambiance would have completely made up for it. However, the dinner was wonderful, which only made the entire evening all the sweeter!

My parents were here with Chase while I was out. He beat my dad twice at Chess although according to him he was only "trapped" not truly beaten. When I returned, I had a rather large pile of Scout patches that had arrived in the mail. Scott and Julie brought them from work and WOW are they cool!! He had a great time going through them, too. I'll post pictures soon.

After that, Chase got in a mood while I was on the phone and literally attacked me. I was sitting on the sofa and he crawled all over me, putting his hand on my mouth so I couldn't talk and making all kinds of noises so his Dad on the phone couldn't hear me at all. The boy is not only STILL strong, but he's got a distinct advantage because I can't get too rough with him since he's got that central line in his chest! Not a fair advantage. Anyway, he was also getting his fingers wet in my mouth and rubbing them all over my face - gross!! Then he grabbed the phone from me and we ended up playing keep away. By the end, we were both laughing so hard we were crying.

About 2 am he woke up with a pretty bad nosebleed. By the time he realized he wasn't drooling, he had soaked a rather large spot on his shirt. We all thought that perhaps he might have to get the shirt cut off of him, but we managed to get it off of him and it has been soaking in cold water ever since. I think it will be okay. It's one of his favorite shirts, so I know he would really rather not lose it.

Because he (we) went to bed late last night and his sleep was interrupted by the nose bleed, we both slept in today until around eleven. I tried to get him up, but he pretty much refused, saying he wanted more sleep. I finally got him up, but he was NOT happy with me at all. Thankfully a Sprite and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich made him feel better. After eating, we went down to the library and borrowed two movies that we've been watching today.

What is funny is that one of the movies is Anacondas, and both his head nurse and one of his doctors seemed to get a bit caught up in it. You know, it's one of those kind of cheesy "B" movies. He and William love watching them on SciFi and we don't get the SciFi channel here (gasp), which is awful!!!

Anyway, he's in great spirit, enough to still be harassing me while I'm typing this. He though it was really unfair that I could continue to type almost error free even with him covering my eyes with my hair. So much for thwarting my efforts to update his carepage!!

So, that's about it for now. His Bingo night is tonight and I think a couple of his Scoutmasters are supposed to be coming by as well. Sounds like a busy night! I'm headed home to be with William and my mom is coming, too so I can work tomorrow.

Oh, and one last note. The doctors said that typically by now, many leukemia patients have developed fevers and/or some other kind of illness. He said that he is very happy to see that Chase has not at this point succumbed to either. I realize that most likely it will happen, but the more days he is well, the better! Amen!

Thank you again for your continued prayers! I see them working!

The O'Bannon Family

4-7-09 Nose Bleeds, Spinal Leukemia (not), and Soccer in the halls

Posted Apr 7, 2009 5:22pm

I (Mom), went back to work this past Monday for the first time since 3/25/09! It was great to get back to work, too! However, getting back to work has kind of slowed down my updates on Chase's carepage - sorry :)

I'll give you some of the highlights. Chase over the past couple of days has had some issues with nosebleeds. He has always been prone to them, but they've never lasted long, and have never bled very much. Well, since his platelets are low, his nosebleeds are more frequent and last quite a bit longer.

While David was with him, he had two nosebleeds. His RBC (red blood cell) count was also low, which can cause him to not be very energetic. He has been rather lethargic and now wanting to do a lot of activity. He received both platelets and 2 blood transfusions. By the time I arrived yesterday evening, he was much more energetic than the previous day!!

While I was at work, David emailed a few status updates for him:

At first, they thought there were going to have to give chase more chemo in his spinal fluid. His chemo regimen doesn't affect any potential Leukemia cells in his spinal fluid, which means they have to treat that fluid directly - no fun! Well, we received WONDERFUL news!!! Chase has NO Leukemia cells present in his spinal fluid!! Praise God!!!! To say that we are blessed by this news is a HUGE understatement!! Now, does this mean his spinal fluid will always remain clear? That I can't answer for now, but we are all so very pleased for this stupendous news!!

Chase, from what I'm still hearing has TWO types of Leukemia: AML, which he was first diagnosed with, and CML. There are fewer pediatric cases of this occurring than you can count on your hand!! Good continued news is that he is still looking great and responding extremely well to treatment!

Onto today...

Another nosebleed!! This one took a while to go away, so they gave him another dose of platelets. Right afterward, his bandaged area above his central line began to itch him like crazy. His nurse, Rebecca (the one he has squirted), was told she could remove the tape. With my help and taking probably more than 30 minutes, we slowly and painstakingly removed all of that awful tape. I hope they never have to use that junk again because Chase hates it and it appears to be very painful to remove, even slowly and with these little pads that help to dissolve the adhesive.

Let me rewind a bit. I told Chase that Rebecca would be back today, and when she came in to do his vitals at dark-thirty, he grabbed his loaded syringe. From his accounting, they had a little tug-of-war over the syringe before he finally got off a shot.

Back to his update...

After getting both the tape off and changing that bandage over his central line (another 10 minutes), he was taken OFF his IV fluid!! Woo-hooo!! During the day, as long as he is drinking regularly, I don't think they're going to make him stay one it!!

He got a quick bath and by the time he was out his two physical therapists were in here to get him out of bed. They had a Nerf soccer ball with them and wanted him to kick it around. I followed down the hallway a few minutes later to see him RUNNING - yes, RUNNING and kicking the ball. He picked it up a few times and threatened to play dodge ball with it. I can't say how great it was to see him running around like that!! He was full of energy and ready to leave his room for a while.

Unfortunately, his stomach began to hurt as a result of the different constipation meds they have had him on. He came back into the room and fell asleep for over an hour. They've since removed that from his orders, much to his pleasure as he told me that he wasn't going to take any of that stuff anymore.

Once he woke up, we ordered a meal ticket for him and we went downstairs for a walk. I showed him the gift shop and tried to get him to buy these crazy looking PJ bottoms that were long since his legs have been getting cold, but he wouldn't go for them. I did get him a hooded zipper jacket though so he could wear a short-sleeved shirt and layer with the jacket if he wants.

After our purchase, we went to the cafeteria and he picked out a an IBC Black Cherry soda, a container of thinly sliced apples with caramel, and a deli sandwich. He's eaten almost all of the apples by himself, the entire IBC soda, and some of the chips that I was eating. He's saving the sandwich for later.

Yeah, I forgot. He "stole" 1/2 of my peanut butter and jelly sandwich earlier today. He told me that he didn't think he was hungry, but I would say that he scarfed his half. He also drank a smoothie and some chocolate milk.

It's wonderful to see him eating, too! He's eaten and drank more today than I would say he has in the past few days put together!

We still don't have a day pinned down when he might come home. They're watching his levels and most likely won't be able to give us a time frame until late next week. And he's talking about going ahead and shaving his head. He was going to do it today, but decided not to. Once he shaves it, I'll post a pic.

Thank you again for your continued prayers and thoughts for Chase and our family! He's doing so very well and I attribute that to the wonderful staff here at Egleston, but mostly to the prayers that I know are being sent our way.

Thank you!!!

The O'Bannon Family

Posted Apr 4, 2009 7:19pm

Chase slept REALLY well last night and even got up to go to the bathroom without my help!! Okay, so not a big deal for most people, but considering that he has to unplug is IV "Tree", wheel it into the bathroom, do his thing, and then wheel it back out and plug it back in? That's HUGE! And he didn't even wake me up either. He said that he didn't want to disturb me. Thoughtful boy!

He was woken up about 5:45 by a nurse who was checking on his vitals. He tried to launch the nerf-ish crossbow arrow at her but missed. According to Chase, he didn't actually miss because his thumb got in the way and it never launched. After practicing with the thing last night, he managed to launch it from clear across the room and right at the door - nurses beware!

The same nurse he "missed" gave him the idea of using a syringe to squirt water after she told him about a little girl doing the same thing to her. Don't worry, the syringes are plastic, blunt-tipped - no needles. Well, thanks to my Dad who visited today, he gave Chase one and now he's going to save it for the unlucky nurse who wakes him up at 5:45 for vitals. This mom just hopes she doesn't get caught in the cross-fire!

Oh, and last night, I slept in the hospital bed. Chase refused to give up the sofa, which is supposed to be MY bed. He was back in his own bed today though after his central chest line was oozing blood again. I know he's sick and tired of getting that painful dressing changed. It's a sterile dressing, is completely air tight and waterproof. Given that, it HURTS to have it pulled off.

They eventually changed it this afternoon and found a rather large blood clot that developed ON the line where it meets his body. They called in a surgeon to look at it, but they couldn't leave it open until she got here. So, they put gauze and light tape on it and then - get this - placed a 10 lb SANDBAG on his line to try and put enough pressure to stop the bleeding. No joke. I should have gotten a picture of it, but completely forgot.

Between the bruising that was already there and the sand bag, he was extremely tender when they pulled that dressing off to put on a more permanent one. Also, the surgeon put on pressure tape, which is a thicker tape to ensure more pressure on the wound to stem / stop the bleeding. She had to put down a lot of pressure on his chest to make sure the tape was tight and Chase left moon marks on my hand where he was squeezing it (with nails).

Oh, I did get a couple of pictures of his central line bandaging and have posted them. There is NO blood, but Chase looks pretty wiped out in the pics. I told him that a few years down the road, he'll be able to look back on them and barely recall that day. :)

Earlier in the day (sorry for hopping around), he got a bath!! Woo-hoo. Truthfully, even though I've given him a few sponge baths, the boy was smelling a bit ripe. He did NOT want a bath, but once he was in there really didn't want to get out. I don't blame him either. It was warm and I was tempted to climb in after he got out.

He received another dose of platelets today, too since his count is low. That didn't take too long and after that he was visited by two Big Apple Circus Care Unit clowns - Dr.Mimi and Dr.Notatall. I was on the bed with him when they asked if they could come in and had I known what a complete riot they were going to be, I would have grabbed my camera and filmed it!! When they learned of Chase's name, they took it literally and chased each other around his hospital room!! Then they both froze at the foot of his bed and the male counterpart (Dr.Notatall) looked at him and asked, "What's your name again?" Of course, that resulted in another chase around the room until the female counterpart reached the wagon that is in the room and he, poutingly, declared her "safe". The two of them then proceeded to bicker between each other and Chase keep egging it on until both of us were laughing so hard we were in tears. Most of it was about her rolling her eyes about the other doctor and then attempting to "shush" Chase every time he tattled on her that she was rolling her eyes. She even said about Chase, "I don't know what's wrong with him and why he's saying it! He's probably delusional or hallucinating or something." I just hope I'm here the next time they come by. Chase and I both were in awe of their improvisational skills and it was great to see him laughing like that.

Around lunch time my parents dropped by for an extended visit. Before they arrived, Chase was weighed and he has lost 3 lbs total. I have been begging him to eat, but he just doesn't feel like it. He's hardly been drinking either, but he is on an IV bag 24/7. Since my parents were here, I asked Chase what he wanted if anything, and he requested the Dannnon strawberry-banana smoothies. The cafeteria was out of them, so my mom and I (while the Chess battle was going on between him and my Dad) drove to Publix a few blocks away and stocked up. As I type this, he has already drank 3 of them - yeah! Not loaded in calories, but I did buy the kind with extra vitamins and antioxidants.

Today was a gorgeous day and the hospital has a very nice garden area with benches. I was going to get Chase out there, but given the issues he's had with his central line, we had to abandon that idea. I think we're supposed to get rain perhaps tomorrow. If not, I'll see if I can get him out there.

So, for now, it's 7:11pm and he just fell asleep. I've been trying to get him up by 10:00am so he'll go to bed earlier than 1 am!! I'm going to let him nap for a while, especially after the bandaging he endured. Maybe later we'll watch a movie.

As for William, since I'm not going home tonight (at Chase's request) he and Dad had a great day together from what I've heard. Tonight, they're having a boy's night out by having dinner with a friend and then back for a movie night of their own and perhaps some Xbox 360 battles. David's friend plays Xbox Live with both Chase and William and from what I've heard, he's got a pretty sweet set up for gaming with a screen and an LCD projector.

I hope everyone is able to take advantage of the beautiful Spring weather (should you have beautiful Spring weather where you are) and enjoy this weekend!

God Bless!

The O'Bannon Family.

4-4-09 : New Pics!

Posted Apr 4, 2009 12:20am

For those of you who aren't on Facebook or Plurk, I've posted a few new pictures of Chase taken tonight when he received a wagon FULL of goodies from my co-workers at the Barrow BOE.

Chase says, "Thank you very, very, very much!!!" As you'll see in the pics, he was quite surprised.

Thanks from the bottom of our hearts to all who contributed!!

God Bless,
The O'Bannon Family

Finally in our AFLAC room!

Posted Mar 31, 2009 12:33am

I'm pleased to report that we are officially OUT of the PICU!! The room we're in now is considerably smaller (we'll call it cozier) than the PICU room. Chase said he liked the larger one, which I thought was kind of odd considering he never left the bed, but hey, I think his bed was bigger up there, too.

We're all settled in now, and should be in this room for the remainder of his treatment for this month. If you're interested in sending Chase anything, please email me directly (cobannon (at) barrow.k12.ga.us) or send me a message via Facebook or Plurk and I'll give you the address. I hesitate to send things to the hospital directly :)

As for visitors, we can now be more liberal with having people come see him. What we do ask is that you give us a call (email) a day ahead to give us a head's up. Some nights might be good for him while others not so good, so we'd like to make sure he's up to enjoy company when you can come.

Tonight, Chase received 2 chemo drugs:
Chemo med #1 (Cytarabine) is an IV injection every 12 hrs for 10
days.

Chemo med #2 (Etoposide) is once a day for 5 days and given over 4
hrs.

We're on day #4 of his Chemo treatment. At this point, I do not have what is called a "road map" for his treatment regimen for the month. I'm hoping to have that tomorrow.

Today was a great day for him! He (and I) rested until noonish and then he managed to finish the last two Lord of the Rings movies today. He's been a bit queasy tonight, but he also just received some additional meds to help relax him and combat that. I'm hoping he'll be knocked out by the time I finish writing this.

I know there's more that I probably wanted to say tonight, but my brain is about spent. I'm still gathering information about donating platelets and will post that soon.

Again, thank you so very much for your continued well wishes, thoughts, and prayers. We are feeling them!!

God Bless!!

Caroline, David, Chase, and William

Oh...Maya and Baxter, too.

Posted Apr 3, 2009 1:11pm

Chase had a good night's rest April Fool's night and slept in until noon on the 2nd. He would have slept MUCH later had I allowed him. Given that I had to force him to go to sleep at 1 am the previous night, I didn't want him sleeping any later.

Chase's energy level was wonderful yesterday. On the 1st, he had received both a blood and platelets infusion, which really helped his energy level tremendously. When I walked with him, he didn't wobble or seem to be weak in the knees whatsoever! In fact, he took a hold of his IV pole and headed off down the hallway. Actually, Chase got a bit perturbed with me because I didn't have a destination in mind before we set out. I'll know better next time though.

We weren't back in the room for long when his two physical therapists came by to work him over a bit. When he got back, they had him sit on the sofa with me because they wanted him to sit up a bit more than he had been. He wasn't sitting with me long before he stretched out his legs and started to try and push me off the sofa!! Yes, he's back to harassing me. Why? Because he wanted me to turn the TV on, but I would have nothing of it. He read a book of his for a while instead.

Dr.Cooper, one of Chase's oncologists dropped by to visit to tell us that they had received some of the genetic results from his bone marrow sample. It turns out that Chase has a Philadelphia chromosome, which is mostly found in adult versions of leukemia, specifically CML (chronic myeloid leukemia). Also present was Inversion 16, which is generally associated with AML - the type of leukemia Chase has been diagnosed with.

Just to refresh everyone, AML is typically an adult leukemia. Typically, only 10% of pediatric leukemia cases are AML. Even MORE rare in children apparently is the CML type of leukemia, which accounts for 3% of childhood leukemia cases (less than 100 per year nationally). However, given that Chase has BOTH Philadelphia chromosome and Inversion 16 makes his case possibly even more rare. Dr.Cooper referred to his situation as like one of those "case studies" you read about where there are only 3 or 4 annually.

What does all this mean?

First of all, because the Philadelphia chromosome and CML are found in adults, Chase's doctors are going to consult with the adult leukemia doctors at Emory University. There is an existing "wonder drug" called Gleevec, which specifically targets the Philadelphia chromosome. At this time because Chase is responding so wonderfully to the treatment plan they have him on, they aren't going to change a thing. However, they may also include this new oral medication Gleevec to treat the Philadelphia chromosome. At this point, we don't know yet. They are also going to see if we have any records of blood results for Chase from years past so they can check his white blood cell count. Apparently, CML patients can have leukemia for years before it can all of a sudden produce "blasts", which them produce sudden symptoms like what Chase was exhibiting.

I apologize for being unable to more clearly state what is going on, but it appears we are now and a whole new learning curve.

On a fun note, Egleston has a weekly Bingo night that we attended. Chase actually went all the way downstairs and walked to a classroom behind the cafeteria where he played three rounds of Bingo. The prizes are really great for the kids and EVERYONE wins during each round, meaning they keep playing until you win. I'm not sure where the prizes come from, but Chase ended up with a small Lego set and a set of Hot Wheels cars. He did win a third time, but nothing on the table to choose from interested him, not even the DVD The Princess Diaries 2.

From what we were told by one of his nurses, as the holidays grow closer, the prizes get bigger and better and if you're too sick to attend, they have it live via closed circuit and you can still play from your hospital room - cool! He seemed to really enjoy himself and I've got to hand it to Egleston for arranging the activities for the kids.

I was at home with William last night, but I'll update on Chase for today as soon as I am debriefed by Dad.

God Bless!!
The O'Bannon Family

4-01-09: No April's Fool Here!

Posted Apr 1, 2009 10:16pm

Chase had a day of ups and downs today, but it MOST definitely was on a very positive upswing by the time I arrived at the hospital tonight (around 8:30 pm).

Dad (David) had duty last night, which according to him was fairly peaceful. Chase had a small nosebleed during the night. He's always been prone to them, so it wasn't anything alarming. He slept through the night without any other issues thankfully.

This morning, after receiving his Cytarabine, an IV injection every 12 hrs, Chase became ill. I hated to hear that he had been sick, but on a positive note, this is only the fourth time he's gotten sick in his six days of chemo. I'm no expert (are any of us?), but that's seems to be pretty good stats if you ask me. Anyway, he was given some extra nausea medication and slept some more until early this afternoon. He also had another blood transfusions today. Once done and recovered, that's when the "fun" time began.

Chase started his physical therapy!! Woo-hoo!! With the help of two physical therapists, Chase walked down the hall and down to the game room where he played Pac Man, Galaga, and Donkey Kong on those big arcade type units (Saint, you may have to come check out their collection). As Chase put it, he played those "really old" games. Old?? Heck, I remember when Pac Man came out for the Atari home system - but I digress. He had a great time and Dad took some pictures of his first walk and game play, which I'll post once we get them off his phone.

Chase also walked around the nurse's station and took a ride in a wheelchair, too - "Dad-powered". Oh, and I forgot to mention that David battled Chase in chess last night and LOST. My own defeat can't be far around the corner.

Let's see what else went on....OH! He moved! Chase's new casa is much bigger than before, which is great. We were pretty much bumping into everything as we moved around. Considering we're going to be here for several more weeks, this new room is a HUGE improvement. So, if you had the room number before or the phone, both have changed. We're still on the same floor, but down what used to be the old bone marrow transplant wing (operating rooms I think that have been renovated into patient rooms). They try to reserve these for AML patients and they have a special HEPA air filtration system, too. When Chase leaves this hall, he's supposed to wear a mask now.

Anything else? Well, I came into the room tonight with my Chic-fil-A dinner that I had yet to eat. He took my sandwich out of the bag and at a 1/4 of it - the turkey! Good thing I had already eaten the fries on the way here and wasn't starving. Just kidding. :) I was thrilled to have him try and scarf my food. He has also "oohed" at a few food and restaurant commercials. Encouraging stuff indeed!! He ate a bit of cafeteria oatmeal tonight before I got here and it absolutely received the thumbs DOWN. Sorry CHOA Cafeteria, but you've got nothin' on Nonna's Irish oatmeal.

Oh, and he received some books from teachers at the Barrow PLC!! What a great gift and much appreciated. I may have to read a couple of those myself.

Chase says, "Thank you for all of the books! They look really good."

He's used to having some SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) time at home, something we're going to pick back up here now that he's feeling more like himself.

One last thing for tonight, CHOA has a program called "Beads of Courage: Bead Journey - Every bead tells a story...track your cancer or blood condition treatment." This is really cool!! Chase received a strand last night with beads on it that spell his name. Then I was given a little booklet with all kinds of procedures listed in it and a corresponding bead for each one. So, now I have to try and go back and recall (thanks to carepages, I hope that will be easier) all of the things he's had done to him and/or gone through because he gets a bead for EACH occurrence. Once we get it started, we'll get a picture put up. I think it's a wonderfully symbolic way to track his journey and to see at the end just how much he faced and conquered.

That's all for tonight! I'm being summoned to a chess game. I hope everyone takes care and has a great evening (or day depending on when you read this update). Thank you for your continued prayers and support!

God Bless!
The O'Bannon Family

3-31-09: Today's Update

Posted Mar 31, 2009 11:59pm

Okay, quite a bit went on today. First of all, I just got finished going through many of the messages that everyone has left with him and he was FLOORED!! The update prior to this one is from him (dictated). He was amazed and very thankful for the support.

On to today....

Chase got his braces off! No, it wasn't time, unfortunately, but they're off because the Leukemia had caused his gums to become horribly swollen. They felt it would be easier to take care of his teeth and gums without them. He wasn't gone long and although his teeth are a bit sore and slimy, the process wasn't painful for him.

We met Dr.Cooper today, one of his two primary Leukemia doctors. He thought Chase looked VERY good. I thought he looked great, too, especially since he woke up smiling and laughing, but to have his doctor say that was definitely great news.

He also gave us a "road map" for Chase's chemotherapy treatments. Today is Day 5 of his chemo and is the last day that he'll receive all 3 drugs. For the next five days, the only chemo drug he'll receive is the IV push (a small amount of chemo) twice daily! Once that is done, it will be waiting time to see how quickly his body can recover and generate good white blood cells. With luck, he'll get to go home for two weeks in mid to late April!

After that, Chase will go in for four more rounds of chemo (minimum), each lasting fewer days, with the fewest number being five. However, we were warned that as each month passes, his body will take longer to regenerate white blood cells, which means he may not get those little breaks.

My part of Chase's day ended with a string of visitors including his Nonna (my mom), her pastor, and a room full of Scout leaders. The last of whom gave him some much needed harassment since his brother hasn't been able to deliver it himself. It was definitely a great way to end his day as his last big round of chemo began.

Tonight I (Mom) am at home to spend some "mom" time with William and the pups, and Chase is with Dad (David). Oh, and my chess game with Chase was interrupted, but we'll pick up where we left off. For those of you who were rooting for him to beat me, I'm thinking that's a foregone conclusion, but I'll report the game once it's done. :)

Thank you and God Bless!!

Caroline, David, Chase, and William
Maya and Baxter, too.