March 16, 2013

SD has been doing really well since our last update. At his January 24 clinic he began Maintenance Cycle 3 (Maintenance is made up of 12-week cycles, with a spinal tap at the top of each cycle). His chemo dosages stayed the same because his hemoglobin count had decreased just slightly since his previous clinic, but everything else looked good.

SD was so hungry when he woke up from sedation that he was scarfing down his favorite treat with both hands!

At his February 15 clinic we were instructed to resume full dosages of everything! We actually have mixed feelings about this because he has never done well with the 6-MP at full strength, but we are excited that he's been healthy enough for long enough that the doctors want to try again.

SD likes to be the leader when we walk anywhere. Maybe because he's the first to reach buttons that way?

At his March 15 clinic, SD's counts came back quite a bit lower than their previous level. We expected this because of the change in chemo, but are hoping and praying that they have reached their lowest point. It'll be five weeks before his counts are checked again unless he gets very sick or shows signs of needing a blood transfusion, and obviously we would like neither of those things to be necessary! So far, even with his lowered counts he has remained energetic and playful, but he appears to be coming down with the cold his little sister has had this week, which seems to be affecting his mood and comfort a bit the last couple days.

Prayer requests:

1. That SD's body will handle the full doses of chemo from here on out or that we'll quickly find out the right dosage for him.
2. That if he does end up needing a transfusion, we'll recognize it. Last time he needed one we were shocked because he was happy and energetic and appeared as healthy as could be expected at the time.
3. That the steroids he's currently taking will not affect him too harshly. While he was on the lowered doses of methotrexate and mercaptopurine (6-MP) he handled the steroids surprisingly well. Last month was not quite so easy because he had gone back to the full dose of methotrexate, and now he is on the full dose of 6-MP, which is not something his body takes to.