July 11, 2013

SD has been doing quite well since his hospital stay back in May! He was put on half doses of his oral chemo five days after he came home, and has stayed on half doses since then until this week.

His first steroid pulse after being in the hospital was reminiscent of the old days when he'd get highly emotional, do lots of screaming, and was in general very, VERY touchy. Yet it wasn't all bad: he was able to attend his Uncle James' graduation celebration which included a number of extended family members. Before everyone arrived, Mandy thought she was going to have to hide with SD somewhere, but once people showed up, he surprisingly seemed to perk up even though the noise around him increased. A change of scene and society will do wonders, thank goodness. :)

At his June clinic, the dosage of one of his medications was very slightly increased, but the others stayed the same. The steroid pulse that followed was more normal for these days. We don't know what caused the previous one to be so different, but we're thankful that they don't always affect him that harshly.

This week at clinic started the top of a new cycle, which means we were in Grand Rapids for a spinal tap.

SD's counts looked great, so we were instructed to increase his 6-MP dose from 1/2 to 3/4. Since he's been on a half dose of this medication for two months, we've recently started seeing glimpses of the old SD we used to know again. It's always hard to know we'll lose that soon with the upcoming steroids and increase in dosages (his steroid dose has also increased - our boy is growing!), but it is so *good* while it lasts. Overall he continues to handle his treatment extremely well. As always, THANK YOU to all who continue to pray for SD!

Just before we left clinic we asked SD's nurse about Sunday School attendance, and she gave us the go-ahead! We'll have to take it week by week, but as long as everyone in class is healthy and he isn't on a steroid pulse, he is clear to go. We are thrilled to finally be at this point!