5Lap Walk at LDS

Erika took first place in this fun 5 lap walk arranged by the Leukemia Lymphoma Society.

Today 1C Begins On Our 4th Anniversary

Erika's count finally reached a safe level to begin 1C today. She is now admitted at the LDS hospital for a week. Today marks our 4th anniversary married! Growing stronger each day. 1C was delayed due her low blood count. Today her neutrophil count went from a 300 to 1700 in 2 days. It must be from all the fresh coconut juice.

Blood Results

Today Erika's bloodwork shows that her neutrophils have gone lower. Doctors are concerned, therefore they are putting her on a medication that will act as her immune system. She will need to go in Thursday for more bloodwork. Most likely 1C will be postponed until her levels are higher. Her platelets are at a borderline low before she will need a transfusion. She may need one Thursday if they don't get any better. Erika's current condition is that she feels tired and weak. She tries to take walks to prevent further atrophy.

The End of 1B Today

Today's visit is to plan for part 1C of consolidation, which begins next week, along with an assesment on her current condition after part 1B. She will be hospitalized next week. After part 1C, the CNS (central nervous system) phase will begin and will consist of two spinal taps a week and radiation therapy to the brain.

Result:

Erika's blood count is low, but not low enough for any transfusion yet. Therfore, she will need to go back in on Monday for a follow-up. Her counts need to be higher inorder to begin 1C.

Casual Chemo Session at Home

Why Continuation Is Necessary

"If you are in remission why do you need to continue with chemotherapy?"

If stopping chemo immediately after remission the body has a much higher chance of relaspe. Remember when you had the flu and the doctor said to continue taking the antibiotic, even if you feel better sooner than the planned prescribed time? It is to prevent the sickness from coming back. Not only that, but if it did come back, that same medication will have a difficult time treating it. With luekemia, relapse is not good. There are only a hand full of known chemo medication that affectively treats ALL and Erika is taking them all. This is why her treatment is roughly a two year span.

Regarding the treatment she is in (the clinical trial), two years ago there was another trial done. Two groups were tested. Both were in the age range of 20-28 years old. One group did the standard treatment and the other did the pediatric treatment (which Erika is in). The group in the pediatric treatment had a significantly higher survival rate. This treatment has been on an ongoing study for the past 20 years. To date, it is the best for treating ALL in young adults.

After today's hospital visit, Dr. Ford said everything looks great and she will be admitted to LDS on the 28th of this month to begin Concolidation 1C once finishes up 1B next week.

Nausea

The chemo treatment she is on, Consolidation 1B, has caused the worst nausea she has ever felt consistently since Thursday. No medication seems to help and the only time she gets a break is when she is sleeping. Yet, because of the intense nausea, falling asleep is another problem. She has 9 more days until she is off of this particular chemo medication.

Post First Day of Consolidation 1B

Today at the LDS hospital, her chemo through the central line went as expected. It made her slightly nauseated. Her spinal tap was a different story. Today she had a student do the procedure. I truly believe on hands-on as the best method to learn, but unfortunately the procedure was not like the others. It took him longer and caused her extreme pain. Afterwards her lower back felt spasms followed by a sharp pain up her spine. Like all spinal taps she's had, she must lay flat on her back for two straight hours with no moment of her spine. She laid in pain. After about an hour and a half the pain dissipated. Then she was topped off with another dose of chemo before she was sent home. She's now home resting after an 11 hour chemo session, one after another. Home care came by tonight to drop off her chemo for the following 5 days. She will be on chemo pills and injections through the central at home. At least she'll be comfortable.

Consolidation-1B

After a full week break from chemo, Erika will begin Consolidation 1B tomorrow morning. The day consist of 4 different types of chemo. Three will be through the central line and the last will be another dose during another spinal tap. She will be at the hospital all day and most likely will be sent home if her body reacts well to the new medicine. The rest of part 1B will consist of pills she will take at home. This is a 2 week part. Part 1C will begin one week after the end of part 1B.