Monday, April 30, 2007
Here We Are
Just a week or so ago, I was listening to a story on NPR about the blog "My Cancer." The author was telling about how much his blog has helped him in his fight against cancer, as he is able to connect with so many other patients, family members, friends, and strangers around the world who are going through similar circumstances. This is not why he started the page, though. He started it so that he could have a place to let his own loved ones know how he was dealing with his own battles against cancer, and draw support from those who know and love him. So that is why I am starting this blog - so Grant's family and friends can have a place to go to find out how Grant is doing, and offer support to him and his family.
Past Updates (from MyFamily.com)
April 26, 2007
Grant went to the doctor today after not feeling well for weeks and being treated for strep throat but not feeling any better. After several tests, the doctor told Emily that Grant appears to be in the early stages of leukemia. There is a possibility that it could be a virus, so we're hopeful that either way they have caught it early enough to be able to treat whatever it is. They are on their way to Chapel Hill right now where Grant will have further testing and Eden and Jacob will be tested as well. Please keep Grant, Kevin, Emily, Eden, and Jake in your prayers. We will update as we know more.
April 27
I just got an update from Mama.(Friday morning 7 am.) She's at the hotel in Chapel Hill with Jake right now. The doctors are pretty sure it is Lukemia. Type ALL. They found he had an enlarged liver and spleen, so they're keeping him on IVs right now. This morning will, most likely, bring a lot more information. He will probably need to stay at the hospital for 7 days or more, and start Chemotherapy treatments this weekend. Pray for the family....
~~~~~~~
Hello family, it's mama Susan here. Things are going pretty good- Grant will have a CT scan and a blood transfusion this morning. Emily and Kevin are doing ok- still just getting a grip on everything. The pathologist will come in a talk to them before lunch, the doctor is Dr. Julie Blatt and seems to be a very caring and competent doctor.Seems like some kind of strange new adventure at this point. We of course are very optimistic that Grant will respond well to the treatment and all will be well. We are certainly sure of your love and support, and know that if any of you could take this burden away from Grant that you surely would.We will try to update as often as possible. I am at Leah's right now giving Jacob a chance to play. I'll head back to the hospital in about an hour, and maybe we will have good news to report later today.Love you all- you know that.
~~~~~~~
Hey family- it's late on Friday night, and we just got to a hotel about an hour ago. Thanks so much for all of the prayers and calls today. The evening has been much better than the morning...Grant had the CT scan this evening and made out fine. He's a perfect patient and does exactly as the doctors ask. His color is so much better since the blood transfusion at lunch and he was talking and enjoying Rachel, Jason, Joel, Maghen, Isabella, and Jacob this evening! Jake has been nicknamed "the little monster" by the nurses! He is doing very well, and actually took two good naps today- he has really been much better than I had anticipated, and we have enjoyed "hanging out" at the mall play area today.It looks like it will be Monday before starting the chemo- they are waiting for his liver, spleen, and lungs to be more of a normal size before laying him to sleep to put in the port, and do the spinal tap and bone marrow biopsy. All of the procedures will be while he is under anesthesia, so that is a relief to Em and Kevin.The doctor has given Grant a projected schedule of treatment- basically they are hoping to have him in remission in a matter of weeks or months, and then continue the treatments for 3.5 years- they have no idea why this happens to children, but the outcome is expected to be good for Grant.It's been an exhausting 36 hours, but we feel better now that we have more information. Grant will lose his hair, and will probably have the swelling associated with taking high does of prednisone- but that is a small price to pay to have a bright future. He is so blessed to have Em, Kevin, Edie Pie and Jake to be his helpers through this journey. So, let your hearts be calmed for now. Grant is on the mend. He's surrounded by a wonderful staff at the hospital who really, really want him better. We re going to be busy getting him better!You know what- I love you. I'm going to bed with a sweet little two year old wrapped in a teddy bear blanket. Grant's bed looks like Christmas morning with all the spiderman coloring books and special presents brought to him today. He went to sleep smiling.
April 28
I'll begin the update for the morning- Grant had a restful night. Kevin slept in the bed with Grant so he can help him pee-pee throughout the night (he's getting lots of iv's to flush his system) and Em was bedded down on the little sofa/bed.We actually stayed in the Microtel near the RDU airport because all of the motels in Chapel Hill were booked completely- I believe that Joella and Edie are enroute-The doctor came in just a few minutes ago and said that the prednisone will make Grant cranky- but hey, he's been cranky for a month now, so that's ok. They will give the CT scan report later this morning. I will try to report on that later. Joel brought his laptop with him, so I was able to do some reading online last night about T-cell ALL. It is alot to absorb, kinda reminds me of when Joel and Mike opened their letters announcing where they would be serving their missions... all of a sudden I was very interested in Brazil and Thailand, the sounds and sights they would see and the things they would experience on their missions. Now we have Grant's mission- and we will learn many things.I just spoke to Joella on the phone- she said that Smyrna Elementary is forming a Relay for Life team. Who would have thought last year- well, who would have thought about us having this conversation.Pa is on the way to Stake Conference. I am certainly thankful that we were not involved in a Stake Choir this time... that would have been a bit trying! He's coming up tomorrow after he finishes with the conference business. I think I will just be staying for at least a few more days. Jake and I are fine friends.So- until we have CT results... I'm signing off and getting ready to head over to Chapel Hill. Love you all.
April 29
I took Eden to Chapel Hill so we could visit with Grant this weekend. He is being a real trooper. He walks around with his little IV stand, just like he knows exactly what he is supposed to be doing. They were able to get two doses of oral Prednisone in him today. It took a little coaxing, but he came to realize that little pills go down a whole lot easier when they are in the middle of a big scoop of ice cream. The first dose cut down his cell count by half, which is a very good thing. The Drs. say this is a good sign that he will respond well to the rest of the chemo treatment. He will go into surgery tomorrow at 4:00 to get his port, a spinal tap, and bone marrow sample from his hip. (I think that is right.) So say some special prayers then.His mailing address is:UNC Hospitals- Children's HospitalRoom 5C01Grant Nelson101 Manning Dr.Chapel Hill, NC 27514I am setting up a blog site for Grant. It will be an easy place that more people can get updates. I'll let you know the address soon.
Love you all!
Joella
~~~~~~~~
Hey everyone,Joel and I just arrived home about an hour ago. Josie had come home earlier with Jacob and Eden, and they are now asleep here.Grant was a little tired and pale when we left- he's got a hard day tomorrow as Joella explained earlier. The anestheologist came by this afternoon and is somewhat concerned about laying him to sleep because of the swelling around his thymus-medius (center of his chest) so he will receive a gas instead of a general anesthesia because it is easier to bring him out of it if necessary. They say he will not feel anything- the surgery will be about two hours long and then many more questions will be answered about the particulars of his therapy. The first dose of chemo will be given in his spinal chord while the spinal tap is being given.It will be a relief to get tomorrow over- so special prayers and thoughts for Grant tomorrow afternoon from all will be especially appreciated.Bonnie, Shaun, and Danielle are going up in the morning and then I think I'll be heading back on Tuesday. Grant will have to stay until at least next Monday.Emily and Kevin are doing well. They are both remarkable, strong, faithful- Grant is indeed a lucky boy to have them. Well, Jake has awoken, and he's ready for some chocolate milk and a little lovin!
April 30
Today they were able to do the spinal tap and get a bone marrow sample from Grant's hip. There were less than 25% cancer cells in the marrow, and the spinal fluid showed no cancer cells. This is great - he is in the lowest risk category! They were not able to do the port or a pic line (a more permant IV line), so they had to do a new IV on him. So that was not much fun, and they will try again soon, but I'm not sure when. The page that I am setting up for Grant is www.grantnelson.blogspot.com . Feel free to share this with anyone. I haven't really gotten anything on it yet, but there will be by tomorrow. Promise! There is a link to it on the scrolling announcements on the front page.Thanks for all your prayers - they are working!
Grant went to the doctor today after not feeling well for weeks and being treated for strep throat but not feeling any better. After several tests, the doctor told Emily that Grant appears to be in the early stages of leukemia. There is a possibility that it could be a virus, so we're hopeful that either way they have caught it early enough to be able to treat whatever it is. They are on their way to Chapel Hill right now where Grant will have further testing and Eden and Jacob will be tested as well. Please keep Grant, Kevin, Emily, Eden, and Jake in your prayers. We will update as we know more.
April 27
I just got an update from Mama.(Friday morning 7 am.) She's at the hotel in Chapel Hill with Jake right now. The doctors are pretty sure it is Lukemia. Type ALL. They found he had an enlarged liver and spleen, so they're keeping him on IVs right now. This morning will, most likely, bring a lot more information. He will probably need to stay at the hospital for 7 days or more, and start Chemotherapy treatments this weekend. Pray for the family....
~~~~~~~
Hello family, it's mama Susan here. Things are going pretty good- Grant will have a CT scan and a blood transfusion this morning. Emily and Kevin are doing ok- still just getting a grip on everything. The pathologist will come in a talk to them before lunch, the doctor is Dr. Julie Blatt and seems to be a very caring and competent doctor.Seems like some kind of strange new adventure at this point. We of course are very optimistic that Grant will respond well to the treatment and all will be well. We are certainly sure of your love and support, and know that if any of you could take this burden away from Grant that you surely would.We will try to update as often as possible. I am at Leah's right now giving Jacob a chance to play. I'll head back to the hospital in about an hour, and maybe we will have good news to report later today.Love you all- you know that.
~~~~~~~
Hey family- it's late on Friday night, and we just got to a hotel about an hour ago. Thanks so much for all of the prayers and calls today. The evening has been much better than the morning...Grant had the CT scan this evening and made out fine. He's a perfect patient and does exactly as the doctors ask. His color is so much better since the blood transfusion at lunch and he was talking and enjoying Rachel, Jason, Joel, Maghen, Isabella, and Jacob this evening! Jake has been nicknamed "the little monster" by the nurses! He is doing very well, and actually took two good naps today- he has really been much better than I had anticipated, and we have enjoyed "hanging out" at the mall play area today.It looks like it will be Monday before starting the chemo- they are waiting for his liver, spleen, and lungs to be more of a normal size before laying him to sleep to put in the port, and do the spinal tap and bone marrow biopsy. All of the procedures will be while he is under anesthesia, so that is a relief to Em and Kevin.The doctor has given Grant a projected schedule of treatment- basically they are hoping to have him in remission in a matter of weeks or months, and then continue the treatments for 3.5 years- they have no idea why this happens to children, but the outcome is expected to be good for Grant.It's been an exhausting 36 hours, but we feel better now that we have more information. Grant will lose his hair, and will probably have the swelling associated with taking high does of prednisone- but that is a small price to pay to have a bright future. He is so blessed to have Em, Kevin, Edie Pie and Jake to be his helpers through this journey. So, let your hearts be calmed for now. Grant is on the mend. He's surrounded by a wonderful staff at the hospital who really, really want him better. We re going to be busy getting him better!You know what- I love you. I'm going to bed with a sweet little two year old wrapped in a teddy bear blanket. Grant's bed looks like Christmas morning with all the spiderman coloring books and special presents brought to him today. He went to sleep smiling.
April 28
I'll begin the update for the morning- Grant had a restful night. Kevin slept in the bed with Grant so he can help him pee-pee throughout the night (he's getting lots of iv's to flush his system) and Em was bedded down on the little sofa/bed.We actually stayed in the Microtel near the RDU airport because all of the motels in Chapel Hill were booked completely- I believe that Joella and Edie are enroute-The doctor came in just a few minutes ago and said that the prednisone will make Grant cranky- but hey, he's been cranky for a month now, so that's ok. They will give the CT scan report later this morning. I will try to report on that later. Joel brought his laptop with him, so I was able to do some reading online last night about T-cell ALL. It is alot to absorb, kinda reminds me of when Joel and Mike opened their letters announcing where they would be serving their missions... all of a sudden I was very interested in Brazil and Thailand, the sounds and sights they would see and the things they would experience on their missions. Now we have Grant's mission- and we will learn many things.I just spoke to Joella on the phone- she said that Smyrna Elementary is forming a Relay for Life team. Who would have thought last year- well, who would have thought about us having this conversation.Pa is on the way to Stake Conference. I am certainly thankful that we were not involved in a Stake Choir this time... that would have been a bit trying! He's coming up tomorrow after he finishes with the conference business. I think I will just be staying for at least a few more days. Jake and I are fine friends.So- until we have CT results... I'm signing off and getting ready to head over to Chapel Hill. Love you all.
April 29
I took Eden to Chapel Hill so we could visit with Grant this weekend. He is being a real trooper. He walks around with his little IV stand, just like he knows exactly what he is supposed to be doing. They were able to get two doses of oral Prednisone in him today. It took a little coaxing, but he came to realize that little pills go down a whole lot easier when they are in the middle of a big scoop of ice cream. The first dose cut down his cell count by half, which is a very good thing. The Drs. say this is a good sign that he will respond well to the rest of the chemo treatment. He will go into surgery tomorrow at 4:00 to get his port, a spinal tap, and bone marrow sample from his hip. (I think that is right.) So say some special prayers then.His mailing address is:UNC Hospitals- Children's HospitalRoom 5C01Grant Nelson101 Manning Dr.Chapel Hill, NC 27514I am setting up a blog site for Grant. It will be an easy place that more people can get updates. I'll let you know the address soon.
Love you all!
Joella
~~~~~~~~
Hey everyone,Joel and I just arrived home about an hour ago. Josie had come home earlier with Jacob and Eden, and they are now asleep here.Grant was a little tired and pale when we left- he's got a hard day tomorrow as Joella explained earlier. The anestheologist came by this afternoon and is somewhat concerned about laying him to sleep because of the swelling around his thymus-medius (center of his chest) so he will receive a gas instead of a general anesthesia because it is easier to bring him out of it if necessary. They say he will not feel anything- the surgery will be about two hours long and then many more questions will be answered about the particulars of his therapy. The first dose of chemo will be given in his spinal chord while the spinal tap is being given.It will be a relief to get tomorrow over- so special prayers and thoughts for Grant tomorrow afternoon from all will be especially appreciated.Bonnie, Shaun, and Danielle are going up in the morning and then I think I'll be heading back on Tuesday. Grant will have to stay until at least next Monday.Emily and Kevin are doing well. They are both remarkable, strong, faithful- Grant is indeed a lucky boy to have them. Well, Jake has awoken, and he's ready for some chocolate milk and a little lovin!
April 30
Today they were able to do the spinal tap and get a bone marrow sample from Grant's hip. There were less than 25% cancer cells in the marrow, and the spinal fluid showed no cancer cells. This is great - he is in the lowest risk category! They were not able to do the port or a pic line (a more permant IV line), so they had to do a new IV on him. So that was not much fun, and they will try again soon, but I'm not sure when. The page that I am setting up for Grant is www.grantnelson.blogspot.com . Feel free to share this with anyone. I haven't really gotten anything on it yet, but there will be by tomorrow. Promise! There is a link to it on the scrolling announcements on the front page.Thanks for all your prayers - they are working!
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