The doctors weren't kidding when they said they have a medication for every symptom that arises. The list of things that has been thwarted off is rather long and I am thankful for the prayers of wisdom bestowed upon his Healthcare team. The fever in the beginning caused antibiotics to be administered sooner than they would have, keeping the possibility of pneumonia at bay. When his liver levels began to rise up, meds to protect his liver and pancreas were (and are) given daily to keep his liver protected. A baseline CT was given to keep watch on his frequent headaches, making sure no internal bleeding was going on (it isn't!!). Meds for his headaches are also being given. He began injections to help stimulate the donor's cells to grow. This will likely cause intense bone pain after the first week or so, but that will mean the cells are growing and multiplying! Mouth sores from the Chemo are the constant battle currently. Pray his counts rise quickly! That will erase the mouth sores. Until then, eating is a challenge for him. Now, it is a waiting game. Getting through each day with the least amount of complications and waiting... currently, his body has no blood cells of its own, as the Chemo has killed them. The donor cells have not begun to make their own cells, so he is living on the (almost daily) transfusions of RBC and Platelets. The WBC are the ones that take the longest to see rise, making him susceptible to a host of infections- Praise the Lord the doctors have meds for this as well! Over the 2+ weeks we have been here, he has received a dozen units of RBC. Chemo causes other issues and this week is the crucial week for those donor cells to decide if they like their new home! That is the prayer we need to see! All in all, Dale is doing well, despite the challenges he has faced. We went into this with eyes wide open, knowing this to be the only earthly cure available and we have asked God to heal him through the gift of his brother's cells. Bone Marrow donors don't get enough credit...but they should. The technology in the medical world today is pretty amazing! We are thankful to Eric Worthington for the time he took to do this for his brother and the love that was shown to try to bring new life to Dale's bones. Please keep praying! Those prayers are sustaining us!!! We can feel them carrying us through these hours, days and weeks.
No matter what the day brings, the Bible says in Psalm 118:24
"This is the day that the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it."
And rejoice we will. Jesus is in heaven keeping watch over us. Why wouldn't we rejoice in each new day?
Comments
Post a Comment