Almost Done...sort of

Radiation Continues.....

We have had a busy week and it is only Tuesday.

Monday:
8:00 Head to hospital at 8:00 AM for radiation. Receive call that machine not working. Go home, feed Carson.
9:00 Receive call from Radiology that machine now working, reschedule...but must wait until 3:30/4:00 because Carson has now had pancakes and ginger ale (a breakfast for champions!)
9:45 Go to school to give Francesca cold medicine
10:00 Go to grocery store...unload at home in time to.....
11:00 Go to clinic for counts check
12:30 Find out Carson needs a blood transfusion tomorrow..keep Carson from eating and drinking in prep for sedation during radiation
2:30 Make it home from clinic in time to let Francesca in from school
3:00 Head to Hospital
4:20 Radiation (finally)
6:00 Arrive home

Tuesday
8:00 Go to hospital for radiation
9:00 Watch Carson sleep in recovery - he's tired from yesterday after all!
10:00 Home for snack
11:45 Head to clinic for transfusion....wait until 2:00 for blood to arrive
2:00 - 4:00 Blood transfusion - - Watch Carson's cheeks grow pinker and mouth move faster and faster. Hope that he'll go to sleep tonight. Contemplate a proposed new blood donor rule "No Red Bulls for at least 24 hours prior to blood donation"
4:30 Nona picks us up from clinic on the way to take Francesca to swim practice
5:15 Arrive home

Despite what you have read above, we have made it through seven days of radiation without much incident. We have one more treatment to go tomorrow and then we will be all done with heavy chemo! Praise the Lord!


What's Next?

Maintenance....to begin when Carson's ANC reaches 750 (It is still 90 as of this afternoon) and to last until approximately 11/16/2012. I got a look at Carson's road map the other day and it was not quite what I expected. Maintenance will be a 12 week cycle that we repeat over and over until we reach 3 years. It includes a spinal tap on days 1 and 29, 3 rounds of steroids, oral methotrexate, another oral chemo known as 6MP, and IV pushes of Vincristine on day 1, 29 and 57. In my hazy, lack of sleep, stress filled, clinic and hospital induced quasi hypnotic state I am having trouble seeing how this is much easier than our initial 9 months. Actually, I'm not seeing how it is easier on ME; but I do know it is said to be much easier on CARSON. I can live with that.

There's lots of other things to write about, but I will save them for another day this week.
A tired four year old with no real nap for two days is about to be put to bed....maybe.

-Jennifer