Wednesday, December 13, 2006

Update # 81

Day Plus 1

Good Evening,

What a difference a day makes!!! Jeff has had a very good day in comparison to last weekend. He slept well last night, woke up fairly early (for him), and has had energy today. Jeff has not had any nausea and his appetite is great so he has consumed quite a bit of food throughout the day. The diarrhea did begin again this afternoon but Jeff is drinking plenty of fluids so they are not concerned at this time.

Late this afternoon, Jeff felt that some throat sores may be starting so Nystatin (Swish and Swallow) was ordered for several times a day.  Hopefully, the sores will remain a minor not major problem.

Jeff's counts were up this evening but they are considered a "false positive" due to the transplant. Counts will again decrease tomorrow and the days following. His Potassium level is low so Jeff will receive some meds tonight for that.

Also this evening, Jeff will begin receiving a new med (24 hours after transplant) that helps graft vs. host disease. All those new stem cells are running around inside his body looking for familiar territory and finding nothing that looks like home. They begin attacking strange surroundings which happens to be Jeff's insides. This medicine will be given on Days 1, 3, 6, and 11 and amounts will be regulated according to Jeff's blood counts.

A couple of you have asked about Jeff's blood sugar. It has basically returned to normal but some of the meds he receives will spike the sugar high enough to necessitate an insulin shot. One of the transplant meds did that last night. Jeff had one high sugar count today so he was given one shot.

Jeff's good day was enjoyable but he knows rough ones are still ahead. We were pleased Jeff felt well enough this afternoon to appreciate the surprise visit from the principal of my school. It was fun to sit and hear about stories from home.

Tomorrow we'll have another visitor for a few days. My brother, Mike, drove down from Chicago today to our house in Hillsboro. He saw our Mom today and in the morning will come to StL till Saturday. Then he'll stay at our house again for one night before he drives back to Chicago on Sunday. JoAnn and Trevor could not come this time since Trevor still has school.

I will probably wait a few days for the next update.  Jeff's days will normally be up and down so that will be the routine for the next few weeks.

We thank you for your cards, emails, phone calls, and visits.  The love we feel helps us through each day.  And those most important prayers are very uplifting to us.  We pray you prepare yourselves in this Advent Season for the coming of our Lord.

love,

Marcia