Feeling Yucky

Mel has been really sick today. She can't keep anything down. I feel so bad. Her and mom went down to Salt Lake today since she has a lumbar puncture bright and early tomorrow morning. They took her to the clinic at the LDS Hospital when they got to Salt Lake and they have her hooked up to fluids and anti-nausea medicine. We'll have to wait and see if they'll be able to do her LP tomorrow. Hopefully the fluids and meds will help her feel better.

Biopsy Day

Melanie had her bone marrow biopsy at 11:45 am today. She wasn't put completely under like she wanted, but they sedated her and gave her plenty of pain medication. She had a male doctor perform the procedure at her request. He was excellent! He was able to get the fluid in one try and the piece of bone in one try as well. The procedure took 25 minutes. When I talked to Mel, she was sore but able to walk (sigh of relief). Mel is really glad to have this behind her after all of the nervousness leading up to it.

Mel's blood levels look great. Everything is up with the exception of her platelets, although they didn't go down by much. Her doctor said that everything looks good on paper and the Chimerism test will tell us if things look good on the inside too.

We got the results of Mel's spinal fluid test from last week and it showed that her spinal fluid if free of cancer!!! That is some great news!

We will get the results of her Chimerism test in a couple of weeks. This test will tell us what percentage of cells in her body are donor cells. We are hoping for a high number.

Melanie and Kaden will be going to a ReAL Salt Lake soccer game tomorrow. They are so excited!! I'll be sure to post pictures.

Thanks for the continued prayers on Mel's behalf. Your support is so much appreciated.

One Lumbar Puncture Down!

Melanie had her first of four lumbar punctures yesterday. It went well. She was sedated so she didn't have any pain. Afterward she had to remain flat on her back to prevent a spinal headache. She was really tired after the procedure and for the remainder of the day.

This morning she was nauseated, but thankfully it subsided. She went back to the hospital to have her Methotrexate (chemo that was injected into her spine) level checked. The doctors said that the chemo that is injected into the spine doesn't cross the blood/brain barrier. Mel's blood work suggests otherwise. Her levels were high enough that she has to take some medication. So the chemo does end out in the blood stream.

Mel also had a treatment that prevents pneumonia. She has had it before and it is nasty stuff! Last time she was alone in the room, but this time someone stayed with her. The staff that stayed with her had to wear a mask so they wouldn't breathe in the toxic stuff.

As far as blood levels go, all of Mel's levels were down. Dr. Peterson said that they aren't concerned until her levels start to go down every week. Having blood levels that go up and down is normal for everyone. Mel will need to continue to be careful about germs, dust, molds and sick people. We are all working hard to keep her healthy.

Mel came back home today in time for Kaden's baseball game. She will have her Methotrexate level checked tomorrow at Logan Regional.

Next Thursday is Biopsy day. Mel is really nervous about it considering her last experience. Please keep her in your prayers.

Stay strong Melly! We love you!

Hi Again!

Things are looking good for Mel. She had some blood work done at Logan Regional Hospital and her numbers were all up! She is optimistic and happy. She is enjoying spending time with family. Her nephews and nieces love to play with her "new" toys that have been in her classroom for years.

On a more somber note, one of Melanie's neighbors in the LDS hospital has passed away. He was in pretty bad shape. It serves as a reminder of how unpredictable leukemia can be. It was some tough news for Mel and our mom to receive.

Melanie will be heading down to Salt Lake on Monday night. She has a lumbar puncture scheduled for Tuesday morning. I asked Mel if these make her sick and she doesn't honestly know because she has always been in the hospital on so many other medications. I guess we'll know soon enough. Keep her in your prayers. She will stay in Salt Lake over night to be close to the hospital should anything go wrong. I know she is hoping to be back for Kaden's game on Wed.

We love you Mel!

No Lumbar Puncture Today

Melanie was scheduled to have her first of four lumbar punctures today. She and my mom headed down to Greg's on Wednesday evening, ready to stay Wednesday and Thursday night there. They woke up and drove to the hospital for her early clinic today. Her blood draw was great! All of her counts were up from last week. YEAH! Her platelets were the same, but we will take that over dropping. The other thing that was high was the Cumadin in her blood. This is the medicine to help thin her blood. Because it was too high, they could not do the lumbar puncture today. Melanie will stop taking the Cumadin and they will check her levels in Logan next week. Depending on were they are, they will schedule her next clinic and an LP.

Since there was no need to stay over night tonight, they just went back up to Cache Valley. Of course, they did a little shopping (Costco) before leaving the Salt Lake Valley.

I feel a bit out of the loop these days. Without Melanie being down here, I don't get to see her much at all. I am so glad she is home and doing well though! Love you, Melanie. Hopefully I will get to see you soon!