Day One Hundred Forty-eight

"Do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing." Luke 12:22-23

I met Ryan at the doctor's office, and he seemed to be in a pretty good mood today. There was some construction in the office, so the blood pressure and thermometer were brought out to Ryan in the waiting room.

Mirjan and Emma joined Davianna, Ryan, and I, and we went back to weigh Ryan. He gained a little bit...YEAH!. Then we followed the train tracks on the floor to room #8. Cindy brought some toys for Ryan, John came by and talked to him, and then Karen came in to start accessing his port. Okay, I think we can confirm that it's all mental now. Ryan vomited before his port was accessed. Poor boy. However, we had a bucket ready. All he had in his stomach was milk, and that doesn't smell as great coming out as it does going in. I feel so bad for him, as the treatment is really stressful for him. We have done play therapy and tried other things, so I guess we'll have to keep trying something different. Cindy was real nice and kept him as distracted as possible with an "I Spy" book.

His counts were lower than last week, but still good. We talked to the doctor for about 15 minutes, after he came to check out Ryan. He said Ryan's ankles were weak, but not enough to change anything. He said that after the last vincristine dose, we should see significant improvements in his strength and stride within 2-3 months. However, it would be 9 months or so before he will really be running the way he was before.

We also talked about the steps after the treatment, and he said we would be going in every month for blood tests and every three months for scans. He said that if everything looks good for two years after the end of the treatment, we can sigh a breath of relief. After five years, they consider him cured. Two years? Five years? We feel so close to the finish line, but not really. We knew this though.  He also talked about re-occurrence and how that changes everything. They would need to use different chemo drugs, and he rattled off a few. He also said the survival rates drop 30-40% if that happens. He said it would be an even further drop if radiation was part of the current treatment process. What a downer of a conversation. I was immediately reminded of the blog entry yesterday....

During the entire treatment, Davianna was making sand art, so we went to see how she was doing. Ryan joined in and made a masterpiece with John. Emma ate a cupcake, then Mirjan did, then Ryan did, and then Davianna did. The cupcakes, moonsand activities, and sand art were provided by Garrett's Kidstrong. The founder, Garrett's mother, was there and she talked to us for a while. Her son had rhabdomyosarcoma and passed away, and she created this foundation in his honor. She also told us of another boy that had rhabdomyosarcoma at the same age as Ryan in the same location and is now a healthy 15 year old.

Davianna showed me what she made for her friend, whose birthday is today.   Painted nails?  BFF?  What?

Afterward, I headed back to work and everyone else headed to a birthday party. Ryan told Mirjan that he was tired, so they headed home and Ryan took a nap. That's the last update that I received for the day, but I'm sure that I'll find out more tomorrow. 

When I finally got home from work (1:30am), it was too quiet, and I missed the time with the family this evening. I will be at work again tomorrow when they go to another event that sounds really, really cool. If all goes well, I won't be working on Father's Day and can enjoy my new underwear that I'm sure to get at home and relax. :)

Father, thank your for blessing Ryan with a safe treatment today.  I ask that you continue to strengthen his body and minimize the side affects of the treatment.  Please keep his immune system strong and him healthy.  I ask that you cover him with your hands of protection and keep him safe, rid his body of the cancer, and don't let it return.  Please continue to heal my little boy.  In Jesus' name I pray.  Amen.