Sunday, October 31, 2010

Playing the Numbers Game

Several weeks ago I had a Therasphere treatment scheduled. This treatment was postponed due to my Bilirubin being too high. It is supposed to be below 2 and it was at 5. They gave me IV fluids to detox my liver and bring my Bilirubin count back down. They got it down to 3.4 the doctor told me that it was up to me if I wanted to go ahead but that he was concerned because if you do a Therasphere treatment with your Bilirubin above 2 you take the risk of causing Liver failure.

I chose to go forward with the treatment figuring that it was not going to get better. Well they checked them again recently and found that it went down to 2.2 and then recently it was back up to 5.5. NOT good. So I have been going in and having them give me IV fluids to try and flush the toxins out of my system. I have to keep going back and getting more fluids to keep my liver clean but it should help. Monday they are going to check my Bilirubin again and see where I am at now. Hopefully it is down a bit.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

So far so good

So far everything is going fine. Evan continues to get an IV infusion every few days.

On Monday, they did some lab work and the results came back very positive. His bilirubin count was back down to a 2.2 and his other liver function counts are almost back down to normal. This was great news but does not mean we are out of the woods yet.

They say that the thearaspher treatment will continue to be active for another month or so. During that time the liver tissue around the tumor will continue to be affected we just don't know how much it will be affected.

For now Evan is feeling great and he even put up our Christmas lights yesterday. He has energy thanks to the steroids that he is taking for a short period of time. It is so good to see him active and happy. His eyes are still a little yellow but they are getting better.

Friday, October 15, 2010

Night at the hospital

Evan went in for his radiation treatment yesterday and before they would take him for the treatment they wanted to check his bilirubin count. It was back up again to 3.4. We are not sure what is causing his count to be so high but Evan feels that it is something that is not going to reverse so they went ahead with the treatment.

We faced a decision that placed us between a rock and a hard place. The tumor in Evan's liver had doubled in size in a matter of 3 months so it was important to treat that tumor. Treating that tumor now puts him at greater risk for liver failure due to his bilirubin count, so we have spent the night at the hospital so that they can continue to monitor him.

They have a IV continually running to keep him hydrated and help his liver process what is going on. This should help keep his liver healthy. There is a possibility that he will be sent home with an IV for the weekend and we will have the help of Home Care to help with the IV.

Needless to say, it has been very stressful and will continue to be stressful until we know he is in the clear.

Thanks for all your prayers!

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Bilirubin numbers

I went in yesterday and they tested my Bilirubin again and found that it was down to a 2.8 instead of the 5.0 that it was at. These numbers have helped them to determine that it is now safe for me to go ahead with my Therasphere treatment. So, I have that scheduled for next Tuesday. (Oct. 12th)

That will be the day that I get to fight and destroy that one tumor that is in my liver that has been determined to grow. If we can get that one knocked down, then I should be in better shape for the rest of my body. I will be back to just my 3 month check-ups.

Sunday, October 3, 2010

New Family Photo

Yes, we know it was about time we got a new family photo that includes our Grandson. It has been a long time coming.

We were happy to find this location as it was a great place to take a family photo.

Thanks to all that check this Blog on a regular basis. We really should update it more often but just have a hard time to find things to add. We will try to be better at it.

May every day be better than the last.