Hello everyone,
We wanted to let you know that Friday ended on a high note. I was in touch with Sick Kids Hospital Transplant program in Toronto and they have received Harry's referral from HSC. Apparently his case is being reviewed by a top-notch transplant surgeon in Toronto and by a haemotologist-oncologist at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital in New York.
We're very pleased with the "Best Doctors" program available to us through our benefits package at IISD. Best Doctors has been extremely helpful getting us connected with experts in Toronto and New York.
Harry's scheduled to start his sixth chemo round next Friday. We're confident that Harry will be an excellent candidate for transplant if his liver tumour is static or smaller and his lungs and lymph nodes remain clear. And we're very grateful for all your prayers and meditations that will ensure this outcome!
With much love to you all,
Henry, Cynthia, Lydia and Harry
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Soccer windup
Last Wednesday, June 18th, Lydia's soccer season ended with a big party at the community centre in our neighbourhood. To no one's surprise, Harry enjoyed the action as much as anybody there ...
Rarin' to go ...
"Look Harry, a whole castle just for bouncing! How great is this?"
Even happier than his usual happy self
Soccer = FUN
Lydia has a trophy and a great team photo to show for her efforts this season.
Rarin' to go ...
"Look Harry, a whole castle just for bouncing! How great is this?"
Even happier than his usual happy self
Soccer = FUNLydia has a trophy and a great team photo to show for her efforts this season.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Harry's still home (message from Cynthia)
Hi everyone,
Well, Harry and I went to clinic this morning with the trunk of the car full of our 'hospital stuff', expecting to be admitted for Round 6 of chemotherapy, a 48-hour VAC round. However, while his white blood cell count and neutrophils (related to WBC) were good, his platelets were too low (58) to start chemo today (they need to be at least 75). The GCSF shot he gets to encourage WBC regeneration has the side effect of supressing platelet and hemoglobin recovery. So, in order to give his platelets a chance to recover more, we'll wait another week to start the next round of chemotherapy. That means Round 6 will start next Friday (June 27th) instead and we'll be in for the weekend, till Sunday night (June 27-29).
Harry's paediatric oncologist said this is nothing to be concerned about, and really par for the course by Round 6 of chemotherapy. On the upside, giving his counts another week to recover should hopefully mean we'll make it through this VAC round without a bout of febrile neutropenia. So we have an extra week at home. Harry is feeling so good it will be nice to have an extra week to enjoy life at home.
Since his WBC / neutrophils have risen Harry is doing really well. He has recovered nicely from his episode of febrile neutopenia last week. His counts are good and his energy level and joyous spirit are just amazing. He is a constant source of wonder for us - he approaches each day with such pure joy and love. No matter how he feels, he always has a ready smile for us.
He is so close to walking we can all taste it! He loves to now push his 'hippo car' up and down the sidewalk all by himself now. He can stand on his own for a second or two and can take a wee step between two people if 'safe hands' are very close by. He is also communicating constantly these days. He signs, "please", "thank you", "all done", "hello / bye bye", "where is", and "hand washing". He also blows the most wonderful kisses (and gives real kisses too). He points and says "dat dat dat" when he wants something, and eagerly points out to us the things he sees and recognizes in his world. He continues to just love the bus and his ears perk up when he hears it going by the house - he looks and points at the window. Lawn mowers and motorcycles are two other recent fascinations. Could he be a boy???
He still gets all of his nutrition via the feeding tube and nursing, but he is really very interested in trying to eat, or at least go through the motions, which is very important. In the morning he demands a cereal bowl and spoon just like Lydia - he is getting very good at dipping his spoon in milk and getting it to his lips. He wants to have a bite of whatever we are having, though he usually spits things out rather than swallowing; that will come when we are done with the feeding tube. It is great that he is still interested in trying to put food in his mouth. He also thinks it is fun to feed Henry and me finger foods.
Harry also seems to be a decided south paw: he does everything with his left hand, much to his father's (and fellow lefty's) delight. He has grown an inch - he is now 30.5 inches (77 cm) - and though his weight is holding steady at 20.6 lbs (9.3 kg), he looks chubbier and very healthy. He has also now transitioned to just one afternoon nap a day. He's still up once at night to nurse (around 3 am), but most nights does go back to sleep and sleeps till 7 am. It will be soooooooooooo wonderful when he finally sleeps through the night! But this is one step closer, for which we are so thankful!
Lydia is very happy to have Harry home for another week. She is sad every time he goes into the hospital. The day before / day of his admission is always hard for her. But she really does well overall and manages to adapt and stay cheery most of the time.
As for Henry and me, it always causes us an initial feeling of panic whenever something new or not exactly expected crops up. We are both feeling pretty anxious and frustrated by the fact that we still have not heard anything from Sick Kids. We figure we had better be a squeaky wheel - we have the number for the paediatric liver specialist here in Winnipeg and so we are going to start bugging her directly to see what is up. We would just like an update to know where they are at in their decision-making process.
We really believe that now, more than ever, we need to ask for everyone, everywhere who is praying for, meditating on, or thinking positive thoughts about Harry to really, really, really intensely focus your prayers/meditations/positive thoughts on a very clear intention of complete healing and recovery for Harry.
Henry and I truly believe in the healing power of prayer. So we humbly ask that everyone hold and deeply BELIEVE in your hearts a very clear intention that Harry is cancer-free, that the tumours are gone and that he is completely healed and back to full-health.
As we continue to step one day at a time on this journey of healing, we are deeply thankful for all of your love and support. We BELIEVE deep in our hearts that Harry is healed and we are journeying one day at a time to that place of complete healing. We ask you to truly believe in Harry's full recovery and every time you think/pray/meditate on Harry hold this belief in your heart.
Thank you! Have a wonderful week.
Love,
Cynthia, Henry, Lydia and Harry
Well, Harry and I went to clinic this morning with the trunk of the car full of our 'hospital stuff', expecting to be admitted for Round 6 of chemotherapy, a 48-hour VAC round. However, while his white blood cell count and neutrophils (related to WBC) were good, his platelets were too low (58) to start chemo today (they need to be at least 75). The GCSF shot he gets to encourage WBC regeneration has the side effect of supressing platelet and hemoglobin recovery. So, in order to give his platelets a chance to recover more, we'll wait another week to start the next round of chemotherapy. That means Round 6 will start next Friday (June 27th) instead and we'll be in for the weekend, till Sunday night (June 27-29).
Harry's paediatric oncologist said this is nothing to be concerned about, and really par for the course by Round 6 of chemotherapy. On the upside, giving his counts another week to recover should hopefully mean we'll make it through this VAC round without a bout of febrile neutropenia. So we have an extra week at home. Harry is feeling so good it will be nice to have an extra week to enjoy life at home.
Since his WBC / neutrophils have risen Harry is doing really well. He has recovered nicely from his episode of febrile neutopenia last week. His counts are good and his energy level and joyous spirit are just amazing. He is a constant source of wonder for us - he approaches each day with such pure joy and love. No matter how he feels, he always has a ready smile for us.
He is so close to walking we can all taste it! He loves to now push his 'hippo car' up and down the sidewalk all by himself now. He can stand on his own for a second or two and can take a wee step between two people if 'safe hands' are very close by. He is also communicating constantly these days. He signs, "please", "thank you", "all done", "hello / bye bye", "where is", and "hand washing". He also blows the most wonderful kisses (and gives real kisses too). He points and says "dat dat dat" when he wants something, and eagerly points out to us the things he sees and recognizes in his world. He continues to just love the bus and his ears perk up when he hears it going by the house - he looks and points at the window. Lawn mowers and motorcycles are two other recent fascinations. Could he be a boy???
He still gets all of his nutrition via the feeding tube and nursing, but he is really very interested in trying to eat, or at least go through the motions, which is very important. In the morning he demands a cereal bowl and spoon just like Lydia - he is getting very good at dipping his spoon in milk and getting it to his lips. He wants to have a bite of whatever we are having, though he usually spits things out rather than swallowing; that will come when we are done with the feeding tube. It is great that he is still interested in trying to put food in his mouth. He also thinks it is fun to feed Henry and me finger foods.
Harry also seems to be a decided south paw: he does everything with his left hand, much to his father's (and fellow lefty's) delight. He has grown an inch - he is now 30.5 inches (77 cm) - and though his weight is holding steady at 20.6 lbs (9.3 kg), he looks chubbier and very healthy. He has also now transitioned to just one afternoon nap a day. He's still up once at night to nurse (around 3 am), but most nights does go back to sleep and sleeps till 7 am. It will be soooooooooooo wonderful when he finally sleeps through the night! But this is one step closer, for which we are so thankful!
Lydia is very happy to have Harry home for another week. She is sad every time he goes into the hospital. The day before / day of his admission is always hard for her. But she really does well overall and manages to adapt and stay cheery most of the time.
As for Henry and me, it always causes us an initial feeling of panic whenever something new or not exactly expected crops up. We are both feeling pretty anxious and frustrated by the fact that we still have not heard anything from Sick Kids. We figure we had better be a squeaky wheel - we have the number for the paediatric liver specialist here in Winnipeg and so we are going to start bugging her directly to see what is up. We would just like an update to know where they are at in their decision-making process.
We really believe that now, more than ever, we need to ask for everyone, everywhere who is praying for, meditating on, or thinking positive thoughts about Harry to really, really, really intensely focus your prayers/meditations/positive thoughts on a very clear intention of complete healing and recovery for Harry.
Henry and I truly believe in the healing power of prayer. So we humbly ask that everyone hold and deeply BELIEVE in your hearts a very clear intention that Harry is cancer-free, that the tumours are gone and that he is completely healed and back to full-health.
As we continue to step one day at a time on this journey of healing, we are deeply thankful for all of your love and support. We BELIEVE deep in our hearts that Harry is healed and we are journeying one day at a time to that place of complete healing. We ask you to truly believe in Harry's full recovery and every time you think/pray/meditate on Harry hold this belief in your heart.
Thank you! Have a wonderful week.
Love,
Cynthia, Henry, Lydia and Harry
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Harry's home!
Dear friends,
We're delighted to report that Harry was discharged late yesterday afternoon (Friday) with another glowing report about his progress from his oncology team. We're thrilled that he'll be home to celebrate Fathers' Day with Daddy Henry and the rest of the Venema clan on Sunday.
The oncologists' report, doesn't, unfortunately, change in any way Harry's somewhat precarious situation vis-a-vis the possibility of a transplant. Because the cancer has invaded all four lobes of Harry's liver, the possibility of a surgical excision is almost non-existant, which makes a full transplant the only real logical next step. The decision to put him on the transplant list still rests with the doctors at Sick Kids in Toronto, though, from whom nothing has yet been heard.
We'd be grateful for your good meditative energies as we imagine our way forward from here ...
We're delighted to report that Harry was discharged late yesterday afternoon (Friday) with another glowing report about his progress from his oncology team. We're thrilled that he'll be home to celebrate Fathers' Day with Daddy Henry and the rest of the Venema clan on Sunday.
The oncologists' report, doesn't, unfortunately, change in any way Harry's somewhat precarious situation vis-a-vis the possibility of a transplant. Because the cancer has invaded all four lobes of Harry's liver, the possibility of a surgical excision is almost non-existant, which makes a full transplant the only real logical next step. The decision to put him on the transplant list still rests with the doctors at Sick Kids in Toronto, though, from whom nothing has yet been heard.
We'd be grateful for your good meditative energies as we imagine our way forward from here ...
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Back in the hospital and needing your support (message from Cynthia)
Hi everyone,
Yes, we're back in the hospital with Harry this week: we had to be admitted from clinic Tuesday, because his counts were extremely low and he had a fever. His white blood cell count was nearly zero (0.04) and his hemoglobin was 70, so he needed a transfusion on Tuesday and he had platelets transfused Wednesday (his platelet count was at 9 and it’s supposed to be at least 100). Poor Harry: his counts were so low on Tuesday the lab phoned up to the clinic to check if there could possibly have been an error in the blood sample. Harry is feeling pretty under the weather: he has been nauseous and fussy – although, as usual, “fussy” for Harry is really not very fussy at all. He’s also been having trouble keeping down his feeds, so we have switched to feeding him very slowly and continuously to try to slowly get food into him.
His oncologist said that this is to be expected: by now his bone marrow is starting to “get tired,” so it will take him longer after every round to recover. I’m expecting now that especially after each ICE round, we’ll be admitted for febrile nutrapenia (fever with low blood counts). So far nothing has grown in his cultures, so the fever seems to be just a side effect of the low blood counts (and the doctors don't really know why that happens). They want to keep us in for at least 72 hours, though, till his counts start to recover a bit. And although it doesn’t always look like it to us, Harry’s oncologist and the oncology nurse tell us that he is doing amazingly well and that we should be thrilled at his progress.
Please help us do that by keeping us in your prayers: right now, we’d just like to see all of Harry’s counts go up so that he’ll be able to come home on Friday.
And, of course, we’d really really like to hear from the doctors at Sick Kids in Toronto. The waiting to hear from them about the possibility of a transplant is agonizing. We feel pretty powerless, right now, without a sense of where we’re going, exactly, and how we’re going to get there. I keep telling myself, though, to have faith that Harry is healed, that God has healed Harry and I have to trust and be patient, live each day one day at a time, not to focus on the future, just to know that God will take us there and the journey will unfold as it is meant to unfold.
Even though that feels very, very hard right now.
But you know, despite how crappy Harry’s clearly feeling, he’s walking better than ever on the ward. He can now push his favourite little cart steadily around the ward by himself; all I have to do is manage his bundle of cords and pull the IV pole along. Next job will be teaching him to steer!
Which seems only a fair exchange: as always, Harry’s fullness of joy, life, love, and laughter makes everything easier on us. Through all of this he never stops smiling and laughing. Jesus said let the little children lead us, and that is just what Harry keeps doing, our constant source of inspiration.
Love to you all and grateful thanks for all the ways your prayers and meditations support us,
Cynthia
Yes, we're back in the hospital with Harry this week: we had to be admitted from clinic Tuesday, because his counts were extremely low and he had a fever. His white blood cell count was nearly zero (0.04) and his hemoglobin was 70, so he needed a transfusion on Tuesday and he had platelets transfused Wednesday (his platelet count was at 9 and it’s supposed to be at least 100). Poor Harry: his counts were so low on Tuesday the lab phoned up to the clinic to check if there could possibly have been an error in the blood sample. Harry is feeling pretty under the weather: he has been nauseous and fussy – although, as usual, “fussy” for Harry is really not very fussy at all. He’s also been having trouble keeping down his feeds, so we have switched to feeding him very slowly and continuously to try to slowly get food into him.
His oncologist said that this is to be expected: by now his bone marrow is starting to “get tired,” so it will take him longer after every round to recover. I’m expecting now that especially after each ICE round, we’ll be admitted for febrile nutrapenia (fever with low blood counts). So far nothing has grown in his cultures, so the fever seems to be just a side effect of the low blood counts (and the doctors don't really know why that happens). They want to keep us in for at least 72 hours, though, till his counts start to recover a bit. And although it doesn’t always look like it to us, Harry’s oncologist and the oncology nurse tell us that he is doing amazingly well and that we should be thrilled at his progress.
Please help us do that by keeping us in your prayers: right now, we’d just like to see all of Harry’s counts go up so that he’ll be able to come home on Friday.
And, of course, we’d really really like to hear from the doctors at Sick Kids in Toronto. The waiting to hear from them about the possibility of a transplant is agonizing. We feel pretty powerless, right now, without a sense of where we’re going, exactly, and how we’re going to get there. I keep telling myself, though, to have faith that Harry is healed, that God has healed Harry and I have to trust and be patient, live each day one day at a time, not to focus on the future, just to know that God will take us there and the journey will unfold as it is meant to unfold.
Even though that feels very, very hard right now.
But you know, despite how crappy Harry’s clearly feeling, he’s walking better than ever on the ward. He can now push his favourite little cart steadily around the ward by himself; all I have to do is manage his bundle of cords and pull the IV pole along. Next job will be teaching him to steer!
Which seems only a fair exchange: as always, Harry’s fullness of joy, life, love, and laughter makes everything easier on us. Through all of this he never stops smiling and laughing. Jesus said let the little children lead us, and that is just what Harry keeps doing, our constant source of inspiration.
Love to you all and grateful thanks for all the ways your prayers and meditations support us,
Cynthia
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Harry's back in the hospital briefly
Hi everyone,
Henry just phoned to let me know that Harry was re-admitted to the hospital earlier today with a bit of a fever, a similar scenario to what we went through six weeks ago at almost exactly this stage of the ICE round of chemo . According to Henry, Harry is already "back to his usual chipper self," so we hope to be reporting soon that all the Neudoerffer-Venemas are back home and together.
Thank you all for your continuing thoughts and prayers, and do stay tuned for those Relay for Life photographs (it's a busy week in principal-land this week, but those pictures will get posted) ...
Henry just phoned to let me know that Harry was re-admitted to the hospital earlier today with a bit of a fever, a similar scenario to what we went through six weeks ago at almost exactly this stage of the ICE round of chemo . According to Henry, Harry is already "back to his usual chipper self," so we hope to be reporting soon that all the Neudoerffer-Venemas are back home and together.
Thank you all for your continuing thoughts and prayers, and do stay tuned for those Relay for Life photographs (it's a busy week in principal-land this week, but those pictures will get posted) ...
Monday, June 9, 2008
Relay for Life report! (pictures to follow soon)
Dear friends,
Jodi just wrote in with the following account of the Relay for Life and a mitt-full of great photos. Please check back here soon to see those pics, since the technical and aesthetic genius behind this blog is temporarily occupied by his day-job ...
In the meantime, a rousing cheer for the Healing Harry Team and their inspiration for us all!
***********************
The Relay for Life was held Friday night in gale force winds and pouring rain. Harry and his soaking family walked the track for the survivor's lap - something he is surely doing! It was very special and very powerful to be part of this experience and see just how many people BEAT cancer. All those yellow t-shirts are the folks who made it!
Cancer research makes a difference and saves lives. We raised over $1700 for Healing Harry.
Thanks to those who pledged and participated. Hats off to Cynthia, Henry, and Lydia for braving the elements. And of course, our wee Harry who shows us everyday that while this journey may feel long and hard, it can be done, is being done, and is much easier with that award winning smile. One look at that signature grin and we'll do anything.
All our love and healing powers,
Jodi, Marla, Amber, and Caitlyn,
and the rest of the Healing Harry Team:
Jodi's mom,
Marla's mom, and
Caitlyn's husband and son
Jodi just wrote in with the following account of the Relay for Life and a mitt-full of great photos. Please check back here soon to see those pics, since the technical and aesthetic genius behind this blog is temporarily occupied by his day-job ...
In the meantime, a rousing cheer for the Healing Harry Team and their inspiration for us all!
***********************
The Relay for Life was held Friday night in gale force winds and pouring rain. Harry and his soaking family walked the track for the survivor's lap - something he is surely doing! It was very special and very powerful to be part of this experience and see just how many people BEAT cancer. All those yellow t-shirts are the folks who made it!
Cancer research makes a difference and saves lives. We raised over $1700 for Healing Harry.
Thanks to those who pledged and participated. Hats off to Cynthia, Henry, and Lydia for braving the elements. And of course, our wee Harry who shows us everyday that while this journey may feel long and hard, it can be done, is being done, and is much easier with that award winning smile. One look at that signature grin and we'll do anything.
All our love and healing powers,
Jodi, Marla, Amber, and Caitlyn,
and the rest of the Healing Harry Team:
Jodi's mom,
Marla's mom, and
Caitlyn's husband and son
Thursday, June 5, 2008
The Relay for Life starts tomorrow
Jodi Lee has sent another reminder of tomorrow's Canadian Cancer Society Relay for Life, in which a "Healing Harry" relay team will participate. The relay is a 12 hour relay from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. - an overnight event. Please support the Healing Henry team by making a donation at the following website. Simply copy this address (by right-clicking), and paste it in the URL address line. That'll take you to the site, where you can make a donation.
http://convio.cancer.ca/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFL_MB_Winnipeg_?team_id=47300&pg=team&fr_id=2222&fl=en_CA&et=6emgN5OGq2TE17qd5T7_Gw..&s_tafId=7067
Go Moms Go!
http://convio.cancer.ca/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFL_MB_Winnipeg_?team_id=47300&pg=team&fr_id=2222&fl=en_CA&et=6emgN5OGq2TE17qd5T7_Gw..&s_tafId=7067
Go Moms Go!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Pray that Harry gets on transplant list
Good evening friends,
I just got back from the hospital. Kathleen, who usually writes the blog, is in Vancouver at a conference, so I’ll take a turn tonight. This is an urgent appeal from Cynthia and Henry to keep Harry, their family and especially also the medical specialists both in Winnipeg and Toronto in your thoughts, prayers and meditations during the next days. The specialists have an important decision to make, and your support and positive energy, which has been powerfully at work in Harry’s healing journey, is needed to support them in their decision-making.
Cynthia and Henry had a consultation today with the pediatric liver specialist – the same one who back on that February Saturday determined that Harry’s liver had a very serious illness. She will be contacting the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto tomorrow or Thursday to inquire about putting Harry on the waiting list for a liver transplant. This is good news, in that Harry’s healing has progressed to a point where this important step to “apply to the waiting list” is being taken. The metastatic disease has essentially been dealt with in the lymphatic system and the lungs (the spot in the lung is only 3mm in size), so this is the surgical consultation Henry and Cynthia have been hoping for.
The liver specialist explained, though, that she isn’t able to say with certainty how Sick Kids will respond. No one at HSC has much experience with Harry’s very rare type of cancer, and so have few if any precedents to go on. The oncology team believes at this point that a transplant is the best option, because all four lobes of the liver have been affected by the Rhabdoid tumour.
During my visit this evening, Harry woke up, and fussed until he threw up quite a bit of his formula. After crying for about a minute or two, he looked around and beamed his patented toothy smile across the room. Cynthia spoke about the quite amazing growth and development Harry has experienced during the past 4 months, in spite of his illness. For example, he’s trying to walk; he’s clearly impatient to communicate; when asked: “Where’s Lyddie’s or daddy’s picture?” he happily points to the appropriate picture on the wall (when asked about mommy’s picture, he gets a little confused, because she’s right there in person); this evening we took delight in his interest in the buses that pass by on Sherbrook Street – when he sees a bus, he knocks on the hospital window and points. Cynthia explained that they do this at their living room window at home, where they can see the bus-stop where daddy gets off at the end of the day; he’s also started initiating the playing of peek-a-boo. He pulls a blanket over himself, and playfully peeks out. These are all signs of a very healthy and normally developing little youngster. The liver specialist was also struck by how big he’s gotten, and how healthy he looks.
Please pray that Sick Kids Hospital places Harry on the liver transplant list. Henry and Cynthia want you to know how very grateful they are for your ongoing love and support.
I just got back from the hospital. Kathleen, who usually writes the blog, is in Vancouver at a conference, so I’ll take a turn tonight. This is an urgent appeal from Cynthia and Henry to keep Harry, their family and especially also the medical specialists both in Winnipeg and Toronto in your thoughts, prayers and meditations during the next days. The specialists have an important decision to make, and your support and positive energy, which has been powerfully at work in Harry’s healing journey, is needed to support them in their decision-making.
Cynthia and Henry had a consultation today with the pediatric liver specialist – the same one who back on that February Saturday determined that Harry’s liver had a very serious illness. She will be contacting the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto tomorrow or Thursday to inquire about putting Harry on the waiting list for a liver transplant. This is good news, in that Harry’s healing has progressed to a point where this important step to “apply to the waiting list” is being taken. The metastatic disease has essentially been dealt with in the lymphatic system and the lungs (the spot in the lung is only 3mm in size), so this is the surgical consultation Henry and Cynthia have been hoping for.
The liver specialist explained, though, that she isn’t able to say with certainty how Sick Kids will respond. No one at HSC has much experience with Harry’s very rare type of cancer, and so have few if any precedents to go on. The oncology team believes at this point that a transplant is the best option, because all four lobes of the liver have been affected by the Rhabdoid tumour.
During my visit this evening, Harry woke up, and fussed until he threw up quite a bit of his formula. After crying for about a minute or two, he looked around and beamed his patented toothy smile across the room. Cynthia spoke about the quite amazing growth and development Harry has experienced during the past 4 months, in spite of his illness. For example, he’s trying to walk; he’s clearly impatient to communicate; when asked: “Where’s Lyddie’s or daddy’s picture?” he happily points to the appropriate picture on the wall (when asked about mommy’s picture, he gets a little confused, because she’s right there in person); this evening we took delight in his interest in the buses that pass by on Sherbrook Street – when he sees a bus, he knocks on the hospital window and points. Cynthia explained that they do this at their living room window at home, where they can see the bus-stop where daddy gets off at the end of the day; he’s also started initiating the playing of peek-a-boo. He pulls a blanket over himself, and playfully peeks out. These are all signs of a very healthy and normally developing little youngster. The liver specialist was also struck by how big he’s gotten, and how healthy he looks.
Please pray that Sick Kids Hospital places Harry on the liver transplant list. Henry and Cynthia want you to know how very grateful they are for your ongoing love and support.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Overwhelmed with gratitude
Greetings from Henry:
Harry entered hospital for his fifth round of chemo - the 5 day ICE round - on Friday, the first two days have gone well with only a little nausea.
The last CT scans showed more very good news, Harry's lymph nodes appear clear on the scan, and one small spot on his lungs remain - it may only be scar tissue. His liver continues to shrink - though not as dramatically as after the first two rounds.
As Cynthia and I digest the results of the CT scan, and that we can now start discussing surgical options, we are overwhelmed with gratitude at the unrelenting kindness that our support community provides. The light in Harry's eyes, his determination to push his little scooter all over the ward - with me scrambling to keep up with his IV pole (it's very cute) reflects the strength we all provide him.
We're now focused on helping Harry heal the single lesion in his lungs and shrink and remove the remaining cancer from his liver as this will improve all surgical options and aid in his recovery. Thank you for all your prayers and meditations.
Love to you all,
Henry and Cynthia
Harry entered hospital for his fifth round of chemo - the 5 day ICE round - on Friday, the first two days have gone well with only a little nausea.
The last CT scans showed more very good news, Harry's lymph nodes appear clear on the scan, and one small spot on his lungs remain - it may only be scar tissue. His liver continues to shrink - though not as dramatically as after the first two rounds.
As Cynthia and I digest the results of the CT scan, and that we can now start discussing surgical options, we are overwhelmed with gratitude at the unrelenting kindness that our support community provides. The light in Harry's eyes, his determination to push his little scooter all over the ward - with me scrambling to keep up with his IV pole (it's very cute) reflects the strength we all provide him.
We're now focused on helping Harry heal the single lesion in his lungs and shrink and remove the remaining cancer from his liver as this will improve all surgical options and aid in his recovery. Thank you for all your prayers and meditations.
Love to you all,
Henry and Cynthia
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