The Brands: So far, so good

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

So far, so good

We are 3/4ths of the way through Caleb's CNS therapy. He had his 3rd lumbar puncture yesterday. I continue to be amazed by how well he handles treatment; after each lumbar puncture he wakes up happy and eats a salami sandwich (steroids diet still!) He's stopped taking the Dex (dexamethasone, a steroid) but it seems to be having longer-lasting effects. I wonder when it will stop!

We thank God for Caleb health and how well treatment is going. It's incredible. I'm finding the hospital visits to be draining, however, and so I really look forward to being done this phase of treatment.

I'm sorry that this is such a brief update. There really is more to tell, but there is not time right now!

4 comments:

Jen said...: Keeping you in our thoughts and prayers, particularly for a period of rest after all of these treatments are completed.; August 25, 2010 at 9:21 AM
Chris Schoon said...: Glad to hear that Caleb is responding to his treatments so well. We continue to pray for him and the rest of your family. May God grant you strength through the rest of this stage and much rest for all of you soon after.; August 25, 2010 at 11:03 AM
anya genevieve said...: Hang in there; you're almost through this part of Caleb's treatment. Looking forward to seeing you guys on friday :) and hoping that Caleb will be able to show me his bravery beeds; if he wants of course... love, hugs, and prayers, anya; August 25, 2010 at 11:06 AM
Anonymous said...: Hey Brands,
Thanks for the update, it's good to hear that Caleb is handling his treatments so well. We will continue to pray for all of you, for strength and healing.
Kristin wants to know where the pictures are??

Rachel; August 26, 2010 at 4:13 PM

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What is ALL?

Caleb has ALL, a form of leukemia. From what I understand (here's the dummy's guide to leukemia), leukemia means that something has gone wrong in blood cell production.

Blood is made up of 3 main parts, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. The red blood cells do things like carry oxygen and nutrients through your body. The white blood cells fight infections and keep you healthy. The platelets glue it all together. (I did say this was the dummy's guide, remember.) Bone marrow is where these cells are made and released into the blood stream.

In Caleb's leukemia, his bone marrow is producing the 3 kinds of cells, but some of the white blood cells are being made wrong. These white blood cells are not maturing, they don't perform any function, and they aren't dying off. They take up space, and made it so that Caleb's red blood cells, functioning white cells, and platelets were having a hard time doing their jobs, and the production of the blasts was taking over. This is why before we were admitted to the hospital, Caleb was tired and pale. His blood just wasn't able to do what it should do.

Chemo treatments are designed to kill back the blasts. The only way to do this has a lot of extra damage (collateral damage) as well, which we see in side effects like hair loss and need for blood transfusions. Because chemo also knocks back regular blood cells, Caleb needs blood and platelet transfusions to replace what is being lost through treatment. White blood cells cannot be transfused, which is why he has nothing to fight off infections. We can't replace those ones. When the drugs are less intense and his body can gradually go back to doing what it should be doing, white blood cell production should return. We will have to be careful for a long time, though.

Hair loss occurs because cells that are replaced often in our body, like hair, can't keep up production. The cells die off faster than they are replaced. Other fast growing/often replaced cells are in our mouths and our nails. These are all affected.

I hope my dummy's guide to leukemia makes sense. It's the way I currently understand things. People in the health care profession may cringe at my descriptions, but hopefully it's accurate enough to explain what Caleb's going through. Maybe it will help you explain it to your kids. For now, we just say we're blasting blasts.

We are the Brands

We are three kids, two parents, and one dog. And too many fish. We love our city, time in the outdoors, playing soccer, camping, and making music. Our faith is central to our lives.

On June 23, pieces of what had previously been a concerning question about our son Caleb's health came together in a diagnosis of leukemia. It all happened rather quickly, after bringing him to the ER at McMaster hospital on Monday, June 21. We're absorbing this news, and trying to learn how to cope with leukemia and a young family. Our hearts are torn, but we feel the love of many.

This blog is intended to share with our loved ones and their loved ones what is happening for Caleb and the rest of us. I must say that it is possibly as much information-giving as it is therapeutic writing. Thank you for taking the time to share with us our experience. We find strength in numbers, and in shared experiences.