There are many challenges for Jeremy being in the hospital.  One of them is the IV pole that he is constantly attached to while he is actively getting chemo or other medications.  His mobility is restricted and he has to work around the pole and the tubes (which he has gotten very good at) when he is walking, playing, or sleeping.

Praise God, we were able to unhook him today!  The connection after the chemo was really only to keep the line “open,” i.e. so it wouldn’t clot.  He does still have one anti-nausea medication, but we were able to switch it to being orally administered.  He had a huge grin on his face after the line was unhooked, walked around the room, and hopped into the little red car we borrowed from the hospital.

He can be unhooked as long as we keep him hydrated.  If he encounters any fever, he’ll have to be hooked up again and there won’t be a possibility of it coming off.  Any fever during neutropenia is considered life-threatening because the source of the fever is initially unknown.  It could be his body reacting to the bacteria already in his system (which we all have and are able to fight off because we have a working immune system), or it could be external bacteria, yeast, or fungus.  Because of this, antibiotics are given prophylactically through an IV.  There are three used as the standard here: vancomycin, tobramycin, and zosyn.  If he gets a fever, he gets all three until 48 hours after the fever subsides.  After that he’s on the zosyn only.  We are praying that he won’t encounter any fevers.  It seems like an unrealistic request, but our God is God of the impossible.

Jeremy’s appetite was slightly better today.  Taking a step back, I’m just glad he’s eating.  Praise God for that.

Today also marks the day that 72 hours have passed since Jeremy’s last chemo treatment.  This means Alice and Jeremy can finally sleep together again! Jeremy’s been pretty bummed out that he hasn’t been able to sleep with his Momma.  It hasn’t been easy for Alice either – having to put on gloves and an extra layer of clothing before she can have close contact with him.

Looking back, there hasn’t been a day where Jeremy didn’t make us laugh.  Here are some videos from the hospital that we’ve been wanting to share.

This one is actually from the tail end of his first round of chemo.  Just singing some songs he’s learned.

Here is one from two days ago.  Jeremy recently learned to count in Chinese.

And this one’s from today, right after dinner (which was a decent sized meal for him).

Thank you all for your faithful prayers, our days get better because of them.

Praise God:

  • that Jeremy remains fever free
  • that Jeremy no longer needs to be connected to the IV pole
  • that the dressing change today went smoothly and doesn’t seem to have caused any skin irritations
  • that Jeremy is eating
  • that Jeremy remains energetic and playful

Please pray (new/updated items in bold):

  • that God would continue to use this situation for His glory
  • that we would be obedient to God’s plans for this situation
  • that we would continue to cast our worries and fears on the Lord
  • that God would provide full and complete healing and total health for Jeremy
  • that God would sustain Jeremy through this block of treatment
  • that God would give Jeremy an extra portion of His strength for this block of treatment
  • that we would not encounter any side effects that would affect his appetite – nausea, vomiting, mouth sores and that Jeremy would have a good appetite throughout the entire block of treatment
  • that Jeremy would not experience any more stomach pains
  • that Jeremy would not encounter any life threatening side effects
  • that Jeremy would not have any brain, liver, lung, kidney, pancreatic, heart, or any other type of organ damage as a result of the chemo
  • that God would protect Jeremy’s heart with the new medication (mitoxantrone)
  • that Jeremy would not encounter any fevers due to bacterial, fungal, or yeast infections, especially now that Jeremy is neutropenic
  • that God would provide with the whole process of finding a bone marrow match, the risks of transplant, and the anxiety of it achieving long-term remission for Jeremy
  • that word would continue to get out about the need for a perfect bone marrow match and that one would be found for Jeremy
  • that Jeremy’s little brother would be a match and that there would be a sufficient volume of cells in the cord blood to qualify for a good transplant
  • that God would continue protect Jeremy’s central line and there would be no infections as a result of it
  • that the dressing change today will not cause any infections or skin irritations
  • that Alice and I would not get sick in order to care for Jeremy
  • that baby brother would be full term before deciding that he wants out
  • for our neighbors who are also enduring trials of their own