We were told today that the bump in Jeremy’s liver numbers meant liver damage.  The numbers crept up again slightly today.  The doctor likened it to a night of hard partying for a college student.  We are praying that God will heal and protect Jeremy’s liver.

We were also told today that a trip to the PICU (pediatric intensive care unit) is not uncommon back here in the BMT unit.  When Jeremy’s counts bottom out he will be at extremely high risk for infection, even more so than when he was out there on the oncology floor.

The busulfan and Atavan doses were completed last night.  Praise God that Jeremy did not have any seizures as a result of it.  And praise God he did not experience any nausea or vomiting and ate well through it.  He still has the fludarabine and clofarabine, in addition to the ATG.  The ATG is likely to cause flu-like symptoms: fever, chills, body aches, rash, high blood pressure or low blood pressure, tiredness.  He will be monitored through all of this.  We continue to pray that Jeremy would not experience these symptoms and would be able to play and eat and be his normal self.

We continue to be amazed at all that God is doing, in how He sustains and strengthens Jeremy.  In our conversation with the doctors today, we were told that Jeremy is one of the healthiest AML kids they’ve seen in a long time.  We know, with all certainty, that this is direct result of God’s sustaining hand on Jeremy.  Praise God.

“Praise be to the Lord, for he has heard my cry for mercy.  The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.  My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.” (Psalm 28: 6-7)

Praise God:

  • for Him, that He hears our cries for mercy
  • He has sustained and continues to sustain Jeremy through all the chemo and medications
  • Jeremy did not experience any seizures from the busulfan
  • Jeremy has been eating well
  • Jeremy is fever free

Please pray:

  • 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 we would fix our eyes on Him
  • that we would continue to be reminded of God’s greatness and provision, that we would wait on Him, and that we would not allow fear to creep in
  • that we would rejoice in the moments that God gives us
  • that God would provide full and complete healing and total health for Jeremy
  • that Jeremy would clear the congestion/runny nose
  • that nothing will come out of the nose swab that was done today
  • that God would protect Jeremy from any scrapes or bumps
  • that Alice and I would not get sick in order to care for our family
  • that Matty would nurse easily and sleep well
  • that Matty’s diaper rash would heal and not cause him too much discomfort
  • that God would give us wisdom in teaching Jeremy in the hospital environment
  • that we would extend Jeremy an extra portion of patience and grace as we try to care for him with the added hyperactivity
  • that we would adjust well to the new challenges of being in the BMT unit, with all it’s necessary rules and regulations

Please pray for the conditioning chemo regimen:

  • that it would be effective in destroying any lingering cancer cells
  • that Jeremy would not encounter any mucousitis (mouth, GI tract sores) that would prevent him from eating or drinking
  • that Jeremy would not encounter any fevers during the neutropenic period
  • 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 and antibiotics
  • that Jeremy’s behavior would be unaffected by the pre-medications he receives with each dose of chemo
  • that the new chemotherapies Jeremy will receive over the next  4 days will not cause any nausea or vomiting or any additional harm to his vital organs
  • that the new antibiotic will not cause any c-diff and that it would be effective in preventing any harmful infections
  • that the new medication, ATG, would not cause any of the flu-like symptoms and will not cause Jeremy to lose his energy, playfulness, or appetite
  • that Jeremy’s liver numbers would stabilize and the chemotherapies would not cause additional damage to his liver
  • that Jeremy would not need to be admitted to the PICU at any point during the chemo regimen or bone marrow transplant
  • that Alice, Matthew, and myself would not be harmed by the chemo we might come in contact with when changing Jeremy’s diapers

Please pray for the bone marrow transplant:

  • that the potential 9/10 donor would follow through with donation, so that a haplo transplant can be avoided and thus avoiding total body irradiation and a riskier transplant
  • that the donor cells would engraft, that Jeremy’s body would not reject the transplant
  • that Jeremy would not encounter any graft vs. host disease, acute or chronic, especially anything severe or fatal
  • that God would protect Jeremy’s skin, kidneys, liver, stomach, and intestines from both the donor cells and the medications used to treat and prevent gvhd

Please pray for our family and neighbors:

  • for our neighbors who are also enduring trials of their own, that they would find their comfort in Christ
  • for our parents – that they would have rest and place their trust in Jesus and receive His comfort
  • that we would be witnesses of God’s love and grace to our neighbors and the medical staff