We headed out at 6 AM to make the morning appointment in Augusta. When we were about 45 minutes away, Matt said he felt tired; we pulled over so I could drive. During this exchange, Matt got into some ferocious fire-ants and got stung on his feet. Other than being painful and annoying, we didn't really think too much about it and went on our merry way. About 10 minutes later he said that he was really itchy. I looked over and he was bright red, swollen face, and covered in hives! We pulled into a gas station to get an antihistamine, but I was very concerned about this allergic reaction and wanted to get to the hospital as soon as possible.
We made it and Matt was pretty miserable for an hour or so, but had no difficulty breathing. Pam and Kate, the Peds Hem/Onc nurses kept a close eye on him. Needless to say, we are going to get him an epi-pen STAT! Kind of a nerve-wracking start to our big day!
Clinic went well though. Ms. Kym and Beth (the nurse practitioner) surprised Mollie and Lucy by attacking them with silly string and giving them a huge Littlest Pet Shop playset to celebrate Mollie's last treatment. They were thrilled! The clinic has been renovated over the last few months and they just moved back into the new space this week so we got to check it out. The individual TVs in the infusion chairs are genius- kept the kids busy while waiting for counts.
Mollie's ANC is low (700 by machine- probably <500 manually), but her hemoglobin and platelets are normal. This is probably just a response to the increased dose of chemo she has been taking the last few months and probably also explains why some of her skin lesions have been slow to heal. Beth put her on Keflex and hopefully that will help things clear up. Since her ANC is low, they want us to hold chemo for 2 weeks. Well, 2 weeks from today is Sept. 3.... so, no more chemo!!! She will be officially off treatment (OT) on Sept. 4, but we have to go in to clinic on the 3rd for counts. She still has the 5 days of steroids and she will be on the weekly Bactrim for the foreseeable future, but the nightly chemo is really done. I don't think the enormity has hit me yet.
Dr. A did Mollie's lumbar puncture and it was uneventful; I went upstairs for a brief visit with Carson- he is out of the ICU and back on the 5th floor! Mollie got a nice anesthesia-induced nap in the recovery room and then we went to Stevi B's for pizza. Afterwards, we went over to Isabella's house so the girls could get a couple hours of playtime- they miss each other so much!
I couldn't help thinking about Mollie's diagnosis on the long drive home. The first night she stayed in the hospital, after her diagnosis, Matt stayed with her. I went home to be with Lucy and I just remember sitting in Mollie's bedroom, wondering if she would ever sleep in there again. We are so, so lucky. I couldn't have imagined this day, back then.
Wow! What a day! Glad you took Matt to the hospital- it's better to be safe with an allergic reaction (Justin has an epi pen after a similar bee situation- only we had to call the ambulance!) And glad to hear that Mollie had a good clinic visit. What an amazing journey you have all been on.
ReplyDeleteSarah, you have me crying again. (Ok, I read it to Mike and now he's crying, too.)
ReplyDeleteMay I just say (again) how glad I am you have kept this blog? Have you had it printed yet? (Yeah right.Like you have had the time!)
That is scary about Matt!
Nicola
Well, I'm glad to hear about Mollie and sorry to hear about Matt but it sounds as if he is OK.
ReplyDeleteAlso it sounds like the news about Carson is better - that's great at least if I interpret it right.
I remember jumping on a plane with Kathy the morning after Mollie was diagnosed. Went to the hospital that evening to find a very ill, very scared little girl. And a frightened Mom and Dad.
Heck we were all scared beyond belief.
I just wanted to grab her and take her out of the hospital and run away with her - maybe buy an ice cream cone. I just knew that I didn't want to see her there. I've learned a lot since that evening and I know we all have.
It has been a challenging two years with many ups and downs but lots of good things have offset the bad.
You and Matt have a beautiful family and I know you work incredibly hard to keep everything together.
Don't forget to take some time to take care of yourselves.
Bless you all - special love to Mollie - she is a real sweetheart.
Love you...
Oh My Gosh Sarah, I don't know what to add to what's already been said except what a day! What a monumental day! Thinking about you guys. Love, Jeanene
ReplyDeleteWhat a wild start to the day, thankfully the rest of the day went much better.
ReplyDeleteWow! You guys have come so far. Finished with chemo, holy cow, that's so neat-o!
I bet Mollie and Isabella had a wonderful time together. It had to be great to see them again.
Praying for you guys!
Wow finished with Chemo, I can't even imagine how hard that is to fathom. Congrats!
ReplyDeleteYay, Mollie! We are so glad that you are reaching the end of this crazy journey! No more pills! This is great news--and we are celebrating with you.
ReplyDeletethe Kelleys (Katie's family)
Your last paragraph especially chokes me up. I remember getting the call about her diagnosis, too, and having to make one overseas about it. Wow. You've done an amazing job throughout this journey, and while it isn't over yet, I still have to give you props!
ReplyDelete