We begin the consolidation phase

This blog is full of details - a boring but necessary posting for those who want to be in the know.  My apologies for any overkill.....

Friday went quite smoothly, and we have so far had a puke free weekend (knocking on wood!).  Friday was day 1 of this new phase which consists of two 29 day segments.  It was a long day - we were scheduled to be at Childrens from 8 until 5, but we ended up being there till 6. 

The morning started with a lumbar puncture under general anesthetic - this was to deliver one of her chemo medications.  It was again a fasting morning - but Charlotte didn't ask once for food or water!  She was easily distracted with her IPad on route to the hospital - and the staff were really quick at getting her in and out of her treatment. 

They have now perfected what works for her for when they put her under anesthesia for her lumbar punctures or bone biopsies.  I still remember her hysterics for the first one - such a difference now!  She has to stay laying down for an hour afterwards - she is quite the trooper.

We sat down with the Dr. to go over the months plan and an overview of the drugs she will be taking:

• April 20 - lumbar puncture and chemo given at the hospital (all day)
• April 21 and 22nd - into the hospital for chemo - a quick IV push - in and out in about 10 minutes
• April 23rd - into the hospital for chemo and possible blood transfusion
• April 27th - Lumbar puncture, chemo and possible blood transfusion (all day)
• April 28th and 29th - quick trips to hospital for chemo
• April 30th - in for chemo and possible blood transfusion
• May 4th - hospital for lumbar puncture, chemo and possible blood transfusion - long day
• May 11th - hospital for lumbar puncture, chemo and possible blood transfusion - slightly shorter day

Meanwhile - we administer one of the chemo drugs at home each night until May 3rd.  As you are probably aware - chemo is pretty toxic stuff - so that means wearing cloves while preparing it (very carefully!), and wearing gloves when dealing with any of Charlotte's bodily fluids - scary stuff - especially when we have a little baby in the house who is putting everything in his mouth!  There are 6 different chemo drugs she will be taking this phase.

The next segment could start on May 18th (depending on her levels) and will be a repeat of the above.  When we mentioned her birthday being the 21st, they said we could possibly take the week off for her birthday!

The drugs have the typical chemo side effects of nausea, vomiting, hair loss and loss of appetite.  There were some other scary ones - but we were told that they won't apply since her dose isn't that large, and they take precautions against them.  (for the one she gets on Fridays - she is pumped with lots of fluids to flush it out so it's not so hard on her (hence the long day).

Her blood counts drop with a couple of these drugs so she will get quite tired (and grumpy) over the next couple weeks.  This is why there are the possible planned blood transfusions.  The counts should rise again closer to the 29 day mark - and need to be at a certain level to start the second segment.

It's Sunday evening as I type this.  She hasn't been sick (we are staying on top of her anti-nausea drug), but I can tell she isn't feeling herself as she's on the grumpy side, and wants mommy by her side.  I can tell we are entering into the couch/tv/dvd phase again - but at least I know we will get back to the fun playful Charlotte in a couple weeks (in time for her birthday)!

I leave you with a couple photos from Saturday, and today.  The second photo is from the oncology ward playroom.  After her dose, she always requests to play.  Great to associate the hospital with the awesome playroom!  And since we can't go to gym times, libraries or play groups - fun to hit a safe play area!

Can you tell she picked her outfit?  She loved her 'mouse' shirt - a present from a family friend!

Riding the Dora bike in the playroom after chemo!