{"id":1941,"date":"2013-05-01T13:08:46","date_gmt":"2013-05-01T19:08:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jacobhickford.com\/?p=1941"},"modified":"2013-05-01T21:04:19","modified_gmt":"2013-05-02T03:04:19","slug":"phase-one-in-the-books","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jacobhickford.com\/?p=1941","title":{"rendered":"Phase One, In the Books!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"J<\/a>I love this picture!\u00a0 I think it needs to be on a billboard somewhere, don’t ya think?\u00a0 So…. phase one, the Induction Phase, is in the books.\u00a0 In the last seven months, our little warrior\u00a0has completed six\u00a0rounds of intense, inpatient chemotherapy, 2 surgeries,\u00a02 weeks of GCSF shots\u00a0, stem cell harvest,\u00a0countless blood transfusions, tests, scans, and hospital stays.\u00a0He’s had RSV, pneumonia, a collapsed\u00a0lower lung and c-diff.\u00a0I haven’t calculated it all to date but no doubt, we have spent more time in the hospital than at home. There are three phases to his treatment, depending on how things continue to progress, and this first one is COMPLETE!\u00a0\u00a0Whew!\u00a0 It was a fairly uneventful week.\u00a0 Some of the normal nausea hit but other than that\u00a0Jake was able to play in the playroom\u00a0and just hang out on the floor – much better than being on lock down like our last stay.\u00a0 When boredom hit, we played like his hospital bed was a slide\u00a0or roller coaster… with the door shut, of course!\u00a0 (big grins!)\u00a0 Actually, most of our nurses show\u00a0us how to have fun with the hospital beds!\u00a0 Jake says, “they are really cool, mom”. We were able to get his EKG, echogram\u00a0and pill swallowing class done –\u00a0so we can check a few of those things off the pre-transplant list. I met with one of the Nurse Practitioners who will care for Jake and there are a lot more tests\/scans to come, as well as a big meeting with the doctor\/nurses that will make up Jake’s transplant team.\u00a0IT will be a very busy week ahead. \u00a0I haven’t blogged much this week as I haven’t really had much to share\u00a0but the anxiety is building for us.\u00a0\u00a0BMT is\u00a0closing in\u00a0and just the short amount of time I spent with our NP was enough to make my\u00a0head spin.\u00a0 I’d really like to just throw Jake under my arm and run\u00a0 far, far,\u00a0FAR away.\u00a0 His little body is going to be pushed to limits I can’t even speak.\u00a0 He has no idea, and\u00a0we’re terrified. My mind is in a constant state of little breath prayers.\u00a0 At the moment, they have\"2013-04-26<\/a> us slated for May 13th, BUT, as you know things constantly change and we are so fresh off of this chemo that, that date is just that, a throw it out there and see if it sticks date.\u00a0 So we are moving forward as though it is a go but it really all comes down to how Jake’s counts recover from this past week.\u00a0As we travel this road, little bits and pieces of information are intentionally dropped in our laps… but just tidbits so that we can get through\u00a0one stage of Jake’s treatment without being overwhelmed by the next.\u00a0 With that said, it’s always enough information to keep us on our toes with research and questions. \u00a0Radiation comes after stem cell and that will be our next educational focus.\u00a0 There is also\u00a0an\u00a0antibody therapy called\u00a03F8\u00a0and we will be looking into with all the what’s, why’s and possible benefits.\u00a0It’s an antibody therapy\u00a0and it’s considered a clinical trial type of therapy\u00a0that works by infusing an antibody (ch14.18) that attaches\u00a0to the Gd2\u00a0marker neuroblastoma cells. The attachment of 3F8\u00a0to a neuroblastoma cell signals the patient’s own immune system to treat neuroblastoma cells as foreign. In other words, the 3F8 directs the patient’s immune system to attack neuroblastoma cells and kill them.\u00a0 It’s still a ways off but it’s “on the list” of things to begin researching.\u00a0 So I’ll ask for prayer for all of those things, AND\u00a0I’d also like to ask for prayer over Ryan – Charles to those of his school friends. (He decided to go by his first name at school last year).\u00a0 He’s really struggling right now.\u00a0 My absence is taking a toll on him in so many areas… his school work, emotionally, physically.\u00a0 He’s only 9 and this is much more than he knows how to handle.\u00a0 Please pray that he can just get through the next few weeks of school with a happy heart and that he can focus on his school work.\u00a0Now here’s some e\"J<\/a>xciting news… some of our friends have designed shirts for Jake. Here they are!\u00a0If you’d like one, please contact Danielle Jones Goad. You can look her up and message her on FB or email her at danigoad11@gmail.com<\/a>. What a blessing\u00a0of love this is for us and\u00a0we’re\u00a0elated that so many will walk around promoting\u00a0childhood cancer awareness on behalf of Jake.\u00a0 Check\u00a0them out! The shirts are $10 and the proceeds will go toward Jake’s mounting medical costs..\u00a0 They are\u00a0gold for childhood cancer, there is a heart in his\u00a0name to represent\u00a0all those that love him, a cancer ribbon being held by a sphere\u00a0for his strong, fighting, warrior spirit and of course a big stompin’ out cancer\u00a0dinosaur!\u00a0 And they even\u00a0added a scripture under his name that has come to mean a lot to us… Do not be afraid or dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God\u2019s\u2026.You need not fight in this battle; station yourselves, stand and see the salvation of the Lord.\u201d II Chron 20:15-17\u00a0<\/strong> <\/em>Jake’s birthday is tomorrow…\u00a0 the countdown has been on for weeks.\u00a0 He is super excited!\u00a0 He’ll be five and as he said ” when I’m five, I’ll be the boss!”.\u00a0 Hummm… I think he’s already got that down pat.\u00a0 Sadly, he will spend his birthday at TCH\u00a0getting transfusions and that means\u00a0accessing his chest port!\u00a0 You better believe there will be some extra presents for spending his special day in the one place he’d rather NOT!\u00a0 It’s hard to think back to what this day looked like last year. So much has happened since then that I can hardly remember it.\u00a0 In hindsight, when\u00a0we think back\u00a0to that time, we can see the little\u00a0flickers here and there that were beginning to signal Jake’s disease.\u00a0You can bet this year, this birthday,\u00a0will be etched\u00a0in our memories forever and\u00a0to put it in perspective, we are just\u00a0so\u00a0very thankful that we have this day to celebrate!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I love this picture!\u00a0 I think it needs to be on a billboard somewhere, don’t ya think?\u00a0 So…. phase one, the Induction Phase, is in the books.\u00a0 In the last seven months, our little warrior\u00a0has completed six\u00a0rounds of intense, inpatient chemotherapy, 2 surgeries,\u00a02 weeks of GCSF shots\u00a0, stem cell harvest,\u00a0countless blood transfusions, tests, scans, and … <\/p>\n

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