Starting chemo

William is officially on all three of his chemo medicines. He is also receiving steriods and a something called Mezna that will help his body get rid of the Chemo chemicals.

Last night was the first night since we arrived that Williams blood oxygen was higher than 92. He held steady at 94. His heart rate is also down to 139.

William has a bone marrow biopsy scheduled at noon today and in the meantime the little guy is not allowed to eat anything. The steriods are making him hungry (something he has not been in weeks) unfortunately he is not allowed to eat or drink anything.

We are currently sharing our room with litle boy named Justuce (yes I spelled it correctly) and it sounds like he will be going home today. The news of William's room mate leave is bitter sweet as he has been a great support for William but, at the same time it would be nice to have some privacy again.

The hospital has a great Child Life team that consists of several early childhood development specialists and three service dogs. Thats right, I said dogs. Yes, they are allowed i the C ward. William's favorite dog is Greta, a black Labrador. I will post photos later of William and Greta.

Livestrong!

Keep the prayers coming. We need to ask God that the bone marrow biopsy is clear of C.
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Monday, April 5, 2010 3:59 PM, PDT

Day 5 part 2. Look for the pictures of Greta and William - Greta is a therapy dog and has spent most of the morning with William. He only seems to sleep when she is around. Also - the big bandage on Will's tummy is to abdorb all the liquid seeping out of a tiny whole in his tummy caused by the biopsy needle. The lymph nodes are not working as well as it should and the fluids are building up in his tummy and that together with the big tumors is causing so much pressure that the tiny whole can not heal and close. This is also Will's biggest irritation right now - the constantly wet bed and clothes. Will has started with aggressive chemo treatment last night Cytoxan, Oncovin and Adriamycin. They flush his kidney and bladder every three hours. The treatment will be applied as long as necessary to shrink the tumors. The big concern is the aggressive growth of the tumors and how quickly it spreads. The tumors put pressure on the lungs and heart and his oxygen intake goes down. For those of you who don't know yet Will has a very rare type of cancer called desmoplastic small round cell tumor DSRCT - a very aggressive cancer. Please google it to learn more. We ask for your prayers - especially that God bless the Doctors and staff with wisdom to provide the best treatment they can. There has been 170 known cases treated in the USA since 1989 and only 36 that is currently alive; so not a lot of experience to tap from. (www.dsrct.com)

Will had a spinal tap done this morning from both hips for the docter to check for any cancer cell's in William's spinal fluid. They also did a brain scan to check for any tumors in the brain. We are waiting for results.

He is not having any real pain today he is just very agitated and uncomfortable because of the extreme pressure on his heart and lungs. When he gets upset about something he stops breathing and that starts a round of negotiations to calm him down and get him to breath again. The oxygen is close by and we sometimes have to negotiate with him to use that too. Doctor said this morning that the pressure in his tummy will go down within the next couple of days when the tumors start shrinking.

Lois and I (Sally) are staying in a private room provided by the hospital here in Sacramento at $20 a night - we share this complex with other families and have a well equipped communal kitchen and laundry room. We are truly thankful for the daily blessings we receive. Ginger and a few other ladies from GreenValley Community Church have brought us food and snacks. Thank you Girls!

Love you all and appreciate your prayers and emails of encouragement. Feel free to blog, email or call. My number is 714-600-2509. We will update you again tomorrow