Shawn and I met with the doctor and transplant coordinator on Friday to sign the consent forms for treatment. We went over in detail the medications he will be receiving as well as possible and probable side effects. It was overwhelming and a little scary. It was another reminder of how serious Nathan's condition is, and that the treatment is also high risk.
As long as the cord blood gets here, treatment will start on Tuesday. If it is not here, then it will start the following Monday. They do not want the transplant to be on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. He will have 8 days of chemotherapy (4 days each of 2 different drugs) along with many, many other medications to counter act or prevent the side effects. He will also have medications to prevent graft vs. host disease, and preventative medications against infections while his body has no immune system. Since his bone marrow will be wiped out, he will need transfusions of platelets and red blood cells (that is what your bone marrow creates). One of the chemo drugs is oral and is administered through a feeding tube.
Please pray specifically for Nathan:
1. To have minimal side effects from the chemotherapy
2. To remain healthy during the transplant process, no sicknesses or infections
3. The transplant to engraft quickly
4. No graft vs. host disease (the transplant attacking his body)
5. No long term side effects, or effects later in life
No comments:
Post a Comment