A Wonderful Christmas!

We had a wonderful Christmas and I pray that each of you did as well. What a difference a year makes? Last Christmas, Cameron was in my cousin’s wedding, had a full head of hair and we knew nothing about Medulloblastoma. One year later, Cameron has almost fully recovered from his tumor resection surgery, withstood both radiation and chemotherapy, is finally gaining some weight (and hair) and I feel like I know more about brain tumors and Medulloblastoma than I ever cared to learn. Needless to say, this Christmas was so special for both Ernest and I. Words cannot say how blessed I felt watching both my boys enjoy Christmas morning together for there were times this year I wondered if we would remain a family of four; God has been so gracious to us! However, I would be lying if I said I wasn’t ready to see the calendar turn to 2009. Below is a picture of Cameron and his much requested MarioKart track (however, he drives his Hot Wheels on it more than he does Mario and Luigi). Happy New Year to you all! Blessings always!

LeAnn

Cam's quickly turning into a Blue Devil

We received word early yesterday that the Duke Men’s Lacrosse team wanted to “adopt” Cameron as their little brother through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, so we were all obviously very excited about this. Well today, we were able to meet both the men’s and women’s teams and they presented jerseys and t-shirts to Cam as well as another brave little girl, Yuki, who just finished Chemo today from her battle with Medulloblastoma. The men made Cam an honorary team member and as such, he’ll be able to attend practices, games, possibly visit the locker room, etc. when he’s able to. We took a quick picture of Cam in his jersey in front of the Christmas tree when we got home.

Here’s the story on Duke’s web page along with a few pics of Cam and Yuki.

http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=25937&SPID=2027&DB_OEM_ID=4200&ATCLID=3629237

And here’s the link to the Friends of Jaclyn website

http://www.friendsofjaclyn.org/index.php/foundation.html

We are all so excited about Cam’s new big brothers and so very appreciative to both the Friends of Jaclyn as well as the Men’s Lacrosse team for taking the time to help Cam feel special. God has so richly blessed us with amazing people like this through Cam’s journey and we’re so thankful for them all.

Ernest

Update on Mr. Cameron

I know it has been a while since we have updated the blog but life has quickly gone back to normal for us.  Cameron is getting stronger and stronger with each passing day and he has become more mischievous than ever. Every day that we leave for school, I have to check his pockets because he is constantly stuffing them with Hot Wheels to carry in.  And it seems that every day when I pick him up, I hear a story from his teacher about how he tried to get out of an activity, asked someone to do his work, or got a friend to entertain him during recess because it was simply “too cold” for him.  Now that we have our tree up, he keeps taking the car ornaments off and driving them all over the couch, tables, floors, etc.  He is such a mess!  His hair is coming in like crazy although it appears he may remain without hair in the back where his radiation was focused.  They warned us this was a possibility and it looks as if it will be the case.  However, if this is the worst side effect from his ordeal, we remain very blessed. 

On black Friday, we participated in a fundraiser for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation which was a lot of fun.  We obviously cannot change what has happened to Cameron but we can work to try to make a difference for others who will walk this road in the future.  We are also preparing for a fundraiser for the Brain Tumor Center at Duke which will be held in April of next year.  Many of you will begin hearing about it soon but if you would like to go ahead and read about it, or you would like a tax deduction for this year, you can go to www.angelsamongus.org.  Our team name is, of course, “Action Jackson.” 

All in all, he is doing great.  He has to go back to Duke next week and will be in the OR on Tuesday for his lumbar puncture.  I’m certain all will be well.  I hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving. 

LeAnn

Praise God!

I just wanted to update the blog and let everyone know that Cameron’s MRI today looked perfect; no signs of cancer recurrence!  What an amazing feeling when Dr. G came in and told us the incredible news.  Hebrews 10:23 says, “Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise.”  God is so good.   

Home again, home again...

I’m trying a different layout, but I’m not sure if I like it, so I may change back. Feel free to comment yea or nay.

We made it home VERY late last night and the boxes from Mattel were all waiting for us when we arrived…which pretty much put an end to any thoughts of heading to bed. Both boys were able to relive the day with the Design Teams as we unpacked all the goodies they so graciously gave them. Pretty much all we’ve done today is remove all the toys from the packaging and play with everything. The local battery supply will be running low for a while as we get everything powered up and running. I’ll give a quick rundown of the week’s activities to catch everyone up.

Saturday

The limo picked us up around 9am and took us to the airport where we breezed through security and sat down to wait. The trip there went smoothly with all the luggage arriving…thankfully as we had seven things checked including Cam’s car seat. We checked into the hotel and pretty much crashed as we were all beat. LeAnn and I joked here we were in the big town of LA on a Saturday night and we’re asleep at 6pm…we’re so old.

Sunday

It was raining on that morning, so our plans to go to Universal Studios were put on hold as we didn’t want to be walking around all day in the rain. Instead, we hopped in the car and explored the coastline, stopping at the beach for a few minutes and then heading up past Malibu. The beaches there were so different from the beaches we’re accustomed to on the Atlantic side. They were very wide as it took us probably a good two or three minutes to get from the parking lot at the beginning of the sand down to the ocean. We spent the remainder of the day touring around Santa Monica and Hollywood seeing the many cool and unusual sights. The rain in the morning was probably a blessing in disguise as traffic getting to and from Hollywood was very light making the travel much easier.

Monday

The big day FINALLY arrived. Cam was absolutely beside himself he was so excited about the day’s activities. The local Make A Wish representative met us around 8am and the limo arrived shortly thereafter to take us to Mattel. When we arrived, we were met and then led to a room full of people from the different Design Teams who were all going to participate in Cam’s day. They had the table full of Hot Wheels cars which immediately made both boys very happy. From there, we had a quick breakfast and play time with some cool toys which were still in the development stages. After the play time was over, they took us on a tour of how toys were designed…which Le and I loved. We also were able to see the designer’s work area and they even gave the boys special cars which were not the typical production cars. LeAnn and I were both so touched at the generosity shown by everyone throughout the day. The next part was probably the most fun for the boys. We went back outside in the parking lot where they had the great intentions of setting up a track for the boys to race RC cars, including one which looked JUST LIKE the picture Cam drew of his Viper!! We were all surprised and amazed at how great it looked!! Oh...the reason I said good intentions is both boys used the rails which were supposed to be the boundaries as ramps instead and began launching cars instead of containing them. LeAnn and I were both beside ourselves as were so worried Cam was going to destroy his dream car…little did we know what else was in place for Cam. They probably spent the better part of an hour playing with many different RC cars and then we were able to take a VERY fast ride in the GTO Show Car, which ALL the boys loved, to see the other Show Cars…very, very, cool cars. Once we arrived back, lunch was waiting and it included all of Cam’s favorites…chicken tenders, Mac and cheese, and of course…ice cream. Before we sat down to eat, both boys were taken to a large picture display of cars. From the pictures, both boys picked their favorite car and they were told those cars will go into production. How cool is that?!?!? Once the cars hit the shelves, we’ll let everyone know what they are if you would like to pick one up. It just kept getting better after that. After we finished eating, they removed a cover from two chairs absolutely packed with various Hot Wheels, Speed Racer, and many other types of Mattel toys. Both boys, as well as LeAnn and I, were absolutely stunned by this mountain of toys. Then, each of the design teams presented Cam with a special gift based on his drawing. The first was a display of every different type of Viper, five small cars and one larger car, which have been made by Mattel with each painted to match Cam’s drawing. He immediately wanted to take the display apart and play with all of the cars, so that will be an interesting battle for a while to try to keep everything in the pristine condition it’s currently in. The next was another RC just like the one he had played with in the parking lot, but this one was in customized packaging with his picture, name, and story about him being a champion driver and even loving chicken nuggets!! Again, his first reaction was to want to open it, so luckily he has the other RC to play with which will make that battle a bit easier to win. There were so many gifts, we had to get the boys to choose a few to play with during the remainder of the trip and have the rest shipped back to NC. LeAnn and I both were so amazed, humbled, and so very touched by the time and effort the entire Mattel Team put into the day and especially into these gifts. While Cam doesn’t fully realize what it took to make this happen, LeAnn and I will most assuredly make sure he does in the months and years to come. Everyone who helped in that day, including the NC Make A Wish team who helped organize things, the LA Make A Wish rep who guided us through the day, and the entire Mattel team will never be forgotten and will be blessed for making a little boy and his big brother have the day of their lives. I could go on forever here and probably should, but I’ll finish up the week. Feel free to chat with Le or myself…we’ll keep bragging on everyone. ;-)

Tuesday

We finally made it to Universal Studios and had a blast on the rides and tours. We actually had to be quiet during a couple portions of the studio lot tour as they were filming Desperate Housewives while we were riding through. We made a quick swing back through Hollywood that afternoon, ate at Pink’s Hot Dog stand, and then sat in traffic for close to two hours trying to get back to the hotel. I guess to get the full effect of LA, it made sense to sit in traffic, so we’ll chalk it up to the overall experience.

Wednesday

We headed down to San Diego and checked into our hotel. The drive down was absolutely amazing with the mountains pretty much running straight into the ocean. Once there, we contacted a friend of one of the NC Make A Wish team who worked at the hotel and was blessed with San Diego Zoo tickets as well as an upgrade to our room from the standard room to a corner suite with an adjoining hospitality suite overlooking the ocean. Yet again, we were overwhelmed by the generosity of a stranger who simply wanted to make the trip as special as it could be for our family. Thank you so much Ms. Nicolle…you made our first trip to SD one we will never forget. The SD Zoo was very cool with all of the monkeys being Cam’s favorite.

Thursday

We woke up to an amazing breakfast thanks again to Ms. Nicolle and then spent almost the entire day at LegoLand with both boys’ favorite ride being the cars they could each drive. Connor was such the good big brother helping Cam get into his car and buckle him up before getting into his own car. The park was pretty empty, so they would run out the exit for the ride and then run right back in to be next in line after the people who were riding right after them. It was so touching to see Cam driving that car by himself, obeying the traffic lights and signs like the good little citizen. How far he’s come from that awful day a short nine months ago to be the strong little boy he is now…God is so good and so amazing.

Friday

We headed back to LA and took one last trip through Beverly Hills. LeAnn walked down Rodeo Drive and tried to not look like a hick from Georgia while the boys and I kept circling in the car. I SO wanted to get out and be all redneck to someone just to get their reaction, but didn’t want to spend a night in the Beverly Hills lockup. ;-)

Saturday

The trip home went almost as well as the trip out with the only kink being the person taking the boarding passes for our last leg of the flight giving us grief for having a pre-boarding pass when he felt we didn’t “qualify” for it. I won’t go into the details, but suffice it to say…"Mad Dog" took care of it. I know…shocker, huh?? The limo was waiting for us, so after we gathered almost all of our luggage, they lost Cam’s car seat, we hopped in the limo for the ride home. As I said earlier, the boxES, strongly emphasizing the plural, were waiting for us in the den, so the next hour or two was spent unpacking as much as we could and then playing until we could finally corral the boys towards bed.

So…there you have it. A week filled with so many different emotions from exhilarated, to blessed, to humbled, to absolutely tired, and finally to almost insane by the week’s end. ;-)

Cam's having his 9 month MRI today (Monday), so please be in prayer all will be clear. We'll post an update as soon as we know something.

Sorry for the delay, but we've been having a BLAST

We've been pretty slammed over the past few days, so I'm just getting a chance to post. Monday at Mattel was AMAZING to say the least. We jumped in the limo for the ride over to Mattel and just like the first time, Cam was all excited to be riding in such style. Once we arrived and signed in, we were met by Ms. Deborah from Mattel and she directed us back through the Design Center to a huge group of folks from Mattel who were waiting for us to arrive. We'll put more details once we get home, but they had SO much for Cam and Connor to play with including toys which were still in development, a "test area" where we all played with some really fast rechargeable cars, and then the coolest part for the boys...RC cars out in the parking lot. They made an RC model of the car Cam designed and let him test drive it...which was cool and scary at the same time as Cam pretty much only knows two ways to drive...stop or FULL SPEED. It was only a matter of minutes before he was crashing it causing both LeAnn and I to cringe as we could just see him destroying his "dream car" within a few minutes. They all were laughing at his crashes and kept telling us not to worry about it, but my heart was dropping with every crash. They probably spent close to an hour playing with many different RC cars and then we had the privilege to ride in a life size Hot Wheel GTO and he opened it up for us which both boys absolutely loved. The point of the ride was to take the boys to see the other Hot Wheels Show Cars which were also just as amazing.

When we arrived back, they had a HUGE lunch for us which included ALL of Cam's favorites...chicken strips/nuggets, Mac and cheese, hamburgers, Peppermint Patties, and the best...ICE CREAM! After lunch, they presented both boys with so many gifts, I think they were overwhelmed, but they also had two special presents for Cam. Another RC model based on his drawing in a custom designed package as well as a display of all the different Vipers they've ever made all painted to match Cam's design. Another special presentation they allowed both boys to take part in was for each of them to pick a car from a group of pictures and that car will actually go into production! How cool is that?!?!?!?!

We spent yesterday at Universal Studios Hollywood compliments of Make A Wish as well and had a great time there in the different shows as well as a few of the rides. We're walking out the door right now to head down to San Diego to see the Zoo and then hit LegoLand tomorrow, so our adventures are still going strong. I'll try to post again as soon as possible.

I'll throw a copule pictures up of the Mattel visit until we can get home and then we'll post more.

Day 1 went well

We woke up to a rainy morning yesterday, so we decided to hold off going to Universal Studios until either today after Mattel or tomorrow.  Instead we drove up the Pacific Coast Highway and made a quick stop to let the boys check out the beach and the Pacific Ocean.  We went up past Malibu and then came back to see what the local area had to offer.  We spent the afternoon touring around Hollywood and even went down Rodeo Drive if you can imagine our redneck family going down such a high falootin' area...wouldja please pass the jelly??  ;-)

 

I had heard of this hotdog stand called Pink's and we happened to drive by it on the way towards Hollywood.  Even though I had a hotdog for lunch, I had to stop, but the line for this place was CRAZY long, so I figured we'd try again on the way back.  No dice...it was still all the way around the building.  I'm not sure if it was other tourists like me who had heard of it or if it was locals, but it was crazy to see a line that long for a hotdog.

 

We've gone to bed around 6pm local time both nights and have been waking up around 4am, so obviously our internal clocks aren't adjusted yet.  But, I think I'd rather the boys stay on East Coast time so we don't have to try to get them adjusted back once we get home.  LeAnn and I had to laugh though...Saturday night in the big city of LA and we're in the bed and sound asleep at 6pm...too funny.

 

The limo comes at 8:10am this morning, so we're all starting to get ready this morning.  We're not allowed to video at Mattel which is a bit disappointing, but we'll take as many pictures as possible to capture the day.

 

Ernest

Quick Halloween Pics

Just a quick update before we head off to bed. Here’s a couple pics from our Halloween Trick or Treating.

We’ve got to be ready for the limo at 9am, so we’re trying our best to get the wild boys to bed. We’ll post as often as we can while we’re out there.

Ernest

Our Schedule in L.A.

We are getting really excited about our upcoming trip to L.A. The wish granters from Make-A-Wish came by last week to give us our itinerary and it appears the week will be the trip of a lifetime. This is what our week looks like. We will be picked up at 9am on Saturday and taken to the airport where we will fly Southwest Airlines to L.A. Upon arrival we will receive a rental car that we will use the entire week. Our hotel for the first part of the week is in Santa Monica; just across the street from the beach. YEAH! They have arranged for us to have tickets to Universal Studios Hollywood which we can either use on Sunday or Tuesday. Monday is Cameron’s wish day. The details for this day have been kept top secret; even Make-A-Wish has no idea what is in store for Cameron. All we have been told is that Mattel will fax over to our hotel the time which they will send for us on Monday and everything else we will find out when we arrive. WOW…I cannot even begin to imagine what this day will be like. I do know one thing, whatever they have planned, is going to a very brave and VERY deserving little boy. If we choose to go to Universal on Sunday, Tuesday will be a free day for us and we have several things on our personal itinerary: “Hollywood” sign, Rodeo Drive, and Hollywood Walk of Fame. Our “wish” ends on Wednesday but we opted to extend the trip on our own dime and will be driving down to San Diego and visiting the zoo as well as Lego land. Friday we return to L.A. and prepare to come back to North Carolina on Saturday. I’m hoping to somehow fit in a tour of Warner Brothers Studios but I don’t know if we will have time. And of course, I’m really hoping to get a peek at my favorite celeb, Matt Damon!!!

Cameron continues to do really well and life is getting back to normal quickly for our family. I’ll be honest, it’s gotten back to normal almost too quickly for me. I’ve gone from 100mph to nothing; EJ’s back at work and the boys are at school and I’ve been given enough free time to sit and really think about the journey we all just walked through. While we are excited about our trip, Ernest and I know the Monday we return is Cameron’s next MRI and therefore, the anxiety about this scan continues to linger in our mind. Everyday, I just continue to ask the Lord to help me trust Him and cling to two verses from His word:

“Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or tremble at them, for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

“But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14

Please continue to be in prayer for us next week as we make our journey across the United States; please pray for our safety, that we remain healthy, and that both Cameron and Connor will have the time of their life. We will try to update the blog each day in California and share our experience. I heard a beautiful song by Addison Road on Christian radio the other day; a song for anyone going through a storm in life. Here are the words:

If everything comes down to love, Then just what am I afraid of, when I call out Your name, Something inside awakes in my soul How quickly I forget I'm Yours

I'm not my own, I've been carried by You, All my life

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free

When my life is like a storm, rising waters all I want is the shore
You say I'll be ok and, make it through the rain
You are my shelter from the storm

Everything rides on hope now
Everything rides on faith somehow
When the world has broken me down
Your love sets me free
You've become my hearts desire
I will sing Your praises higher
Cause Your love sets me free
Your love sets me free, Your love sets me free

End of another good week!

Cameron is doing really well. He returned to Duke on Monday for his FINAL post-treatment clinic visit. It felt really weird to walk out of there and know we do not have to come back until the second week of November. It is such an adjustment for us all. We are now taking Cameron to physical therapy twice each week and are seeing dramatic improvements in his walking, strength, and all around coordination. He is going back to school part-time and enjoying it immensely. We are letting him determine the length he stays at school each day by watching his fatigue level closely. Clearly some days are better than others as far as energy but overall, I am amazed at my little boy. We are really only one month out from treatment and he is quickly jumping back into life. His hair is really starting to come back in (it appears it may be blonde and curly) as well as his eyelashes and eyebrows. His eating is picking up and I imagine in a few short weeks, he’ll be looking more like Cameron again.

We have two exciting events coming up…Halloween and his Make-A-Wish trip. We normally do not make a big deal out of Halloween but since Cameron lost his hair, he has been determined to dress up as Charlie Brown for Halloween. Why? In his words, “cause I don’t have no hair.” LOL! So I found him a Charlie Brown shirt on the internet and I think he will be the cutest Charlie Brown ever this Halloween. The day after Halloween, we all board the plane and head to LA for Cameron’s Make-A-Wish trip. He is so excited about visiting Mattel and designing his own Hot Wheel; we cannot fathom what they have in store for Cam!

For now, we are just enjoying life as a family and are so happy to see our little boy so full of life again. Below is a picture of him walking into school this week! Enjoy!

LeAnn

"Tubies" are GONE!!!

It has definitely been a big week in the Jackson household.  Monday’s clinic visit went extremely well.  Cameron’s counts are coming up nicely and without assistance.  Dr. G was very pleased with his progress and pretty much cleared him for regular activities.  So on Wednesday of this week, Cameron went back to school for a few hours.  He was so excited to return.  As a matter of fact, I couldn’t find him when it was time to go and when I opened the garage door…well he was sitting in the car with the biggest smile on his face.  I wondered if he would be shy walking back into class after all of these months but he wasn’t.  He just said “bye mom” and joined right in.  By the time I walked back down the hall and into the office, I was so emotional!  What a moment!!!  And today, we took Cameron into the OR to have his central line removed.  When I walked into the post-op area, I went straight to his bed, lifted his gown, and tears filled my eyes as I looked at his little bare belly; a true sign that this part of his journey is OVER!  How great is our God!

LeAnn

Cam's doing great!

I wanted to quickly update the blog to let you all know that Cameron is doing great!!!  We went back to clinic yesterday and his counts were good and for the first time since chemotherapy, he did not require any blood products.  YEAH!  This is a great sign that his body has bounced back and is now just trying to recover on its own.  They have started weaning him off his TPN; trying to get him to eat and drink more on his own.  This is a bit of a battle.  Just the presentation of food makes him think he will “spit” so I believe we are going to have to encourage him for several weeks to continue to try to eat.  His central line appears to be in its last days so they are trying to get the OR scheduled for next week to get that out.  He popped the stitches a month or so ago around his line and it has just slowly began to ease its way out.  Needless to say, his dressing changes this week have been a nightmare as his skin is really raw around where the line enters his chest.  But the best news of all is that he has not had any vomiting since Monday.  We have dealt with early morning nausea for months now and finally, he appears to be over that.  What a blessing!  He is such a resilient little guy and it just makes my heart sing to see him back to his playful self.  He still has a long recovery and one more trip to the OR to go but as of now, he is doing great and so happy to be done with his treatments.  To God be all the glory for Cameron’s life!

 

LeAnn

Still no fevers!!

Not only is Cam still holding off his fevers, but he got out today and took some pretty good swings at a practice golf ball. Here's the future Masters Champ in "action".

Update (9/22/08): Cam went to clinic today and his counts show he is now OUT of Neutropenia meaning he is out of danger for a fever from low white counts!!! I'm sure Le will post something in a bit, but wanted to get this out in case she waits until tomorrow.

PRAISE GOD!!

Happy Friday!

I fear writing this as I may be tempting fate but as of right now, NO FEVER!  This is the longest he has made it after treatment and remained afebrile.  So, as of now, it appears Dr. G’s plan to send him home on two antibiotics in hopes of keeping him out of the hospital is working.  Go Dr. G!  Needless to say, we are elated he is still home and exhausted from the many hours of infusions we give each day and night.  Yesterday, Cameron returned to clinic for blood counts and as expected, his platelet and white cell count was very low requiring another platelet transfusion.  What would we do without all those platelet donors out there?  However, the funniest part of our clinic visit yesterday was when Cameron and Dr. G started playing each other in a game on his Nintendo DS.  They have developed such a wonderful relationship which pleases my heart greatly. 

We added a slideshow of pictures from last week.  As you can see, even though he was so sick, he was still smiling and riding his tricycle.  The nurses in the photos (Bridget, Marta, Irene, and Stephanie…in order of appearance) are some of his favorites who have taken care of him from day one.  They are such amazing individuals.  The group of ladies are part of Dr. G’s team; Jeanne (Cameron’s nurse practitioner), Nancy and Ginny.  These three ladies have been my rock during this whole process.  The two doctors are actually from neurosurgery.  The first is the neurosurgical resident, Dr. Shai Nimjee, who instantly became enamored with Cam, nicknaming him “Action”!!!  He and Cameron have remained buddies and will probably keep in touch for many years to come!  The second is the much loved and respected Dr. Gerald Grant, the surgeon who actually removed Cameron’s tumor.  Dr. Grant is one of the sweetest, most humble individuals I have ever been around; even though he was slammed in the OR last Friday, he still made time to come by and congratulate Cameron on finishing his treatment.  Our journey at Duke started with him, a true blessing from God!  And the Lord has just continued to bless us through the many doctors and nurses he has put along the way since February. 

I will be honest, this week has been emotional for me.  I cannot imagine going through this without the Lord yet it is so hard to not worry about Cameron’s future.  Each day, I have awakened and began praying “Lord, help me trust you today.”  I’m sure this will be a daily task that will probably get easier as the months go on.  But yesterday, I was up early and Cameron was sick which made me a little upset, so again I went to the Lord in prayer.  In the strangest way, He led me to Matthew 17:18 “And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.” Medulloblastoma may not be a “demon” but it is a nasty tumor which I believe the Lord has cured Cameron from!  Praise God for His word!  Then there was an email from Proverbs 31 Ministries which said, “I sought the Lord and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears.”  You know, faith and fear aren’t that different; they both require you to be consumed with what you cannot see.  Faith is just fueled by Christ where fear is not.  Please continue to pray that our entire family will keep our focus on Christ; allowing Him to be glorified through the miracle of Cameron!

LeAnn

We're finally home!

I wanted to let you all know that we finally made it home yesterday around lunch time.  We thought Cameron would have to have a platelet transfusion prior to discharge but his numbers were up slightly and therefore, we just finished up his routine medications and then headed home.  On Wednesday when Cam was having so much trouble, I never thought a Saturday discharge was even possible.  But as always, the Lord was so gracious to us; healing Cameron’s body and allowing us to leave on time.  Ernest and I walked through the tunnel at Duke in silence.  My mind went back to that dark night in February when I first walked through the tunnel into the hospital hours after Cameron’s tumor was found.  That night I was scared, angry, and broken.  Yesterday I was relieved, happy, and full of praise for Cameron had made it through one of the toughest battles a little guy could face.  And he not only made it through, he did so with a smile on his face, rarely complaining, and with Godly strength.  He is a remarkable young man who has stolen the hearts of many at Duke and a young man who is going to have an amazing testimony to the awesomeness of Jesus Christ.  Thank you all for your many prayers thus far and please continue to lift up Cam.  The work now begins to repair his body through nutrition and physical therapy.  He still has a long way to go but praise God the potentially harmful regimen is DONE! 

LeAnn

We're DONE!!

Cam had his last stem cell reinfusion today finishing at 2pm, so that's pretty much a wrap on Chemo. He gets one last med next Thursday, but it's given in clinic, so other than a possible return fever visit, we're finished!!!

Dr. G. told us this morning if things continue to progress well with his urine output this afternoon and tonight, he'll get a platelet transfusion in the morning and then head home!!

Just a quick message from Cam to everyone

It's Thursday already

Needless to say, it has been an exciting week.  We are still in the Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant unit and honestly, we somewhat like it here.  The rooms are spotless, the nurse is right outside the door and while his "contact isolation" for MRSA kept him inside the room most of the time on 5100, he is actually able to get to the playroom here (with a gown, mask, and gloves of course) and have a little fun.  The good news is that is urine output is getting back to normal an they've cut off the Dopamine to make sure he will be able to have steady urine output on his own.  We are still a go for stem cell reinfusion tomorrow but discharge may have to wait until Monday considering the problems he had through the week.  We, of course, are praying that he continues to improve and "home" will come sooner rather than later.

 

We'll updated again tomorrow with hopefully a better idea when we can go home.  I would bet it will depend on how he does tonight with his output and how stem cell reinfusion goes tomorrow.

We've moved

Cam's been able to get the fever down through Tylenol and his blood pressure has been looking better, but his urine output is still pretty low. The doctors have tried a few things and have been unsuccessful so far, so the next step is dopamine in a low dose to try to get him jumpstarted. The downside to this is the drug can't be administered on the regular floor, so we were headed to the PICU, but the PICU is full at the moment. Where we ended up is on the Bone Marrow Transplant wing (5200) as they regularly give dopamine here and could monitor Cam during the run. The good news is...he's been able to pee twice in the 2.5 hours we've been here with the second one being 300ml which is huge for a little guy, so hopefully we're on the right track to getting him better.

LeAnn and I have come to the decision we won't have them administer the last chemo dose he missed today. In talking with the doctors, we all feel Cameron's body is telling us it has had enough and can't take any more. He has put up such a brave fight so far, but it looks like he just can't fight against the meds any more. Dr. G. has made it very clear missing this one dose of this one chemo drug will have no bearing on whether the tumor will return or not, so pushing this med could actually do more harm than good to Cam at this point. If the tumor is going to return, it's going to return regardless of taking or missing this dose, so he can't justify harming him now to maybe prevent the tumor from returning later. It's been hard to come to terms with him not "completing" the protocol, but once you take the previous sentence in fully, there's no other decision to make.

We'll update again in a bit, but as of right now, it looks like things are going in the right direction.

Well...we're done early

As LeAnn posted earlier, Cam went back to holding fluid again this afternoon and has spiked a fever tonight, so Dr. G. has made the call to cancel tomorrow’s med…we’re not sure if it’s for now or for good. So…it’s certainly not the way we wanted to end this journey, but except for Friday’s stem cell reinfusion, it looks like we might be done with Chemo. Dr. G. told LeAnn missing this one dose wouldn’t have any bearing on if the tumor would come back or not, so he could not justify the health risk for Cam to continue. I’m sure we’ll evaluate things again tomorrow, but as of right now…we’re done.

Please pray for Cam to get through the fever and fluid retention and peace of mind for us.

Update...Cam is now having low blood pressure readings as well, so it's going to be an interesting night to say the least. Please pray his body can fight all this off.

Day 2

Well day two of chemotherapy wrapped up around 11:30 today.  Strangely enough, Cameron has been a little sicker today than he was yesterday.  This afternoon, he has been struggling with his urine output again and we are hoping that can get resolved with another round of lasix.  Even with that being said, he was still up early and out on his tricycle, riding around the halls of Duke Hospital.  When he is so full of life as he was this morning and this afternoon, it’s hard to believe he just received high dose chemotherapy between the two moments.  He is such a resilient kid.  The hospital has started a program called “Beads of Courage” where the children battling cancer are able to collect beads based on the events they have been through and string them all together to tell their cancer story.  It is such a neat thing.  When I left this afternoon, he was busy stringing together his “bumpy” beads for rough days, “glow in the dark” beads for his radiation, “star” beads for surgeries, etc. I think he will end up with SEVERAL necklaces and I cannot wait to see them all finished.  What a wonderful tool for him to tell his story.  I had a meeting with the school today to discuss his entrance back into school.  Cameron’s nurse practitioner and the neuro-onc school teacher came to speak to Cameron’s teachers and the administration about what his needs may or may not be upon re-entering school.  It seems surreal to even be discussing him going back to school.  The Lord has been so amazingly good to us all.  I cannot believe tomorrow is it; his last dose of chemotherapy.  Join me tomorrow as we praise God for His provisions over Cameron thus far and pray that Cameron’s life can continue to be a beacon of Christ’s love and healing! 

LeAnn

Day 1 went well

Sorry for the delay in updating.  I came home last night and pretty much fell asleep in the chair, so my apologies.  Cam tolerated Day 1 pretty well with only one “episode”, so considering how it’s hit him the previous rounds, today was a good day.  It probably helped that he was on Benadryl, Zofran, Adavan, and the chemical compound in medicinal marijuana, so he pretty much slept through the morning treatment and was just starting to wake up for the afternoon treatment.  LeAnn called this morning saying he had the same problems last night where he stops peeing, so they’ve been hitting him with fluids and lasix to try to jump start him.  Hopefully he’ll get going again this morning.

Cam is in pretty good spirits as he knows this is the end of the journey as far as the chemo treatments.  He’s been videoing everyone with his video camera and being the silly little guy he normally is.  Today and tomorrow’s meds have been easier on him in the past rounds, so hopefully that will hold true again this time as well.  I’ll be better about updating after today’s round.

Inconceivable Emotion

Today I took Cameron for his last pre-chemotherapy physical and he was so full of himself. I think he was in the best mood I have seen since this all began. Several times today he “ran” down the hall to his much loved Dr. G. It’s amazing to see how far their relationship has come; back when this began, Cameron was so “hands off” to the whole Neuro-oncology group. Now, he adores each of them. He was also able to participate in something fun which was going on at the children’s hospital. The Hyundai car company was donating $50,000 to Duke Children’s today and they had a car in front of the hospital which they were allowing the children who were battling cancer to put their handprints on. Cameron, of course, thought this was the coolest thing! After bouncing off the walls at Duke, I was certain he would come home and take a nap. But Mr. Action proved me wrong and asked to go on a ride around the block on his big wheel. To top everything off, Mrs. Germano came over and did an hour of school with him and he did great. He amazes me daily!

I cannot believe in one week’s time, his chemotherapy will be complete. It has been a ride like no other. Back in February when Ernest and I first met with Cameron’s neurosurgeon Dr. Grant, my only question was “is the surgery survivable?” Weeks later I wondered if he would ever walk again. In March, I wondered how Cameron would ever adjust to his radiation mask and be able to endure the treatment; and I wondered how I would adjust looking at my child who was suddenly bald. In June, I couldn’t imagine how Cameron’s little body could handle the high doses of chemotherapy which were vital to his survival. Now today, a mere seven months later and days away from his last treatment, the nurse practitioner and I were discussing how best to ease Cameron back into school next month. It is truly inconceivable emotion. We, of course, are elated about the end of his treatment. But after running on adrenaline for so many months, walking by energy the Lord could only provide, it is going to be such an adjustment to leave Duke hospital and the family there which we have come to love. I’ve really been struggling over the last few weeks wondering how to jump back into “life” when our life, as we knew it prior to February 8^th, is so drastically different. As I was in the kitchen tonight, I saw a devotion I had taped to the refrigerator that one of my sweet friends sent me months ago. It simply read from Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God”. For those of you who know me best, you know that “being still” isn’t one of my virtues. So as we walk into next week, I ask for you all to pray for three things:

1) The chemotherapy will attack the bad cells (if any) and that the rest of Cameron’s body will be protected from harm

2) Cameron will continue to handle this regimen with Godly strength

3) Our entire family will have peace as we exit; turning Cameron over to the One who made him and that our hearts will be at ease and protected from worry about the future

As always, we will update the blog daily as he finishes each dose of chemotherapy. I’m attaching some pictures from today of him painting the car and of Cameron with Dr. G. Much love to you all and please continue to lift him up in your prayers.

LeAnn

We're home!!

We actually got home yesterday, but it was a madhouse trying to get things settled back in last night and Cam had an appointment this morning to have his hearing checked, so it’s just now calm enough to get an update out.  He finally got past all the stomach issues before we left the hospital and is actually VERY full of himself today, so everything is progressing well at this point.  His hearing is still perfect according to the checkup this morning, so it appears the add on med has definitely done it’s job.  If he can make it through this last round and still check out good after, his odds are very good of not having any hearing loss.

It’s so hard to believe we’re this close to the end, but it’s definitely starting to sink in we’re only weeks away from being done with the treatment phase of this journey.  Cam will have the week of Labor Day here at the house and will check back in on Sunday, September 7 to start Round 4.  If the trend continues, he’ll probably go back in for his fever visit around September 18^th and will stay until around the 25^th give or take a day on either side.

Now that we’re this close to the end of treatment, we’re starting to plan for his return to school and the potential challenges he’ll have there with everything from doing schoolwork to the things we take for granted like carrying his lunch tray to the table.  He’s been doing really well in his homebound studies with Ms. Germano, but having one-on-one attention vs. being in a classroom setting are obviously different environments, so we’re praying he’ll jump right in like he has with everything else and takes on the challenges like the champ he is. .  I think how Connor, LeAnn, or I would have handled these trials and I can honestly say I think Cam is the only one in our family who could have reacted and managed them like he has…he’s a special little guy.

That’s about it for right now, but if anything changes, we’ll update.  Thanks for all the prayers through this last round of Chemo and follow up fever visit.  Cam is definitely a strong little boy, but there’s no doubt God has been giving him that strength and protecting him through all of these procedures thus far

We're still here, but doing better

Just a quick update.  Cam's been having some stomach pains and spiked a fever a couple times over the weekend, but hasn't had another one since.  They feel they understand what the pain is from and have been treating it with even more antibiotics or antifungals...or anti-something-or-anothers...you lose track after a while.  His white count came "up" to 0.2, but that's still a move up, so we'll take it.  If the fever stays away and he trends up again on his counts, hopefully we'll be out of here tomorrow or Thursday at the latest.

We couldn't escape Duke...almost...but not quite

I just wanted to update the blog tonight to let everyone know that Cameron is back at Duke. He fought a low-grade fever throughout the night on Thursday night, but never went over the magic number they look for to truly call it a fever. Since we never hit the magic number, we didn't take him in to the ER because we knew they would just sit there and wait for him to hit the number to send us up to 5100 or to send us home if it didn't. So why wait there when we could wait here; especially since it remained relatively low.

Once the sun appeared, I paged the nurse practitioner and a few hours later, when the fever had not subsided, I took him on into clinic. Dr. G was waiting for us with great news…admission. His plan with the Vanc did work; no signs of serious distress in Cameron thus far. However, he wanted to monitor him over the weekend just to make sure…I do love that man!!! He looks after my boy. Turns out, Cameron’s hemoglobin was low and he needed a transfusion anyway. As I left this evening, he was in the midst of his transfusion and while he felt poorly, he was still his sweet and compliant self. He’s shed a few tears today wanting to go home so please pray for his peace and understanding. I know the months at Duke are starting to wear on him! But as Dr. G put it, after this stay, only two more hospital stays if he continues the way he has thus far. Praises to our King for that!!!

LeAnn

Back at Duke...again!

I just wanted to update the blog tonight to let everyone know that Cameron is back at Duke.  He fought a low-grade fever throughout the night.  We did not take him in to the ER because it never got extremely high and since he was on the Vancomycin at home and we knew from past experience if we went to the ER, they would just start the Vanc and wait for a room on 5100.  So why wait there when we could wait here; especially since it remained relatively low.  But I paged the nurse practitioner this morning and a few hours later, when the fever had not subsided, I took him on into clinic.  Dr. G was waiting for us with great news…admission.  His plan with the Vanc did work; no signs of serious distress in Cameron thus far.  However, he wanted to monitor him over the weekend just to make sure…I do love that man!!!  He looks after my boy.  Turns out, Cameron’s hemoglobin was low and he needed a transfusion anyway.  As I left this evening, he was in the midst of his transfusion and while he felt poorly, he was still his sweet and compliant self.  He’s shed a few tears today wanting to go home so please pray for his peace and understanding.  I know the months at Duke are starting to wear on him!  But as Dr. G put it, after this stay, only two more hospital stays if he continues the way he has thus far.  Praises to our King for that!!!

 

LeAnn

Cam's doing well

I just wanted to update the blog for those of you who are wondering how Cameron is doing after his third round of chemotherapy. He continues to amaze us with his strength and endurance. While he has been a little more nauseated each day, he has been eating more and seems to have more energy. We were sent home on antibiotics this time in hopes of keeping him out of the hospital when his counts drop; we’re praying this keeps us home until his next and final course of chemotherapy.

We took these pictures of him eating his bologna sandwich and riding his tricycle last night, so we thought we would share them. God is so good!

LeAnn

Home again!

Well we made it home about an hour ago.  Dr. G said yesterday that he wanted us out of there first thing this morning and therefore, as soon as his meds finished, the nurse came in to unhook him and off we went.  Cam requested a stop by Starbucks for his favorite, a ginger molasses cookie.  He is so happy to be home.  I have to say that I think he tolerated this round of chemotherapy the best yet which is very atypical for this regimen.  Usually, they get worse as the cycles progress but as everyone in Dr. G’s team has said, “he’s Cameron” and tends to do things his own way.  I cannot believe we have one round of chemotherapy remaining.  As Cameron and I went on one of our MANY tricycle rides this week, we passed the room he had on 5300 after surgery.  My mind went back to the day in February where we first met Dr. G’s team.  They had stopped by to go over the protocol which he would be on.  I stood in the room, stared at little Cameron in the bed, and wept like a baby for I couldn’t even wrap my mind around what was taking place in my life, how sick my child was, and what he would endure in the months to come.  Then this week, here I was, basically running behind him with his IV pole.  Never in my wildest dreams did I believe he would handle this treatment the way he has.  Never did I think he could be given high-dose chemo in the morning and then be off on a tricycle or up in the PT gym as if nothing had happened.  There is only one reason for this; the covering of his body with prayer.  So thank you to all who lifted him up to the Lord again this week.  God has been so gracious to our sweet little guy.  Three down, one to go, and a lifetime ahead to proclaim the miracle of Cameron!

 

LeAnn

Round 3 is over!

We just finished the Stem Cell reinfusion, so now we're officially done with Round 3!!! Cam has felt a bit yucky yesterday and today, so it's been a bit rough on him. We're going home on the antibiotic he's been given when he comes back for his post-Chemo fever, so we're hoping it might actually keep us from having to come back this time.

It's hard to believe we're this close to the end, but we're all ready for it to get here. It's been quite a journey, but God has led us through it every step and has shown His presence in so many ways. We'll keep the updates current as things come up, but assume no news is good news for the next while.

Round 3's Chemo meds are done!

Everything went smoothly as he slept through today's session, so we're done with the "bad" meds for this round! Tomorrow is a rest day and then Friday is the stem cell reinfusion, so it should be quiet from here on out for this round.

He's been up riding his tricycle around the entire 5th floor and even went for 30-45 minutes of PT yesterday, so he's definitely feeling well through this round. When LeAnn told Dr. G what all he had been doing, needless to say, he was amazed at our little man's strength and spirit. God has definitely been good to Cam and us through all of this. We were a bit scared of this round as we had been told Rounds 2 and 3 were the toughest, but he's done really well through this one, so hopefully it will be "easy" for him through the rest of this process.

We'll post again if anything changes, but expect the next update after Friday's stem cells are finished.

Round 3 Day 2 is in the books

Well…Cam ended up running into the same issue with him not being able to pee past the early evening and LeAnn and the Senior Intern had a “discussion” about what should be taking place as a result of it. He didn’t spike a fever this time, but his output was pretty much non-existent all night, so they had to give him extra fluids and then lasix right behind that to try to get him to pee. He finally got rid of about a liter within an hour or so and then they could finally start the Chemo med. That part went well, so Day 2 is history.

When I left, he had started the low output again, so I have a feeling this will be a trend from here on out. The good news is that Dr. G had a LOOOOOONG discussion with the interns/residents/fellows so they *SHOULD* know *EXACTLY* what to do tonight in the event it continues as it appears it will. Day 3 will be the same med as today, so hopefully it will go as well as today did and we’ll be finished with all of the Chemo meds for Round 3. We can definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel and it’s not just a tiny speck any more.

LeAnn or I will update again tomorrow, but if you catch this tonight, please pray for his output to stay on a good trend.

EJ

Update: Cam had a good night last night with his output, so all is going well so far today. We'll still be delayed because we ran late yesterday, but at least he's not having to go through what he did yesterday morning to get things started. We'll update later this afternoon with today's news.

Round 3 Day 1 went well

Just a quick update on today’s treatments. Cam was able to take on the meds today with only a couple episodes of vomiting. They both occurred with the secondary med which is to protect him from the Chemo drug, so while it's had a positive effect with no high pitch hearing loss, it has definitely worked on him during the time he’s received it. I guess it’s a "small" price to pay to protect his hearing, but it's so hard to see him going through it.

He pretty much was able to sleep through most of the morning and early afternoon and by the late afternoon, he was sitting up in bed playing with his cars and feeling pretty good considering all things. This was the night during the last round when he spiked a fever and stopped urinating, so we’re obviously in prayer that we won’t have a repeat episode of that.

We’ll update again tomorrow with more news. Thanks all for the continued support.

EJ

Tomorrow we check in!

I cannot believe that tomorrow we will check into the hospital for Cameron’s third round of chemotherapy. Back in February, the end seemed a lifetime away and by this time next week, we will be rejoicing that he only has one round left and then hopefully this chapter of his life will come to an end. I think the extra week off has been wonderful for Cameron’s little body however I’m almost as anxious about tomorrow as I was for his first round. I believe our family pretty much runs on adrenaline and this past week made things seem “normal” again; I almost had to remind myself a few days when he was feeling great that we are not finished. Cameron is a little sad about heading to Duke tomorrow; I think he too, got a little too comfortable being at home for two straight weeks. But he is a tough little boy and I’m certain he will be his normal solemn self on the way to Durham but then brighten up as his 5100 friends begin their welcoming party. His nurses are spectacular individuals!

His treatment for the week will be as it has the last two months; chemotherapy on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday with Monday being the potentially most problematic day. Please say a special prayer for him on Monday at 10am and 1pm when the drug to protect his ears is administered. So far he has taken it well but that could change with each course. Thursday will be his rest day and Friday will be his stem cell reinfusion day. Then on Saturday, he will come home as long as there is no fever present. We will update daily as each treatment finishes. Please pray that he tolerates this well and that nothing strange will happen with this course.

Our former neighbor’s daughter has been going through some really serious medical issues as well; issues which took them to New York City and divided their family for many weeks now. She posted this poem on Gabby’s website and I wanted to post it here too; it’s something that touched my heart as I read their blog earlier today. Without a doubt, God has big plans for our family and while we know this, living in the valley is NO fun. I hope you will enjoy the words as much as I did. The poem is titled “And God Said No!”

http://www.andgodsaidno.com/poem.htm

Our G-105 Visit

Today, the four of us went to visit the G-105 studios and sat down with Bob, Mike, and Kristin from “Bob and the Showgram”. The reason for our visit is because Bob and the gang are planning on a big fundraiser in November to raise money for pediatric brain tumors. Because of their fundraiser for brain tumor research, they wanted to bring in a few families whose lives have been touched by brain tumors and record their stories to play on the radio this fall. We were thrilled to be invited and we had such a good time at the studios today. Kristin took Connor and Cameron around; showing them the many different studios and filling them with M & M’s and a collection of DVD’s while Ernest and I sat down with Bob and Mike and talked about our story. Neither of us have ever participated in anything such as this but it was a wonderful experience. When the boys came back, Cameron entertained them with his version of “Jessie’s Girl” and “Hey Ya!” (LOL!) and then spoke into the microphone some himself. They will now splice our story together and hopefully come up with a wonderful appeal for donations during the fall drive. So those of you in the Raleigh area, keep an ear out for Cameron on G-105! It truly was a fun time and the crew from the Showgram were so nice and welcoming to the four of us.

A story of interest that you may be hearing of in the news soon is that a researcher from Duke has come across some VERY interesting findings in the laboratory involving medulloblastoma. He has discovered a protein that can actually suppress the growth of medulloblastoma cells in mice. We, of course, are very excited about this possibility for the future; a finding that could potentially bring about a new approach in the treatment of children with medulloblastoma. Praise the Lord!

We check in on Sunday for Round 3 of chemotherapy. Please pray NOW for the Lord to prepare Cam’s body for this cycle. Blessings always!

LeAnn

As July Ends...

This month has come and gone. It was a big month for Cameron as he had his second round of chemotherapy, a trip to the PICU, an arterial line placed, and in the middle of all that chaos…his birthday. Thankfully, he is feeling much better. His nausea seemed to get a little better toward the end of this week and the diarrhea is finally gone. Today we had a long day at Duke. He had an audiogram, echocardiogram, EKG and his physical with Neuro-oncology. The awesome news is that his ears are still showing no signs of hearing loss. We are absolutely elated by this news and pray it continues to hold through the remaining two cycles of chemotherapy. All looked well with his heart and the nurse practitioner continues to be pleased by his energy level and spirit. Next Tuesday, the four of us are traveling to the G105 studios to do an interview with Bob Dumas. He, too, experienced a brain tumor several years ago and in the fall, he is doing a drive to raise money for brain tumor research. Cameron’s story will be one which will air on the radio. We are really excited to participate in this and meet Bob as well. On August 10^th, Cameron will check in to Duke for his third round of chemotherapy. We are all getting excited about this journey nearing an end. While each cycle can bring about new complications, we are confident the Lord will carry Cameron through the remaining two cycles as he has the first two.

I know our trip to the PICU scared many and therefore I just wanted to clarify that as stressful as it was, it wasn’t necessarily a surprise to the Neuro-oncology team. Cameron is receiving high-dose chemotherapy and therefore, we knew these things would more than likely take place at some point in his treatment and there is a possibility this could be the norm for the remainder of his treatment being as his body isn’t as strong as it was when he started. As expected as it may be, it is still taxing on his little body so continue to remember him, praying the Lord will prepare his body with heavenly strength, to battle the final two cycles. I’ve also had several question me about his “Make-A-Wish” qualification. I’ll admit, I too was confused when they first talked to us about this; I always believed “wishes” were only for terminal patients. However, that isn’t the case. This is an organization who grants wishes to children who have potentially life threatening illnesses so, without a doubt, a brain tumor qualifies Cameron for a wish. So if you were in this same thought, please rest your mind that all really is well with Cameron. Cancer always has a possibility of recurrence but we have been told nothing but positives for the future. Bottom line, it’s all up to the Lord at this point anyway! If He knows the number of hairs on our head, He surely knows our future!

Next week is totally free for us. As of now, we do not even have to travel to Duke for blood counts. We plan on enjoying this down time together. Please continue to remember Cameron’s friend, Luke, who is still in the hospital. I ask you to pray for not only healing of this little boy but incredible peace for his parents; it’s so hard to watch your child in such situations. Blessings always and if I don’t post next week, assume no news is good news!

LeAnn

Update!

We are finally back home. Dr. G wasn’t extremely concerned with his fever and diarrhea once he saw that Cam’s lab results looked great. They took cultures of just about everything imaginable but it may be tomorrow before we hear anything definitive. We are overjoyed to be able to come back home tonight; even though we didn’t expect that to happen. Thank you all for your prayers today. If something changes, I will be sure to let everyone know.

Prayer warriors…please say a prayer for Luke, a friend of Cameron’s, who was taken to the hospital today. I know all too well what it is like to have a sick child and I just ask you all to pray for this family. Blessings Always!

The craziness continues

Well it is 5am and Ernest just left to take Cameron back to the ER at Duke for a fever.  He was feeling so good until Saturday afternoon when he began a downward fall.  He has had lots of vomiting, diarrhea, and low grade fevers.  That changed through the night as his temperature hit 101; not terrible but not acceptable for an oncology patient with a central line.  We are a little scared because he is still on a heavy antibiotic at home.  Please be in prayer for him and the doctors as we try to sort out what is going on.  As I am typing this, the Lord laid on my heart Psalm 28:7, “The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.”  When this is over, we will all have a new song to sing, thanking the Lord for His provisions in our son’s life.  But in these scary moments, my heart has to trust Him because I have no other choice!  I’ll update soon.  Keep praying!

 

LeAnn

Everything went well!

I’m sorry I didn’t post last night.  I am sure many were anxious to know how Cameron’s trip to the operating room went.  “Duke time”, as we call it, was actually “on time” yesterday.  YEAH!  They took Cameron back immediately and called for his platelets.  Dr. G came by to talk to Cameron and then actually walked him to the OR.  He is such a sweet man!  The procedures went smoothly and we should find out the results of the lumbar puncture sometime next week.  The endoscopy showed moderate irritations in the top portion of Cameron’s stomach.  The doctor took a few samples to clarify if these spots were viral, bacterial, or fungal.  He said it could be the many medications Cameron is on, the chemotherapy or a combination of the two.  We should have those results by Monday and then Dr. G can adjust his medication if need be.  Cameron is feeling really good and just the happiest little boy these days.  He is very excited about having two weeks off before his next round of chemotherapy.  I cannot believe July is almost over.  Back in February, the final stages of his treatment seemed like a lifetime away.  But we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Oh how blessed we have been in this journey!!!  Much love to you all!

Today's MRI

Today was the first time I had actually sat in on one of Cameron’s MRI’s. Ernest always has been the one to go but today he had a meeting so I went. I have to say, I had to fight back the tears the first hour of his MRI. For those of you who have never had one or witnessed one, they are extremely loud. So I sat there today thinking about our first night at Duke. We had just found out about his tumor through a CT scan and therefore as soon as we arrived, the neurosurgeon wanted the MRI so he could get a better picture of what he was dealing with. That night, Cameron went into his very first brain MRI, without any sedation, and laid still through the entire procedure. As I listened to the machine today, and thought about our first night at Duke, I realized just how terrified my little boy must have been to sit through such a procedure and never move. I didn’t grasp that until today and my mother’s heart just breaks wondering what must have been going through his head that night. I have to believe he must have had the voice of Jesus in his ear to endure such.

Back to today’s MRI…it was LONG. For some unknown reason, Cameron didn’t respond as expected to the sedation. I think they came in six or seven times to redose him because he kept waking up. We were in the MRI room just shy of three hours…ugh! But, as has been the case since this began, with every bad situation something wonderful happens. Within an hour of arriving back home, a very happy Dr. G called to let me know the scans looked great. I absolutely love that man. How many doctors respond that quickly? NOT MANY! So again, no visible signs of cancer in Cameron! Tomorrow he heads back to Duke for a lumbar puncture and endoscopy. They are going to give him platelets upon arrival just to make sure.

I’ll update tomorrow! Much love to you all.