Re-induction and a makeover!

Hi Friends,

Lots of updates since the last email (sorry it has been so long)! On the 18th Elizabeth had her second (day 14) marrow biopsy and we learned that though the leukemia levels in her bone marrow went down significantly, she was not yet in remission.  Remission is determined when the cancer cells are down to ~5% or less. Elizabeth’s bone marrow still had about ~20% cancer cells in it.

To get her into remission, they started her on the next round of induction chemo  on Thursday the 20th. This is also called re-induction chemo and is slightly different than the drugs she got in the 3+7 treatment. It was comprised of Mitoxantrone, Etoposide, and Cytarabine. Unlike the last round of chemo, which was given continuously over 24hrs, each one of these was given for a shorter amount of time back to back. It took about 3 hours each day over 5 days.

While on this treatment, Elizabeth used eye drops to protect her eyes from the high levels of cytarabine and couldn’t wear her contacts. She got her hands on a cute pair of glasses (thanks to Emily and the crew at Lens Crafters). 

The other side effects of that round of chemo were fairly intense nausea, irritated eyes, and generally feeling tired and uncomfortable. She finished that round on Monday, and now she’s just been recovering her immune system and trying to eat as much as she can.

This Friday (the 28th) Elizabeth decided it was time for her makeover and went for a buzz cut!

Here is a picture of her trying on a wig that Emily picked up in Seattle:

Going for the buzz cut was a little scary, so Elizabeth made it into a party. We listened to some music, drank some sparkling apple cider that Robin provided, and she wore a sassy t-shirt from Jordan and William.

 

 

Looking beautiful and glowing with a smile!

She’s feeling better each day as the chemo leaves her system and she’s really hoping to come home soon. The doctors are working on finding her a bone marrow donor, and she’ll come home in a few weeks to rest up before the next bone marrow biopsy and round of chemo.

One thing that’s been really wonderful, is all the food and snacks people have sent. It gives Elizabeth variety so she’s eating things other than hospital food, and it helps the people who are staying at the hospital a lot get some food while they are there. Jordan has lovingly organized a Meal Train to help coordinate this so that Elizabeth and the people around her can have some help with food every so often. If you have any interesting in cooking something up or dropping off some snacks, here is the Meal Train page. It has Jordan’s contact info on there if you have any other questions about it.

Thank you to everyone who has been visiting, calling, and sending cards and love her way!

All my love,

Simone