12/31/2009
by Michael Wells
Happy New Year
Wow, what a year and where in the world did it go? Sherrie and I will always remember 2009 as the year Brady was diagnosed with leukemia. As we wrap-up this year we have some excellent news to share; we have our son home with us for an entire week! We got home around 4:00pm and almost immediately went for one of our neighborhood walks. The sidewalks were covered with snow and the Christmas lights were still decorating many homes. Brady got to see one of his favorite dogs; Bunker and he just smiled and smiled and smiled the entire time. It is without a doubt one of the simple things in life we will always cherish.
We also received the preliminary pathology results and we were extremely disappointed. Brady’s cancer is not in remission as his blast count remains at 8%. This is not where any of Brady’s medical team wanted him to be. So, we will continue on to yet another round of chemotherapy but this time we will be treating Brady with some more aggressive and toxic drugs. These include: Cytarabine, Mitoxantrone (Novantrone) and Mylotarg (Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin). This combination is normally used for patients who have relapsed but the combination also has had some success with highly resistant cancers as well. Our goal hasn’t changed; cure the cancer. This is just a setback but not an insurmountable obstacle; just another “speed bump” in this whole process.
We are still scheduled to meet with Dr. Bunin of CHOP on Tuesday for Brady’s initial bone marrow transplant (BMT) examination. In fact, Dr. Bunin has already consulted and is in agreement with Dr. Drachtman regarding Brady’s next chemo protocol. Brady has a very difficult challenge ahead of him but Sherrie and I truly believe he will defeat this hideous disease and live a long wonderful life
Until next year; PLEASE start the New Year off with a prayer, a good thought and hug for Brady – make him your resolution for a miraculous 2010
“8 Years Later—Still No Cure for Pediatric Cancer” is a series of posts revisiting the journal kept by Sherrie and Michael Wells during the cancer diagnosis and treatment of their son, Brady Michael. Hopefully these entires will provide an understanding of the journey families face when dealing with these horrific diseases and of the important work the Hugs for Brady Foundation does.