01/07/2010
by Michael Wells As Yogi Berra once said; “it feels like déjà vu all over again.” And so it goes; Brady is hooked up to his IV pumps and is currently receiving his first dose of chemotherapy. The chemotherapy protocol will be as follows: Cytarabine every 12 hours next 4 days and then beginning on day 3 it’s Mitoxantrone every day for 4 days and finally it’s 1 day of Gemtuzumab on day 8. During this therapy Brady will be receiving eye drops every 4 hours around the clock along with the antifungal voriconazole every 12 hours, metronidazole (Flagyl) every 6 hours antibacterial, Pepcid every 12 to settle his stomach and zofran (ondansetron) every 12 hours to prevent nausea and vomiting. Basically very few hours pass without Brady receiving some type of medication. I almost forgot to mention that every 4 hours his vitals are taken which is one sure way to wake up a sleeping baby. Tomorrow Brady will be anesthetized once again to facilitate the administering of a round of cytarabine directly into his spine. This will be the fourth time Brady has had intrathecal chemo and every time causes us much anxiety. And all of this treatment is being exasperated with Brady once again teething. So, add Tylenol to the list of meds. Today we were told we will be here a minimum of 35 days if everything goes smoothly and there are no “speed bumps” encountered along the way. So, the earliest we will be home (for a week) will be February 11th. This will push the bone marrow transplantation back to the week of February 22nd at the earliest. Oh, what fun!!! All during this process Brady remains in great spirits. He has now mastered the names of most of his nurses and needless to say has all of them eating out of his hands. Not too bad for a 16 month old toddler… Finally, I mentioned in an earlier journal entry how I contacted Dr. Robert J. Wells of MD Anderson, well come to find out Dr. Wells has been involved with Brady’s case since the very beginning. Brady was known to him as a case number and not a name. This news on one hand made me smile and on the other continues to confirm the complexity of Brady’s cancer. So, on that rather somber note, I will call it a wrap and until next time; continue to keep us in your prayers, thoughts and hugs. I think we could all use a little inspiration right about now…“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.