Colin Loves Tractors » subcutaneous port

Twelve Hours

Mom — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:11:45 +0000

Colin has set a new record for readmission, though fortunately not because of a sudden deterioration of his condition. On Wednesday afternoon, I drove Dad and Aidan to the airport for a quick trip home to see family and friends. After returning to the hospital, I packed up Colin and brought him back to Target [...]

This Tuna’s Not Going to Japan

Mom — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 08:10:29 +0000

Many years ago (well in excess of a decade), there was a magazine article about tuna fishing and the process of selecting the premium fish caught here in the North Atlantic that would fly to Japan. It is possibly “Those Wild Tuna Guys” by Anthony Tillett in Harper’s Magazine, published in 1987. However, I am [...]

Pushing Through

Mom — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:44:46 +0000

Colin is back on track with chemo, eliciting a big sigh of relief for us. As dreadful as chemo can be, it is also our purpose for being here and it is the current modality for treating his cancer. The recent sidetrack chasing down his fungal infection has been disruptive at best and potentially lethal [...]

Trick or Treat

Mom — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 06:41:19 +0000

The children of St. Jude are now asleep, comatose in the aftermath of an orgy of candy consumption. Halloween is the biggest holiday here, bigger than Christmas (when the doctors presumably arrange for many of the patients to return home). This year’s celebration was toned down, presumably from infectious disease concerns; inpatients and outpatients were [...]

Breakdown Lane

Mom — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 08:10:32 +0000

St. Jude is a superhighway of cancer care for children. Colin ends up in the breakdown lane, much to the chagrin of his team (including his family). He is a patient who constantly challenges the staff and the system, ignoring all of the assumptions and common pathways.

On Monday morning, Colin went in for surgery to [...]

Colin’s MRI Results… and so Much More

Mom — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 19:22:49 +0000

Colin enjoyed three nights on the prowl (i.e. outpatient) before a planned admission on Friday for chemo to start on Saturday. He enjoyed his time out on the town, and it was great once again to have the family in one place. This was also our trial run of the new home health agency, which [...]

Home Sweet Home

Mom — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:40:33 +0000

Our first big news: Aidan completed the Grand Array at school on Wednesday. Anticipating this, we rushed over to see it in the afternoon, but he evidently dismantled it immediately upon completing it, so the teachers couldn’t even take a picture. Well, at least he’s tidy.

Our second big news: On Wednesday evening (late!), Colin came [...]

Up and Away

Mom — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 04:14:26 +0000

Colin has done well through the methotrexate. They have been monitoring his blood levels and he has been clearing the chemical effectively, no doubt facilitated by the tremendous amount of urine output. It’s a good thing his kidneys are working well!

This morning, Colin started receiving leucovorin, the rescue drug for methotrexate. This is administered to protect [...]

Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Mom — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 03:19:18 +0000

Today, Colin did very well and was called the “star patient” of the ICU, meaning that he is a good candidate to move back to the regular floor downstairs. Today, Dr. DeWire, the fellow who is working with Dr. Gajjar, presented us with the protocol’s FYI. Tomorrow, we will sign the consent forms for various [...]

Kiss Your Baby Now

Mom — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 04:10:22 +0000

Life in the hospital always has an underlying tension, as the situation can change dramatically over the course of days or moments. We watched Colin’s condition deteriorate gradually over several days, with a mounting sense of urgency from the floor pediatricians. We later realized that he was seen by the “pediatric response team,” which is [...]