July 23rd

Hello all
Well things went very well last week. Caitlyn was discharged from hospital on Monday of last week and spent the week regaining her strength. She spent the week eating and drinking and bounced back to what she was prior to her last round of chemo, "on top of the world".
She did end up going to camp yesterday (Sunday). She was pretty excited about it. She will be skipping the swimming part of camp, (they have to go down about 100 steps to the lake) and spent it with the nurse, napping. They also have "down and out" time every afternoon so she planned on napping then too.
But she was so excited about camp that she worked hard getting her strength back before she left. So it is very quiet around here without her and Bryanna is enjoying the use of the couch again. I will be going down to get her for her bloodwork on Wednesday morning and will return her to camp by lunch time.
Well, we will update you after the week at camp.

Rona

Spoke too soon

Hi all

Apparently I spoke too soon with the last posting when I said that Caitlyn was starting to feel better. Well, she felt better that weekend, Thurs, Friday and Saturday. But on Sunday (the 8th) she started to get dizzy and had double vision. By the next morning she was vomiting. Well by Wednesday we were in the emergency department in Sick Kids for most of the day. They did a CT of her head to make sure that she didn't have any fluid build up around the tumour. Which came back the same as her last MRI, stable. They told us that she was dehydrated and sent us home. Dr. Sauro, her pediatrician, admitted her to Owen Sound hospital on Friday, because she was still having dizziness and double vision. They gave her an IV on Friday and by Saturday they started TPN which is nutrients and minerals through the IV site. They felt that the dehydration and malnutrition from the nausea and vomitting was causing her to be dizzy then the dizziness was contributing to the nausea and vomitting. Anyways by this morning, she was doing better so they discharged her. Today she has had 3 meals, which is a first in 2 weeks. The doctor is talking about possibly admitting her to the hospital in Owen Sound during her next round of chemo to prevent her from getting to this state.

Camp has been put on the back burner for right now. She can still go next Sunday for the week and if that doesn't work she could go in August. She has her heart set on camp and how can you deny her when she is a kid who just wants to be the same as everyone else. She has to deal with so many adult things, it is nice to see her excited about something.

Well, I am not going to say it, so we just hope everyday will prove to be a better day than the last.

Keep the prayers going!!

Rona

Starting to feel better!!

Well, things are starting to look up. Caitlyn was up and moving around a bit more today. She is still tired and not eating very well, but at least she is eating small amounts and is not as nauseated. She is walking around the house without support again as the dizzyness has left her again. Thank you God! She is drinking well, also!! The side effects of this round are definitely resolving sooner than the last one did.
Our other dilemma is that she was signed up for Camp Kintail for mid August and we had to make the decision today to call and cancel it. The week she was to go, was the week that she finishes her next round of chemo. When I called camp today though, they offered her an opportunity to go as a volunteer of Kintail (VOK) for the week of July 15-21 which would work out better with her feeling better. They help out with meals, setting the table and doing dishes as well as a major project as a group. Anyway, she will get 30 of her 40 hours of volunteer needed for her high school education. She is going to try this. She is now on cloud nine with the thought of being actually able to go to Camp Kintail. This will be her 10th year at Camp Kintail.
Well everyone keep your fingers crossed that she remains on the upswing of this round!!!

Rona

Update on chemo # 3

Hello all

Caitlyn has finished round 3 of 6 chemo. She started last Thursday and finished last night. This one didn't go very well again. She did well until Saturday when the nausea started. By Sunday night she was very dizzy and the nausea progressed to vomiting. We could not get the vomiting controlled long enough to get her chemo into her that night, so we went to the hospital for an IV. They gave her the nausea medication that she normally takes by IV which finally settled her stomach long enough to give her the chemo. She fell asleep about 3 am in emerg and we returned home at 7 am. She went back to bed when we got home and didn't get up until 6:30 pm. They left the IV in her hand as she is has poor veins for starting an IV. If she starts to drink better, I will take it out. She has been very weak and nauseated since. Tonight we are starting to see a slight improvement. She is drinking sips and had 1/3 of a roll. The most food she has ate since Sunday. She is done with chemo for now, so she should start to gain her strength back again. We will keep you posted though. Here is a picture of her tonight in her domain (the couch).

Rona