11/18/2009
by Sherrie Wells Good afternoon to all of Brady’s readers… I am writing early this afternoon because Brady is playing happily in his crib now and I do not expect to get another opportunity today to write! Michael will not be to the hospital until late tonight as he needs to work. So, I want him to be able to spend some quality time with Brady. Today’s news is that we are going to go to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for a consult on a bone marrow transplant as early as the first week in December. We will be meeting with the director, Dr. Nancy Bunin. We have heard that she is rarely on the fence regarding transplants and will flat out tell you if it is a good idea or not. In other words, she tells it like it is. That is exactly what Michael and I are looking for. Brady is looking better every day. He did not end up losing all of his hair as expected, only about 65% or so. If it’s brushed nice, most people would not even be able to tell. It is dry and brittle in the back and he would give Hulk Hogan a run for his money. He was able to hold on to his eyebrows and eyelashes for the most part which is very important to keep dust out of his dry eyes. He’s still a charmer no matter what amount of hair he has or does not have! Thanks to Grandma Wells he has plenty of adorable hats to wear home! Brady slept well last night. No vomiting on Michael . Brady has not been running a fever so he might be able to come off of some of his antibiotics soon. This will also help with getting rid of the diarrhea. Gross topic, I know, but it is a part of the big picture. Regarding his weight, they expected him to lose weight. He just got weighed in this morning and is the same 25 ½ pounds, YEAH! The doctor just examined Brady and he said that we will, cross your fingers, be able to leave by next Wednesday! Thanksgiving at home and we have a lot to be grateful for. Brady’s white blood count continues to increase, he’s at 1.8 today versus 1.1 yesterday. His platelets are also improving from 49 yesterday to 55 today. Brady’s neutrophils are only at 18 and they need to be over 500 before they will discharge him. Regarding waiting for the swine flu results, we can go home even if the results are not back yet. On a very happy note, we were approached by one of Brady’s first pediatric care technicians, Brittany Herits, to ask if she could honor Brady by running for him in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Marathon in New Orleans in February. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world’s largest voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood cancer research, education, and patient services. Brittany needs to raise a minimum of $3,200, of which 75% will go directly to research and 25% to travel, entrance fees, etc. 100% of any amount over the minimum ($3,200) will go directly to the society to find a CURE for blood cancers. I urge you to visit her web site at [link removed*]. Correction, make that $3,175 that Brittany needs raise. A special thank you to Jen Balerno and family for Brittany’s first donation! We would also like to thank the Griggstown Fire House Ladies Auxiliary for “take out food”, Earth Science Landscaping for the 3D Magna Building Tiles set, Anna Simonitis for the blanket (I have not seen it yet but I heard it was GORGEOUS!), and Maureen Geoghegan for the toys that surely will make Brady smile. And lastly, Aunt Peggy, your e-mail was very touching… Until next time, please keep Brady in your thoughts, prayers, and hugs…*The Hugs for Brady Foundation will ALWAYS be in support of other foundations who allow people to donate blood, platelets, plasma, or register to become a bone marrow donor. However, we no longer ask supporters to donate financially to ‘The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’ as their focus on childhood cancers does not coincide with our foundation’s mission.
“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.