Well I am sitting here waiting for the call that all is good. He was supposed to have the transplant this morning, then he texted me and said 12:00, then he texted me and said 2:30. So, I am sure that he is finished but I haven't heard anything.
The four bag drip was supposed to take 45 minutes to complete and he was to be put to sleep for it and a nurse was going to be with him for the time.
I will post tonight about what happened.
Keep the prayers coming please!!!
-Natalie
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Friday, April 10, 2009
.....Easter at MD Anderson.....
So, I am here with my dad right now at MD Anderson. He was admitted last Sunday and began chemo on Monday.... so far so good!! He is in great spirits. Today is Good Friday and he has three more days of chemo... then on Tuesday he will get his transplant!!! Thus far (knock on wood and Thanks be to God) he has not gotten sick. He has called me about five or six times a day to tell me how he is doing and this morning at about 10:30 he was a little whacked out. But, he is okay now (and he is sitting next to me) that the chemicals have made their way through his system.
His room is HUGE and the nurses and staff are really taking great care of him. Tomorrow I think will be a bummer for him. Up until now he has had chemo (called Busulfan and Fludarabine) but tomorrow he will get this and ATG (the anti rejection drug for the transplant). I am so glad to be here with him. My mom went to Kerrville to unpack the boxes for their new place while he was here and being cared before. She will probably get back here tomorrow or Saturday. I know that she must be exhausted.
He has enjoyed playing with his new Ipod touch that my mom got him for his birthday (that is April 25th) and can get email, etc. on it. If you email him he will be able to read it on it. Right now he is listening to the Holy Rosary on it. Prayers from all of you have gotten him to this point and will get him through the transplant successfully. Thank-you very much to all of you!!!
God bless and Happy Easter!
He is risen! <3>
-Natalie
His room is HUGE and the nurses and staff are really taking great care of him. Tomorrow I think will be a bummer for him. Up until now he has had chemo (called Busulfan and Fludarabine) but tomorrow he will get this and ATG (the anti rejection drug for the transplant). I am so glad to be here with him. My mom went to Kerrville to unpack the boxes for their new place while he was here and being cared before. She will probably get back here tomorrow or Saturday. I know that she must be exhausted.
He has enjoyed playing with his new Ipod touch that my mom got him for his birthday (that is April 25th) and can get email, etc. on it. If you email him he will be able to read it on it. Right now he is listening to the Holy Rosary on it. Prayers from all of you have gotten him to this point and will get him through the transplant successfully. Thank-you very much to all of you!!!
God bless and Happy Easter!
He is risen! <3>
-Natalie
Friday, March 20, 2009
~*~*~*The Transplant Is ON!!!~*~*~*~
Once again, my apologies for not writing..... BUT.....
Well, after an emotional and up and down week full of doctor's appointments my dad has an OFFICIAL DATE!!!
This week he has had many routine appointments and LONG days at MD Anderson (sometimes more than 12 hour days) including transfusions, platelets, whole blood, potassium and magnesium drips, cat scans, bone marrow aspirations, dental appointments (to check out his teeth before the transplant), etc. etc. He is such a trooper, and my mom is right there by his side for all of this!
On Wednesday we had QUITE THE SCARE!! My dad's bone marrow initially showed that his cancer had returned and they were going to put him back in the hospital on Thursday to begin chemo immediately. BUT after the pathologist looked at his blood more closely (like one milliliter at a time counting his lymphocytes one at a time) they discovered that his bone marrow had not changed. THANK- GOODNESS, it was a very emotional day knowing that his transplant would be postponed yet again (and remembering all he went through since September when he had his last round of chemo we were all stressed!)
IF ALL GOES AS PLANNED AND GOD IS WILLING, he will go in on April the 5th to begin chemotherapy... they want to insure that he has no cancer hiding anywhere in his body... he will be really sick and out of it....pumped full of steroids (which make him really agressive) and other meds to keep him together. Then on April 12th he will have his infusion of bone marrow from the donor. It will be touch and go for lots of days as we wait to see if his body accepts or rejects its new DNA and bone marrow. Some people that my parents have met through this process report feeling wonderful immediately and some have been on the opposite end of that spectrum. In my heart I just know that he is going to feel great! From this point on he will be in a separate ward for thirty days healing and hopefully eating, walking and regaining his strength. Sometime after this he will be sent home ( my mom is getting another apartment in MD Anderson for this period of time ) and will have to return to MD Anderson (which will techinically be there home ) every other day for ???? I am not sure how long. ........
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE continue to pray for my dad! He needs all of our thoughts and prayers. His emotional state is at least half of this battle and thus far he is strong in this area thanks to God and all of our prayers! Please pray for my mother's strength, the donor's safety and health, the doctor's wisdom and knowledge and for his guardian angels (my sister Stephanie is one of them) to be with him at this scary and risky time.
God bless all of you..... Just so you know my dad refuses to look at this blog... he does not want to see the past and how he looked..... he wants to look toward the future....... if you would like to email him and don't know his address it is capt135a@yahoo.com I know that he would love to hear from you!
I will post again soo.... TTYL!!! :)
Well, after an emotional and up and down week full of doctor's appointments my dad has an OFFICIAL DATE!!!
This week he has had many routine appointments and LONG days at MD Anderson (sometimes more than 12 hour days) including transfusions, platelets, whole blood, potassium and magnesium drips, cat scans, bone marrow aspirations, dental appointments (to check out his teeth before the transplant), etc. etc. He is such a trooper, and my mom is right there by his side for all of this!
On Wednesday we had QUITE THE SCARE!! My dad's bone marrow initially showed that his cancer had returned and they were going to put him back in the hospital on Thursday to begin chemo immediately. BUT after the pathologist looked at his blood more closely (like one milliliter at a time counting his lymphocytes one at a time) they discovered that his bone marrow had not changed. THANK- GOODNESS, it was a very emotional day knowing that his transplant would be postponed yet again (and remembering all he went through since September when he had his last round of chemo we were all stressed!)
IF ALL GOES AS PLANNED AND GOD IS WILLING, he will go in on April the 5th to begin chemotherapy... they want to insure that he has no cancer hiding anywhere in his body... he will be really sick and out of it....pumped full of steroids (which make him really agressive) and other meds to keep him together. Then on April 12th he will have his infusion of bone marrow from the donor. It will be touch and go for lots of days as we wait to see if his body accepts or rejects its new DNA and bone marrow. Some people that my parents have met through this process report feeling wonderful immediately and some have been on the opposite end of that spectrum. In my heart I just know that he is going to feel great! From this point on he will be in a separate ward for thirty days healing and hopefully eating, walking and regaining his strength. Sometime after this he will be sent home ( my mom is getting another apartment in MD Anderson for this period of time ) and will have to return to MD Anderson (which will techinically be there home ) every other day for ???? I am not sure how long. ........
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE continue to pray for my dad! He needs all of our thoughts and prayers. His emotional state is at least half of this battle and thus far he is strong in this area thanks to God and all of our prayers! Please pray for my mother's strength, the donor's safety and health, the doctor's wisdom and knowledge and for his guardian angels (my sister Stephanie is one of them) to be with him at this scary and risky time.
God bless all of you..... Just so you know my dad refuses to look at this blog... he does not want to see the past and how he looked..... he wants to look toward the future....... if you would like to email him and don't know his address it is capt135a@yahoo.com I know that he would love to hear from you!
I will post again soo.... TTYL!!! :)
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
More GREAT news from the transplant doctor on Monday!
On Monday my dad had an appointment with his transplant doctor and he got more great news!!
He will have his transplant this month on either the 23rd or the 31st depending on when the donor can arrive. I am sure that next week he will have it scheduled!
He is feeling much better, is walking "everywhere" according to my mom.
Yesterday she called me when they were at the grocery store and she said that he was walking and pushing the cart and not in one of those skooters like he has been in the past!
What an accomplishment. I am going to visit them for the weekend and am looking forward to it!
I will post more details as they come available on his transplant.
PLEASE continue to pray for him - pray for his donor to have a safe journey and transplant procedure, pray for his doctors to have the wisdom to do what is right for my dad, pray for my mom to continue to have patience, rest and comfort in the Lord, pray for my dad's body to not reject the new bone marrow, for no side effects from the medications, for him to be free of any infections or viruses while in isolation (and afterwards), for his body to function as it has been (it has been very strong and has withstood A LOT), for his mind and spirit to remain focused on a positive outcome from this process and for comfort and peace for my dad while he endures this very long and risky procedure.
God bless all of you, thanks for caring and praying!
-Natalie- :)
He will have his transplant this month on either the 23rd or the 31st depending on when the donor can arrive. I am sure that next week he will have it scheduled!
He is feeling much better, is walking "everywhere" according to my mom.
Yesterday she called me when they were at the grocery store and she said that he was walking and pushing the cart and not in one of those skooters like he has been in the past!
What an accomplishment. I am going to visit them for the weekend and am looking forward to it!
I will post more details as they come available on his transplant.
PLEASE continue to pray for him - pray for his donor to have a safe journey and transplant procedure, pray for his doctors to have the wisdom to do what is right for my dad, pray for my mom to continue to have patience, rest and comfort in the Lord, pray for my dad's body to not reject the new bone marrow, for no side effects from the medications, for him to be free of any infections or viruses while in isolation (and afterwards), for his body to function as it has been (it has been very strong and has withstood A LOT), for his mind and spirit to remain focused on a positive outcome from this process and for comfort and peace for my dad while he endures this very long and risky procedure.
God bless all of you, thanks for caring and praying!
-Natalie- :)
Friday, February 20, 2009
CONTINUATION OF THE POST BELOW............
Okay so I messed up and didn't publish my last post. Sorry...
Hello everyone!
I am very sorry that it has been so long since I have posted, but things in the Fikac household have not slowed down quite yet and I definitely CANNOT WAIT until they do.
I have some great news to share about my father:
*Last week my parents came and spend Wednesday to Friday here. They stayed in a hotel (becuase our home is WAY TOO LOUD for him) and on Thursday my mom drove and picked up the boys so that they could spend the day with them. I am glad that they had that time together. I am so glad that he did not get sick from us since we all felt like crap and the flu is spreading like wildfire here.
*I was shocked by how great my dad looked, he was up and walking without a walker and it seemed odd to see him upright since I have not seen him this way in months.
*This past Tuesday my dad had an appointment with his leukemia doctor (who smiled for the first time for my dad's progress) and his sores are ALMOST COMPLETELY GONE!!!! Yeah for antibiotics!
*He is feeling MUCH BETTER, (though far from great) is laughing and smiling for the first time in months.
*Yesterday and today he drove!!!! I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS, my mom text messaged me in the middle of the day to tell me and I about passed out!
*On Thursday he had his appointment with his transplant doctor and he is now READY!!! The transplant doctor is now shooting for mid March and they have to contact the donor to get everything scheduled! Of course this is pending that he does not get sick between now and then.
*All of these things are truly a miracle! THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU for all your thoughts and prayers!
Until next time ,
Love and prayers!
-Natalie :)
Hello everyone!
I am very sorry that it has been so long since I have posted, but things in the Fikac household have not slowed down quite yet and I definitely CANNOT WAIT until they do.
I have some great news to share about my father:
*Last week my parents came and spend Wednesday to Friday here. They stayed in a hotel (becuase our home is WAY TOO LOUD for him) and on Thursday my mom drove and picked up the boys so that they could spend the day with them. I am glad that they had that time together. I am so glad that he did not get sick from us since we all felt like crap and the flu is spreading like wildfire here.
*I was shocked by how great my dad looked, he was up and walking without a walker and it seemed odd to see him upright since I have not seen him this way in months.
*This past Tuesday my dad had an appointment with his leukemia doctor (who smiled for the first time for my dad's progress) and his sores are ALMOST COMPLETELY GONE!!!! Yeah for antibiotics!
*He is feeling MUCH BETTER, (though far from great) is laughing and smiling for the first time in months.
*Yesterday and today he drove!!!! I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS, my mom text messaged me in the middle of the day to tell me and I about passed out!
*On Thursday he had his appointment with his transplant doctor and he is now READY!!! The transplant doctor is now shooting for mid March and they have to contact the donor to get everything scheduled! Of course this is pending that he does not get sick between now and then.
*All of these things are truly a miracle! THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU for all your thoughts and prayers!
Until next time ,
Love and prayers!
-Natalie :)
Saturday, February 7, 2009
~~~~PLEASE KEEP THE PRAYERS COMING!!~~~~
I once again apologize for not posting, but our lives at the Fikac household have been unbearably busy. A lot has happened since the last time that I wrote when I was at the hospital with my dad:
- When he got out of the hospital he was given three different types of antibiotics to take for the sores that are popping up on him from his blood infection from September. Yes the nasty bacteria and virus are still in his weakened system. One of the bug's name is Pseudomonus and I can't remember the name of the other one. Two of the meds are oral and one he has to give himself through his pickline.
- The two oral meds are Biaxin ( a strong MF - 800 mg twice a day ) and Levoquin ( the meds I had to take after my kidney infection that knocked me on my ....
- The one medicine he has to give himself is through his IV at 6 AM, 2 PM, and 10 PM which means that he has to wake himself up at these times.
- It takes about an hour for the infusion to drip.
- He was VERY sick for about 6 days due to these meds ... but FINALLY his body got used to them.
- They were some rough days there for a little while.. almost more than he thought that he could handle.
He has also been going to MD Anderson on Saturdays and Tuesdays for "Fast Track" blood work where he gets blood taken and then has to wait for the results and see if any of his meds need to change. The past two times he was givena magnesium drip for his infusion becuase of all of the antibiotics he is on.
On Thursday he went for more blood work, to see his transplant doc and his leukemia doc. He got bad news.... the leukemia is back..... which means that he had to start chemo again.
He had been in remission since his first chemo treatment in September but with all of the infections and set backs he was unable to take the oral chemo to keep the leukemia under wraps.
On Thursday he was given a chemotherapy infusion, some pain meds and more oral chemo to take daily and was sent home.
The doctor did not give him a good prognosis from all of this and it most definitely is not what he, my mom or I wanted to hear. He is having a difficult time staying positive. I know that my father is a Godly man and he will take whatever God has in store for him. But, he is not feeling well (and hasn't for a long time) and it has been wearing on him for so long now.
When I talked with him this morning he and my mom were at MD Anderson waiting for the blood work and he said he felt about 50%. Almost every day he tells me this... ranging from 40% to 60%. I know that he is sick and tired of being sick and tired. He was nauseous from the chemo and is not eating again. It was his last day for the IV meds so maybe he will be able to get some peaceful rest. The doc gave him some pain meds this AM for his leg pain - from the sores.
PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR HIM.... PRAY FOR PEACE.... PRAY FOR COMFORT....PRAY FOR HIM TO BE OF RIGHT MIND TO PRAY.... AND PRAY FOR A MIRACLE.... GOD GRANTED HIM A MIRACLE ONCE HE CAN DO IT AGAIN WITH THE HELP OF OUR PRAYERS....I WANT MY DAD TO GET STRONGER EACH DAY AND I WANT HIM TO GET THE TRANSPLANT AND BE CANCER FREE.....
God bless all of you.....
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