The Fergus Times: Off-Treatment Edition

Fergus and 16 week old Teague; October 11th


Welcome to our page about Fergus. Here you can learn about his challenges with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) and also about what's happening in his life. For details about his diagnosis, see the journal entry from December 24, 2004. Fergus has completed all of his treatment--induction, consolidation, delayed intensification, intensive continuation, and continuation. He took his last dose of chemotherapy on June 27th, and was officially off treatment June 28, 2007. His prognosis is good, with a high chance for a cure, but it will be years before we can relax and call him cured. Thanks for checking on us!

Journal

Sunday, October 19, 2008 7:24 AM CDT

I will attempt this bimonthly update, despite the 27 pounds of puppy that keeps smashing into my leg as he chases his squeaky squirrel.

We are well. Fergus had his regular visit on Thursday, and his counts were fine. Lower than in August, but well within normal. He is now 16 months off treatment. We had a few worries in September--a couple of times he was almost in tears with bad leg pain, some uglier than normal bruises, a loose tooth that seemed to bleed more than the others when it fell out. I called our nurses a few times, and they offered to check his counts sooner, but we elected to wait until his regular visit. I was quite relieved to see his counts. I realized that--for arbitrary reasons--I most feared relapse between 14 and 16 months. Doesn't mean I won't worry anymore, or that the possibility of relapse isn't there, but at least we have passed that threshold.

We were busy in September, starting our homeschool programs and classes again, training Teague the puppy, and even traveling a little. I went to Portland ME twice; once alone for work, and once with the family for some continuing education. Rob and I stole a delightful grown-up weekend in Seattle, flying out for Michael's 40th birthday. We stayed in a somewhat posh hotel downtown, took the bus around, and visited many of our favorite places. Gram and Grampy came to Vermont and stayed with the kids--thank you to them for making the weekend work out! I was also supposed to travel to Banff for my semi-annual Veterinary Leadership Group meeting, but my back had other ideas. About an hour before leaving for the airport, it seized up on me, and I was in bed for three days. I did my usual rest, ice, and anti-inflammatories, but 10 days later I was still in pain and walking like an ancient person. Fortunately, I finally found a good chiropractor and I am doing better now than I did all summer. The best part of feeling better is getting to resume long walks with Teague--our woods and roads are so beautiful right now we are all having a great time getting him the exercise he needs.

Last week was a little rough on us as a family--my back was still seized up, Rob's mom Isabel fell and broke a few ribs (puncturing a lung), my dad (Grampy) is undergoing radiation for prostate cancer, and our beloved cat Ocho was killed by a car. I think I was extra-worried about Fergus' appointment because we seemed to be having such a bad stretch. Ocho was one of the cats we adopted during Fergus' first year of treatment. When Fergus was scared of his fingersticks, he would hold Ocho on his lap while the nurse did the poke. That's the way he gradually became calmer and less afraid. Ocho was bold and outgoing with a tremendously loud purr. He loved all of us, and loved Daisy, and had grown to love Teague as well. We were pretty distraught when he died--he was only three, and the suddenness of a car accident shocked the kids in particular. However, as kids will do, they processed their grief quickly and really wanted to get another cat. So...we now have a little black kitten running around. Rob and I have petitioned for many cool names, but Fergus is a loyalist. The humane society called the kitten "Spooky," so it seems that we are calling him that as well. (Note--Rob and I eventually found a name Fergus could accept, and the kitten is actually Mole', as in the sauce.)

This week is a much happier week around here. Fergus checked out fine, Mole' is entertaining us, Grandma is home from the hospital, and Grampy can see the end of his radiation approaching. My back is almost pain-free, and I can pivot and turn and even sit down again. Rob was up all night coughing, so a cold may be bearing down on us all, but that we can handle.

Our homeschooling plans are evolving and shifting a little. Norah is doing the Maplehill farm program that Fergus did last year; he opted out, but she loves going every week. They are taking fiddle again, and gymnastics, and Fergus is attending his weekly Dark Knights Comics Club at the library. We are doing math a little more regularly, now that we know Fergus learns math better if he practices more often. In his delightful, imaginative way, he has made math more "like art." He uses paints, based on a code he created, and he paints the problems the color of the answer. I am happy he's enjoying it, and it makes for some cool looking pages. Rob and I are still working out whether homeschooling is a sustainable option for us as a family. I yielded to his worries enough to attend an open house at a local independent school, and was surprised by how much I liked it. I will be going back Wednesday to watch a day in action, and see if I can imagine our kids there. I'm not sure yet if I'm just making sure there is an alternative if Rob decides he can't homeschool anymore, or if I am looking to proactively place them in school. Even if I really like the school--because it is as close to homeschooling as any school around here--making the tuition work will be difficult. Homeschooling is much cheaper!

It might be December before I update again, if I wait for our next visit (December 11th, I think). We will have made our homeschooling decision, selected our next president (we are still an optimistic Obama family), celebrated Thanksgiving, and survived the 4th anniversary of Fergus' diagnosis. And I'm sure we will have snow. Wishing you all a peaceful and joyful fall. Thanks for checking in after all this time.

Counts going backward in time:

WBC= 5490(8130,5610,6820,6350,8260,7320,5090,5200,4850)
Hgb= 12.3(13,12.5,12.4,12.5,13.2,13,12.5,12.8,12.4)
Platelets=251K(199K,216K,249K,clmpd,253K,264K,219K,201K,201K)
ANC= 3200(5350,3520,3720,4370,5390,4758,2950,3240,3030)

Read Journal History

Hospital Information:

Vermont Children's Hospital/FAHC
111 Colchester Ave
Burlington VT 05401
1-802-847-2850

Links:

E-mail Author: peckschoolhouse@gmail.com