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As many of you know, Cooper was diagnosed with cancer last year in February. He had a successful surgery that removed the tumor at M D Anderson in Houston, Texas within 2 weeks of his diagnosis. He followed up quarterly in Memphis with blood tests to ensure that the cancer had not spread. In March of 2021 we returned to M D Anderson for our one year check up. Much to our surprise, the CT scan and blood work revealed that the cancer had indeed spread to his lymph nodes in his abdomen. Within a day or two he checked into M D Anderson and began chemotherapy. He stayed in the hospital for the first five days of chemo so that they could monitor him. Bubba and I were unable to go into the hospital with him due to the need to safeguard the immunocompromised patients from being exposed to Covid 19. He handled it swimmingly. Once he was released, he had a few days off before one day of outpatient chemo, followed by a few days off and one more outpatient treatment. This has been his regimen since March. We will continue this regimen through June 11. Since starting chemo, he has had one CT scan after the first round and it revealed that the tumor had already shrunk dramatically. His bloodwork had shown his immune system to be strong. All in all, he has handled the chemo well. It is making him extremely tired and he sleeps quite a bit. I don't recall ever actually being able to watch him sleep as a toddler, but I am enjoying the chance to get to now. He is often too tired to respond to us with anything but a thumbs up and responding to texts is not a thing some days.
We have been so fortunate to have wonderful friends in Houston who have helped us navigate our stay in a new city. Furnished apartments were hard to come by initially as so many people were dislocated from their homes due to the recent power outages from the unusual snowstorm and recent flooding. Our friends mentioned our need for a place to stay to one of their friends who immediately offered us their home. This overwhelming act of generosity has made this stay feel so much more like being home away from home. Needless to say, our angels that we did not know have become our dear friends. In May, our apartment became available so we moved from the home to the apartment. One of us tries to fly home on the weekend for a few days to connect with Ella, Bailey and our families. When Cooper has a break and feels up to it, we fly him home as well. On the homefront, dear friends and family have taken turns moving in and running the household without missing a beat. Ella has been more entertained than she has ever been. We facetime every night to talk over the day and say our prayers together. We feel we are the most fortunate family. We have the most wonderful friends, family, and even strangers. Our son is strong physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. He has an immensely positive, calm attitude and it is this that grants us a positive, calm attitude. We are blessed to be at M D Anderson and so fortunate that Bubba and I can both be with him in Houston for the duration of his treatment, without our friends and family we would not be able to do so. We are thankful for our faith, we trust His plan and know that He holds us in the palm of His hand. He will get us through this. Thank you all for your continued prayers, love, and support.
We traveled to MDAnderson with Cooper on July 7 & 8. He had his CT scan to check the result of the chemotherapy. It showed only the tiniest scar. The scar may or may not have a tumor, it is too small to tell. He will have scans every three months to check to see if it goes away, stays the same, or grows. The doctor said that this news is excellent and that the chemo did everything that it was suppose to do. He traveled back the following week to have his port removed.
For now he is resting at home but he is anxious to get back to Arkansas to take a class and live with people his own age. While he still tires easily and has to take things at a slower pace, he is getting stronger every day.
We are so thankful that God has answered our prayers and we pray the he continues to be healthy. Thank you for keeping him and us in your prayers.
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