Hello everyone,

I want to start by thanking everyone for their support and encouragement through this trying time. I've got lots of updates so; I'll start by letting you all know how her second cycle of chemo went, her follow-up, and the results we got today.

Genevieve's second cycle of chemo was different from the first. She was not nearly as emotional though still a bit sporadic at times. She barely ate anything other than milk for the first 9 days of her cycle, but on day 10 it was like she flipped a switch and decided she was hungry. We didn't get a bunch of junk food for her this time around, though she has taken a liking to popsicles. She did not eat much breakfast during this cycle and hasn't cared for her oatmeal until this past week. We are so glad her second cycle is over, and she is starting to return to her regular habits.

Genevieve's second cycle ended on Wednesday, April 11th, and the past week has been much better. I was mistaken in a previous post when I said she would have a follow-up MRI; it was a CT scan. So, we had her CT scan on Friday the 12th, and that was by far the most challenging appointment she has had. They said it was because of the anesthesia, but she just felt terrible for several hours and was kicking, screaming, and fighting. As frustrating as it was- it was nice to see the fight in her.

Today, we got the results back from the CT scan. Genevieve's CT scan came back cancer FREE, so she is in full remission! Thank you, God. Dr. Meeker said all of her counts look good or close to good and trending well. She did lose a bit more weight this cycle than she did the first cycle, and she did not recover as much weight before today, but she is still at a good weight at a little over 27 pounds.

Unfortunately, there is a build-up of fluid where the tumor was, which could be blood, fluid, or bile. Dr. Meeker said it's most likely not bile (which would cause sepsis) because she would have some symptoms like a fever. Since she has no symptoms and her blood-work looks good Dr. Meeker said it might just be a build-up of drainage from her surgery. So, we will have to watch that and should know more about what they would like to do sometime late next week after Dr. Meeker has had a chance to review these findings with Dr. Klima. Basically, if it stays the same, or gets larger, there will be another operation of some kind. Otherwise, if it is getting smaller, they will let it go away on its own. 

So, except for this fluid buildup we have to keep an eye on, Genevieve is cancer free and switching to quarterly check-ups! WOO-HOO! Although we're not out of the woods yet, this is a HUGE step forward and a welcome relief. She will still be immunosuppressed until about June 17th. So with the exception of the BGF Fun Run on May 5th, we will still be laying low and avoiding lots of people until Baby Ashton's first birthday.