Update on “The ‘C’ Word …
Posted by: Devyl GyrlI’m at the hospital with C & S right now. S is resting well, completely unaware that anything is wrong.
C gave me a little more info, so I thought I’d update here, for anyone who may be interested in knowing. Right now, we don’t know what stage the cancer is in. It is definitely a hepatoblastoma, which is a cancer of the liver.
Here’s a brief synopsis of what the “stages” are:
What are the different stages of childhood liver cancer?
Staging is the process of determining whether cancer has spread and, if so, how far. There are various staging symptoms that are used for hepatoblastoma. Always consult your child’s physician for information on staging. One method of staging hepatoblastoma is the following:
- stage I - usually a tumor that can be completely removed with surgery.
- stage II - usually a tumor that can mostly be removed by surgery but very small amounts of the cancer are left in the liver.
- stage III - usually a tumor that cannot be completely removed and the cancer cells are found in the lymph nodes.
- stage IV - cancer that has spread (metastasized) to other parts of the body
recurrent - the disease has returned after it has been treated. It may come back in the liver or in another part of the body.
Stage I, obviously, is what we are praying S has … it would mean that the surgery (Sunday or Monday, if all continues to go well) could put an end to ALL of this. We’d still have to have her monitored, of course …but she may not need chemotherapy (which is rough on adults, so you can imagine what it’ll be like for an infant!).
As of now, the mass is 5 centimeters. That is, roughly, the size of a golf ball.
The levels I mentioned in my last post, by the way, were “AFP,” or Alpha-fetaprotein levels.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We are very grateful to have such a wonderful, extended circle of family and friends.
xoxo
Tags: AFP, alpha-fetaprotein, baby, cancer, family, hepatoblastoma
August 4th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
I wish I had your number so as to check up on you guys. I have just read this - I am devastated. I doubt the emotion is of use to Christy, but if you think she would at all appreciate it, please convey. Additionally, please call if you can - 0000000000. I travel back and forth so much that I may be able to help get you or anyone to Pcola or back, or even offer a place to stay (I live downtown) as I have 2 unused bedrooms with beds. I am serious about wanting to help if I can, especially with transport and accomodation, even babysitting, if needed, when I am in town.
How awful. I know nothing else to say.
August 6th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
i am not a religious person, but i do believe in the power of “prayer”, sending thoughts into the universe. i will send good thoughts and good vibes for the baby and for the family to make it through this with the best possible outcome. my heart is aching for this family i have never met and for this little life brought into the world with such a tough battle to fight right off the bat. i wish there were more i could do. good luck to all involved.
Andromeda’s last blog post..VAY-CAY!
August 8th, 2008 at 12:53 am
Kris -
I did pass on your message, because of my OWN personal beliefs where family is concerned. I always give C the option of ignoring or using everything I give her.
Her only response for now (and maybe, ever) was, “Tell her thank you.” So, thank you from her.
And, thank you from me. I will try to call you in the next couple of days. If you text, you’re welcome to text me back instead of calling back. And, you know where I work - that’s where I’ll be every M-F from 9-5 unless I *have* to be out for anything in particular.
xo
Oh - and I edited your comment to take out the phone number so it wouldn’t be posted on an open forum
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Andromeda -
Thank you. Your prayers, your thoughts, your words .. they mean a lot to me. I love being able to reach out to my social networks and receive such positive reinforcement and such strength. You are wonderful …
And, you’ve made me realize I need to post a pic of the little one so you, and everyone else praying and rooting for her, can see. I’ll do that soon.
Or did I do that in the blog already? Jeez - I’m going insane! I’ll do it again, even if I already have. AND I’ll post an update sometime tomorrow with the “latest”.
*hugs* Thank you again.
August 9th, 2008 at 4:01 am
More prayers from here Angeles….