Sunday, January 21, 2007

Chemo--Day 3

Me again.

Jeff sailed through day 3 of chemotherapy. No chills, no shaking--he took it like a champ! He had a restless night of sleep though. The nurse told us that the Interleukin-2 (Proleukin) can make patients jittery, anxious, and restless, so this, coupled with the fact that Jeff has slept for the past three days, caused him to be awake most of the night. However, he is sleeping very well now and will definitely make up for it by sleeping most of the day, I'm sure.

The only other thing that is at all noteworthy is that he had a big drop in blood pressure last night (it was 75/47). He ate a hot fudge sundae from McDonald's and it immediately went back up to the normal range. So, I guess McDonalds isn't all bad and their blood-pressure-raising food can have a therepeutic effect in the right context!

Otherwise, we are waiting for the doctor to make his rounds and check on Jeff. In the meantime, we are also waiting for the results of a blood test to determine the amount of "creatinine" in Jeff's blood. This will determine to what extent, if any, Jeff's kidneys have been affected by the Cisplatin chemotherapy drug. Cisplatin is derived from platinum and I guess your kidneys get all offended when they have to clean platinum out of your system. If the blood tests show that Jeff's kidneys are having a hard time, the doctor will decide how to handle the next (and last) administration of Cisplatin tonight.

Also, just for fun, I'm including a link about the Groshong Catheter. http://www.cc.nih.gov/ccc/patient_education/pepubs/groshong.pdf This is the tube they placed in Jeff on Day 1 before they started the chemo. I found out yesterday that the tubes are actually threaded to/through Jeff's heart! Yikes! I'm glad I didn't know that before they took him downstairs to have it installed. I would have been a lot more concerned. Oh well. This is a good example of "what you don't know, can't hurt you." He's doing fine and experiencing no pain or adverse effects from the catheter whatsoever.

Finally, I now have access to our new medial apartment. It is very nice and the accommodations will be perfect for our needs. So, our new address in Houston is:

8181 Fannin, #2514
Houston, Texas 77054

We will not be there on a regular basis until Jeff is released from the hospital on either the 23rd or 24th. I don't have a phone number yet. I will likely be getting Jeff a cell phone later this week. Right now we share my cell phone that I use for work, so I would like him to have one of his own that he can use all the time here in Houston. When I have a phone number, I'll let you know. You can always contact me directly by e-mail, as well, at kellymdodd@juno.com I check this account often. If you have been e-mailing Jeff directly, he has been getting those messages. I check his accounts for him everyday and read his messages to him. I also read him all of your blog comments and the guestbook entries on the familyfund site. It is the highlight of his day (next to talking to his kids, of course!). Although he did enjoy that hot fudge sundae quite a bit . . .

The prayers are working. Keep it up! We need each and every one of you!

Love, Kelly

7 comments:

Terri said...

Yes, I am finally the first one on the comment page!!! I am so glad to hear that Jeff is doing better. It really is uplifting to hear how well he is doing. I am not sure I could be that strong, last night I got sick (puking sick) and all I could think about was Jeff and how stong he must have to be because I was a baby and I'm sure Jeff would rather be in my situation any day and so his journey i'm sure is not only changing the way he looks at life and will live life but his journey also effects the way other people will now look at life, even their own lives. It makes things we once thought were a huge deal not so big. It's also amazing how one man's journey can have such a huge impact on other people all over the place. Jeff you are an inspiration to us all, keep up the fight!!

aubrey kate said...

Hi Mom and Dad! Things are going great here at home! I learned to knit really well and I'm teaching regan how to knot too! I love u guys and miss u a lot!
Lot's of Love,
Aubrey Kate

teasley_5 said...

Jeff, you are quite the trooper! We are very happy to hear that the prayers are working and you are doing well. We will continue to pray for good test results for your kidneys. Reading this on a daily basis really does put the rest of our lives in perspective!
Love,
The Teasley's
PS-It's good to know that McD's is good for something!

ksmith said...

Kelly and Jeff,
Amazing seems to be the word that I think of when I read your posts. You are both amazing people. I can't imagine the trial this is for you. Please know that there are many people in our church praying for you. We lifted your name today! Stay strong. You are in the best place you can be. God brought you to it, He will bring you through it!
Kara Smith

mka said...

I have a card to send Jeff, so let me know when you'll be at the apartment, and I will mail it. I just watched "Super Size Me" the other night. Maybe that's why they have a McDonalds in the hospital. It raises peoples blood pressure and fattens them up. I'm glad to hear Jeff is doing so well. Love, Mom

Michelle & Jeff said...

Hey guys! Terri's message made me laugh because the day Jeff had his temperature induced I had a temperature of 103. All I could think about was Jeff, too. I did a show that night and thought of you the whole time. You were my inspiration and kept me going. You're making us all stronger!!!
Love you both,
Michelle

Rita said...

Dear Kelly and Jeff
It was so good to talk to you last night Kelly. I know it eased your Dad's mind just hearing your voice. We were glad to hear that things are going so well at home. We miss you all and cannot pray enough for strength for all of you. Jeff keep up the fight. We love you Rick and Rita