Hey guys, it is the wife this time, but thought you would appreciate an update.
Jerek is continuing to do well with his treatment. His worse side effect at the moment is hiccups. Night sweats are a symptom of the leukemia and have been bothersome since he got sick a few weeks ago. Hopefully as the chemo wipes the cancer out of his body the night sweats will improve. Apparently the steroids can affect his blood sugar levels. Since he is on such a strong dose of steroids at the moment, his blood sugar levels are staying high. He now has to have his blood sugar checked 4 times a day and receive insulin shots. The chemo drug he was supposed to receive today can affect the pancreas and cause pancreatitis. They checked is pancreas levels yesterday and they were already elevated. They then did a CT scan of his pancreas. It showed that his pancreas was already a little inflamed. Since he doesn’t have any pain or symptoms, they determined it is probably something he has had for a while. They were not comfortable giving him the chemo drug since he already had elevated levels and inflammation. His levels did decrease from yesterday to today, but they were still high compared to normal. It is a one-time drug, so the doctors said they would continue to monitor his pancreas levels and if they continue to come down they may give him the drug next week.
The kids got to come visit us again yesterday. As long as they do not get sick, they will be allowed to visit. Hopefully every Sunday and Thursday they will be able to come. Thank you for the continued support and prayers. We have survived our first week in the hospital and will continue to take things one day at a time.
Jerek is continuing to do well with his treatment. His worse side effect at the moment is hiccups. Night sweats are a symptom of the leukemia and have been bothersome since he got sick a few weeks ago. Hopefully as the chemo wipes the cancer out of his body the night sweats will improve. Apparently the steroids can affect his blood sugar levels. Since he is on such a strong dose of steroids at the moment, his blood sugar levels are staying high. He now has to have his blood sugar checked 4 times a day and receive insulin shots. The chemo drug he was supposed to receive today can affect the pancreas and cause pancreatitis. They checked is pancreas levels yesterday and they were already elevated. They then did a CT scan of his pancreas. It showed that his pancreas was already a little inflamed. Since he doesn’t have any pain or symptoms, they determined it is probably something he has had for a while. They were not comfortable giving him the chemo drug since he already had elevated levels and inflammation. His levels did decrease from yesterday to today, but they were still high compared to normal. It is a one-time drug, so the doctors said they would continue to monitor his pancreas levels and if they continue to come down they may give him the drug next week.
The kids got to come visit us again yesterday. As long as they do not get sick, they will be allowed to visit. Hopefully every Sunday and Thursday they will be able to come. Thank you for the continued support and prayers. We have survived our first week in the hospital and will continue to take things one day at a time.