Hey Macie

Joey is Stage II, intermediate like we had hoped and prayed for. It is really probably the best news we could have gotten at this point. The good things were of course the stage II, no tumors below his diaphragm, and even though one of the 3 larger tumors in his chest is 1/2 as large as his chest!!! he has had no respiratory distress. This is all very good news.


He can start chemo Monday. Three consecutive days of chemo in the hospital, four days at home with injections, another day of chemo then about 2 weeks to recover and then repeat, assuming his counts come up and he stays healthy. With this type of cancer the chemo regimen is fairly intensive. Radiation is after all chemo treatments are done. Joey will probably be in a study (clinical trial) where he may or may not get radiation - we'll deal with that later. Chemo starts Monday October 22, 8 a.m. We have a "research" consult tomorrwo 8 a.m. where we sign off on the study. Then he goes to see a doctor about a "support therapy" at 1:30. Thursday he has 2 appointments in the medical center (11 and 1) and then Friday we have the second opinion 8 a.m. at Texas Children's. So he will be busy but most of these appointments are just talk stuff (the ones he really hates).


The down side of chemo of course are the side effects. Some of the more common for his particular treatment regimen and drug combo are hair loss, nausea, irritability which means he may snap at you or act pretty surly but it is the medication - you are really gonna have to remember that and not take somethings he says personally. He will also probably have mouth sores, weight gain - which is why his calories need to be healthy calories not empty calories (like coke and candy), mood swings, fatigue, skin color changes and then there are some others that aren't as common. Most of these will correct themselves when he is done with the chemo. The upside to chemo is it will kill the cancer! Macie these side affects are the the toughest thing to deal with. You may need to talk to me some more about them - I think Joey is trying really hard NOT to think about them. Some of the support therapies I am trying to get him into will hopefully minimize them. Give me a call if you need to.

The supportive therapies I am checking into are enzyme, acupuncture, and pshyconeuroimmounology . The doctor said all are fine and they can only help. We just gotta fit them in. Guess that gives me something to do this week.

Our hope, now, is that the tumors are readily responsive to the treatment. This means they react to the chemo and go away.

You are so sweet to keep up but don't feel like you have to bear all of this on your own, talk to God, your mom, me, Joey, your sisters, your friends - that kind of support is what faith, family and community is about. Without those none of us would make it.

Call when you need to