Hospital Stay Update

Elena's third day in the hospital is coming to a close. She has finished her 36 hours of high dose Methotrexate and has received 16 out of 36 hours of post-hydration fluids. She has endured 3 nose bleeds, one of which was attended to by 3 of the local clowns in the area. Don't you love children's hospitals!

She has also had her ph levels checked twice.  After having such a high dose of chemo, the ph level of her blood has to be checked - too high or too low can be a problem. At the 42 hour check, her level was .54.  At the 48 hr check, it was .24.  It needs to be below .1 to go home.  So far the levels are dropping as expected - praise God! Please pray that Elena's levels  continue to drop to where they need to be in order to prevent any side effects from the Methotrexate. 

Other than the three nose bleeds and a loss of appetite, Elena has handled everything well so far. 

However, in the four hours we have been trying to write this post, Elena spiked a fever.
They have already drawn blood for cultures and started her on an antibiotic.  Not only will Elena's ph levels have to continue to drop, but she will have to be fever free for 24 hours before she can go home.  Please join us in praying for these things!

This afternoon, we were happy to have a visit all the way from La. from Uncle Patrick (Mark's brother), Aunt Angie, and cousin Stephen.  Stephen is in town playing in a baseball tournament.  We enjoyed walking around the hospital with tour guide Elena, being outside, and pizza and movie night together.



We will update again tomorrow.
Thank you for your prayers.

In Him,
The Tates

"Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord."  Psalm 27:14