Day - 5

Happy Friday Night from Room 3206!

First, we are praising God for an answered prayer! We had a peace filled, restful, no GI issues night!!

We are also celebrating that today was Elena's last day of radiation.  While we are thankful these treatments have come to an end, we will miss the two wonderful men who have taken such great care of Elena the past four days.  Kevin and Colton are amazing radiation technicians. They are experts in their field, kind, compassionate, and fun. Who would ever think you would associate the word radiation with the word fun!?  During each session, Kevin and Colton made Elena feel at ease and less nervous.  Elena looked forward to seeing them each day.  Kevin took care of us each morning and Colton took care of us in the evening.  We are thankful that God placed them in our lives and we look forward to seeing them again when we are able to visit and celebrate Elena leaving the hospital.

Elena and Kevin

Colton and Elena

In between our early morning, late evening radiology appointments, Elena had physical therapy, two doctor visits, rested, dealt with a few side effects, visited with her nurses, listened to music, and enjoyed a surprise visit from our friends, Shannon and Dave.  They are in town for a wedding.  It made Elena happy to be able to hang out with them. They even escorted her to her last radiation appointment.

Thank you for continuing to pray for Elena.  Please pray for her current side effects to subside. They are dry mouth, headaches, stomach aches, not being able to really taste anything, and fatigue.  Despite dealing with all of this, once again Elena completed all of her daily jobs and walked to each radiation appointment.  Praise God for her strength and determination!

What's next?
Tomorrow, Elena will receive the first of three high dose chemo treatments.  She will receive two different chemo drugs over the next three days. She will also receive a drug that will help protect her bladder while receiving the chemo.  All drugs will be administered through her central line.

The next three days of treatment are designed to do the same thing the radiation was used for - to kill any cancer cells remaining in Elena's body and to help prepare Elena's body to receive the new, healthy blood stem cells. It will also destroy Elena's own bone marrow cells so that they will not fight off or reject the new, healthy cells. By killing these cells, there will also be more room in the bone for the new cells.

As always, please pray that these drugs will do the job they are designed to do and that any side effects will be kept to a minimum.

In Him,
The Tates

"In Him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in His holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you."
Psalm 33:21-22

Day -6

Today has certainly been a different kind of day!

Overnight, Elena experienced terrible GI trouble and needed three different medications to help control the side effects and pain.  After we got all of that under control, Elena went over to the regular Aflac inpatient floor and had her "conscious sedation" bone marrow aspirate. We are thankful that our prayers were answered and Elena's bone marrow aspirate this morning went well. We will not receive the results of this test.  It was done only as a part of the research study protocol to help determine the new drug's ability to mobilize the leukemia cells in Elena's body.

In the tunnel on the way to radiation this morning.

(Sorry for the bad cell phone picture)

After this procedure, Elena was sacked out!  She was taken to radiation on a stretcher with respiratory and heart rates monitored.  She seemed "conscious", but later this afternoon, we found out that she doesn't remember much of the day!  We got back to the room around 9:00 am and Elena went right to sleep. She was very tired, a little nauseous, and had a sore throat and dry mouth. She slept until almost 4:00 pm!! 

When Elena woke up, she was her bright, happy, cheerful self.  We were so happy to see that!!  She worked on completing her daily jobs and listened to some music.  At 6:00 pm, she walked to radiation for her sixth treatment. Only two more treatments to go!  Praise God!

After radiation, we enjoyed visiting with two of her  fabulous nurses, doing a little more room decorating, completing all of her daily jobs, and walking some laps with a new friend in the BMT unit.  Elena's appetite is still suppressed.  Today she has only had some grits, a few bites of cereal, and applesauce.  Her throat hurts and she says nothing tastes right.

Maggie and Elena

Elena and Ashley

Elena is now back to sleep. Praying for a peace filled, restful night with NO GI issues!
Please also pray for her last two radiation treatments and that the new drug is doing the job it was designed to do. Praising God that we are surrounded by Christian nurses and staff!

Thank you for praying and for not letting us fight this alone!

In Him,
The Tates

"Look to the Lord and His strength, seek His face always."
Psalm 105:4

Day -7

Another day in Room 3206 is coming to an end.
This morning, we woke up at 5:00 am for our 5:15 walk to Winship. Radiation went well and we were back in the room around 6:30. After radiation, Elena has been tired and has a headache. So, just like yesterday, we went back to sleep around 8:30 and slept until after 11:00.
Elena has also started to experience the side effects from the radiation - fatigue, nausea, dry mouth and decreased appetite. Despite this, she is still getting all of her jobs done without any complaints. This evening, she redesigned her daily jobs chart with stickers. It looks great and matches her "beach" theme room. It has been fun decorating and making the room feel more like home.

Our schedule for tomorrow will be a little different.
We will be waking up at 5:00 am again, but this time Elena will be having a bone marrow aspirate at 6:30 am and radiation will follow that. The bone marrow aspirate is a part of the research protocol and has to happen six hours after Elena is given the new "mobilizing" agent. She will receive that drug at midnight tonight. Due to logistics, Elena will not be completely sedated for the BMA. She will have what they call a "conscious sedation". Please pray that Elena will not experience any pain during the procedure and that she will be filled with peace and not worry.

Please also pray that this new drug will do its job. That it will move any remaining cancer cells out and into the bone marrow and blood stream, so that it will be entirely wiped out by the radiation and chemo to come.

Please continue to pray for the ultimate goal:

• that the BMT would be effective in defeating leukemia once and for all and bring complete healing to Elena

and

• that Elena would be protected from the possible long-term side effects of this treatment that would be harmful to her
  

This afternoon, Elena walked with Sarah and they decorated Elena's door window.

It was special to be able to spend this time with Sarah and her mom because today they were discharged to the Ronald McDonald House. Praise God that Sarah is doing so well after her stem cell transplant that she is able to make this transition! We are so very grateful that our time here at Egleston overlapped if even for a little while. Please continue to pray for Sarah and her family.

While out and about on the floor this evening, we met two new families. We all have different stories, but we are all here fighting for the same thing, a cure for our children.

Tonight, we are going to bed thankful for having great friends and for making new ones.

In Him,
The Tates

Day -8

In an earlier post, we described the transplant timeline. Today is Day -8 on the transplant timeline. The days before transplant are the negative days. Transplant is Day 0, and then the first 100+ days after transplant are counted.  We are going to follow this timeline as we post.

The past 24 hours here have been filled with answered prayers.  We are counting our blessings.

Overall, we had a good night.
Radiation went well.
We were able to get plenty of rest after radiation.
Elena is eating well and getting all of her jobs done.
We walked laps twice with our friends, Heather and Sarah.
The staff here is amazing.

Many praises and things to be thankful for!


After a 5:00 am wake-up call, we walked underground to Winship.  Thank you to those of you who told us you were up "walking with us in prayer".  Even in the tunnel, we knew we weren't alone!

 On our long walk this morning.

We will do it again at 7:15 tonight.

 Elena in place ready to go.

After about 15 minutes on this side, she rolls over

and then does another 15 minutes on the other side.

 The sign on the door to the treatment room.

The door is about three feet thick.

 When we returned from radiation,

this was the view from the little window

in our hospital room.

God's love shining brightly.

Currently, Elena is receiving IV fluids and another IV medication, an anti-coagulant. This medication is being used as a precaution to help keep Elena's blood thin and flowing since Elena is considered high risk for veno-occlusive disease (VOD) of the liver.  She had this disease in April of 2010 and her liver appears irritated heading into transplant. They are also giving her two oral medications to help strengthen her liver. Please pray that these meds will do their job and that Elena will NOT get VOD.

One wonderful part of our day was meeting all of the members of Elena's medical team. Each staff member has been friendly, positive, and upbeat.  They are all so very knowledgeable in their area of expertise and have taken the time to clearly explain things.

Today, between the hours of 12:00 and 5:00 pm, we met two doctors, the nurse practitioner, the nutritionist, the respiratory therapist, the physical therapist, the school teacher, and the child life specialist.  It has been a little busy around here this afternoon!

We have also been blessed with two wonderful nurses.  Each one has taken their time to get to know Elena and listen to her.  There are genuinely interested in her as a person and not only as a patient. 

Before going into radiation today, Maggie, our night nurse, asked Elena what was one thing she was thankful for.  Elena was already scared and nervous about radiation today. She quickly responded that she was thankful that both of us could be with her for her first radiation session. Maggie wanted to make sure Elena knew that no matter what is going on, you always have something to be thankful for.  Later in the morning, she left a note for Elena . Part of it said  "Cultivating gratitude for what is and having faith in what's to come...that is what joy is all about. Choose joy every single day and you will be home before you know it."

Praying that tonight, you have something to be thankful for and that you choose joy.
We are!

In Him,
The Tates

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning, great is your faithfulness."

Lamentations 3:22-23

Day -9

It's official!  Elena has been admitted into the Bone Marrow Transplant unit at Egleston.  We found out around 5:30 this evening, as we waited anxiously for the results of Elena's liver enzyme test, that her numbers have gone down sightly and we are able to proceed as planned.  Praise God!
So, the rest of our evening will be spent unloading the car, unpacking, and settling in our room.

The only thing scheduled for tomorrow, Day -8, is two sessions of radiation.  The first one at 5:30 am! If you are an early riser, pray for us as our nurse will be escorting us through tunnels to the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory at 5:15 am.

So thankful for all of the prayers!  Keep them coming!

In Him,
The Tates

Ending tonight with verses from our friend Stacee.
This morning she told us that this was her prayer for us today:

"May He give you the desires of your heart and make all your plans succeed. We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift our banners in the name of God.  May the Lord grant all your requests."
Psalm 20:4-5

We are claiming these verses throughout Elena's BMT!

We Are Loved

We are feeling the love and counting our blessings as our Five Fab Days are coming to a close.

These days have filled our hearts with joy.  God answered our prayers by giving us fun filled days that passed by slowly.  We are blessed to have so many people praying for us.
Thank you for the calls, blog comments, texts, cards, and emails telling us you care, you believe, and you are there for us.  These acts of love mean so much to us!  They let us know that we are not alone and they are reminders of God's great love for each of us.

This weekend we continued our fabulous days of fun with the help from friends. They gave us the gifts of rest, laughter, love, friendship, and more.

Friday night, we enjoyed a wonderful date night - homemade appetizer, dinner and dessert provided!

Saturday, we spent the afternoon and evening at the lake with the Knaack family. We enjoyed a great boat ride, dinner, sunset, and laugh-til-you're-crying fun. 

Sunday after church, we went to see Ice Age and then had a cook out with some friends.
Little did we know that there was a special surprise planned...around 9:00 pm the doorbell rang.  When we went to the door, there was no one there. 

But this is what the yard looked like:

Friends had covered our yard in well wishes and scripture!  Amazing!

Today, we will enter the hospital armed with the full armor of God - knowing we have an army standing with us, knowing we are loved, believing in a cure, and trusting our Lord and Savior.

In Him,
The Tates

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes....Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."  Ephesians 6:10, 11, 13-17

More Information about Elena's Time in the Hospital

**** Important prayer request ****
Elena's repeat liver enzyme test from Wednesday remained elevated. The test will be repeated when she is admitted on Monday. PLEASE PRAY that Elena's liver enzymes will go DOWN! They are close to four times higher than normal. IF they become higher than four times, Elena WILL NOT be able to participate in the transplant study! We have come too far to not be able to proceed as planned! PLEASE PRAY!


We are enjoying every moment of these days leading up to Elena's transplant!  Media Day was fun, but time consuming : )  We are also 90% packed for the hospital. Today will be spent outside enjoying the sunshine and fresh air. 

Thank you for encouraging us, praying for us, and loving us!!



Here's a little more information about what will happen once Elena is admitted.

The preparatory regimen will completely wipe out Elena's immune system. It is designed to. With an immune system that is so compromised, the BMT team takes every extra precaution to keep the kids from being exposed to things, as even a cold could become serious to them. For these reasons, when Elena and the other kids enter the unit, they don’t leave it AT ALL until they are discharged. There will be no getting out of the room to check out new things at the gift shop or to walk through the beautiful garden. During all our other hospital stays, we have always enjoyed being able to get out of the room, so this will be hard.  Elena will be able to look out of a window, but she will not step foot outside in fresh air and sunshine for 4-6 weeks. Please pray that she will not feel trapped and that she won’t miss being outside too much.

Another precaution the BMT team takes in keeping the kids well is by requiring them to do daily jobs. Each job seems simple, but when a child is experiencing the side effects from chemo and radiation, the jobs become more like chores.

Elena's daily jobs will include:
*daily baths with special wipes - to keep germs off her skin and lotions to soothe red, dry, irritated skin

*mouth care (brushing and rinses) at least 4 times a day-  to help prevent infection by cutting down on the germs that could enter the bloodstream and to help with mouth sores
 *using an incentive spirometer multiple times each day - this is exercise for Elena's lungs to help prevent pneumonia

*walking a minimum of 10 laps on the hall everyday - exercise for the body to help strengthen the lungs, bones, muscles, and heart and also to help improve the movement of fluids in the body

Elena will have to wear a mask when she leaves her room to walk laps on the hall and when she leaves the floor for any tests of radiation.

Each day we will also be measuring Elena's fluid input and output, her weight every 12 hours, and her calories. As mouth sores and mucositis develop and appetite decreases, knowing these things will be critical in order to monitor how Elena's body is handling everything.


Thank you for praying in advance for Elena to be able to preform her daily jobs each day, for the jobs to be effective in preventing any major complications, and that Elena will have all the mental, physical, and spiritual strength she needs every moment, every day.

In Him,
The Tates

Ephesians 3:14-20
"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name.  I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen (Elena) with power through His Spirit in (her) inner being, so that Christ may dwell in (her) heart   through faith. And I pray that (Elena), being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge —that (she) may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us."