Chemo: week 10... I'm scared....

WOW.... 10 weeks!! I can't believe it's been 12 weeks since we were first diagnosed and 10 treatments behind us! 
And we don't have to go back for Chemo again until JULY 8th!!! This will be our FIRST break!! and we are thrilled! Riley was crying for 45 minutes this morning asking why we had to go today. He said "this is taking so long", "when will we be done with chemo?" How do you tell a 5 year old a time frame and make him understand? 
When we go back on July 8th, we will get scans. He will get x-rays and an abdominal ultrasound. They said not to worry about this scan because more then likely all will be well and we will continue our course of action. If it's bad news, we'll change our treatments. Here's praying for EXCELLENT scans!! 
On July 7th we will have to get a CBC (complete blood count) so we make sure Riley is strong enough for the chemo on Monday. 

I'm not going to lie.... I'M SCARED for this week. I'm trying so hard not to have a breakdown, here's why: We got  Doxorubicin and Vincristine today. Doxo is the really strong one that ended Riley in the hospital last time. He was SOOOO sick and his counts were a lot higher. Doxo will drop his counts dramatically, and they are low today already. In fact so low, he barely passed the ANC limit to get chemo at all. He has to be above .75 and he is at .8 It is very concerning. Here are his other counts: 

WEEK: 1    2    3     4     5     6    7    8   9   10

  HGB:   14.1    12.9         ??      11.7      10.7    9.5   9.8   10.3   9.2   9.2                          (less then 8 is bad)   

  Hct:    41.8%    37.8%   35%  33.2    30.2   27.4    28.6   29.7   26.5   27.1                             (less then 24% is bad)   

  WBC:  10.5      4.7         3.6      4.2     2.3       1.9   6.3    3.7   3.9   2.8                                    (5.5 is a low normal)

  PLTS:   621      288        272    347   280      288   466   168    265   475                                 (less then 30 is bad)    

  ANC:   7.6       3.0          2.2     1.5    1.5          .6     2.4    2.3   2.2   .8                                     (less the 1 or .5 is bad)
 (sorry I can't get these numbers to line up just right)

So pretty much Riley has a very low immune system and it will just get worse after today's treatment. We are worried about his ANC, WBC and his HCT this week. 
We are on "LOCK DOWN" again! yay!!!

Look at those 2 hairballs!!! Thanks Pam for making us this cute sign!!

They left Riley accessed so I could give him fluids every night for the next 7 nights over a course of 12 hours each. It will include the electrolyte's and potassium, and I am also going to give him zofran through the i.v. so we can stay on top of the nausea and throw ups the best we can. But since his immune system will be gone, he won't be able to fight ANYTHING off, so he will probably fever this week. We have had some bouts with fever but nothing that lasted long enough and high enough to put him in the hospital, so this will be new for us. 
In non medical terms, they pretty much said get your hospital bags packed and we'll see you soon!! 

Here is our supply for the week!

We also had to talk to the dietitian today. Riley has kept a pretty steady weight this whole time but he is slowly going down, so we want to get on top of it asap. If we don't keep this weight until the next time we go back, they will put him on a nutrition supplement which kick starts his metabolism so he hopefully wants to eat more. But for now, we are to by half and half and whole milk to use as his milk for everything. We need to put EGGS in everything, slather BUTTER on thick and even get some PROTEIN supplements to add to things. However, we have to be careful of the protein we add because it can cause your kidneys to over work themselves and with 1 kidney.... that's not good! 

So the EASY PLAN IS.... to control throwing up, keep fever down, get him to eat and drink a ton and not damage his 1 kidney in the process...... GOT IT! I'm feeling the pressure! 

A DR. PEPPER is accepted any time day or night!! Maybe even a little bit of chocolate! 

I'm so grateful to everyone who is so willing to take Hunter. He is going to aunt Denise's for a few days which will be a huge help this week. She was my fabulous support today and I totally forgot to take a pic of us... I'll do that later! She has a heart of gold! We were both so emotional, but a good pair non the less!!!
But don't worry all you other aunts, friends and grandma's.... I'll be calling soon enough!! 

Please keep us in your prayers this week..... I'M going to need them!!