Update & Request for Prayer: July 31, 2009

Jumping for joy might be the best description of what I am doing today. I had labs drawn early this morning. My uric acid level is normal for the first time during the past seven weeks of treatment as are all aspects of my Complete Metabolic Panel - kidney function, liver enzymes, potassium - you get the picture! I feel like I maybe evading the threat of Tumor Lysis Syndrome at last! On paper, I look like a picture of health!

My hemoglobin and platelets remain fairly stable - low but improved from the start of treatment. What I am jumping for joy over is my lymphocyte percentage (B-lymphocytes being my cancerous cell line). Almost always, my percentage of lymphocytes on the differential is 95-99%. Today, this count had dropped to 55%! Wooohoooo! (Normal is 13%-43%)

I will try to summarize my counts - from where counts stood prior to treatment and what they are today:

Total White Blood Count Before Treatment: 167,800
Total White Blood Count After 7 Weeks of Treatment: 30,400
Normal White Blood Count Range: 4,800-10,800

Absolute Lymphocyte Count Before Treatment: 166,122
Absolute Lymphocyte Count After 7 Weeks of Treatment: 16,720
**This is the count we watch the most to determine the improvements generated by the treatment. On Monday, this count was 23,328 - quite a decline in four days.

Absolute Neutrophil Count Before Treatment: 1,678
Absolute Neutrophil Count After 7 Weeks of Treatment: 13,376
*This is the count we watch to help me prevent infections - I actually have more neutrophils than the average normal ANC!When this count is below 2,000 is when I have to take Neupogen injections.

Please pray for Lil Man because he is not feeling well today and has been running a fever.

Please pray for one of our daughter's father-in-law. He went in for a routine heart cath yesterday and the physicians determined that he had blockages to his kidney that needed to be first repaired. His heart blockages will require open heart surgery. He is recovering today from the stents that were placed for his kidneys and his kidneys are doing well tonight. We ask for prayers for him, his family, and the physicians who will be caring for him. Trusting God!