January 11, 2012

Today was an OK day.  Clayton's counts went from 88 yesterday to 385 today.  Big jump, but still neutropenic.  It is a very good indicator that they could rise rapidly though tomorrow which is what we are looking for.  He did some more nibbling here and there today, but no drinking.  He seemed a little grouchier today than yesterday, but he did have one good spurt of happiness. 

We're shooting to harvest on Friday now and maybe home on Saturday?
I got to see some familiar faces today.  I recognized the lady who worked in The Go Store years ago; she's still here.  I also talked with the chaplain that would visit Clayton in the NICU.  He does not see the oncology kids much, there is another chaplain for us, but we caught up and since his pee pee prayer he did for Clayton 3 + years ago worked so well, he's going to come visit Clayton this evening and say a little prayer.  I also got to visit the Bone Marrow Transplant unit to see where we'll do the harvest and where we'll be for the transplant.

Two questions we get a lot are do you need bone marrow donors? And can I donate blood to Clayton?
First let me say that Clayton is B+.
As for the first question, no we do not need bone marrow donors.  We are nowhere close to needing them and hopefully will never need them.  If we ever did need one, none of our family members would work.  A complete stranger would be a more likely match then a family member.  George and I are both a half match meaning that obviously the only family member that would be a match would be if Clayton ever had a sibling.  However, we are grateful for all of the gracious offers.  We will be sure and let everyone know if we ever need a donor.
As for the blood donations, we have always been told that people cannot donate specifically to Clayton, but I have recently uncovered a way in which people can.  I will have to check into it further though.  For now we'll leave that hanging...