Bone Marrow Transplant and Fundraisers

BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT

     After the past three weeks at home, we returned to the hospital on Tuesday to prepare for Ethen's bone marrow transplant. During our time at home we started school with Hudson and pre-school with Mikayla, and they love it—for the most part. Ethen has chunked up and progressively regained strength. He had a decent appetite during our stint at home, but we also made good use of the G-tube to boost his calorie intake.
     When we got to the hospital on Tuesday Ethen received an infusion of IVIg (intravenous immunoglobulin) to help his immune system prior to chemotherapy. After the infusion we were admitted to Levine's. Tuesday afternoon was fairly slow and uneventful. On Wednesday, Ethen received his first dose of busulfan. Busulfan is one of the two drugs Ethen is receiving as part of his conditioning regimen for the bone marrow transplant (or stem cell transplant). In addition to ridding the body of residual cancer cells, conditioning regimens are usually designed to suppress the immune system and make room for new stem cells from donors. In Ethen's case, the conditioning regimen is really designed to wipe out any residual cancer cell—so it's not as much conditioning as it is another round of chemotherapy, which, because of the dosage of chemo drugs, requires stem cell infusion to help his body recover. After the first dose yesterday Ethen was run down, but he had periods of play in the afternoon and then again in the evening. He just received the second dose today and is now fast asleep on his mommy.
     Pray that the chemotherapy wipes out any remaining cancer cells. Pray also that the Lord would sustain his body as his immune system weakens.

FUNDRAISERS

     Over the course of Ethen's treatment, there have been so many generous people that have given to help our family in Ethen's fight against cancer. We are so thankful for the gifts people have given and for the other forms of support we've received. I wanted to take a moment to highlight two ongoing efforts to raise funds for Ethen.
     The Pampered Chef fundraiser event hosted by Rachel Roberts is live through September 9th. Click here to visit her event page and shop online. It's not too early to get items you might need for Thanksgiving, or perhaps you want to get a Christmas gift for a friend or family member. Rachel has committed to give 1/2 of her commission from this event to support Ethen in his fight against cancer.
     Another ongoing fundraiser is being put on by Christie's brother, Steve, who's committed to hack off his hair in the style of the peoples' choice. That's right, you can determine Steve's hairdo, which he'll be sporting for two whole weeks. See the flyer below for the options. Personally, I can't decide between "WTF is This" or the "Lawnmower," but it's up to you! You have until September 13th.

     Another opportunity to help in the fight against children's cancer is to participate in the "Isabella Santos Foundation 5K/10K Race For Kids Cancer and 1-Mile Fun Run." The Santoses have done considerable fundraising in the Charlotte area over the past ten years to fight childhood cancer. Their goal this year is to raise over 1 million dollars to fund an MIBG therapy room at Levine's Children's Hospital. MIBG therapy is an alternate treatment to chemotherapy. This therapy is in use across the country, but further research is needed to determine it's suitability in the initial treatment protocol for neuroblastoma patients. Building this therapy room at Levine's will help with these research efforts. Strap on your running shoes and hit the pavement. You've got several weeks to train. The race is September 30th in Charlotte.

     Also, September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Would you help us raise awareness? Personally, I had little exposure to childhood cancer before it entered my house. Join with us in our fight. Share Ethen's story, or share about someone else you know.