Radiation

(Ethen's radiation stickers, G-tube, and Hickman line)

     Today marks the halfway point in radiation treatment—six down, six to go. Ethen has done well. As is clear from the name, the treatment is much different than chemotherapy. While chemotherapy was administered via Ethen's central line, his radiation therapy is given as an external photon treatment. The treatment is 3-dimensional to better target all sides of the location of tumor extraction where any remaining cancer cells may be—much more location-specific than chemotherapy. The treatment is a relatively low dose because of the success of the tumor resection, which results in fewer treatment days (yay!). Since there was no original "mass" left during resection, the assumption is that the radiation will destroy any remaining cancer cells with the lower dose of treatment. In fact, as the radiation oncologist tells us, the radiation will continue to disrupt cancer cell reproduction after treatment is completed because the photons damage the DNA, and/or the mitotic functions of the cancer cells, which results in eventual cell death. The treatment is carried out in short sessions over two and a half weeks to allow Ethen's normal cells, which are also affected by the radiation, to heal—something cancer cells cannot do.

     The daily process is relatively simple (says the guy who stays home to watch the older kids). Christie takes Ethen to the radiation oncology office early each day of the business week for a 5-10 minute radiation treatment. Christie takes Ethen back to the treatment room each morning where Ethen receives a sedative prior to radiation. Unfortunately, because of Ethen's age, he needs a sedative to minimize his movements during radiation so that the intended location can be treated with precision. The sedation is the hardest part of the day for a couple reasons. The most immediate difficulty is the sight of your child falling limp while his eyes roll back, just enough to cause your gut to sink as you consider the reasons why. The other difficulty comes later, when your 19-month-old curses you in his baby tongue with screams of rage as the sedative wears off. This baby cursing may happen if he wasn't going through what he is, but probably not—at least not to the same extent. Once the sedative wears off, he's less unpleasant, but he can stay in a funk for most of the day sometimes. Thankfully the treatments are early, which allows us to keep some sort of schedule.

     Please pray for Ethen as his little body continues to endure so much treatment. Pray that he will rest well at night. Pray that he will have an appetite and gain weight. Pray that the radiation kills the remaining cancer cells, and that the side effects are minimal. Pray also that his immune system continues to rebuild.