3 Months Cancer Free!!!

Friday, May 22nd

Avery woke up this morning just in time for a last sip of water before her cutoff of liquids. She got dressed and brushed her teeth with no issues which was a nice surprise since we had woken her up 2 hrs earlier than usual. We made it to the hospital a little earlier than needed(for once in our life).

The surgery floor was extremely busy today! It was nearly 9:00 before we got taken back to our pre-surgical room. Avery did fairly well with vitals(except for the weight check). She refused the hospital gown and clothes(as always), so we hung out in the room watching YouTube and playing games until they came to take us down to Imaging. Avery refuses all modes of hospital transportation which meant that Mommy had to carry her down. I asked her how she expected me to carry her when she was 10, and she said "You will need to get stronger!" Finally at 10:45, we made the final walk, and I left her(only putting up a little fight) in the arms of a nurse.

Three hours is a long time in sit in silence and contemplate the potential results of the day and what that might mean for our sweet girl. No matter how hard you try or how hard you pray, your mind always imagines the worst(if even only for a split second). Only one parent is allowed at the hospital due to COVID restrictions, so Shon had to sit at home with the same silence and worry. For me, the wait for them to bring her back to us is often worse than the wait for results.

Finally at 2pm, they brought her back to the room. In true "Avery" fashion, she came back fighting mad. She immediately ripped off the hospital gown, followed by her IV(that was a first), the blood pressure cuff, and her chest leads. I let her sleep until nearly 3pm, then woke her up to get dressed and head home. We were quickly out the door and on our way home.

We had almost made it home when Dr. Friedman called. He said that Avery's scans looked great! There was no evidence of disease on the brain or spine. Her final pathology on the LP hadn't come back, but the initial report showed the count of cancerous cells at zero as well. This was the best possible news ever, and we couldn't be more grateful!

We have to go back monthly to have Avery's port flushed, but we don't have to meet with Dr. Friedman for 3 months which will be when we have her next scans. We had originally asked about having her port removed if we had positive results today, but after talking we the team, we agreed to leave it in for 3 more months. She will still have to go to the ER for fever, but since she is off chemo and no longer neutropenic, it would not likely result in an admission.

For now, we are counting our blessings and praising God for Avery's health! We will pack as much fun and life into the next 3 months as possible. Thank you all for your continued prayers and love!