The following is a post-surgery, running diary of a major trial for my son David. I will update the prayer request text at the top (in red text) for all prayer warriors. Thank you in advance from Rick (myself), Julie, Rebekah and especially David! The latest update is now at the top of the page.
Latest Prayer Specifics:
Changing Prayer Requests to Praise Requests. Jehovah-Rafa has done GREAT things!
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Feb. 20 - And the good news keeps on comin'! David's blood count is now up to... oh let's just call it 14! Which is mid to upper-normal range. This is awesome, and still no transfusion since October 25!
Feb. 1st - God could not have started 2025 off any better than the healing and strengthening of David in regard to his aplastic anemia (a condition that occurs when your body stops producing enough new blood cells). Our hematologist was perplexed and seemed to be testing for everything. Thankfully, all tests for cancer were negative.
By early December 2024, his only recourse was to put him on immune suppressants (which did not thrill me). We had a slight delay on the medication but immediately halted when, all of sudden, David's count went up for the first time since his POEM surgery! We immediately halted any use of the medication. The next reading showed another slight rise. Toward Christmas he began to dip again. I was still focusing on the win that his marrow engine was trying to sputteri to life. His Hgb had slowed to a shallow descent. Every week he did not need a transfusion I considered a win and praise-worthy report. I began to focus, not on the numbers, but rather on the length of time between transfusions—it was lengthening!
When it dropped to 7.1, he was due for another transfusion, but we consulted the doctor and decided to act according to David's mood, rather than the numbers. He seemed chipper and in good color, so we decided to wait another week then decide after the next test. We prayed in the positive, but my faith was low, anticipating and advance-scheduling his next transfusion. Well, God had other plans and by the new year his Hgb went up to 8! God was cranking his marrow engine again, so we held off the transfusion and began to watch for a trend. Test results at the next week caused Julie to yell and scare our new, timid kitty. She yelled out, "10.9!?" I dashed around the corner, "Did I hear 10.9!?" His marrow had roared to life. As of the end of January, his latest test at the hospital for a post surgical procedure came in at 12.6! He is now in the "normal" range and we could not have been more thrilled with God's healing. The doctor had now decided to do blood draws every other week, rather than weekly. Praying that 2025 will see an end to it all together.
Jan. 21st - It is time for GREAT rejoicing and praise and glory to God. Today David got tested for his red blood cell count. Last week I was so excited to report that David's count had risen +.9, almost an entire point. Well, God said, "Just you wait!" Today, David's count came in at 10.9!! That is almost 3 whole points higher than last week! God is starting 2025 for us with all sorts of good news!
Jan. 13th - 2025 has begun with some uber-great news. David's latest Hgb count was the highest increase in red blood cell count since his PerOral Endoscopic Myotomy (POEM) at nearly an entire point! This makes it 11-weeks since his last transfusion. Prayers are effective and God gets all the glory. Julie is part of an achalasia Facebook Page and she noticed that, for some reason, others have experienced Hgb drops since their operation. I mentioned this to our blood doctor and he said he was going to do more research on that (I like a doctor that takes initiative). Keep the prayers coming!
Dec. 20th - Hgb went down to 7.9, not a big drop from 8.5, but a bit disheartening. By the 27th, another drop to 7.5. By Jan. 3, his count went down to 7.1. Each of these are comparatively small drops, but if it dropped anymore, David would need a transfusion. God intervened and this morning he is back up to 8!!
Dec. 6th - Still going up! In just four days it has gone up .2 points! Up is good news! David's body is manufacturing again!
Dec. 2nd - Extremely good news to report today! David had his weekly blood draw. His blood has shown a weekly drop of .8 points per week. Last week was a reading of 7.8 and I had anticipated him having a reading of 7 today. I was at the clinic for my bi-yearly exam with my brother in Christ, Dr. Bryan Sowell, who, after my exam, prayed with me with a special intercession for David's condition. Then, when in the office making my next appointment, Julie called all excited with the news that David's numbers went UP! And this was BEFORE he began the immune inhibitor medication! He went up .6 points from 7.8 to 8.3! I would have been glad just to see it stop at 7.8, but go UP?! YES! All glory to God! Here is the trend...
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Nov. 29th - David was able to enjoy his first Thanksgiving in two-years. To celebrate his being able to eat, we decked out the table with all the trimmings, including (by his request) a HoneyBaked Ham. He chowed down quicker than I liked, but only responded with a small bout of hiccups. Most of Julie's family joined in the feasting, which was a badly needed respite while caring for their father who is in his 90s. He was there too and could barely walk. But thankfully, could heartily eat. Half of the meats were vacuumed packed and frozen—perhaps for Christmas.
David's red blood count is still descending. Every week it is a .8 drop instead of the previous 1 point. So our oncologist has recommended an immune inhibitor to see if that curtails the pernicious drop. We are going to allow his numbers to drop below 7 and just monitor his mood and alertness. Not going below 7 is kind of a random number to get a transfusion. I'm hoping doing such will alert his T-cells to kick into gear.
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Nov. 1st - Brethren, God is hearing your prayers. Again, David's healing is a "I see men as trees walking" pace. Look at the hemoglobin trend of David's red blood cell count (see trend below). After the surgery to remove his thymus, David experience a .8 drop in his numbers. Now remember, every week David's numbers would drop an entire point. Two weeks after surgery, the trend drop only a half a point. The next week, almost the same. The next couple of weeks he dropped a full point again. By week six, it returned to its original trend of a half a point. He had reached a low of 7.3 to whit the counsel was to get another transfusion which brought his number up to 9.7. But that was seven weeks after his surgery! Part of that was just "loading him up for surgery to 11.5, but still, on the whole, low drops! However, todays drop was the lowest ever at less than a half point, ie -.4! Keep praying that David's marrow will shift into overdrive and start getting him into the plus zone!
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Oct. 18th - It has been a couple weeks since my previous update because I am closely watching trends. Julie and I are irritating David with daily accounts on how he is feeling. Pretty much "fine". We are monitoring for any dizziness due to blood count loss. We are praying for his body to get the message not to depend on blood transfusions and to start making his own. Two weeks ago, his Hgb was 8.8. The next week it was measured at 7.8. That was a one point drop in a week, which was the normal rate before having his thymus removed. I tried not to let it effect my joy. The good news at today's reading was his Hgb drop was only 7.3. If this becomes a trend, his Hgb drop is slowing! Jesus is faithful. Right now David's healing is "I see men as trees walking." Keep the prayers coming! Thanks warriors!
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Oct. 1st - I had a meeting with his oncologist who wanted to see how David was doing, post-surgery. The most interesting part was the doctor and I being in agreement regarding David's red cell count levels. He noted that it was just a normal practice to give a transfusion if levels go to 7 or below. However, if David is not experiencing fatigue or dizziness, then perhaps he does not need a transfusion at 7? It seems as if David's body is not producing red blood cells because it is detecting enough every time he gets a transfusion. It concerns me that the rule "use it or lose it" will take effect. To combat this, we have decided to get David a transfusion IF he starts becoming fatigued.
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Praise update: David's recovery has been swift. The most pain after he was home was taking off the stupid bandage that seemed to be applied with epoxy! He has been eating well and is saving up his enthusiasm for his first Thanksgiving meal in years. The real answer to prayer is the thymus was benign and his latest X-rays gave an all-clear! Thank you all for praying. Now we need to pray that the thymus was the culprit in dropping his red blood count in the first place... ie no autoimmune issues.
