Christen is doing well!!

I apologize that it has been so long since we have posted here! Thank you so much for the continued prayer and concern for Christen. She continues to do well. She is having regular scans to check for possible recurrence, and so far God has seen fit to keep the cancer away. We are so grateful for that! She will be graduating from High School this June and is planning to continue her education with college starting in the Fall.

Steve & Debbie

April 2009 Scans Clear!!

Christen's latest round of scans are all clear!!! God continues to sustain and bless her as returns to "normal" life. Thank you so much for the prayers!!

Steve & Debbie

Central Line Removed!!

Christen had the central removed yesterday at UVa and was able to come home yesterday evening. We are all so happy for her since it was the last remaining vestige of the chemotherapy treatment that she endured this year and having it removed is another significant step for her toward returning to some semblance of normalcy. Of course things will never be completely the same for her as they were before, and in some significant senses that is a good thing, but she is very happy to be able to get back to "normal" life without a central line, etc.

In terms of the suspected line infection, it turned out that she did have a minor infection on the outside of the line which caused the tenderness. Thankfully the infection was not inside the line which would have been a much more serious thing which would have resulted in her staying in the hospital for a week to 10 days on powerful antibiotics. We are so thankful to God that was not the case.

Thanks to you all for the prayers and support. People tell us on a regular basis how much they pray for all of us and I can tell you for certain that God has been answering those prayers. How could we ever have made it without His strengthing hand? His grace towards us undeserving sinners has truly been amazing. Love like that can only be supernatural.

Steve & Debbie for the family

In Hospital

Please pray for Christen as she had to go back to UVa Saturday afternoon because of a possible infection in her central line. She is actually feeling fine, but because of the chance of a serious infection developing she has to stay in the hospital for 48 hours while they wait for the blood culture test results. Actually, the whole thing may likely turn into a blessing in disguise because they are talking about taking the line out on Monday, which she would love. We asked her recently what she wanted for Christmas, and the only answer we got out of her was "I want my central line out." Nothing else. She has been so good about not complaining about it, but it really is a terrible nuisance for her. The progress of taking a shower is about 10 times more complicated because of it, for instance. I'm sure that got old for her a long time ago.

We are expecting her to be able to come home on Tuesday.

Thanks!
Steve & Debbie

CT Final Report

Good news! Yesterday evening we received word from UVa on the CT results. The nodule on Christen's lung has not changed in size, and while they can't say for sure that it isn't a metastasis, they did say it doesn't have the appearance of being one and that it could be scar tissue or a collapsed air sack. The central line will be left in at least until the next scans are all done in January--full body bone scan, chest CT (again!), and leg x-rays. The platelet count is still only about half of what the lowest normal level would be, although it is increasing by small increments.

We are rejoicing in God's goodness to us, though undeserved, that we can anticipate spending the holidays together at home. It is a very big gift!

Steve & Debbie

CT Scan Result

Thanks for all the prayers for Christen's CT scan today. The initial report is that the nodule in the upper portion of her left lung has remained the same size. That is good news. We are thankful to God for this report. We should get the final report Tuesday of next week. Because her counts are still coming up slowly they will probably leave the central line in a little while longer. She would love to have it out, but seems content with the situation.

Christen and Debbie were able to visit many of their friends at UVa today. They had an enjoyable time reconnecting with many of the staff who graciously provided her care during this difficult year. We have been very blessed to receive such excellent care. Christen's hair is growing back nicely. She looks very beautiful.

Steve & Debbie

Update on Christen

It has been a while since we have posted so we wanted to give an update. Christen is still struggling with low counts. She had a bone marrow aspiration last week and the initial results came back fine. We are so thankful for that. However, she still tires very easily. This is likely caused by the low blood counts so we are hoping and praying that will change soon. Otherwise she is doing very well, and the whole family is enjoying being together again. We are returning to just dealing with all the "normal" issues of life for the most part, with the exception of a test here and there, and the worry about her counts. The next significant event for Christen will be chest CT on December 3rd. Please pray that the spot on her upper left lung will not have grown, and indeed that it will have disappeared.

Christen also just celebrated her 16th birthday this past Sunday. We feel very grateful to God for giving her another birthday. Each one is a gift. God used cancer to help us see that in a new way. She enjoyed the weekend also because she was able to attend a Harvest Ball Dance held at our church. We hope to publish pictures of the event soon.

Thank you for the continued prayer and encouragement. God has used all of you!

Steve & Debbie for the family.