Odette's Plan

I know a lot of people have asked what is the rest of the plan for Odette.  As I have said before, plans never work out exactly as promised, but here is what we think will happen:

• March 22nd: Odette goes into the hospital for the day.  She will get her spinal, remove her PICC line and put a port in.  We will start more chemotherapy that is oral.  These I just do at home each morning with her 9am feeding.  She doesn't even realize that she is getting them.  Her butt and disposition are what you notice a change in.
• Weekly blood draws.  These happen every Monday and we have a home nurse come to draw Odette's labs.  We do this to check her blood counts.
• April 12th: We are admitted for, what should be, our last inpatient stay.  We are there for count recovery.  This means that Odette's blood counts will drop to zero and we are there until they begin to come up.  (.5 is usually the ok to go sign.)  This will be for about three weeks.
• May 3rd: Odette has a Bone Marrow Aspirate and Spinal and once again we start oral chemo at home.  This time it includes steroids.  I have decided these are yucky because she is so mean and grumpy!  We do the oral chemo's for four weeks.
• May 31st: Another day spent in the hospital getting a spinal, Vincristine and starting other oral chemo for five more weeks.
• The week of July 5th.  Go into the clinic for an end of therapy evaluation.  We are done with treatment!

There you have it!  The end is in sight, but there is still much to do.  We hope by the end, Odette will be off of her feeding tube and eating on her own, but the chemo drugs make things taste yucky and she doesn't feel well all the time, so chances are we will have the feeding tube for a while.  They will also leave her port in for a while because we will be going in for check ups to make sure that the cancer doesn't come back.  I am not sure for how long they will leave this in.  9 months ago I never would have thought that the end would get here.  It seemed so far away, yet now it is quickly approaching!  Thanks to all for your thoughtfulness and prayers so that we could get where we are today.