Happy 15th Birthday Lauren!

Tuesday was Lauren's 15th birthday! After a week from hell, having friends up for the holiday weekend and ending it with an amazing birthday really made it all better. Her counts have recovered and she is well on her way back to normalcy (whatever that means =)). She's been asking for a keyboard for a few months now, so we got her one and she has been on it non-stop. In fact, using YouTube and her keen sense of hearing, she has learned to play a Miley Cyrus song already. Music really is the best therapy!

We picked up her AFOs yesterday and honestly, they couldn't have come sooner. Her neuropathy continues to plague her and has gotten worse over the last few weeks making it impossible to walk without assistance. Up until now, there has never been any pain, just tingling and numbness. I've prolonged the need for Neurontin only because it is a maintenance drug. She would need to take it everyday. In the last week, she has started having pain in her right big toe. I'll be adding this drug if the pain persists.

Her next PET scan is scheduled for June 7th. I am going to push for a sooner reading, but have been told that I may not be able to see a doctor to discuss until June 25, which my fellow momcologists will agree this is unacceptable. Welcome to seeing traveling oncologists and not doctors who actually live here. I am sure I can get a same day reading from the radiologist here in Reno, but the oncs like to have the imaging read by one of the radiologists at CHO and then deliver the news in person. I've fought over this numerous times and short of traveling to Oakland for imaging, this is how it goes. Even if we did travel to get the scan, it's still at a private facility as CHO does not have PET equipment.

This weekend will be more celebrating as my mother-in-law is coming in from Oregon and we have a few special things planned, including visiting a wild animal sanctuary on Sunday and horseback riding on Monday. It's supposed to be nice and warm and I cannot wait to get some much needed natural vitamin D =)

I leave you with video of us singing Happy Birthday to Lauren (and her singing to herself). Isn't her smile contagious?

peace and love
-cherri