Latest news on Andrea

Hi,
Not much new news to send regarding Andrea, but want to keep you
updated. She is still at OHSU. Last week they put a PEG tube into
her stomach (it goes through the abdominal wall) for the purpose of
feeding her as she is having difficulty swallowing. They stopped her
feedings on Sunday night because it wasn't being absorbed well and
they were concerned that she might have a bowel obstruction. They
did a CT scan of her abdomen on Monday night and found that she has
no obstruction (thank goodness) but that she has a small abscess near
where they inserted the tube. This is always a potential problem
when they put in one of these tubes, but of course Andrea is more
susceptible because of her compromised immune system. They have
started an antibiotic to try to get rid of the abscess, but if they
are not successful with that, they may need to do surgery to put a
drain in the abscess. They will do another CT scan in a few days--
they didn't tell us how many--and check the status of the abscess,
then go from there. It seems like things move so slowly, but getting
rid of an infection does take time. I left about 2 p.m. today and
they hadn't restarted her tube feedings yet, but I suspect they will
pretty soon. They are still giving most of her medications through
the tube, then clamp it for 30 minutes, then put it to drain. The
nurse was concerned today that not everything was being absorbed, so
that issue will have to be addressed (they can probably just clamp
the tube for a longer period). They are also concerned because her
urine is quite dark and they thought she might be dehydrated, but I
don't think that is the case. They are giving her fluids IV and the
rate seems to be high enough to meet the needs of most adults. She
is having a lot of trouble with pain--mostly from her arthritis--and
has had to have IV morphine to control it and the doctor's say she
will have to be off of it before she can go home. They have her on a
Fentanyl patch now, but it takes a few days to become effective and
isn't doing the job, yet. The doctors are going to reorder her
ibuprofen on a schedule as that is what she takes at home for it, so,
perhaps that will help. She woke at about 4 a.m. this morning
screaming that she was scared and it just happened that the CNA was
getting ready to take her vital signs: her blood pressure was
155/113 and her pulse rate was 127. I don't know if the high VS are
the result of a panic attack, or something else...so another issue to
be addressed. I really feel for Andrea--it's got to be terrible not
to be able to move anything--not to scratch her nose or shift her
body or anything. I don't think it's possible to fully comprehend the
feeling of complete helplessness, as well a wondering whether it is
going to change. Marilyn and I did note a slight improvement in a
couple of things today. Her speech is somewhat better..a little
clearer and more understandable, though she let her Mom know that
"Aunt Jan doesn't understand me as well as you do!" Also she
requested some sips of water today and though they were very small,
she was able to swallow them without choking. Small improvements
like that make hope bloom again! Time will tell if anything else
will improve. I also found out that they plan to repeat the
chemotherapy treatment at month intervals, as many as four times..I'm
sure it will be based on any response she has to the treatments.
Mike is having a severe flare-up of his colitis, and had to go back
to his doctor. He will be on a steroid drug for a while again to try
to clear it up. Marilyn had taken Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
off this week because they thought Andrea was going to be going home,
so she is staying with Andrea and giving Mike a break. (Mike is going
to have to stay away awhile, anyway as he also has a sore throat and
Andrea doesn't need exposure to anything right now.) Marilyn will
keep me posted and I will go back up if Andrea is discharged, or by
next Tuesday as Marilyn needs to work on Tuesday.
I think that's enough for now...I'll try to keep you all posted.
Love, Jan