Unwelcome News

On Wednesday, Nonnie and Papa went to the clinic to get her blood "type matched" in order to get a blood transfusion. They also took blood and did a preliminary test and found that her white counts have doubled in just one day to 22,000. Just last week, her white counts were as low as 3,000 and have been on the rise ever since.

Yesterday, she spent all day receiving 3 units of blood, which definitely gave her a little more energy and she felt less short of breath. Based on the symptoms Nonnie has had over the last several weeks and the preliminary blood tests, Dr. Paquette believes that the leukemia has returned.

Next Wednesday, she will return to UCLA and begin another chemotherapy treatment. Until then, she is taking an oral chemotherapy medication to stop the white counts from getting any higher. She will be getting a blood test this morning and on Monday to make sure the platelets do not get dangerously low.

The goal of this treatment is to put her back into remission, so she can get a bone marrow transplant. Dr. Paquette has been searching for any studies that Nonnie may be eligible for, but she does not meet the criteria for any of them at this time.