Pete was admitted to the hospital on December 21st to begin his chemotherapy treatment. The treatment started on December 23rd and was administered once a day through December 27th. The treatment has lowered his blast count from 190,000 to about 1,000, which is a great outcome. The doctors have been impressed with how much his blast count has dropped in such little time.
After a few days of observation Pete was discharged, but not before loading him up with 101 medicines to take again. It's really more like 10 to 15 medicines, but it feels like alot more. Pete doesn't seem to mind taking most of them since he knows that they are all helping in some way. The only ones he doesn't like taking are the steriods (no, not the kind that Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire took to help them hit home runs). These actually create additional pain in his bones, but are necessary to help his body withstand the chemo.
This brings us to today. After being at home for about a day, Pete's pain became pretty intolerable, so we brought him to the emergency room. The nurses and doctors usually ask patients what level of pain they are feeling, with the pain ranging from 1 to 10 (1 being the lowest level of pain and 10 being the worst level of pain). Pete's headache and pain in his throat are both currently 10's. I think I have only been with Pete a few times when his pain was greater than an 8, so I can tell he isn't feeling well.
To make matters worse, the emergency room is full and there is no telling when Pete will see a doctor or more importantly, the much needed morphine. We overheard a couple telling others in the wait area that they had been waiting for over 3 and a half hours. Two other patients left because of how long they waited without treatment.
After 4 and a half hours of waiting, Pete is finally in a room and sleeping a little...
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Starting Over
A couple of weeks ago, Pete began feeling sick, so we took him to the emergency room. After a number of exams that day, nothing turned up. Over the next few days, Pete continued to get worse, so we took him to the emergency room on December 20th. At 2:00 am that morning, we were informed that Pete relapsed and the leukemia was back.
After a number of discussions with the oncologists, the best course of action seemed to be for Pete to go through chemotherapy, radiation, and bone marrow transplant again. In essence, he is going to start over again.
All of this came as a surprise to us and the oncologists, especially with the great exam results Pete had until now. Relapses are never good in cancer patients, and what makes it even worse is that it came a few days before Christmas.
After a number of discussions with the oncologists, the best course of action seemed to be for Pete to go through chemotherapy, radiation, and bone marrow transplant again. In essence, he is going to start over again.
All of this came as a surprise to us and the oncologists, especially with the great exam results Pete had until now. Relapses are never good in cancer patients, and what makes it even worse is that it came a few days before Christmas.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
The Recap
On April 28, 2008, Peter Luna was diagnosed with ALL. Shortly thereafter, he began a number of stringent chemotherapy regimens that lasted a little over 3 months. During this time, we were informed that the chemotherapy alone would likely not keep Pete in remission for life, and that instead, a stem cell transplant would be needed.
Once we were informed that a stem cell transplant would be needed, 7 of our siblings were typed to try and identify a bone marrow match to Pete (see picture above - all siblings were typed except the two little ones). When typing siblings, the general rule is that there is a 1 in 4 chance that a sibling's bone marrow will match. We were lucky in that 2 of our siblings matched Pete's marrow (Rosario Jr. and Patricia were matches). Junior went through a number of exams and was cleared to donate. After approximately a week of exams and 4 hours of actual donation, the stem cell donation process was complete and Junior was done with his part.
Prior to transplant, Pete went through additional chemotherapy to ensure that the blasts (leukemia cells) were removed from his body. In addition, he went through several days of radiation prior to transplant to wipe his entire marrow clean. On August 13, 2008, Pete went through the stem cell infusion process and his 100 days began.
According to the doctors, the engraftment process begins shortly after transplant. Engraftment is the process by which the donated cells Pete received start to grow and make new blood cells. The hope is that the new stem cells will begin regulating the amount and types of cells produced (i.e., white, red, platelets, neutrophils, etc.). The first 100 days after transplant are critical because patients are at risk for a number of complications.
Day 100 came right before Thanksgiving and from all accounts, Pete was doing well. As a result, Pete was able to spend Thanksgiving with our family in Mexia. After day 100 he began spending less and less time in Houston, and more and more time in Mexia. Things seemed to be looking up and our family was getting ready for Christmas, when Pete began feeling a little sick...
Once we were informed that a stem cell transplant would be needed, 7 of our siblings were typed to try and identify a bone marrow match to Pete (see picture above - all siblings were typed except the two little ones). When typing siblings, the general rule is that there is a 1 in 4 chance that a sibling's bone marrow will match. We were lucky in that 2 of our siblings matched Pete's marrow (Rosario Jr. and Patricia were matches). Junior went through a number of exams and was cleared to donate. After approximately a week of exams and 4 hours of actual donation, the stem cell donation process was complete and Junior was done with his part.
Prior to transplant, Pete went through additional chemotherapy to ensure that the blasts (leukemia cells) were removed from his body. In addition, he went through several days of radiation prior to transplant to wipe his entire marrow clean. On August 13, 2008, Pete went through the stem cell infusion process and his 100 days began.
According to the doctors, the engraftment process begins shortly after transplant. Engraftment is the process by which the donated cells Pete received start to grow and make new blood cells. The hope is that the new stem cells will begin regulating the amount and types of cells produced (i.e., white, red, platelets, neutrophils, etc.). The first 100 days after transplant are critical because patients are at risk for a number of complications.
Day 100 came right before Thanksgiving and from all accounts, Pete was doing well. As a result, Pete was able to spend Thanksgiving with our family in Mexia. After day 100 he began spending less and less time in Houston, and more and more time in Mexia. Things seemed to be looking up and our family was getting ready for Christmas, when Pete began feeling a little sick...
Pistol Pete
Peter is a strong kid who prior to being diagnosed with leukemia, was full of energy and life. Instead of describing him and his thoughts regarding ALL, I will let him tell his story...
"What's going on! Well, my name is Peter but I'm also known as Pistol or just Pete. I attend Texas A&M University and I am currently working on getting a degree in business/marketing.
I have always been a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and what I am going through right now only strengthens my belief. I have recently been diagnosed with leukemia, but I truly believe that it is only making me and my family stronger. It's funny how I used to think the world revolved around me, and it's funny how two months of hell can change that. I'm not perfect, but then again who is. I have realized I am not really as strong as I thought I was. I often wonder how my mom lasted years with cancer, yet I'm only two months into it and i feel like quitting. I often wonder what the small children with cancer feel, when I see them cry it hurts me so much, but it gives me strength to keep fighting. But aside from all of that, I just want to say I'm blessed to have a great family and great friends. I want to thank all of them for being there for me through all of this."
"What's going on! Well, my name is Peter but I'm also known as Pistol or just Pete. I attend Texas A&M University and I am currently working on getting a degree in business/marketing.
I have always been a big believer that everything happens for a reason, and what I am going through right now only strengthens my belief. I have recently been diagnosed with leukemia, but I truly believe that it is only making me and my family stronger. It's funny how I used to think the world revolved around me, and it's funny how two months of hell can change that. I'm not perfect, but then again who is. I have realized I am not really as strong as I thought I was. I often wonder how my mom lasted years with cancer, yet I'm only two months into it and i feel like quitting. I often wonder what the small children with cancer feel, when I see them cry it hurts me so much, but it gives me strength to keep fighting. But aside from all of that, I just want to say I'm blessed to have a great family and great friends. I want to thank all of them for being there for me through all of this."
The Blog
This blog will be written by the Luna Family to update our friends and family on Pistol Pete's Fight against Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Although we would have liked to create this blog under better or ideal circumstances, we decided to create it to keep everyone informed. We will use this blog to post updates on Pete's health, pictures of Pete with his family and friends, information regarding leukemia, and other general information.
We would also like to take this time to thank everyone who has supported Peter and our family throughout this difficult time. There have been many a prayer, calls, visits, and words of encouragement, which we greatly appreciate.
We would also like to take this time to thank everyone who has supported Peter and our family throughout this difficult time. There have been many a prayer, calls, visits, and words of encouragement, which we greatly appreciate.
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