Sunday, December 30, 2007

I was going to update earlier today, but this network is so bad. I've tried numerous times to login and until now couldn't get anywhere. It has been kind of a hard day because the doctors decided to switch the sedation that Elijah is on, and apparently he is completely immune to that medication. This means he would wake up fairly often and open his eyes looking at us with a great amount of fear. As you can imagine, this has proved hard on us. We would rather not see him intubated at all, but if he has to be, then we would like him to sleep through it. While it is exciting to see him open his eyes, eyes filled with fear are not fun to look into. Well, on to the good news. This morning we looked at the x-rays with the doctors and the mass in his chest is quite a bit smaller. He also had a ct scan to see if the mass is pushing on his trachea (which would delay extubation) and it is not! So we are well on the road to having him breathe on his own. They tell us that tomorrow, they will have a look at his trachea in the OR so that they can make sure that they won't have any problems with the extubation. His white cell count is down to 1.4 which is good, but that also means that his immune system is basically nil. Remember, we would love to see you, just remember that if you come you will have to be anal about washing hands and keeping clean. The labs that they draw for his kidney function have come down, which is excellent because if they would keep going up, then he would need dialysis (which we really don't want). So that is really good news because it means that his kidneys are keeping up the task of flushing all of those dying cells out of his system. They also did a renal ultrasound which gave us results that are completely useless. They told us that the size and shape of the kidneys is normal, as well as having no blockage, but the color of the kidneys is abnormal but they don't know what that means until the pediatric radiologist can tell us (tomorrow). He also had an ultrasound on his belly, and there is fluid there that hopefully when he is up and moving, he will expel on his own. He still hasn't pooped yet and we need him to do that, so this is the first time that we are praying for a dirty diaper :). Also, his spleen and liver are still enlarged, but they say that they are still functioning correctly and look normal except for the size. Hopefully they will reduce in size also as they don't have to work so hard. Another thing that we heard from our oncologist today was that Elijahs count was NOT the highest that he has ever seen, which reassured us. He said he had a child that had a 1.6 MILLION count of cells, so it's good to know that he wasn't the worst case that this oncologist has seen. We are not looking forward to Elijah waking up all night so we will get going and update you guys later. Thanks again to all of our family and friends for the prayers and help that we have received. We are so grateful for the comments that you leave as well, it boost our spirits. We love you all.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Amanda- Shilo let me know about Elijah, and I was shocked and saddened by the news. Your family is in our prayers. I'm glad you are keeping the blog, it is nice to see what is going on. Let me know if I can do anything for you. Hang in there! -Amy Bennett

Anonymous said...

Hey you guys,
The girls are so excited to have Alivia here. They have great plans for a slumber party tonight! Thanks for obliging us and letting us know you really do love your horses. :) Hope tonight goes well, and of course you know you're in our thoughts and prayers again tonight! Love you guys!

The Aasen's said...

Hi Amanda~Just trying to figure this blogging thing out. You might get two e-mails from me this first time. I want you to know that our thoughts and prayers are with you, Elijah and your family throughout the days. Please let me know if there is anything we can do for you. ~Michelle Aasen

Jason and Teresa said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jason and Teresa said...

I just wanted to share with you quys A little about the Church meetings yesterday. You Where in every prayer, lesson and talk. When the list was sent around to do service or bring a meal for your family. The list was already full when It came around to us. (So I guess Im off the hook!J/K!!!) Really It was just a blessing for me to be apart of the same way I feel about being your friend.You quys are a great examples. I know It is harder to SEE because you quys are so far away. But I hope you can FEEL of our love. I know the Savior too is surounding you with his love. P.S. Thank YOU!! for all the laughs. I cant believe the nurses would actually encourage Wheel chair racing. Again you are a wonderful example and I so glad you are our friends -Teresa

JerryM said...

Amanda, Levi, Elijah and families

Know that you are in my thoughts and prayers. Keeping up through your blog. I have had alittle trouble getting my comments to you, but that is just me. I know that Elijah is in the best hand including the Lord's. Please take care of each other too.

Amanda Wilson said...

Jonathan and I check your blog several times a day to get updates. We are praying for you constantly. Please let us know if there is anything we can do for your family. Much love - Jonathan and Amanda Wilson

Elijah Hancock said...

Hello Hancocks,
Shoot, I would have responded sooner, but because I am such a computer whiz, I didn't know it was even possible. I was born to the older generation for sure!!!!
I am happy that humor can still be part of your lives. Being a caretaker is not the easiest thing in the world, and laughter will only help you lighten the load, even if for only a minute or two. Conversly, if you ever need to vent or cry or share, please know that you can call me collect anytime, day or night. This journey will be long and tough. Hang in there. Everyone is behind you. Know we love you and are thinking the best thoughts for all of you.
Larry and Becky in Nebraska

Turner said...

We just wanted to let you know that you all have been in our prayers and will continue to be. Please let us know of ANYTHING we can do. We KNOW that Heavenly Father is watching over all of you.

The Turners