Weight Gain

February 1 - 7, 2010

Alisha was recommended a fortified protein formula two weeks ago to assist with her absorption of nutrients and weight gain. Fortunately, she scored in both aspects. She quickly gained about 5 pounds in 2 weeks, which caused the nurse to ask whether Alisha was put on steroids. After Tuesday's lumbar puncture with chemo injected, she still has 14 more of the horrific procedures under sedation to complete prior to December 2011. We cannot wait until this trauma-causing nightmare is over and pray that mild to severe long-term side effects will not exist at all.

This first of the 56-day phase was dramatic where one of her chemotherapy drugs causes her to have pinkish orange urine that is toxic to the touch. The side effects of nausea and vomiting commenced the day after the first treatment. As for the intramuscular shots on the legs, Alisha was very courageous and did not drop a single tear again.

Resting

January 25 - 31, 2010

Alisha took this week resting and playing. Both she and Ashley were expressing their creative sides to keep themselves entertained. They used different props to design a stage with spotlights and Alisha performing on her recorder with a trophy on the award stand. Then, they announced that they were the can-can girls, singing and dancing to the famous classical music while shoulder-to-shoulder lifting their legs. The games went on to fetch of various toys and horsie.

The week included art projects of penguine sliding down the large sheet of ice, diving into the fridget water or floating in on a big balloon. It was all laughs and very nice to see Alisha more lively and energetic than ever since her illness; however, the chemo will continue next Tuesday for two grueling months.

Alisha continues to show her interest in cooking and does not get bored of the Food Network. She also cheered on for both Roger Federer and Andy Murray while watching the Australian Open. Her goal as she recovers is to start tennis lessons.

Mouth Sores

January 18 - 24, 2010

One of the many common side effects of the chemotherapy drug, methotrexate is mouth sores. With an increase of 50 mg every 10 days for 5 weeks, Alisha has not shown any signs of mouth sores (knock on wood). Both of the oncologists who attended to her this week were amazed she has gone through this phase of the treatment, unscathed! We still think it's a miracle that Alisha has endured so much and look the way she does.

This is; however, the calm before the storm where all sorts of heavy chemotherapy drugs will be administered the next two months. Sometimes, you wonder if all these drugs are necessary and how you would cope with the long-term side effects including developmental delays, cognitive set backs and physical handicaps that go hand-in-hand with chemotherapy.

Surveys have concluded that if oncologists and/or their loved ones were diagnosed with cancer, would they go through "conventional" protocols? Ironically, at least 80% of the oncologist surveyed responded no, they would not receive conventional cancer treatment. One begins to wonder how much faith one should put in the current medical system. Is it profit driven? I'm sure the truth is loud and clear (check out the article below)!

http://alternativecancer.us/conventional.htm

Snow Day

January 11 - 17, 2010

Snow Day at the community has been an annual event since 2005. The girls love to play in snow although they do not have adequate snow gears to assist with the snow ball and snowman building process. Nonetheless, they still find ways to take advantage of the temporary snow made possible by the sponsors in the community.

Alisha's new found passion is playing with the games on her pink Nintendo DS. Her very first game is "Cooking Mama", which confirms her interest in all aspects of the culinary world. She's so glued to her only game on the Nintendo DS that she would readily agree to do anything necessary to continue with her food preparation electronically.

Christmas Toys

January 4 - 10, 2010

Happy New Year to everyone! Alisha couldn't wait to finish building her SpongBob Squarepants Legos. She loved all the little, different and intricate pieces which allow movements to the characters and Bikini Bottom.

School resumed and Alisha started reading about Leonardo Da Vinci's inventions, drawings, scientific discoveries, etc. She is amazed at all of his accomplishments! Additionally, she was able to use her Christmas present, a globe, as a study aide for school. Alisha enjoys talking about all the different cities, states and countries in the world. She points out destinations of interest such as the Eiffel Tower in France, Big Ben in England, leaning tower of Pisa in Italy, Great Wall of China in Xi'an, etc. Her fascination with the Food Network (Channel 56) continues and she often comments about her wish to taste the foods prepared and presented by the chefs.

Her Day 29 procedure this Thursday went well although the sharp stomach pains sometimes wakes her up at night.

Day 21 - Interim Maintenance

December 28, 2009 to January 3, 2010

Alisha made count with flying colors, so she was able to receive her scheduled chemotherapy on Monday and Peg-Asparaginase (two intramuscular shots on the thighs) on Tuesday. Her white blood cell count is slowly headed towards the normal range and no blood tranfusion was needed, which was a blessing!

Alisha constantly asks if her white blood cell count is back to the normal range, can she play at the park without her mask on? It was explained that both her white blood cell count and ANC will need to be in an acceptable range before her mask comes off. She's been a real trooper wearing the mask if she's outside and sanitizing her hands over a dozen times a day. She realizes that it pays to be super paranoid at this time in order to avoid catching germs.

Christmas

December 21 to 27, 2009

Christmas was greatly anticipated by the girls and they made certain that Santa had plenty of cookies and a glass of milk. Both of them kept on asking how Santa Claus fit through the chimney along with the toys and were happy that he finished the cookies and the milk. Santa brought a wooden cooking kitchen, Princess cashier box, books, Wii Guitar Hero 5 (not sure if it's more for the adult), globe, SpongeBob Squarepants legos, Ariel doll, DVD cartoons, etc.

Generous donors and volunteers from Miracles 4 Kids delivered a gift basket (more like boxes of food) filled with turkey, chicken, clam chowder, produce and a huge bag of toys. Alisha wanted to turn around and donate those toys to the less fortunate children since she claims that she already has plenty of toys.

Wish everyone had a wonderful Christmas!!!

Make-A-Wish Events

December 14 to 20, 2009

The highlight this week included various events hosted by Make-A-Wish ranging from a holiday harbor cruise, breakfast with Santa and a visit to Santa Ana Zoo, which are designed exclusively for children with terminal illnesses. Both of the girls enjoyed the cruise and seeing Santa arrive on a patrol boat was one of the highlights. Each of the Wish Children had a personalized Christmas gift and they were individually called up to take photos with Santa Claus. After Alisha received her present, we immediately went up another deck, but Ashley did not want to leave the 2nd deck in case they called her name to receive a present. Luckily, Make-a-Wish ensures that siblings of the Wish Child is also included, so the sibling received either a Barbie doll or Hot Wheels, which made Ashley's day. The warm chocolate drink with marshmallows on top and the carolers were a huge hit.

Santa's Village at South Coast Plaza was a fantastic event as well. The girls rode the reindeer carousel until they were content and Alisha kept on running back to take photos with Santa Claus. After breakfast, the girls were kept busy at the crafts table.

The Santa Ana Zoo was well decorated and the girls kept busy riding the fancy carousel, which had a seahorse, hummingbird, panda, various horses, etc. After a light dinner (hot cocoa with marshmallows were available again), photos w/ Santa Claus, they drew, walked the maze, met some strange animals, worked on crafts, rode on the train and picked out a toy. The girls didn't want to leave, so they lingered around the play structure until it was too cold outside.

Interim Maintenance

December 7 to 13, 2009

Alisha made count and started her Interim Maintenance phase on the 7th. Last Friday, she did not meet the required blood counts in order to move forward with the procedure this Monday. However, we pleaded to keep the appointment to see if she would actually meet the minimum blood count on Monday. The nurse last Friday was very hesitant and was certain that Alisha will not make count by Monday and urged us to take a Wednesday appointment instead.

On Monday, the nurse practitioner who performed the procedure said it's very unusual that patients recover so quickly in such short amount of time. Thank you all for your continued blessings and prayers to make the impossible a possibility. The importance of this phase is that it marks the first day of the rest of her two-year treatment as far as we understand it. Technically, December 6, 2011 should be the last day of her treatment, but we shall see if everything works out that way. We are hoping that there will not be further delays.

Whenever Alisha has a free moment, she enjoys taking pictures...look above for a picture she took of herself as well as drawing and painting.

Presents from Santa already?

November 30 to December 6, 2009

Alisha will be entering the next phase of treatment (Interim Maintenance), which will last 56 days. Interim Maintenance will begin on Monday, December 7th if she makes her platelet count as well as the Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC). During this phase, she will be getting an increasing dose of IV Methotrexate every 10 days, which unfortunately causes mouth sores in a large percentage of patients along with various other chemo drugs.

Every morning, Alisha rushes downstairs and counts the number of presents under the tree and tries to sway her Mom in letting her open up presents. She also asked why Santa brought her and Ashley's presents early...Santa is busy and starts present deliveries early; however, presents will be taken away if they become naughty. Alisha proceeded to ask if Santa can "deliver a lot of food to the starving children in Africa" as presents for those unfortunate kids. She is quite compassionate and has regularly donated books and toys to non-profit organizations or the hospital.