Kinslee has "kicked" another phase!!!

Cason and Kinslee both were sick the week of Valentine's.  I was worried Kinslee's counts were going to be low since she had been sick but they were right where they needed to be.  She had her last treatment of this phase on February 20th.  It was a smooth day for Kinslee!  We celebrated with ice cream in the car on our drive home!  Kinslee has felt so good since last Thursday's treatment.  She is usually really tired a day or two after but it doesn't slow her down much!  I had posted that the next phase would start on March 6th but I was wrong(my calculations were off a little)...it will start on Monday March 10th as long as Kinslee's counts are good.  So Kinslee has a nice little break before we begin the dreaded phase "Delayed Intensification".  She will have her counts checked this week on Thursday to see how she's doing after her chemo treatments last week.  Then the following week she will have counts checked again on Friday March 7th to make sure she meets the requirements to start the next phase of treatments on Monday the 10th.  On the first day of this next phase Kinslee will have an ECHO test, spinal with spinal chemo, 2 IV chemos given through her port and she will begin steroids again for 7 days.  One of the IV chemos Kinslee will receive is a chemo she has never had before and that makes me nervous.  It can cause slight damage to the heart muscle that is unlikely to have any noticeable effects on heart function therefore she will have an ECHO test done the first day and again sometime during this phase to monitor her heart.  Just like any other chemo drug there are many side effects involved with each one such as nausea, vomiting, hair loss and fewer white blood cells, red cells and platelets in the blood.  However, this particular chemo drug makes me much more nervous.  She has handled and tolerated everything so far and I pray that she continues to keep doing so well.  We are so happy to have the first 3 phases completed!  She only has 2 more to go before making it to maintenance!  Again I want to thank everyone for your continued prayers of healing for Kinslee.  Thank you thank you thank you!!!!   

        

Spinal and chemo

Yesterday (February 10th)... Kinslee had a spinal (lumbar puncture) procedure and chemo in Ft Worth.  We traveled the day before to stay the night in a near by hotel because of her early morning appointment!  and boy are we happy we did!!!  The weather has been so crazy here lately!  Bring on warmer weather please!!!  Everything went pretty smooth at Kinslee's doctors appointment.  She does not like having her port accessed and she probably never will but I can't blame her!  It's a very scary thing for her and she's so sensitive about it!  It does not hurt her in any way but is very uncomfortable for her.  I put a numbing cream over her port so she does not feel the needle stick (thank goodness).  I really think the dressing they put over it once accessed is what bothers her the most!  Her counts looked great!  ANC was 930...in the range where the doctor wants it to be (750 to 1500).  The spinal went really well!  She has not had a spinal procedure since December 5th so I was worried about it but she did awesome!  They have a new huge tv in the procedure room that you can watch 3D videos on so that helped Kinslee relax while we sat and waited for them to begin.  She was such a big brave girl wearing her gas mask breathing the gas in and out during the spinal and spinal chemo treatment!  They brought her Cheetos and pizza (her request) after the spinal and she watched Mickey Mouse laying on her back while "recovering".  They also gave her the two IV chemo treatments while she was enjoying her snack and Mickey.  We were done and out of there by 11 o'clock but decided not to head home on I 20 because of the weather.  We decided to not take a chance with two kiddos in the car because we had heard the roads were very slick between Ft Worth and Abilene so we traveled on to Comanche to be safe.  We ended up heading home around 4 o'clock because we knew it was only going to get worse!!!  The roads were not bad between Comanche and Abilene so we made it home safe and sound!  Kinslee has felt really good today :)  no fever and we are praying she stays that way!  She has one more chemo treatment for this phase.  It is scheduled for February 20th @ 1:30 so it will be a day trip to Ft Worth for us.  The next phase should start on March 6th if all goes well.  I can already tell you I am not looking forward to the next phase called Delayed Intensification.  This will be a very intense phase for Kinslee so please keep those prayers coming.  Thank you all for caring so much for Kinslee and our family!  We are so thankful for your continued support love and prayers!  I thank God everyday for blessing our family with amazing family and friends!  Hope everyone stays safe and warm in this icy weather!      



   

Update: Kinslee is Kickin It

Kinslee has had two more treatments in Fort Worth since her first treatment of this phase.  We traveled to Fort Worth on Monday January 20th for the day.  Her appointment time was at 11 with Dr. Ray.  Accessing her port was very stressful!!!  She had a rash on the area around her port due to her sensitive skin which is allergic to either the dressing or stuff they use to sterilize it.  It was hurting her really bad :(  I wanted to cry for her!  Other than that she had a smooth day.  Her ANC was 3,740!!!  We were so happy that her counts were so high!!!  The minute we got home her nose started to run.  The next day she had a low grade fever and was really tired but she felt wonderful the rest of the week.  Kinslee and Cason had runny noses due to allergies most of the week and of course the drainage caused them to start coughing but no fever!  And it did not slow her down any!!!      

10 days later on Thursday January 30th, I took Kinslee for her most recent appointment and chemo treatment in Fort Worth.  Clay had to work in Midland that day so my mom rode along with us for support!  Her appointment time was at 1 with Dr. Ray.  Accessing her port was much easier this time!  We were able to get Kinslee's rash all cleared up before this appointment!  Thank goodness and thanks to a family friend who sent us some lotions to use on the rash!!!  Thank you so much Ginger for sharing...it worked wonders on her skin (in case you are curious...it's Rodan + Fields)!!!  Her ANC was 1,270!  Still great but probably lower because of the allergy symptoms she had the week before.  She loves playing with the toys in the infusion center where she gets her chemo and never really knows she's getting a treatment :) (it's probably the easiest part of her day).  Kinslee felt great the day after but was really wiped out yesterday!  Today she has played and played by herself all day because her bubba is at his W and Gigi's house.  She has felt so good today that she decided she didn't even need a nap!  Thanks Kinslee!

Our next appointment is scheduled for February 10th at 7:30am.  Kinslee will have another spinal along with spinal chemo and IV chemo.  Prayers of comfort for Kinslee during and after her procedure, travels, and high ANC counts would be greatly appreciated for this day!

Thank you all for the continued prayers for our little fighter Kins!  She is doing so well...I tell people all the time that you would never know she was sick!!!  She is kickin it and we know she will continue to kick it until she WINS this battle!!!! 

Kinslee and Cason playing with "snakes"

 

My little Diva loves to swing!!!

Playing dress up after getting home from treatments in Ft Worth

Kinslee and Tech

 

Playing with ponies while getting chemo treatments