email update - 01 July, 2003

This one was during an especially difficult time... July 1 is my son's birthday, and he turned 3 on that day. For me, it serves as a reminder of how much we lost during the summer of 2003. We didn't just lose Dad, there was also so much life that we had to let flow by without us. My heart really goes out to anyone dealing with this sort of thing now.
Dad's condition had begun to destabilize, and he'd developed an infection. I remember that it was a really terrifying weekend.

Hi everyone,

Again, this is an incomplete address listing, so please feel free to pass this information along if you need to.

First off I would like to, again, mention the amazing level of care that my dad is receiving at UNMC hospital in Omaha. I have met so many amazing people... from the nurses that care for him and watch over him every hour of every day, to the Physicians' Assistants who oversee the daily operations on his wing, to the Pulmonary Specialists, Renal Specialists, Infectious Disease Specialists, Oncology Specialists, and every other sort of medical expert and piece of technology employed to keep dad ticking. I'm in awe of the care, concern, and attention that my father is receiving.

The weekend was not good.

Dad's kidney function has dropped way down. He still has no immune system to speak of (it is currently 0.1; while on the scale that UNMC uses, a healthy immune system is from around 4.0 to 11.0), and he has developed an infection in his blood... Staphylococcus Epidermis bacteria – common to our skin & mucous membranes, but especially dangerous to someone in dad's condition. The infection caused him to run a fever, and his blood pressure dropped severely. He was given Dopamine to raise his blood pressure and he started a new antibiotic to fight the infection. Also over the weekend, he was not breathing over the ventilator, and was having problems with his left lung.

On Monday afternoon (he's been in a "drug-induced coma" since the previous Monday when he was intubated), Dad started an "ongoing" dialysis to help out his kidney, and remove the toxins from his blood. They had also cut his Versed (sedation drug) and Morphine to see if he was still able to wake up.

On Tuesday morning at 7:45 Dad choked a little as they were suctioning his vent. He also tried to blink his eyes... he's still in there! :) He's back on the Versed and Morphine (sedated), and the dialysis is really helping to clear the toxins out of his blood. He still has fevers and the staph infection, but he is breathing over the ventilator and is no longer on Dopamine, as his blood pressure has regulated. The ulcers in his mouth are healing up, and he's not taking very much in the way of blood products. He is still very bloated and is not very pretty to look at. ;)

This evening, as his brother Nils visited him, Dad's eyes teared up when Nils told him that he loved him. :)

Dad still has a long way to go. He has no immune system yet, and has yet to deal with graft vs. host disease (nor has he been able to have much in the way of anti-rejection drugs because of his poor kidney function). There is also the staph infection to beat (let alone the cancer), but his status has markedly improved since the weekend and he has a better chance now.

Thank you all for your care and support, and please know that we're thinking of you.
Take care,
-p