A LOT OF NEWS TODAY!

04/13/06 - A LOT OF NEWS TODAY! Over the past few days Hannah has received many tests. She has been gaining weight DRAMATICALLY, not because of an increase in appetite. Hannah has been retaining FLUID. Her urine output has decreased and she is having some swelling in her face. Over the past three days she has gained over 4lbs. It is belived that Hannah's kidneys are not functioning at there FULL CAPACITY. Her blood work shows increased levels to a point where the kidneys will begin to shut down. Hannah was scheduled for a kidney function test today but due to some complications the test was not accurate and the results were inconclusive. The test will be redone over the next few days. This will determine if Hannah is in KIDNEY FAILURE and to what extent. Until then a catheter was inserted tonight so her output could be more accurately measured. It was a very UNCOMFORTABLE PROCEDURE for Hannah and took a few attemps. Hannah received 2 more blood transfusions today, one of platelets and one of red blood cells. Hannah had a chest xray today which showed the lesions in her right lung had increased in size and there were some lesions starting on the bottom of her left lung as well. Unsure if these lesions are due to the radiation, infection or clusters of cancer cells the doctors will be preforming a procedure tomorrow to gather a culture of the lesion for testing. This procedure is a FLUSH of the lungs. Hannah will be taken tomorrow to the operating room and put under anethestic. She will be intubated (a small tube inserted down her throat to help her breath. Another small tube with a camera will then be inserted. Following this procedure Hannah will be ADMITTED to the INTENSIVE CARE UNIT. She will require closer monitoring as the breathing tube may need to remain in for 24-72hrs. Hannah is also hooked up to a heart monitor which is detecting some type of murmur or irregularity in her heartbeat. This also could be due to the fluid retention. Hannah has been JAUNDICE for the past few days and has met the criteria for having hepatic V.O.D. (veno-occlusive disease). This is an uncommon complication following high doses of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. In patients with VOD, the blood vessels that carry blood through the liver become swollen and obstructed. This impairs the liver's ability to remove toxins, drugs and other waste products from the bloodstream. Pressure and fluids build up in the liver, causing swelling and tenderness of the liver. The kidneys may retain excess water and salt, causing fluid to build up in the body and swelling of the legs, arms and abdomen to occur. Once this disease occurs the chances for other systems to fail increase dramatically. Symptoms include increased levels of bilirubin (JAUNDICE), painful hepatomegaly (enlargement of the liver) and FLUID RETENTION. Hannah is receiving another medication to keep this condition under control. At the moment nothing is CONCLUSIVE until further test results are in. Let's stay positive and hope for the best. Hannah our prayers are with you. May you continue to find your strength in God's love as he is watching over you. Karen and Stephen, stay strong. Things may be very SCARY right now because there are so many UNKNOWNS. But remember Hannah is receiving the best care possible and she has AMAZING STRENGTH and DETERMINATION to get well. You both are also in our prayers today and ALWAYS!