Post-Christmas Travels

Ever since we moved to Michigan a little over twelve years ago, the holidays have always involved traveling. And more than once, that meant celebrating Christmas at home, and then hitting the road to go visit family. 

This year our travels were neither as far nor as fun as they often have been in the past. Instead of making the familiar trip to St. Louis to visit Pete's family or the familiar trip to Dallas to visit Erin's, the day after Christmas we made the familiar trip ten miles down the road to what unfortunately feels like it is becoming our home away from home: Hurley Medical Center.

This week Jack is undergoing his fourth round of four chemo treatments that require three to four days of hospitalization. Normally he would have been admitted on Tuesday, but the doctors decided it would be best to let him celebrate Christmas at home and then come in Wednesday. Upon completion of this round of treatment, he will move into the new year ready to start a new phase of chemo.

Thank you for your continued support in prayer. We currently have the following prayer requests:

• That Jack would be able to go home Friday night
• That side effects (nausea, mouth sores) would be minimal this phase
• That Jack would be able to spend enjoyable time with friends over the next couple weeks while they're home from college
• That our family would face this new year with faith and hope, and not succumb to fear and weariness

Jack Up Cancer Night

Jack Up Cancer t-shirt logo 

Supporters of Jack Up Cancer Night

We need to express our deepest and most sincere THANKS! to SO VERY MANY people for all the help Friday night. Countless volunteers, people who supplied baked goods, advertisers, numerous others, and really the whole Grand Blanc community combined to ensure that the first ever Jack Up Cancer Night was a big success! We raised over $1000 for Hurley Children's Hospital and registered 30 new people for the bone marrow donor registry. Thanks to everyone for making it such a memorable night!

Jack and his pals

Warming up, decked out in orange

Tip off in front of an orange-clad crowd

Even the mascot oranged up!

In addition to the GREAT community support that Jack Up Cancer Night brought, it was wonderful to see the following local media pick up on the story:

mLive's Brendan Savage wrote a nice piece in advance of the event.

The premier issue of Cherish Local's online magazine included a feature on Jack Up Cancer Night on page 42, followed by this video interview with Pete on page 43.

The local CBS affiliate did a story, but it doesn't appear to be online anywhere.

Meanwhile, NBC25, who you may recall did a wonderful story on Jack this summer, had a couple pieces on the event. First, they talked about it during the game highlights portion of their Friday night Hometown Hoops broadcast. Then, Sports Director Jeanna Trotman awarded her game ball of the week to the Grand Blanc community for their support of Jack Up Cancer Night.

 

ABC12 also sent out a news reporter to do a piece on the event...

You’re Invited to Jack Up Cancer Night!

You’re invited to Jack Up Cancer Night at the Grand Blanc High School boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 21st! We can’t thank you enough for continuing to love and support our Jack, and we’d be thrilled to see as many of you as possible filling up the Grand Blanc bleachers with orange in honor of Jack’s fight against leukemia next Friday night! The Bobcats will face Bay City Western at 7:00 p.m in the Tartoni Athletic Center. Please come, wear orange and think about joining us in giving a little back this holiday season.

Here are some of the ways you can participate in Jack Up Cancer Night:

• Sign up to be a bone marrow donor at the registration table! Thankfully, Jack is not in need of a bone marrow transplant, but many who suffer from leukemia are. Registering to be a donor could literally save a life! It will only take swabbing your cheeks and about 8 minutes of your time.
• Buy something sweet at the Bake Sale to benefit Hurley Children’s Hospital. Hurley has done such a great job taking care of us; we wanted to find a way to give back to them! Please bring a few extra dollars to support their lifesaving work in our community.
• Wear orange and cheer on the Bobcats! Freshmen & JV play ‪at 4:00‬ & ‪5:30‬, with the Varsity game scheduled for ‪7:00‬.

See also: A Brief Update on Jack's Treatment

A Brief Update on Jack's Treatment

Jack has completed three of his four scheduled admissions at Hurley for high dose chemo. He will be admitted for his last stay in this phase of treatment on Monday (the 17th) if his counts are high enough. If not, he will probably be admitted the day after Christmas. We are so thankful that he has been feeling good lately and is really enjoying spending time with Grace and friends home from college. Thank you so much for continuing to pray for him!

See also: You're Invited to Jack Up Cancer Night!

Six Months

It’s hard to believe. In a strange, inexplicable way it seems like it wasn't that long ago, while at the same time feeling like it was forever ago. It was exactly six months ago today though, that Erin got a call from Jack’s doctor, telling her to take him straight to the emergency room at Hurley Medical Center, have him admitted to the hospital, and don’t take NO for an answer.

While we knew Jack hadn’t been feeling well (and had some blood tests done a few days earlier as a result), we had no idea how serious it was. And we certainly had no idea what we all would experience over the six months that would follow.

We’ve hurt, we’ve wept, we’ve pleaded for mercy. We’ve felt unbelievable love from family and friends, who have constantly lifted us up in prayer and demonstrated their support in numerous other ways, as well. We’ve met and become friends with other families whose children also have leukemia. In this, we have become a part of what one of these dear new friends has rightly called, “the very best family you’d never want to be in.”

Today, six months after we first showed up at Hurley, Jack was admitted to the hospital once more. After having six unscheduled visits throughout the summer and into the fall, this is his third consecutive time being admitted that was planned. Like his last two times at the hospital, he is getting a heavy dose of chemo that requires him to stay in the hospital for three or four days.

So as we sit in Jack’s hospital room and wait for the chemo to arrive from the pharmacy, our main prayer requests are as follows:

• That the treatment would be effective in bringing permanent healing to Jack.
• That side effects of this round would be minimal. (especially  no mouth sores) The last week or so, Jack has probably felt as good as he has at any point in the last six months (seven, really). It would be so nice if he could continue to feel good, especially as his friends begin to return home from college for Christmas break.
• That the timing of the fourth and final round of this phase would be such that it doesn't land him in the hospital for Christmas.

Thanksgiving

I have this bobblehead on my bookshelf at work. Cal Ripken was one of the great players of his generation, putting together a Hall of Fame career that included two Most Valuable Player awards and nineteen All Star Game appearances. Perhaps even more than for his considerable ability though, Ripken is famous for having played in a record 2,632 consecutive games without ever taking a day off. The previous record of 2,310 set by Lou Gehrig had stood for over 66 years, and it was universally assumed that it would never be broken--until Ripken broke it. 

I thought of Ripken this week for a couple of reasons:

1. Ripken wore uniform number eight. Jack has spent the week at the hospital receiving a heavy dose of chemo. It’s his eighth time being admitted to the hospital since he was diagnosed in June.      
2. In the same way that Ripken was renowned for his resilience and toughness, and his willingness and ability to go to battle, so Jack has demonstrated similar traits in his fight with leukemia. 

And so, as Thanksgiving morning arrives and finds my wife and son at the hospital, with my daughter and me at home. I am thankful that I have a son who is able to go to war with this dreaded disease, and is strong enough and tough enough to eventually come out the other side a victor. 

But my thankfulness extends far beyond that. I am also thankful for many other reasons...

• Thankful that I have a wife that loves our family so much that she would willingly deprive herself the comfort and convenience of her own bed night after night in order to be on hand to help care for our son in the hospital
• Thankful that I have a daughter who has graciously and selflessly taken extra things upon herself to help our family, never once complaining about the deserved attention from her parents of which she is no doubt being deprived
• Thankful that Jack is being cared for by doctors and nurses who are incredibly skilled and wonderfully kind
• Thankful that so many friends and family (and even formerly complete strangers, for that matter) have loved us so well and prayed for us so consistently
• Thankful that Jack hopefully will be coming home today (if all goes as planned)
• And most of all, thankful that the Lord is a God of steadfast love who has faithfully shepherded us through this so far, and who (I am sure) will continue to do so  

UPDATE: Jack is home as of late afternoon. We are thankful indeed.

Finally!

Each of the past three weeks, we've taken Jack in for his next round of chemo. Each of the past three weeks, his counts have been too low to proceed with treatment. 

 

Finally, today though, his counts are high enough! As a result, Jack is settled in at Hurley for the next three to four days for a pre-Turkey Day appetizer of high-dose methotrexate. We’d really appreciate prayers for a quick stay with few side effects and no mouth sores.

Third Time's a Charm?

The last two Tuesdays, Jack has been scheduled to start round two of chemo in this phase of his treatment. Both times though, his levels did not met the requisite standard to endure chemo. The first Tuesday, his platelets were low. The second one, his platelets were fine, but his ANC (which, of course, was fine the first try) was too low.

Tomorrow he will give it a third shot. Please be praying that Jack's levels all would be fine, and that he would be able to move forward with this next round.

Happy Birthday!

It’s our Jack’s 19th birthday today and we are so incredibly proud of the man God is shaping him to be. This past year we have run the gamut of emotions, from the mountaintop of senior year and graduation to the depths of cancer and chemotherapy. Jack has continually shown a strength of character to push through suffering, that frankly takes our breath away. We are so very thankful for Jack and continue to praise God for his past, his present and his future.

Waiting on Counts

Just wanted to give a quick update, as well as thank all of you for praying for Jack this past week. We so appreciate your lifting him up and your kind encouragement! The mouth/throat sores are finally all gone! We are really hoping he doesn’t have to go through that again. 

This is one tough treatment plan but he is one tough guy and was ready to tackle round two of this phase today! His platelets were too low to be admitted, though, so he has the week off. We will be headed back to the clinic next week to see if his counts are high enough for more chemo. 

Please pray for no more mouth sores next time, as well as for Charlie, Nikolas, Jayson and JT, who are all fighting the same fight to #JackUpCancer!

Asking for Prayer

We’d really appreciate prayer today for our Jack. He is really suffering from extreme mouth and throat sores from chemotherapy. His counts were high enough and he was admitted on Tuesday last week for a spinal tap and a 24 hour dose of IV chemotherapy. We were thankful to be discharged Thursday evening and Jack wasn’t feeling too bad. Unfortunately, though, he is really being hit hard now by one of the side effects of the chemotherapy-mouth sores that extend down his throat and esophagus. He is tough but it is hard to see him in pain. Thanks for praying.

Good Report

MRD results are negative! We are so very thankful for God’s mercy this morning! Now on to the next phase of chemo to #JackUpCancer.

If Jack’s ANC is high enough, he will have a spinal tap tomorrow morning and then be admitted to Hurley for 3-4 days for a high dose of chemo. As long as his counts stay high enough, he will be admitted like this every other week for the next eight weeks.

Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement! Please pray with us that:

• Jack’s ANC would be high enough to begin this next phase of treatment 
• He will not have a spinal tap headache
• He will be able to get out of the hospital quickly and with no side effects from the chemo

Still Waiting...

We were hoping to have results back from Jack's MRD today. Unfortunately, the results haven't come in yet, and we probably won't hear until Monday.

Update

For the third straight week, the plan was to try to test Jack's bone marrow. When Jack went in today, our hope was that his ANC would be significantly increased from the last two weeks so that he would actually be able to get the bone marrow test.

Well, the news today was kind of mixed. His ANC had not gone up at all, actually going down a few points. Despite this, the doctors decided it was necessary to proceed with the bone marrow test. We should get results back Friday, and are hoping and praying for an MRD of less than 0.01%.

Slow Going

If it feels like we haven't been writing many updates in recent days, that's because not a whole lot has happened. Each of the last two weeks, Jack was scheduled to get his bone marrow checked, only to have the test postponed because his ANC (a measurement of blood cells) was too low to provide a representative sample. This has been somewhat discouraging for Jack and the rest of us, but we're trying to maintain a positive attitude.

Jack is scheduled to try again Tuesday, so please pray for the following:

1. That his ANC would be sufficient to complete the testing, and
2. That the test would reveal that his minimal residual disease would be less than 0.01%, enabling him to continue on his current path of treatment.

Thanks so much. We'll make sure to update you all after Tuesday's appointment.

A Little Delay

Jack went in today to have his bone marrow test done, but had a slight setback. Unfortunately, his white blood cell count was not quite high enough to guarantee accurate testing results, so the test has been put off until next Tuesday. 

As discouraged as we are by the delay, it does mean an extra week without chemo for Jack, so hopefully he can enjoy it.

Home Again, Again

Stay number six at Hotel Hurley is over and we are thankful Jack is home again, again. The last two rounds of chemo were especially tough on Jack and have landed him in the hospital two weeks in a row. Ugh! His headaches do seem to be under control now and we think we have a better idea of what was causing the extreme nausea, as well. Hopefully with some extra precautions before he receives chemotherapy, his nausea will not be as bad in the future. 

We are learning through this journey that medicine is certainly not an exact science. Everyone responds to treatment differently and from the beginning Jack has been pretty unique in how his body reacts to leukemia, chemo and low hemoglobin and platelet counts. His doctors and nurses are constantly shaking their heads at Jack’s newest reaction. Consequently, we are especially grateful for the time and thought his doctors put into his treatment. Both his doctors and nurses seem genuinely grieved when Jack is suffering and are both compassionate and wise in their care of him. We thank God for them daily.

Jack finished the consolidation phase of his treatment this week and will have a bone marrow test on Tuesday to assess his risk level for the next phase. Please pray with us that his bone marrow test results show less than .01% of leukemic cells so that he can continue treatment without radiation and without moving to a very high risk assessment. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement!

Consolodation Coming to a Close

After his three day "bonus stay" at Hotel Hurley last week, we're glad to have Jack home. Jack will be going back in to the clinic Tuesday for his final treatment in the "consolidation" phase of chemotherapy. After that, the next step is to check where he is in terms of his minimal residual disease (MRD). Please join us in praying that the MRD would be less than 0.01%. As we have mentioned before, this would allow him to continue further phases of chemotherapy with his current "intermediate risk" assessment. They will test his bone marrow next week, and the results should be back to us at the beginning of October.

The Best Laid Plans...

Well...this week was supposed to be a little easier. After having to come to the hospital for four days worth of chemo each of the last two weeks, the protocol called for Jack to only need to come in once this week.

When Jack came in for his chemo on Tuesday, they checked his blood, and found out that his platelets and hemoglobin were extremely low. So the plan was for him to come in again on Wednesday to get a transfusion. Unfortunately, when he came in, he was neither feeling good nor looking good. That, combined with the fact that his ANC was very low (meaning his immune system was especially compromised) led the doctors to admit him to the hospital.

Please pray that...

• he would respond well to the care he is receiving and get home from the hospital quickly
• while he is in, they can get to the bottom of what’s causing his ongoing headaches, and do something to fix that.
• (most importantly) as he finishes up the consolidation phase of chemo next week, his minimal residual disease would be low enough to allow him to remain in the “intermediate risk” category as he continues treatment.

Fun at the Old Ballgame

The Cardinals only visit Detroit every sixth year in the normal schedule rotation, so it's not often that Jack gets to see his favorite team. Thanks to some very thoughtful friends though, he got a really special experience during the Redbirds' most recent visit.

With the Cardinals coming to town, fellow baseball-crazed pastor, Paul Edwards gave us two tickets to Saturday's game. From there, Mike Smith took over. Mike is one of the official scorers at Busch Stadium, and is a friend of our family. He made a couple calls and arranged for a special experience at the game, but told us he would just let us be surprised. As it turned out, we got to meet Cardinals manager Mike Shildt and pitcher Adam Wainwright. Both were incredibly kind to Jack, showing genuine concern for his well-being as they interacted with him.

The time spent with them was cool enough, but Wainwright also signed a ball and a card, and Shildt gave Jack some really sharp Cardinals gear! We can't say enough about the kindness they showed in taking time to meet with us. Thanks so much to everyone involved!

While at the Cards/Tigers game, we also got to chat with Cardinals broadcaster (and former pitcher) Rick Horton. We reached out to him, and he graciously agreed to  meet up with the two of us before the game. Rick is a great guy and we had a real nice conversation with him, in addition to him also signing a card for Jack. Thanks, Rick!

In the midst of all this, we also got an unplanned bonus when we chatted with 1968 World Series MVP Mickey Lolich. He was there for the 50th anniversary celebration of that team, and we were waiting for an elevator in the Tigers administrative offices. He gave us a little good-natured ribbing seeing we were Cardinals fans (since the Cardinals were the team the Tigers beat in the '68 Series), but he seemed to be a really nice guy too.

All in all, it was definitely an experience to remember!

A Better Week

Last week was not a great week. Jack was scheduled to begin the next four week segment of the consolidation phase of his chemotherapy. Unfortunately, his ANC (a measurement of his immune system) was too low, so chemotherapy was delayed a week. And for most of the week, Jack continued to struggle with migraines following his spinal tap the previous week. On top of that was the fact that it was supposed to have been the week that we took Jack to college. He actually seems to be dealing fairly well with that…probably better than his parents. 

This week got off to a better start. Though still dealing on and off with headaches, they don’t seem to be as persistent or severe. And when he went in for chemo on Tuesday, his levels were well above the minimum to begin. 

So if you’d like to pray for us, here’s some direction:

• This week and next, Jack is scheduled for chemo on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday. The following two weeks after that he has chemo on Tuesday. The goal is that at the end of this phase, his minimal residual disease (MRD) will be below 0.01%. This is a molecular measurement of how many of his blood cells are still leukemic. If he ends up below 0.01%, then his chemo treatment will continue with him in the “intermediate risk” category. If it is above that level, then Jack gets moved into a “very high risk” classification, which would mean that the course of his treatment would have to become even more aggressive. We are really praying to avoid this because of the potentially serious and long term side effects and the radiation required at the "very high risk" level. 

• Please pray that side effects for Jack during the next four weeks of chemo would be minimal and easy for Jack to deal with. 

• As the school year gets into full swing, we are concerned that Jack’s spirits might take a dip, so please be praying for that. 

• The school year is also beginning for Caroline. If you wouldn’t mind, please also be praying for her as she begins high school. It can be hard following in the footsteps of an older sibling, and it may be especially so if teachers and students are all constantly asking about him and how he’s doing.

Thank you once more for all the prayers and support that so many of you have so steadfastly offered!

Prayer Requests for the Week

This cancer road is a long one. We are so thankful for your encouraging words and prayers. Here are some of the requests on our hearts this week:

• that Jack’s post spinal tap headache would go away (he’s had it since Tuesday)
• that his counts would be high enough to continue the next four weeks of chemo
• that Jack (and Pete and I) would be encouraged even as we watch his buddies and Grace head off to college this week and begin all the adventures we had been planning for him 
• that we would find joy in these last days of summer with our sweet Caroline before she starts her freshman year of high school

One last game of Settlers of Catan for the summer

A New Project

Mission accomplished. Since Jack's great friend Brian Caine started the Postcards for Jack project, he has officially received postcards from all fifty states (not to mention a number of foreign countries). Thanks to everyone for all your help!

With the accomplishment of this goal, we're starting a new project. Actually, we've already started it, but now we're asking for your help. If you'd still like to send Jack a postcard with an encouraging message, please go right ahead! We'll even continue to display the postcards and track them as they come in. But here's the plan for the new project:

If you know Jack at all, you likely know that he is a HUGE sports fan! Sure, Cardinals baseball, Blues hockey, and Mizzou football & basketball are his favorites, but he appreciates and enjoys all kinds of sports.

We thought it would be neat to see how many folks from the world of sports we could get to send Jack notes of encouragement. Here's how you can help: If you have contact with any (current or former) players, coaches, or other sports-related individuals that might be willing to send Jack a note of encouragement, would you please consider asking them? We have a form letter of sorts that we can email you if you have someone you'd like to forward it to. Just let us know (pcscrib@hotmail.com).

If you'd like to keep up to date on who ends up reaching out to Jack, we've set up a page to keep track of that too!  And thanks again for your help in encouraging our son to #JackUpCancer!

An Update

Well, it was a long, busy day for Jack & Erin today. In the end analysis though, it was a good day as we saw a number of our prayers answered.

Here's the rundown of Jack's day:

• He had his levels checked, and while his platelets were low, most of his other numbers were holding relatively well.
• He received platelets to prepare him for the spinal tap.
• He got an x-ray done on his chest to check on his pneumonia and help determine if he could get the chest tube removed.
• He received chemo via a spinal tap along with the requisite hour recovery time on his back to help prevent a post spinal-tap headache (which he thankfully avoided!).
• It was determined that the fluid had drained enough that he was able to have the chest tube removed, thankfully without any pain.
• He received two more kinds of chemo that took about two hours.
• Finally, another x-ray was taken to check out his lung post chest tube removal.

All in all, Erin & Jack were at the hospital from before 9:00 until after 5:00, but we're thankful that things went well and that at the end of it all, Jack got to come home! It’s hard to express how much we appreciate the doctors, nurses and staff that care for Jack with such knowledge, skill and compassion as he fights this battle. God bless them.

Prayer Requests

Here are some quick prayer requests for this week:

• That Jack's pneumonia would completely clear up.
• That they'd painlessly remove Jack's chest tube and require no further treatment/procedures/surgery for fluid around his lungs.
• That Jack's spinal tap on Tuesday would not lead to a post-spinal tap headache. This is the third of four spinal taps in four weeks, and the first two have gone well. Let's keep the streak intact!
• That Jack's counts would be holding strong when they're measured on Tuesday, and would continue to hold relatively strong through his treatment.

If you wouldn't mind, please also join us in praying for Charlie, Nikolas & Jayson, three little boys who are fighting the same battle as Jack.

Thanks so much for your faithful prayers on Jack's (and our) behalf!

A Little TV Time

This past Thursday, fellow Mizzou J-School grad Jonathan Deutsch of NBC25/Fox66 came out to the Michigan Mudcats' final game to do some interviews for a story on Jack. That story aired tonight.

This Week's News

This past week, Jack's oncologist referred him to a surgeon to take a look at the pneumonia in his lung and consider treatment options. Friday, the surgeon determined that because the fluid was loculated (in a pocket) Jack would need a tube inserted in his chest to drain the fluid from around his lung over several days. So Monday, in addition to his weekly spinal tap for chemo, Jack will have a chest tube put in.

There are a couple items on the more positive end of the spectrum:

• Jack actually seems to be feeling as good as he has in quite a while, and for that we are very thankful!
• Monday night NBC25/Fox66 will be running a story on the Postcards for Jack project. The story will be on Fox on their 10:00 newscast and air on NBC on their 11:00 newscast. The story will likely run during sports.

Prayer Requests: 

1. That the surgical procedure inserting the chest tube would go smoothly and without pain, and that the tube would be effective in quickly draining the fluid from around his lung, and that antibiotics would eliminate the pneumonia and protect Jack from any further infection.
2. That the spinal tap would go smoothly and that Jack would avoid any post-spinal tap headache.
3. That Jack wouldn't have any negative side effects from the chemo this week (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday), and that he might continue to feel relatively good.

Taking the Field

These last six years, Jack's involvement with the Michigan Mudcats baseball team that I've helped coach has truly been a highlight. Most of his best friends have been on the team with him, and we've all spent a ton of time together on the diamond throughout their middle school and high school years. In addition to that, our families have spent a lot of time together, and these young men and their families have been among those who have been Jack's (and our) greatest encouragers over the last two months.

Tonight the Mudcats won the final game of their existence, and in the process clinched a league championship. It was definitely a bittersweet occasion. Without question, finishing business as champs is a great way to go out! But mixed with the joy of accomplishment were two realities: 

1. Jack hadn't been able to play this season.
2. The game marked the end of a wonderful chapter in all of our lives.

We couldn't do anything about point number two, but the best moment of the night came when we at least took a symbolic swing at point number one. At the start of the game's final inning, Jack took over at first base for one pitch (which our pitcher dutifully made sure was nowhere near the strike zone where it might be hit). We then removed Jack to the applause of the crowd, both teams, and even the umpires.

The videos below capture different aspects of the moment, showing it from two different angles.

 

Home Again (Again)

A case of pneumonia landed him in the hospital for his longest stay to date at eight days, but finally Jack (along with Erin, who had been staying at the hospital with him) is home. After being admitted to the hospital on four separate occasions for 26 of the last 51 days, you can hardly imagine how great it is to have all of us home under one roof.

He started the second ("consolidation") phase of his chemotherapy on Monday, a week later than originally planned. Part of the treatment was a spinal tap, and we are very thankful that Jack did not experience any post-spinal tap headaches. The phase will involve two four week regimens, with a pause in between to allow his levels to rebound.

There was a concern that they would need to drain the fluid from his lung for a second time, perhaps even needing to insert a chest tube for drainage, but thankfully Jack was able to avoid that before heading home. That said, they are still keeping an eye on things, and he will be visiting a surgeon on Friday to check on his lung and consider what procedures might be necessary. In the meantime, he is on oral antibiotics at home to fight the pneumonia.

Thank you once again for our continued prayers and for your words of support!

Prayer Requests for This Week

Monday Jack is scheduled to begin the second phase of his chemotherapy (called “consolidation”). Actually, he was scheduled to begin the phase last week, but has been in the hospital fighting pneumonia since Tuesday. They drained almost a liter of fluid from his lung Thursday, and may drain some more tomorrow.

If they do drain his lung again, our prayer is that it would be effective and as pain-free as possible. The first time Jack had this procedure, it was extremely painful.

We also are praying that Jack would get to come home from the hospital tomorrow after his chemotherapy Monday.

Part of consolidation will be a spinal tap each of the next four weeks (starting Monday). Please pray that he will be headache-free afterwards.

Perhaps most significantly, we are praying that the consolidation phase would be effective, reducing his percentage of leukemic cells from 1.0% to 0.01% over the next couple of months. This would enable Jack to stay in the “intermediate risk” category. If this doesn’t occur in this next phase, he would move into the "very high risk" group, which would mean more complicated treatment that is also potentially more difficult and dangerous. The encouraging news is that the doctor is very hopeful that Jack will meet this goal, but we'd appreciate all the prayer support we can get!

Hotel Hurley, Take Four

You know you’ve had too many stays at Hurley when you walk onto the pediatric floor and all the nurses exclaim in unison, “Hey, Jack’s back!”

Sigh. Hurley nurses are awesome but we really hadn’t planned on seeing them today. We came in to the oncology clinic this morning to begin the eight week consolidation phase of Jack’s chemotherapy. However, after an X-ray to try to determine the cause of Jack’s back pain, we discovered he has pneumonia. So chemo has been put on hold and Jack has been admitted to the hospital so he can have IV antibiotics. They’ll do another X-ray on Thursday and if the pneumonia is under control, he’ll have a spinal tap and start four days of chemo then.

It’s looking like we’ll probably be here until Sunday. Jack is super disappointed to miss cheering for his Mudcat teammates at their tournament in Grand Rapids this weekend, but his mantra from the beginning has been “Let’s get this done!” so we’re pushing through at Hurley for now.

Please pray that the pneumonia would be under control by Thursday so Jack’s chemotherapy won’t be delayed any longer. Thank you!

Making Progress

We are so thankful to report that Jack’s platelets and ANC jumped up to 91 and 1095 respectively so he is good to go for the next 8 weeks of chemo! Never thought we’d be celebrating that but Jack is determined to push through and #JackUpCancer, and so are we.

We are also really encouraged that the doctor has a game-plan hopefully to relieve Jack’s back pain. He saw a DO today at the clinic who worked on Jack’s back a little bit. He wasn’t able to do all that he wanted today because Jack’s platelets are still too low but Jack will see him on Tuesday morning before he has a spinal tap and chemo when his platelets are higher.

We so appreciate all of your continued prayers, meals and kind words (and the body pillow). Thank you Eatons! We wanted to especially thank Jack’s friends who have been a consistent support and encouragement to him even during their busy teenage lives. I can’t tell you how it blesses my heart to see Jack grinning and laughing during a game of Catan with the guys or a movie with Grace. Those smiles have been few and far between these days.

Prayer Requests

Jack has been struggling with pretty bad back pain that is really slowing him down. We're not really sure what is causing it, which concerns us. Please pray that the doctors would have wisdom in terms of diagnosing and treating it, and ultimately that the pain would go away.

Jack's platelets and absolute neutrophil count (ANC) are lower than they need to be in order to proceed with the second ("consolidation") phase of chemo. Jack's attitude from the beginning has been, "Let's get this thing done," so while we appreciate the break from chemo on the one hand, it really is our desire to get back at it. Please pray that his levels would be up in time to restart chemo again on Tuesday.

Jack has lost a lot of weight, most of which is muscle. His strength, energy and endurance have all been way down. Please pray that he would rebound in these areas. And throughout this process, please pray for protection from infection as his weakened immune system leaves him very vulnerable.

Thanks so much for your love and support, and especially for your prayers.

Jack is in Remission!

"Not a good way to start the day." Those were Jack's words as we prepared to head out the door. He had been awakened in the middle of the night with severe back pain. It had kept him up for much of the night and it wasn't getting any better. We headed to the hospital, Jack wincing with every bump the car hit.

But Jack's aching back wasn't the reason we were returning to Hurley. Today was the day Jack finished the "induction" (first) phase of chemotherapy, and hopefully the day we received word that he was in remission (signifying that less than 5% of his blood cells were cancerous).

We had been very tentative about getting our hopes up. At an appointment on Monday, Jack's levels were lower than the doctors wanted, and his chemo nurse was clearly concerned and tempering our expectations. And now, Jack was having serious and mysterious back pains. On top of that, this morning he was getting a spinal tap (which caused a week-long debilitating headache the last time he got one) along with the bone marrow test that would be used to determine if he was in remission. Though praying for the best, we were far from optimistic.

Suffice to say, we were thrilled when Dr. Onwuzurike walked into the room this afternoon—exactly one month to the day after informing us that Jack had cancer—and told us, "I only have good news for you." She went on to explain that we were going to have to wait a day for the official lab results to come back, but from looking at the slides under a microscope, she said she was very confident that Jack is in remission! Beyond that, she was very pleased with a number of indicators that suggest that he is progressing well.

He still has a long road ahead with a lot more chemotherapy, and we won't know the exact course of treatment going forward for another ten days, but the news today was as good as it could have been! Thank you once again to all who have been praying for Jack, and thank you to the doctors and nurses who have done such a wonderful job of taking care of him!

Postcard Project Progress

The Postcards for Jack project is going great so far. If you'd like to see the wonderful collection of postcards Jack has received, simply click here.

Praying for Jack

We are truly thankful that Jack is feeling a little better this week. This is Jack's last week of the induction phase of his chemotherapy. The goal has been that he would be in remission (less than 5% of the cancer cells remaining) at the end of this phase.

He has a spinal tap and a bone marrow test on Thursday to see if he is in remission and to determine what his risk level is for the next phase of chemo. His blood counts aren't where the doctors want them to be, but we are asking the Lord for his mercy.

Would you please join us in praying for these two things:

1. Jack would be in remission
2. He would not have a post-spinal tap headache

Postcards for Jack

Brian, one of Jack's best friends, came up with an idea to help keep Jack's spirits up. He is spearheading this project, and has shared about it via social media in hopes of spreading the word. Here's what he wrote:

This past month, a very close friend of mine named Jack was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Jack and I walked together at our high school graduation less than a month ago and now he is fighting for his life against this dreaded disease. To help him with his fight against cancer, some friends and I are hoping to start a special project to encourage him during his battle. This project is called Postcards for Jack, in which we hope to have a postcard sent to him from all 50 states (or anywhere in the world!) with an encouraging message written for him.

If you have a chance, I ask that you please share this with family, friends and anyone else you may know. If you are willing to send a postcard to Jack, please send it to the following address:

6100 Richfield Road Flint, MI 48506

Thank you for sharing your words of encouragement and lifting up our spirits. Your support in this way will help give Jack even more strength to keep up the fight! #JackUpCancer

If you'd like to follow Jack's postcard progress, the map below shows from what states Jack has already received postcards. And click here if you'd like to see the postcards themselves. Whether your state has reached out to him or not, we're sure he'd love to hear a word of encouragement from you!