On Monday 2/19, Cyndey had a kidney function test. The drug Cisplatin can cause Kidney damage, therefore we are monitoring her function throughout treatment. Monday morning we arrived to the Clinic to have her port accessed and labs drawn in preparation for Chemo on Tuesday. The kidney test required a radioactive solution to be injected through the port. She then laid on a table while a camera scanned the kidneys providing data on how they were processing the solution.
Therapies continue to go very well. She was happy and ready to get back to therapy after having taken two weeks off. Cydney worked on walking up and down stairs this past week. She was very cautious at first and getting the coordination to do them was a little tricky at first. She did great though and by the end of the session was getting faster and more comfortable going up and down. She also worked on standing alone without support. This made her very nervous! She was scared of falling over and not being able to catch herself. The therapist kept assuring her she is there to catch her, eventually Cydney got the confidence to stand on her own for several seconds. Her fine motor skills and strength are also coming along well.
Cydney will be starting back to school on March 7th. Last week we met with the school therapists, teachers, and special education staff to determine her needs and to set some goals. An IEP was written up noting what accommodations will be needed for her return as well as the goals set for her therapy sessions. For now she will be attending two days a week for two hours each day. While there she will be able to be involved in the classroom activities and work as well as receiving therapy either in the classroom setting or in a one on one session. She will be provided with resources to help her communicate with classmates and teachers for when she is tired and maybe can't find the words for what she needs. There is a program they use to provide her with the classroom books on audio, Book Share, making it easier for her to keep up with the reading material they are covering. Using a tablet as a communication device while her word recall comes back. Sometimes she can't recall the word she is needing, although she knows what something is, for example show her an apple and she will say she does not know what it is. Ask her if an apple is a apple or tomato she can tell you it is an apple.
For the first few weeks I will attend with her, working to increase the time she is apart from me. This I think will be the biggest challenge. She is attached! She does not like me to be away for long. I am hoping that once she gets back into the classroom and around friends she will get more comfortable being away from me again. She still tires easily and quickly, therefore two hours seems like a good start.
Cydney will continue to receive the homebound instruction each day as to keep up with the academic part of school. Her progress there has been coming along well also. She is beginning to recall the letters of the alphabet and their sounds. Her recall of numbers and the quantity they represent has become more consistent as well. Hand writing is becoming clearer and more consistent.
We are still waiting to hear results of the last MRI. The scans were sent to PCH and will be reviewed at the tumor board this Wednesday. We hope to hear something soon from either the neurosurgeon up there or from our oncologist here sometime tomorrow afternoon or evening.
Thank you all for the continued thoughts and prayers. Thank you for the messages and cards sent encouraging Cydney to keep fighting.
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