"Oncology"

Well, this has been a rather long last couple of days. We had transplant clinic on Thursday and I was expecting a great clinic visit. Landen looks and acts great. When our cardiologist came in to see him she said she did not know what to think. I was very confused...he looks great. She said heart wise he is great, but his spleen and liver feel enlarged. She decided it would be best to get an ultrasound to see how large the spleen is. His lungs also sounded crackly. I mentioned that when he takes big drinks of water he usually chokes and vomits. She decided it would be a good idea to do a swallow study. On Friday, I took Landen to do the ultrasound on his abdomen. They did find both his spleen and liver enlarged. At 5pm that night I got a call from transplant with the results, however, imaging had been trying to get a hold of me because they needed to do a few more pictures to make sure of something. Of course, this was Friday at 5pm, so that means I will have to wait through the weekend. On Monday, we went back to do another ultrasound. Come to find out they though they had seen an enlarged lymphnode, but it turned out to be his spleen. A normal spleen his age should be about 7cm, but his was 9.5cm. That evening I talked to the transplant team and they said that they wanted to consult with genetics and oncology about the results. The words "consulting with oncology" is not something no one ever wants to hear. On Tuesday, we had the swallow study scheduled and transplant wanted us to stop by on our way out. A couple of my transplant moms who are staying in the hospital with their sweet little kids were having lunch in the cafeteria so they told me to stop by if I had a minute. I thought I would say "hi" as I was waiting for our transplant team. As we were talking, Dr. E (our cardiologist) and Emily came to the cafeteria to catch up with me. They sat down and asked if it was ok to talk in front of my other friends. I told them of course, I would tell them anyhow. I love Dr. E and Emily...they are amazing. Anyhow, Dr. E said that it could be one of two things...an infection he is fighting off or cancer. She made an appointment for us to meet with oncology that afternoon. Since Landen got the Ebstein Bar Virus (EBV), or mono, last November, he is at risk for PTLD which is basically cancer. So, when Dr. E mentioned the chance of cancer I thought this was most-likely what she was thinking. So, Landen, myself and my friend Shauntelle headed up to oncology to see what they thought. After doing a physical, answering questions, and doing some blood work, we were able to meet with the Dr. The appointment seemed to go well. He thought Landen looked very good and that most patients with cancer looked sick. I asked the Dr. about PTLD and he mentioned that they were looking for Leukemia because of his syndrome and enlarged spleen and low white blood count. I was able to leave the appointment feeling a lot better. We will continue to be monitored by oncology through transplant. Hopefully his enlarged spleen will resolve itself and we wont have to see on oncologist again. I am grateful for our amazing doctors and the rest of the transplant team for doing there best to take care of our little lion. I am also grateful for prayers and the peace and comfort we can receive through them.