Day 48 at Cancer Treatment Centers of America

Monday, July 7th 2014

Jeannene, Michelle and her boys came to stay the day with mom at Cancer Treatment Centers of America.   Mom is still in isolation due to her blood levels and platelets being so low.  As long as no one has any symptoms of any kind of illness, it is fine to visit her.  When we arrived, mom's mouth was crusted shut from the scabs sticking together.  I spoke with one of mom's nurses about getting her lips apart and she explained to me that they have to leave her lips alone because her platelets are so low if the scabs were to be picked at or pulled off she would bleed badly.  I asked if this would get better soon and she stated that it would.  

After we visited mom for a while we all went to lunch at the cafeteria together and then took everyone on a tour of the property.  I believe the campus really amazed Jeannene and Michelle as they were quite surprised at all of the amenities here at CTCA!

Once we got back to mom's room, Ms. Summer Baptist, 

Naturopathic Oncology Provider & Acupuncturist, came in to go over mom's supplements and to discuss which supplements will be added back to her daily regiment.  It was a pleasure meeting with Ms. Baptist and she was very thorough in discussing mom's needs and condition.

"I joined Cancer Treatment Centers of America because I wanted to be part of a pioneering company that focuses on integrative, innovative and patient-centered care. I wanted to join a team that works together to provide our patients and their families with high-quality cancer care and support."
                        - Summer Baptist, MS, ND, LAc

As Ms. Baptist was leaving, Mr. Stephen Jackson, Chaplain, stopped by to check on mom as he often does.  Mr. Jackson read a few verses from the Bible and Jeannene asked if he would have a group prayer over mom and the family.  It was touching to stand in a circle holding hands around mom as he prayed.  Of course many were in tears afterwards but his prayer lifted every one's spirits.

Even though mom was tired and not feeling great, she was very excited to see everyone.  Jeannene, Michelle and the kids put a smile on her face and that's very important through her inpatient stay here at CTCA.

It's always hard to leave

We headed home later in the day and Toni came up to see mom after work.  We have no idea how long mom will be staying here but as long as she is here we know she is in the best possible care!

The Charm of the Day
Praying Hands

Day 45 at Cancer Treatment Centers of America

Friday, July 4th 2014

The Concierge seating area was empty today

Today was mom's 3rd morning waking up at Cancer Treatment Centers of America and it's the morning of Independence Day, the 4th of July. Due to today being a holiday, CTCA was literally empty except for a very limited staff.  Even though the staff members there today were working on a major holiday they still displayed such loving care and uplifting happiness.

No one in the usually
 busy hallway

Now that mom is under isolation due to her white blood cell counts being so low, we are all wearing masks and gloves if we go to touch her or assist her in any way.

Morning TV Land with MeeMaw

Mom continues to be on fluid therapy and was fed through her PEG Tube up until 9:00 am.  After her feeding was done the nurse came in and unhooked mom from all  monitors and machines and said it was okay if I helped give her a shower . I gave mom a nice warm shower and dressed her in new comfortable pajamas.  I noticed that her ankles and calves were swelling and that was due to taking in so much fluid therapy and not releasing the same amount.  So as I  changed her bed linens out I got her to sit up in the chair for a few and Kayleigh sat right by her side.


As She got back in her bed with clean sheets and blankets, I elevated her legs to help with the swelling.  I also applied a lot of  Medihoney to her lips and the nurse hooked her back up to the heart monitor and fluid therapy.

A few of the Limos and Buses were parked today

Dr. O. came in later this afternoon to go over her vitals signs and her current state of well being.  He explained that her kidney and liver functions are good.  Her blood levels seem to keep changing daily.  He was surprised that I told him her mouth looked great compared to this past Tuesday up until today.  He said if I had not told him her mouth was much better he would of said it was awful!  He is new to CTCA and it was a pleasure meeting him and we look forward to seeing more this weekend.

Day 44 at Cancer Treatment Centers of America

Thursday, July 3rd 2014

Front entrance bouquet for Independence Day

Today is the second morning for mom to wake up at CTCA. We all met up early this morning and mom seemed to be doing about the same.  Her mouth looked a lot better from the nurses applying Medihoney.  Medihoney is an amazing thing!  Today she is talking a little better and has actually gained 10 pounds over the past week.  As she rested on and off, we went shopping for her some clean linens and had lunch.  She has slept more today than she has since she was admitted.  She has woke up once to a serious nose bleed where the nurses had to come in and assist.  Later on she woke up with bleeding from the mouth again and coughing really bad . Today she says she feels awful and seems to be more lethargic.  Mom hasn't had any more pain medication since last night.  Her team added an antibiotic due to her white blood cell counts being so low it is believed that she is possibly fighting an infection.  Mom has also been plugged into the feeding pump which continuously feeds her Isosource throughout the day. Kayleigh and I stayed the night with her.

We went to the Art Expressions class down stairs and painted an American Flag for MeeMaw and we also made Patriotic Mason Jar candle holders and lanterns later that evening.  After we were settled in, around midnight mom's nurse woke me up to put on a mask.  She started to explain to me that as of right now mom is going to be under isolation due to her white blood cell counts dropping.  As she told me this I started to hurt and worry if I was doing mom any harm by staying with her.  The nurse assured me that Kayleigh and I were fine next to her, that we would just have to wear a mask and gloves if we were going to be around her.  Any visitors needed to wear the same until her blood counts came back up.  Mom seemed to sleep a little more than the night before.