Screw you Cancer
Last night I sat in my son’s bedroom and held him in my arms as he cried in pain. His hip hurt and he couldn’t find relief from it. I tried desperately to help. I rubbed his hip, wiped his…
What is maintenance all about?
We have now reached the end of our first 12 week cycle of the maintenance phase. We are slowly adjusting to another new normal, one that will last a long time. So what is maintenance? As I understand it, during…
Consolidation
We are now 4 days into the second phase of Hugo’s treatment, consolidation, a short phase at only 3 weeks. As Hugo was unable to start the new chemotherapy drug, due to his low blood counts, his drug quota for…
Flying High
So another big day has arrived. We were heading up to GOSH where they would give us the results of Hugo’s MRD test. The result that would tell us if he’d achieved remission. Whether he would be classed as low…
Minimal Residual Disease
Today saw another trip to GOSH for Hugo, myself, and Richard, and another sleepover for Henry. Hugo was having a dose of chemotherapy and a bone marrow aspirate. These are not new for Hugo but today was different, today was…
Teardrops
Since diagnosis, 7 days ago, I have had to hold Hugo as he cried while numerous medical staff tried time and time again to insert fresh cannulas into his small hands. Telling him it will be okay, when it was…
Phase 1 – Induction
It has been 4 days since Hugo was diagnosed. We spent the first night at our local hospital and were then transferred by ambulance to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). The last 4 days have been a whirlwind, an intense…