Abbi has gvhd but her leukemia is...

I have a quick update tonight, and it is not good news, abbi has gvhd but her leukemia is also coming back. she has a few lumps on her head and the doctor thinks it could be where the cancer is hiding, they will do a liver biopsy tomorrow and also biopsy the lumps. her liver numbers are high so she is yellow with jaundice. the doctor seems to think there are no more options now, we wont know for sure till wednesday, then we will have to talk to her and ask her what she wants to do. we will keep trying if they have anything to buy more time. we have also decided to really do this nutrition diet called the ketogenic diet, our friend is on it and curing her cancer. it is something to try to buy any more time with our precious daughter. i will tell you all more when we know more, she does not know and we want to talk to her after we get the results.  Mom/Candice

Bling, Bling your IPOD case

Starring Abigail and her IPOD

Zombies...

Starring Abbi, Blake, and Trinity

GVHD, LIVER COUNTS, AND LYMPHOCYTE INFUSIONS

Abbi's Mom: Hello everyone, it has been a while and a lot has happened, Abbi was released from the hospital march 30th and had her bone marrow biopsy April 3rd which showed her leukemia cells to still be at 1% and her engraftment (percentage of donor cells vs Abbi cells) to be at 99% donor in all cell lines except one which was 66% donor (they check 4 different cell lines) so at that point they were saying the second stem cell boost did not work. well that same day we found that out, the docs prepared to give her a very large lymphocyte infusion called a DLI, (mature white blood cells from her donor that have the ability to find and destroy all foreign matter including leukemia cells) that was on April 10th, we waited 2 and a half weeks and on April 26th they did another biopsy and on may 1st we got the miraculous news that there were no detectable leukemia cells left in her body! they said we don't know how but it is 0. then may 3rd, my sons 8th b day, we got more great news Abbi had converted to 100% donor in all cell lines but the one, where she jumped from 66% to 99%! in 2 weeks! the doctor told us that in the beginning of her being diagnosed with AML none of them thought this could be achievable, it was a 10% chance. Wow did she show them. remember when i said they were trying to give her graft vs host disease, well her liver numbers started to climb around the same time as the engraftment jumped to 100%, and the most common places for the donor cells to attack are the skin liver and gut, well in this situation they are attacking her liver and therefore attacking all foreign cells, leukemia cells! Her liver numbers continue to climb, so instead of treating it with steroids which suppress the immune system and possibly lose the graft vs leukemia effect they have given her a medicine called actigall to protect her liver from damage. they want to let it go as long as they can before treating it. so we have reached our goal thanks to god and the doctors and nurses at UCSF! Now the last thing is for this gvhd to be chronic and last i guess a lifetime or at least long enough for the leukemia cells to never come back, that is our next prayer, for the gvhd to stick around without hurting her, cause right now this is the perfect place they say to have the gvhd because the liver heals itself. So far there are no other places where it is effecting her, but that could change over time, thank you everyone for the many prayers!

My kids are on their way home May 3rd on Blake's 8th birthday...!

OMG I just heard that Not only are Abbi's bone marrow tests perfect and 100% free of Leukemia 'blast cells but she is all the way around great in all blood counts with just a 99% in only one area! (not sure which test because her Mom tells me quite rapidly what the Doctors had to say to them)

Go girl! You have a very big Guardian Angel by your side and many prayers, professional energy healers who have done their work on your spirit, and everyone who ever connected with you is sending you their good wishes.  Wow is all I can manage to say...FAITH is REAL and so is the POWER of GOD.  My kids are on their way HOME for at least a 3 week visit!

Grandmom

Abigail Has Spontaneous Remission In May 2012!

Abbi's Mom says:

Here is an awesome update on Abbi, the bone marrow biopsy (done last week of April and reported to Candice this week of May 1st, 2012) showed no trace of leukemia cells, IT WAS NEGATIVE! the doctor said i don't know how but it is negative! We know how! Thank you to everyone praying and continuing to pray, we are definitely not out of the woods but this is a victory for us at this point keep up the prayers.  

G ma Mary says WOO-HOO for our girl Abigail!!

Laci's Mom and friends

Abigail went to Bakersfield to participate in a car race for donations to Laci who is another little girl staying at Koret Family House with her while she also has weekly Doctor appointments and went through her own cancer treatment.

 

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A beautiful young lady in the fight of her life...

Abigail has been very busy having bone marrow testing, dental work, and more donor lymphocytes to help her over this part of the procedure she has endured since the first week of January 2012. I don't know if she is ready to face more treatments or she has just been keeping occupied what between her hospital trips, dentist days, Easter celebration at Koret Family House or her trips to the Museums and shopping around San Francisco, California. One thing we do know id that she is perpetually in a zone of happiness because she does have a very close bond with her brother Blake, her Dad Dennis, her Mother Candice, Grandpa Rick, Grandma Kate, Aunt Melanie, Aunt Becky, Uncle Chris, Cousin Amara Lark, or Aunt Helen, Aunt Marsha,  Uncle Eric, Aunt Jen, and Uncle Dan, her Cousins Emily and Alex. There are many friends and family who are out in the greater areas also including her Great Grandma Mary and Grandpop Jack O'Grady and many more Aunts and Uncles and Cousins whom she has not met. God Bless Abigail Brianne Courtemanche  because we all love her very much and wish her lollipops, cotton candy, and alot of rock music videos of Justin Beiber!