[Day-6—Day-2] Help Us Celebrate Carter!

Today, day -2, is Carter’s last infusion of fludarabine. Days -6 through today have been relatively uneventful. Carter has been feeling well overall, with some dizziness and fatigue. His appetite is still there, especially for sweet treats. 😊

Carter has continued to log in (begrudgingly) for school. We are thankful for his excellent virtual teachers and the distraction. He can communicate with classmates and feel connected. Carter is also working with his hospital teacher, who is helping to keep him on track. Additionally, CHOA offers a wonderful music therapy program. Carter has taken to the piano and is picking it up quickly.

Carter is required to walk ten laps around the BMT unit each day. Knowing Carter and his competitive spirit, you won’t be surprised to hear that he has taken up a competition to walk a marathon in the unit. Thirty-three laps are one mile; 864.6 laps is a full marathon. As of today, he has completed 100 laps. He loves his physical therapist and getting some movement in each day.

Cyclophosphamide, the chemotherapy drug we have been dreading, will be infused today. This drug is nasty, will likely cause difficult side effects, and will lead to hair loss in the coming week or so. We are “prepared,” and our team has many tricks up their sleeves to help Carter through.

Carter’s 11th birthday is September 1st, on day +6. We anticipate him not feeling all that great. We would truly appreciate your help making him feel loved and special, despite spending his birthday in the hospital. We are creating a video montage we’ll play for him that day. Please submit a video of yourself and/or your family via the link below. You can share birthday wishes, a memory, transplant congratulations, or overall well wishes. We know he’d love to hear from you!

Upload your birthday wishes for Carter here!

Thank you for following along on this journey. Your support is felt and means so much to us!