[Oe List ...] Wonderful News to Share

[Jann McGuire]

what a powerful story. Thank you for sharing.

Jann

On Mon, Nov 14, 2022 at 3:15 PM Joyce Sloan via OE <oe at lists.wedgeblade.net>
wrote:

> Indeed that is Wonderful news!!! Dear Bekah--BREATHE!! Much love and a
> bunch of hugs 'n kisses!🤗😘🥰
>
> On Mon, Nov 14, 2022, 10:42 AM Paula Philbrook via OE <
> oe at lists.wedgeblade.net> wrote:
>
>> My dear league of Colleagues,
>> I wanted to share this wonderful news: Misha (child of Marjorie Rebekah
>> Otto grandchild of . . .  and great grandchild of Marge and Phil Philbrook)
>> is doing really well, and as of Friday Nov 11, he is done with cancer
>> treatment. Thank you all for your support, prayers and energy in the two
>> years since his diagnosis.
>>
>> See Bekah's reflections below and Raphi's beautiful words and pictures at
>> this link. Raphi's update with pics  Raphi's update with pics
>> <https://www.notion.so/Good-News-21079a9b584c4333994ab81dbc3b473a>
>>
>> from M. Rebekah Otto
>> We’re done
>>
>> I have always been a “words” person. If I am not talking, listening,
>> reading, or writing, I would rather be talking, listening, reading, or
>> writing.
>>
>> Then cancer came, and my words failed. They failed to protect my baby.
>> They could not save him, only his doctors and his treatment would. I felt
>> so powerless.
>>
>> After weeks of unexplained fevers and doctors dodging appointments
>> because of COVID, our pediatrician finally examined him and saw that Misha
>> had small red dots on his stomach and legs, petechiae, a sign of low
>> platelets. He ordered labs. After dinner, our pediatrician called and said
>> Misha’s blood labs are abnormal. Something is suppressing the bone marrow.
>> It might be an unusual infection or it might be leukemia.
>>
>> Misha and I were sent to the emergency room immediately for more testing.
>>
>> When we got admitted to the hospital that night, the first team of
>> residents told me, “it’s not a slam dunk” for a leukemia diagnosis. Wow!
>> What a choice of words. They meant that the labs weren’t completely
>> indicative, and they needed to do more testing.
>>
>> Then in the middle of the night a chatty nurse was taking Misha’s vitals
>> and checking on me. I could not admit to myself that my baby probably had
>> cancer. She said, “If it is leukemia, it will be a hard few years. You will
>> all get through it, and then you will know that you can do anything.” Oh,
>> what wisdom.
>>
>> In the weeks and months after diagnosis, we were terrified and treatment
>> was its most intense. He had frequent procedures with sedation. He had a
>> port placed in his chest. His nurses had to stick a needle in it to give
>> him chemo. He had multiple blood transfusions. His meds made him put on a
>> lot of weight, and he lost his hair. He didn’t look like himself anymore.
>>
>> After about nine months, we graduated to maintenance, with mostly at-home
>> meds, and it felt manageable. It was full of blood draws and meds, learning
>> new words like ANC and 6mp and Septra.
>>
>> Most of the time has been deeply normal: playdates, soccer practice,
>> tantrums, TV, school. Somewhere in there we got COVID, went camping, moved,
>> made new friends, loved each other, argued, watched the bears wrestle at
>> the zoo, ate a lot of noodles.
>>
>> Cancer has been a fog, dangerous and unknown. I couldn’t see beyond it.
>>
>> I haven’t wanted to start writing about this journey because it hasn’t
>> been over. I haven’t known how our cancer story ends, but now it has been a
>> little more than two years. We are done with treatment today.
>>
>> Our baby has been in cancer treatment for half of his life, and I don’t
>> have words for how happy I am that it’s over and he’s made it.
>> 11/11/2022
>>
>>
>> Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in
>> harmony.
>>     Mahatma Gandhi
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