KESJ: 3 April 2011

Sunday, April 3, 2011

3 April 2011

T+565

It's flu vaccination time, and everyone in our family needs to have it done. Yesterday was the day, and we are thankful that this year it has gone smoothly for us all! Last year, the flu vaccination caused Jeremy to have high fevers in the middle of the night. This resulted in a flustered mother making worried calls to Campderdown Ward as to whether or not we needed to bring him in!

After Jeremy had his needle, it was his turn to be allowed to push the syringe when Dr KonKon had his injection (Stephanie played nurse and pushed the syringe last time).

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Definitions

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) - a rapidly progressing cancer of the blood and bone marrow. ALL affects the type of developing white blood cells known as lymphocytes. It is the most common form of childhood leukaemia, and the most common type of childhood cancer. It also occurs in adults.

Blast cells - immature blood cells normally found in the bone marrow. Blast cells normally constitute up to 5% of all bone marrow cells. These cells divide and replenish all the normal blood cells in the marrow and circulating blood. Acute leukaemia is characterised by an accumulation of abnormal blast cells that take over the marrow and spill out into the blood stream.

Bone marrow transplant - the process of replacing bone marrow cells (stem cells) that are unhealthy, with stem cells that are healthy. The healthy stem cells are re-infused intravenously through the central line, after very strong chemotherapy and/or radiation to kill unhealthy stem cells. The re-infusion of healthy stem cells essentially rescues the patient from the chemotherapy and/or radiation, by enabling his or her bone marrow to start producing new blood cells.