"Children with cancer are like candles in the wind who accept the possibility that they are in danger of being extinguished by a gust of wind from nowhere and yet, as they flicker and dance to remain alive, their brilliance challenges the darkness and dazzles those of us who watch their light. - Author Unknown"

double scan time

wow, I can't believe we are now 2 years post surgery! Carys has been doing amazingly well. The MRI scans we have every 3 months continue to show that the tumour remains stable. And the urine tests are staying at the normal level. I think her immunity levels are also back to normal. I've noticed that this winter, she's only had a couple of colds so far, and she recovers really quickly from them. Compared to last winter when she seemed to be sniffling and coughing the whole time. In fact, I seem to be the one who's hit the hardest when a cold goes through the family! Since it's been 2 years since Carys had her surgery, Lisa recommended to do an MIBG scan as well as the regular MRI scan in July. The MIBG is different in that a radioactive isotope is injected into Carys, and full body scans are done right after injection and again 24 hours later. The neuroblastoma cells take up this radioactive isotope, so when we compare the 2 scans, we would be able to see where the cancer is in her body. The MRI only scans the abdomen and pelvis, so it will be good to have the MIBG do a head to toe check. I am a bit worried about the actual injection as it's fairly large in volume and has to be administered slowly to make sure her blood pressure doesn't drop. The last MIBG we had was injected straight into her central line, so she didn't feel anything. But since she doesn't have that anymore, they'll have to insert a needle and tube (cannula) into her vein. We plan to use some topical lidocaine patches to numb the skin prior to being jabbed - I hope they work!