Jack Update
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Collins Family
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Collins Family
It's been a few weeks since an update unfortunately it's not a fantastic one.
After our last trip to St.Louis where the new tumors were discovered, Jack went through radiation again. He did 2 weeks of proton radiation on his brain & spine. We were hoping it would help with his mobility. Unfortunately it has not. Jackson has not been able to stand or use his legs for over 2 weeks now. This has brought on a lot of difficulties for us, getting him moved here & there. But we have been pushing through.
We have a wheelchair for inside the house so it's easier to get him to and from different rooms. We were also blessed in borrowing an electric wheelchair from some new friends who had to use it for their son while he was on his brain cancer journey. They've helped us so much, simply talking with them has helped. We also got Jack a new temper-pedic bed with an adjustable base. We have it downstairs so that Tyler doesn't have to carry him up & down the stairs anymore. That has made things easier & more comfortable for us & Jack.
Since meeting with his oncology team, we were only given 1 last option of treatment which were 2 different kinds of chemo. Tyler & I have never wanted to put him on chemo, the side effects were never worth it to us. So we have decided against that. We want to be able to keep him home and comfortable as long as possible without pumping his body full of toxic drugs. The palliative care team will be meeting and we will set up a plan for someone to come out periodically to help and check on his pain.
As long as he's not in pain, he is his goofy, positive self. That is what we want. Managing his pain has proven harder than we originally expected. Just when we get it under control, new pain emerges. But we're hoping with the help of palliative care things will be easier.
Jackson really misses his friends and going to school. Tomorrow we plan on going to school to have a pizza party with the entire 3rd grade. He is very excited for this. But he also understands why we can't go back to school.
He has enjoyed having visitors, for short periods of time. Late afternoon/early evening are best for him. If you want to come visit, reach out to Tyler or I and we can try to arrange something.
Tyler has been trying to get back to work this week. I know that is very hard for him to leave. Keep him in your thoughts. Krista is just killing life right now. We're so proud of how and resilient she is. Softball starts soon and I hope Jack will be able to get out to go to games.
We made a trip to the zoo on Friday, it was a great day. Jack got pretty hot so it was a shorter trip but it was good getting him out of the house.
Thank you to everyone reaching out and stopping by. It means a lot to us!
After our last trip to St.Louis where the new tumors were discovered, Jack went through radiation again. He did 2 weeks of proton radiation on his brain & spine. We were hoping it would help with his mobility. Unfortunately it has not. Jackson has not been able to stand or use his legs for over 2 weeks now. This has brought on a lot of difficulties for us, getting him moved here & there. But we have been pushing through.
We have a wheelchair for inside the house so it's easier to get him to and from different rooms. We were also blessed in borrowing an electric wheelchair from some new friends who had to use it for their son while he was on his brain cancer journey. They've helped us so much, simply talking with them has helped. We also got Jack a new temper-pedic bed with an adjustable base. We have it downstairs so that Tyler doesn't have to carry him up & down the stairs anymore. That has made things easier & more comfortable for us & Jack.
Since meeting with his oncology team, we were only given 1 last option of treatment which were 2 different kinds of chemo. Tyler & I have never wanted to put him on chemo, the side effects were never worth it to us. So we have decided against that. We want to be able to keep him home and comfortable as long as possible without pumping his body full of toxic drugs. The palliative care team will be meeting and we will set up a plan for someone to come out periodically to help and check on his pain.
As long as he's not in pain, he is his goofy, positive self. That is what we want. Managing his pain has proven harder than we originally expected. Just when we get it under control, new pain emerges. But we're hoping with the help of palliative care things will be easier.
Jackson really misses his friends and going to school. Tomorrow we plan on going to school to have a pizza party with the entire 3rd grade. He is very excited for this. But he also understands why we can't go back to school.
He has enjoyed having visitors, for short periods of time. Late afternoon/early evening are best for him. If you want to come visit, reach out to Tyler or I and we can try to arrange something.
Tyler has been trying to get back to work this week. I know that is very hard for him to leave. Keep him in your thoughts. Krista is just killing life right now. We're so proud of how and resilient she is. Softball starts soon and I hope Jack will be able to get out to go to games.
We made a trip to the zoo on Friday, it was a great day. Jack got pretty hot so it was a shorter trip but it was good getting him out of the house.
Thank you to everyone reaching out and stopping by. It means a lot to us!
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