Saturday, December 03, 2005

November 22, 2005



It was Tuesday evening. I came back from work to take the boys swimming. Amaey was lying down looking rather yellow and slow. I started changing him into his swiming trunks and noticed that his belly was bloated and hard. The first thought that came to my mind was... gosh Amaey has what Arjun had, it was 5:30pm and his pediatrician was closed and I did not want to wait until the next day so I took him to urgent care. The holiday weekend was coming up and I just wanted to rest assure that all was fine.

The Urgent care doctor checked Amaey and asked us to go to ER at Stanford to get some blood drawn and a chest x-ray done. I took Amaey to Stanford and called Apurva who was in the city teaching his class.
Apurva and I both reached at the same time. ER took us in after an hour and did some bloodwork. Next thing we know a doctor calls us out and tells us that Amaey has Leukemia. He was not sure of the type and the risk. They would do more tests to get that information. They moved us to ICU, gave us some masks to wear and one after another more doctors came to see Amaey.

Around midnight they moved us to a room in the LPCH. The doctors told us that Amaey was extremely anemic and needed blood transfusion- now. Our little baby was hooked up with two ivy's and several monitors. The night felt really long. His breathing was so randomn that the monitor kept beeping throughout the night. It was so alarming evertime it would beep. The doctors came in but I had crashed in the chair. I could not take any more information.
Apurva was super strong through the whole night.

Next morning the doctor came in and both Apurva and I were really hoping this was all a bad joke and we would go home. However, that was not the case. They were certain with their initial diagnosis but could not confirm yet.
The day felt drawn out because the blood results that were supposed to be out at noon were confirmed at 11pm on Nov 23.
The doctor sat down and told us that Amaey has Type B Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. The next hour and half was the strangest. We were talking about starting his chemo the very next day at 8am and we were talking about a 2.5yr treatment roadmap.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Be strong and positive. He will be get well. We love you guys and we are here for anything you need.

Anonymous said...

Your family is so special to our family. We want to support you in every way. Amaey is such an adorable and strong boy. He brightens up any room when he is there. All our love!

Anonymous said...

Nishith

Dear Purvi & Apoorva,

We understand that how difficult it must be for both of u with such a shocking news. But we also know that u both are very strong individuals. You already have faced such medical problems before & so you are prepared to tackle it..

I talked to my American board certified Paediatric hematologist friend at Ahmedabad. He was very positive about the outcome of tretment. He was happy to know that the treatment is being done at Stanford. He told me that at Amaey's age the chances of recovery is very high. He also added that in his practice, the shildern who were competely cured, have no residual effects & they become very strong human beings becuase they have passed thro' such crisis. So outcome for our little freind is beautiful. You & Apu take care of yourselves because Aamey needs you all.

We all pray to almighty for Amaey's fast recovery. I do not have to say but we r always with you.

Anonymous said...

i am glad you decided to so bravely share this journey with all of us who love you and your family so much... putting things into words can make things feel even more real, and that can be very difficult at times. i really appreciate your efforts to keep us somehow as an integral part of your lives. please let us know if we can be of any help... :)

Anonymous said...

All my thoughts and positive energy go to Amaey, sweet little guy... It is comforting to know he is in the best place on earth for this treatment.
Let me know if I can be of any help.

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry to hear the news. Your family is so strong and amazing that you will get through this difficulty. Have faith that everything will be fine. Please let me know if I can do anything to help you guys. My prayers and well wishes are with you.

Give Amaey and Arjun a special hug from me. :-)

Anonymous said...

It is absolutely shockking to know about amaey.Dear,please be brave,have faith in god and have positive vibrations.Amaey will surely make through.My prayers and well wishes are always with you.pl. let me know if you need any help-alpu and family.

Anonymous said...

just wana say luv you to the boys, my best cuzins, me and akhil, amd bhadmash are missing you guys soooooooo much!!!!
Im geting a daily update on wats hapening and i know that everything is fine. Im so happy that you are all happy. Purvi masi, if you strain yourself too much i am coming from london now. Look after yourselves and stay possitive. We are all a\lways here for you.
Luv you lots
XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Anonymous said...

Amay must be doing fine. Mama & Mami will be with you shortly. With them they also bring best wishes of many people who love you fro fast recovery.

Nishith

ElisaC said...

Purvi: Found out about this yesterday from Lisa. Am so very sorry you are going through such a hard and frightening time. My thoughts are with you.

Very best,
Elisa

Anonymous said...

Purvi,

My heart goes out to you and your family. When I heard your news I thought how difficult it must be for you, and yet I feel so hopeful--Amaey is surrounded by love and prayers. It will be a rough period for you, but please know prayers are with you.

Thank you, thank you, for sharing with us! I'll keep checking for updates.

Anonymous said...

Dear Purvi, dear Apurva,
Yesterday we learned of Amaey's condition. Please let us know if we can help in any way. Philippe's mother,professor in medecine, treated many children cases of Leukemia in Paris and she knows some of the doctors in Stanford.
Our hearts goes to the 4 of you.Cécile & Philippe

Anonymous said...

alpu & family....

how's amaey doing at present?
no updates since a long time.so was a little worried.as and when you get some time,pl. update the blog so that we can be rest assured here.
my prayers,well wishes are always with you and the family.i would be more than grateful if i could be of any help to you.can always count on me.