February 24th, 2008 - Emergency room resident
Marianne and Gran spent Thursday and Friday with Cameron and Leigh at the lodge and on Friday they went to visit Childhood Cancer Support (CCS), which is a charity that operates from an old house just a few hundred metres from the hospital, where Leigh had heard Cameron might be able to get online and finally see this website… The folks as CCS turned out to be a real blessing. Not only did Cameron get to enjoy some time reviewing all of your wonderful messages here, but as soon the CCS folks there learned of our frustration arranging the hire of a wheelchair for Cameron – who is now too weak to walk any real distance – they produced one and promptly handed it over, free for Cameron to use for the duration of his stay in Brisbane! He told me when I saw him later that he loved the site and particularly enjoyed Trish’s silly jokes. However, the whole experience of visiting CCS reminded him just how many people are out there encouraging, caring and praying for him.
On Friday evening Carlton, Owen and I changed places with Marianne and Gran as Marianne flew back to Sydney and Gran spent the weekend on the coast where she swept through the Smith residence cleaning, washing and ironing, while we spent a family weekend at the Leonard Lodge loosely tethered to both the oncology ward and emergency room. It seems there’s never any shortage of anxiety and drama when it comes to Cameron’s condition as we had to take Cameron down to the emergency room no less than 3 times over the 30 hour period between Saturday and Sunday. He awoke with a headache and a rash around the lower part of his neck, which was also a bit swollen; the wound in his chest where his central line is located was also looking a bit infected and he had a new pain in his groin and just wasn’t feeling well.
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Blood tests confirmed that Cameron’s immune system is now where it is expected to be, which is right down at the low end of the scale. That means he is extremely vulnerable to well, anything really. He is not quite neutropenic, which is the clinical term used to describe the state of the immune system when it is absolutely defenceless, but his neutrophil count is approaching borderline, so a simple cold virus can quickly develop into pneumonia and even the common bacteria that occur naturally in the body can cause severe infection to his system. Later on, after Cameron was given the all-clear and sent back to the lodge, I took him back again as he seemed to be deteriorating. This time they removed the dressing on his central line and cleaned it, which was extremely painful and he cried a few times as the antiseptics went to work. They took a culture and the results will be known tomorrow. He also got given some more antibiotics to supplement the ones he is already taking.
By lunchtime today we had decided to take him back again and this time he was x-rayed, which showed that part of his lungs had collapsed as a result of the mass on his chest shrinking – so a nasty development that isn’t entirely unusual and we are told, is a positive development. So he is back in the lodge once again. A few of the nurses have begun to recognise Cam. One of them yesterday came to see Cam in the cubicle where he was being examined, specially to tell him that she and another nurse were talking about just how special and what a nice person he was, so she decided to just come over and tell him that. And today another one hand wrote a sign with his name on it and posted in the cubicle that he seems to always be wheeled into whenever he comes to the emergency room. Cameron has such an incredible impact on just about everyone who comes into contact with, from nurses, to doctors and cleaners – doesn’t matter. They all immediately warm to Cam’s sense of humour and his courage, which are all quite impossible to ignore.
Returning home to the coast this evening was very hard. Our good friends from the Gold Coast, the Paine family – whom we first met when Cameron and Carlton played at Cobham rugby club in the UK – are returning to live in the UK and came to say hi to Cameron as well as to say farewell. That was immediately followed with our own farewells to one another as Carlton and Owen start another school week tomorrow and I desperately try to reinstate some sort productive routine around my work. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
February 24th, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Hey Cameron it certainly looks like you have had an interesting few days since I saw you last, some good some not so good. I have been sick unfortunately so I couldn’t make it down there. Have been keeping on praying for you and am still asking God for a miracle. It sounds like you are having an impact on the doctors and nurses, thats brilliant. Who knows you may lead some of them to Christ. We prayed at children’s church for you and will keep doing it till your back with us. If I am fully better by Wednesday I will be there and hopefully beat you at cards this time (not likely). As I was praying God gave me a Scripture Jeremiah 29:11 look it up it is very cool. Bless you heaps your friend Pastor Neil. ps let mum and dad know we are praying for them as well.
February 25th, 2008 at 2:50 am
Hi Cam must have been a super long weekend with all the girls, I bet you were spoilt!!!!! Sounds like you also had some unpleasant excitement as well, but I suppose that is to be expected, but when you go to the emergency room you can flirt with the nurses, with your lovely character you have obviously already won them over, keep at it young man! Big hugs and kisses to your mom dad brothers and gran. God Bless and sweet dreams lots of love
Dee Martin Manuella and Kenneth xxxx
February 25th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Hey Cam,
We all missed our Sunday adventure to Brisbane but hope to see you next Sunday. We will pray that you will be stronger every day. Always knew that there was something special about you. Now everyone is finding out!!!
I’ve got some more very sick jokes!
Why did the chewing gum cross the road?
It was stuck to the bottom of the chicken’s shoes!
Susan: “We have a terrible problem. Our mothe thinks she’s a chicken.”
Wanda: “Why don’t you take her to a psychiatrist?”
Susan: “We need the eggs.”
What did the free fish say to the fish that just got hooked?
“Shoulda kept your mouth shut like I told you.”
February 26th, 2008 at 6:09 pm
hey Cameron how are you going? I thought I’d say hi because I haven’t seen you for more than a month. I’ve been praying for you at school. last Saturday it reached 40 degrees and now it has started raining. here is something to make you laugh, well I’ll try to make you laugh.
patient:doctor, doctor my wife thinks shes a bell.
Doctor:well stop ringing her!
What do you get when you cross a scout and a zombie.
a monster that scares old ladies across the road.
I’m having my camp on 27/02/08. I wonder how it’s going to be when its raining because we have got all the activities are outside I’ll write back soon
Josiah Elstak