...and then amazing news!

sway's newest blood panel revealed a hematocrit count of 26% which is 10% higher than it was just a week ago.
...and it's almost the highest she has ever been since being diagnosed back in july of 2007.
so that is really reeeeeeeeeeally good news.
she does have another UTI so she is back on cipro for that.
we are culturing both the urine sample from saturday and the new sample that was taken when i met with dr. dodds yesterday.
the panel didn't show any red flags for diabetes and dr. dodds is running another test to *hopefully* rule out cushing's.
should get all the results shortly,
her water intake remains as crazy as ever but in sway's case it just seems to come with the situation we find ourselves in.
thanks for the prayers.

pictures of the progress

the top picture is sway at one of her weakest points,
the bottom picture is sway 2 weeks ago, march of 2008.
(click the picture to enlarge it)

PCV = 28% !!!

since my dog was diagnosed with AIHA she has not had a net gain in her RBC % ...
and since june she has battled through different phases of this disease,
the 8 blood transfusions and in-ability to hold any kind of count,
the complete breakdown of her body,
the stroke followed by a weekend of near literal death,
the anabolic steroid and miracle hold,
the continued hold but with no re-generation,
the continued hold with signs of re-generation but no RBC gain,
the months of waiting with no RBC gain,
and now the first signs of building up her cell base!
this is the greatest thing for us, thank you God.

12/26 results

i just got her newest test results,
the UTI has cleared and sway's PCV is still holding at 22.7%
...still no rise in % but this is the 2nd straight panel that shows a 'regenerative anemia,' meaning she is trying to produce new cells.

new pictures

still good...

shortly after my last post, sway was given another PCV.
she remained at 23%
i was silently hoping for a raised # since her retic count had spiked weeks earlier but i guess this is gonna continue to be an odd case.
i cant be disappointed, instead thankful.
im blessed that she is doing as good as she is, and its absolutely clear that she continues to improve.
23% is relatively low, but its remained stable for 65 days now and that is a benchmark im very proud of.
she is such a good dog, i love her so much, the best.
will put new pictures up soon.
my computer crashed 2 weeks ago and i just got it back up and running last night.

guarded relaxation

sorry for the lack of updates-
she hasnt been PCV tested since the retic count sprung up,
...and we're only testing her every 2 weeks which really goes to show how much her count has stabilized.
it has been good for her lately.
she continues to show slight improvements every day and i am just so thankful.

these next couple of weeks should ideally reveal a % increase,
and we are just gonna keep working hard and enjoying each day as they come.
sway is now able to get herself on and off the bed, jump in/out of the car, go all the way down the stairs, trot, even run a little.
she is continuing to gain weight as well, appetite is still strong.
things are good :)

its crazy cuz things were just so intensely hectic for months, and now days come and go without incident and all i can do is thank God.
i havent been posting much since things have been pretty calm,
but dont wanna lose sight of keeping this up to date with even the slightest of goods...cuz everything is important.
the impression that this disease is only peppered with bad experiences would be false and hopefully this site can reflect that.
AIHA/IMHA can be beat, i know so ... dogs have done it and hopefully sway will get to the point where this thing just fades into our past.

regeneration?

sway has been pretty even keel since my last post about her standing up.....
shes eating well and continuing to improve in many different aspects.

on saturday we had a full blood panel done, as well as another urinalysis in order to test the levels of her protein leak.
i received the results last night and am damn happy to report that not only is she still holding onto a 23%, but her retic count is up to 7.24!
that is key because a # that high shows the bone marrow has started regenerating its own cells...
its still a guarded optimism (due to the PCV being the same), but after 5 difficult months this is the start of what ive been praying to seeeee.

not only that, but the new urinalysis showed the protein leak has been drastically reduced.
...meannnnnnnning the looming fear of kidney failure is no longer blinking red and in my face!

oh yea, and she gained 4 pounds :)
at this point my only prayer revolves around seeing that PCV go uppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp

standing up

is what sway did today!
i dont know how ... but when i went home for lunch she had completely moved to the other room and was laying on the floor mattress.
there is no other way she could have gotten there.
this is a huge deal because she hasnt been able to get herself up from a laying position in almost a month.
i walked in and was immediately overjoyed when i saw where she was at.
she was also very receptive to my excitement...tail wagging, etc.
i really believe she knows she achieved something significant, its grrrrrrrrreat to see her body finally giving her a break!

a little strength returning

first off, sways PCV was around 22% on saturday.
its still holding in the general area so thats very promising.
we WERE going thru transfusions on a weekly basis so the current holding pattern has really been a blessing.
as of today it has been 26 days since her last blood transfusion...

within the last 48 hours she's started to eat alot better as well.
i took sway to dr. woods' office on wednesday (durabolin shot) and they were all very happy to see her walking around on her own power and showing the curiousity to inspect the food hallway.

you can tell that some of her strength is slowly returning...
its very subtle but she is now able to support herself when she walks down a decline, and for the most part she can turn without her legs buckling.
her walk is still rather slow, but its a revelation compared to where she was.
i might post a video of her walking tonight, its inspiring to watch her bouncing back in any form.

bone marrow = no cancer.

we went into vca for a checkup today...
while there they also told me that they had the results from the bone marrow aspirate.

good news x2...
sway is STILL holding onto her 24% RBC.
...and the bone marrow tap revealed that cancer is 'highly unlikely'
thank God.
this pretty much confirms that there is no regeneration happening at the bone marrow level, but rules out leukemia as the reason.
i can deal with that, and i have faith that in time (and the help of durabolin) those cells will begin to regenerate.
this is a good day.
oh yea, sway also got her feeding tube out!
with & without...

steady transition

she came home with the feeding tube still in her nose...
it allowed me to atleast get something down her if she chose not to eat again.

as far as her meds are concerned,
prednisone was decreased from 20mg 2x daily, to 10mg 1x daily.
imuran was stopped completely.
cyclosporine was changed from 100mg 1x daily, to 50mg 2x daily.

tuesday night was easy but wednesday morning she vomited in her sleep...
luckily i was sleeping right next to her and was able to take care of it.
i called off work because she was still unable to stand or even move herself much,
and with that kind of vomit it really becomes scary because you dont want her to choke in it.
she vomited a 2nd time hours later but continued to eat on her own as well...

thursday i went to work and when i came home for lunch she had threw up again.
this time she managed to roll herself away from it and was sitting up staring as i came thru the door.
she is definately getting stronger, little subtle things are beginning to stand out.

friday we had no accidents, and she seems to be holding her food down quite well.
she is eating the mini cans of hills AD, usually 3-4 times daily and seems to enjoy it.
i usually add a half teaspoon of 'pet tinic' in with her food twice daily.
she also had a healthy stool for the first time in weeks :)

saturday she did well yet again...
no vomiting, consistent eating and those big bright eyes reminding me everyday that following your heart is the way to go!