Dear Friends and Family,

 

Last week we had another major setback.  On Thursday, April 29, Quincy was scheduled to start round four of her new chemo regimen that she has been on since the lump on her leg appeared in February.  Early that morning we had an ultrasound on her left leg before her chemo was scheduled to begin.  The results were very disappointing.  The lump has increased in size, which means that this chemo regimen has now failed. 

At this point, our options are very limited.  We have used all the chemotherapy drugs that have proven to have any effect on Quincy's cancer.  The doctors told us that any choice of treatments we are now considering for Quincy should be completely focused on “quality-of-life.” 

After many serious discussions with the team of doctors at UCSF, we have decided to enroll Quincy into a Phase I clinical trial of a new drug being tested at Stanford University Children's Hospital.  The potential of this drug as well as any Phase I study having positive results are low; but through our research and discussions we feel we have to try.  Quincy is not yet in any pain, the drug protocol is manageable, and the drug side effects seem to be minimal. 

In preparation for the clinical trial at Stanford, this past week has been a whirlwind of exams, scans, and tests.  On Monday Quincy had a MRI (her first one without any anesthesia).  Tuesday was a bi-lateral bone marrow biopsy and aspiration.  On Wednesday we spent the entire day at Stanford in discussions with the pediatric oncologists.  Thursday and Friday were filled with arm pokes, blood draws, EKG's and nuclear medicine scans, along with much communication between UCSF and Stanford in order to qualify for this clinical trial.

 We received word late Friday that Quincy was accepted into the study and that we will start on Monday.  In this Phase I clinical trial Quincy will be monitored very closely and have numerous tests, labs, and scans weekly.  We can only hope and pray her little body has some response to this study and that her spirit remains high, as it has been throughout these past weeks. 

Quincy truly keeps us going.  On every hospital trip we listen to her favorite CD, which is the sound track to her favorite movie “Brother Bear”.  We've grown fond of all the songs on the CD and we can't help but think of Quincy on the song with the line ... “with blue skies ahead, I'm on my way and I can't keep this smile off my face.”  Our little girl keeps moving forward living her life - with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye. 

Thank you for all of your prayers and kind thoughts.

 

Love,
Roger & Lisa