Baby Steps

So we are now flying, took off at 5:35, should land at 11:00am. Got to the plane and there were paper cranes everywhere, on both our seats, the airport staff seem to feel that this is important and have followed through but I kind of wish they weren’t doing it, I really just want to not think about what’s happened for a little while and these cranes keep reminding us. Alexis doesn’t seem to mind though so maybe I’m being too critical. Anyway, we each have our own pod. Lex is completely separated from the other passengers and the stewardesses are giving her nice attention. For dinner I’ve ordered Beef Tenderloin with asparagus and Lex got Halibut with rice, we also get smoked salmon entrees a salad and dessert plus a selection of cheeses. The wine is flowing the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is on t.v. and I have an eyemask to wear when I feel like dozing off. This is a very pleasant way to travel, how we got here is a story so incredible that I don’t have the words to describe it, but I’ll try.

Last Wednesday we learned that Alexis had relapsed the doctors told me she had 80% blasts in her blood. When we learned of Alexis’s relapse we were shocked, and very scared. Relapsing now was bad, only 71/2 months out from the SCT. PMH told us as gently as they could that they had no treatments for Lex except chemo. So what do you do? I knew that I was way over my head now, I didn’t know where the trials were I wasn’t even sure how to find them. I learned that there was treatment that looked promising in Israel but the cost was $300.000, so much money. Money we didn’t have. A friend put out a plea on Facebook for help and I emailed and facebooked everyone I knew. Last Thursday morning I didn’t know if we would be able to raise the money needed to save Lex’s life and today Wednesday less than a week later we are flying 1st class to Tel Aviv. So much has happened in the last 6 days. PMH agreed to work with us once we shared our plan with them, in fact when we had the meeting with the doctors last Friday I already knew what medical treatment I wanted for Alexis and had talked with Prof. Slavin in Israel which in retrospect probably helped because we had the beginnings of a plan something to work towards and a kernel of hope, even though the PMH doctors weren’t overly enthusiastic with our proposal they also knew that they had no further treatments for her so they didn’t stand in our way and instead helped us prepare Lex for the 12 hour flight by topping up her platelets and haemoglobin and giving her antibiotics. There is nothing in this world more upsetting than knowing your child is so sick that the you have to leave your home and travel half way around the world to obtain medical aid because your country of origin doesn’t provide it.