Best news of the day

After almost a year on Tasigna, the doctor announced today that Ah Jon BCR-ABL is undetectable. So, Jonathan is in complete molecular remission. In simple term, his cancer cell is not detectable any more. This is the best news of the day.


Just a summary:
1. He was on Glivec until March last year. His BCR-ABL reading was 0.013
2. He was prescribed with Tasigna, Nilotinib. Supposed to take 800mg a day but we stick on to 400mg (200mg twice a day) after the initial 3 months trial.
3. He is now asked to stick to 200mg twice a day and may need to continue taking the drug for 5 more years. The key thing now is to ensure that this cell does not return.


There are many godly people praying for him. And I have to thank God for his healing. All praises be to Him! And thanks for all your prayers.

He is now on a new drug

Ah Jon went for a review with Dr. Ng in Sime Darby Medical on Wednesday/Thursday, 2/3 March 2011. Dr. Ng think that he is suffering from Glivec intolerance due to his constant knee pain. The last time I reported that his knee pain was gone was in fact returned after only a week.
This time, he is given Tasigna, Nilotinib, a even more potent drug. I hope that he is not intolerance to this drug.

This drug is supposed to be better and is supposed to help him to achieve his molecular remission faster. His BCR/ABL result for end of last November was 0.133. The reading is supposed to be halved every three months. For him, he just missed the target by a small point.
Anyway, we keep our fingers crossed and pray that he will not suffer any serious reaction from his body. And that his knee pain will go away for good.
Cost wise, this drug will cost a staggering RM17K (US$5.1K) per month!! However, thanks to Novartis, they are giving 50% discount at the moment, which make it cheaper than Glivec, which cost nearly RM10K per month.
Please do pray for him that he will not suffer any adverse reaction, he will reach his molecular remission even faster and can be taken off the drug sooner.

Ah Jon Knee pain is gone!

On 20 August 2010, Ah Jon got a virus infection of the stomach. On 21 Aug, he vomited for a day and had diarrhea for two days. On 21st Aug, he took a small pill, Metoclopramide 10 mg and three packages of Oral re hydration salts (ORS Plus). When his stomach problem is gone on the third day, he found that the pain on the knee is no more there. Until now, he didn't put on any plaster and only complain that he has minor pain.
Has the pills or re hydration salts helped him? Or is it a miracle or all his toxin in his body has been removed??

Updates

it has been a long time since I last updated this. My apologies to those who are following this. For information, Ah Jon has gone to study Electrical and Electronics Engineering in Curtin technological University. He was busy doing a part time job while waiting for his results. He made some money from his job and I should say that his boss was very impressed with his IT skill.
Last month, he went to KL for more bone marrow test. He has achieved some remission and result has been encouraging.

Third Medical Review 2-3 Nov 2009

We were in Sime Darby Medical Centre (Subang Jaya) on Monday for Ah Jon 3rd medical review. Thanks God that his overall blood test results have improved. So, he went through another round of bone marrow test. As usual, he was sedated and he did not remember anything on the whole the procedure. He slept for 1.5 hours and when we woke him up, ...
... he was in a daze! His first question was "Is it done?".
... and "I don't remember anything!"
He was very tired. By the time we came out of the centre, it was 6:30PM. We arrived at the center at 9:30AM, and went straight for a blood test. The result was out in 2 hours.
So far, there was no HLA match amongst the siblings and the doctor think that it is not good to go for transplant as the complication from the transplant can be far worse. Please pray for miracle now!
Update 22 Dec 2009: We just got the news from the doctor that he has achieved complete cytogenetic remission. This is the first miracle. Please continue to pray that his hematologic milestone (normalised blood) would be achieved soon. Also pray that he will ultimately achieve complete divine healing!

Bone Marrow Results

I received an e-mail from our specialist in KL and he informed us that Ah Jon bone marrow test result has shown a complete cytogentic remission. This is a very good Christmas news for us. Now, the next milestone is hematologic. It must return to normal.
Please continue to pray for him so that he will receive complete healing from God.

Condolences

My deepest condolences to the parents of Samuel Yii who passed away on Friday. It is sad that a boy that young (16 yrs) should leave. My friend related to me that Samuel told his parents that the angels came to fetch him back just before he passed away. It was peaceful.
Samuel is another Leukemia (AML) sufferer, gone for bone marrow transplant and survived for two years.
May he rest in peace. He will be missed by many.

Thomas said, "Unless I… put my finger where the nails were… I will not believe… (John 20:25 NIV). Jesus said "Reach out your hand… Stop doubting and believe" (John 20:27 NIV). Thomas asks the question we all ask when we're struggling, "If God is so good, why do I feel so bad? If His message is so clear, why am I confused? If He's in control, why do good people wrestle with gut-wrenching problems?"…
"Lord, believing isn't easy when I'm hurt and confused, and You are silent. Like Thomas, I want proof that You love me. Help me see beyond my desire for peace and comfort, beyond my doubts and unanswered questions, and grasp the truth of Your unfailing love and grace."