About Jack's Illness
Jack was born on 27th February 2000 and got bigger, started walking and talking and collecting keys and padlocks almost at the same time !! In fact, by the time he was 2 years old he had a whole sandwich bag full of keys and padlocks, but only REAL ones that opened doors and cars and such.
Jack was 3 yrs old and had been going to his local pre-school for about 10 months when his problems started.
Saturday January 17th 2004 - 
Jack went for a walk with Grandma, Gemma and Katie on 17th January 2004 while Mum and Dad took big Sis Sophie shopping for her Birthday. While they were on their walk he fell over and really hurt his back. Grandma said he did cry such a lot, and she wondered if the big padlock attatched to the belt loop on his dungarees had bruised his back. He was OK by then though.
About a week later Jack had been having some pain in his back when we put his T-shirts or jumpers on and off and he would shout at us for hurting him. He was also waking up in the night with his back hurting and mum remembers waking up and he was on her bedroom floor saying his back was hurting but he couln't get up.
Thursday 29th January 2004 - Jack fell off his bike collecting Gemma from the school bus. Couldn't get up and had to be carried to the house, but then recovered and seemed OK. Mum and Dad decided to take him to see the Doctor to check if there was a problem.
Friday 30th January - 
The Doctor checked his back over and moved him and his legs about, but there didn't seem to be a problem so she thought he had probably bruised his pelvis from the fall and said to take some junior nurofen/calpol for the pain and if it didn't get better to go back.
Jack was OK most of the time but then he had a couple of "falls".
Monday 2nd February 2004 - 
Jack fell off one of the tractors at pre-school and it took his breath away, but recovered after about 10 minutes.
Tuesday 3rd February - Jack fell off a tractor again at pre-school and again recovered after about 10 minutes. Then after tea was playing with Dad and Katie and tried to get on Dads' back but slipped sideways, was just caught by Mum but went navy blue and passed out. When he woke up he could move his feet but didn't want to move his legs and we decided he had to go to Casualty as we thought something was seriously wrong. We called an ambulance because he wouldn't move and we didn't want to hurt him. Mum went with him and Dad stayed with the girls. Jack fell asleep in the ambulance and by the time we got to the hospital and he woke up, he was much better. The doctor looked at him and he seemed alright until he stood up took 3 steps then collapsed crying to lie down. Jack was sent for an X-ray of his back, and the radiographer took an X-ray of all his keys too, which he has in his bedroom. The X-ray looked OK and again the Doctor said he had probably bruised his back quite deep and it was just taking a while to heal. He was sent home and told to stay off his bike/tractor for a while, take the Nurofen regularly and if no better in a week, to go back to his Doctor.
Wednesday 11th February - Jack wasn't any better and was taken back to the Doctor but had a viral illness and high temperature. His movements all seemed OK and the Doctor suggested bringing him back in a couple of days once his temperature had settled.
Friday 13th February - 
Returned to the GP. By this time I had noticed he was walking funny "like and old man", and was not bending down to pick up toys, he was bending his knees and reaching down. The doctor watched him in his room and agreed with me that there was something wrong and gave me the option of taking Jack to the Children's ward that day, or waiting for a week or so for an Outpatient appointment. He suspected Osteomyelitis but was not sure. I said I wanted to go there and then. The Doctor wrote a referral letter and we dropped Katie off at Grandma's on the way and phoned Dad to tell him and went to the local hospital.
After being weighed - twice, because I realised he had a lot of keys and padlocks on him and weighed a full Kilo lighter without them - and seen by the nurses, Jack was xray'd then examined by the SHO and the Registrar. Both Doctors were unsure what the problem was and they decided to take some blood and let us go home over the weekend and go back on the monday for a spinal CT scan and/or an MRI scan of Jack's spine/back. In the meantime, if there was any concern with the blood sample they would phone us. Off we went home.
Monday 16th February - 
It was half term from school and after dropping the girls at Grandma's I took Jack back to the Children's ward and remember bitterly the way he told me his back was hurting and his legs were really tired while walking the very long walk from the car park to the Children's ward, and I had forgotten the pushchair!!!!!
When the consultant came to see us, he told me there was some concern over the x-ray but were unsure what and were waiting for a report on from the consultant radiologist, but also that Jack's blood picture was a little concerning. The consultant radiologist then reported that the problem was more widespread than just backpain/injury. I was told it was possibly a spinal tumour or Leukaemia or possibly a viral illness. Jack needed an abdominal ultrasound. I was advised to call Jack's dad in from work. When Dave arrived we had to wait for the utrasound scan and then wait most of the day until the consultant came back. The ultrasound showed Jack's liver and spleen were slightly enlarged but there were no masses seen. It was then he told us he suspected Leukaemia and that Jack was to be referred to the Bristol Children's Hospital that day and that he would phone us in the morning with an appointment time. We then went home in a daze. As it was half term, the girls stayed with Grandma.
Tuesday 17th February - We attended the Oncology Day Bed Unit at the Bristol Children's Hospital as requested, where Jack was greeted and seen by some very lovely doctors and nurses. We were asked what we knew/why we were there and said it was suspected that Jack had Leukaemia. We were told diagnosis can only be confirmed with a Lumbar Puncture and Bone Marrow Biopsy, and were sent home to return on Thursday and that Jack was to be Nil-by-Mouth from 07.30 hours. Jack would have to have a general anaesthetic for the Lumbar Puncture and Bone Marrow Biopsy. Through all of this we were in a state of disbelief as our little boy didn't look particularly ill, wasn't bleeding or covered in bruises, he just had a bad back!!! Surely they must be wrong?
Thursday 19th February - We returned to the Day Bed unit. Jack had Magic Cream applied to both hands. We were told the X-ray showed mutliple spinal fractures in the thoracic region and great care would be taken during the Lumbar Puncture. We then took Jack to theatre where he was given a general anaesthetic and we waited!!!!!. (there was to be a lot of waiting over the next 3 years!). We returned to Day Beds and had to wait again until the doctors came about 5pm and confirmed their suspicions that Jack did indeed have Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. Luckily for him, the most common and easiest to treat, but none the less our whole world at that moment turned upside down and became completely out of our control for the next 3 years and 3 months!!!!!!!!!!!
About 6pm we were taken from the Oncology Day Bed Unit to the Oncology Ward where Jack was started on Intravenous fluids, steroids, Allopurinol, Intravenous Vincristine, and mouthwashes. We stayed here until Thursday 26th February continuing the drugs/fluids and learning how to care for Jack whilst the drugs started killing off the disease to get Jack into remission within about 5 weeks.
Thursday 26th February - Jack was discharged home to return on Monday1st March to the Day Bed Unit where he will start the outpatient treatment.
Friday 27th February: 
HAPPY 4TH AND 2ND BIRTHDAYS
JACK AND KATIE 
XXXXXXXX
bravenet.com