Virginia IS for Livers

Happy 8 week anniversary!

Today marks 8 weeks to the day of surgery! Happy Anniversary to mom's "new" liver!

Mom's blood work continues to come back just great! She is gaining more and more energy each day, and has been walking everyday as well. By walking, I mean that she is apparently walking the hills (read: mountains) at the lake. She is on day 3.

I am also doing well. Looking forward to getting back to work. I know it will be tiring at first, but it won't be exhausting for long. I'm back to my normal routines of staying busy. I walk at the park many days, and need to get back into the gym to gain back muscle I've lost.

Ashley's MRI and Lab Work

On Tuesday, I had an MRI and blood work at UVA. Here are the results.

Blood work:

* All levels have returned to normal except for the alkaline phosphatase (liver function test). Currently it is 183. Normal is 40-150. It was 400 in June. I believe it was 400 due to the bout of pancreatitis.

MRI:

* The MRI does show some fluid in my right side. My wonderful surgeon thinks that this is normal post surgery fluid, but he wants to rescan me in January. So, I'll take a trip up to UVA for another round of labs and and MRI (or CT scan) then. Until that time, I'm free!

Liver Stats:

The volume of my liver today is 1140 cc. Before donation, my whole liver was 1416.8 cc and the Right lobe was 936.2. I have regenerated all but 276 cc of my liver! According to these numbers, mom has 66.08% of my liver.

So, we are continuing to do very well! I do not have exact stats on mom's blood work, but she continues to have it drawn every Monday and Thursday. She usually calls on Thursdays to get the numbers for all the many different things that they check. As far as I know, her labs have been trending how they should be. I do know that her alkaline phosphatase level was (about) 64...so she is within NORMAL range for that particular liver function. Of course, they monitor much more with her, and have to carefully balance her medication to go along with her stats. She is gradually easing off the Prednisone.

I will continue to update as we hear news. Mom and Dad are still in Virginia. They are enjoying time at the lake house until her appointment at UVA in September. She also wants to stay there because the first three months are the most critical, and she wants to avoid germs as much as possible while her body is recovering.

Surgery Pictures

If you don't like to see blood or organs, just don't look any further!








Above is mom's liver. Note the discoloration, bumps, and general lack of smoothness.



My part of the liver that went to mom. You can see where it had been cut off the other part of the liver (right side).



This is my liver going to mom. I think this is mom's empty spot for the healthy liver.


This is my liver being sewn into mom.

Thankful

Ashley here...

We continue to be thankful everyday for mom's excellent health! When Bryan and I got to the lake last week, we found her looking awesome! She had gained some weight, and really looks about ten years (or more) younger. Her blood work continues to remain stable, and she is getting back to normal. No tennis yet...but I rarely saw her sit down this weekend!

We were blessed to have a visit from another transplant patient, Bill, and his wonderful family. They came up to the lake house for lunch this weekend. We had a great time with his two sweet children! We ate, played in the water, lounged on rafts, and did some fishing. Bill and mom talked about the transplant experience, and we are thrilled both are doing so well.

I had my last appointment at UVA (hopefully) yesterday. From the initial look at the MRI, our surgeon says that my liver appears to have grown back completely. He did say it grew back in a different shape. I wish I could see pictures of the MRI. I have some fluid build up somewhere in my abdomen, so the radiologist will look at that today, and let us know what s/he thinks. The doctor seems to think it is just left over from surgery. Since I'm not running a fever or feeling badly, he didn't seem concerned. I will know about the blood work later today.

Otherwise, we are just going on with life as usual! Two more weeks until I go back to work. I am looking forward to meeting my class, but a little nervous about the long days. I am considering myself fully recovered (minus heavy lifting and tennis), but my energy level isn't totally 100%. I feel myself gaining energy every day, so maybe in two weeks I'll be 100%.

Oh, the best part! We have pictures of the livers during surgery! As soon as I can reduce the size of the files, I will post!

We are so thankful that this process went smoothly!! :)

-ashley

Almost 6 weeks...

It's already been almost six weeks since surgery date. Everything is going so well!

Mom and Dad are still at the lake house. Mom says she is feeling great! Before I left, she was working on getting all her medicines ordered and regulated. All of that is going relatively smoothly, and from what I understand, her blood work continues to improve, so she hasn't had to adjust her medications. She is on Prednisone, but that is gradually being decreased. I'm sure she will be glad to be off that drug.

Mom has another appointment at UVA the first part of September, and then she will be back in Georgia. She will continue having blood drawn twice a week. It will be great to have them back here!

I'm doing great as well. I am walking at the park, trying to build back up endurance. They said I had clearance to exercise July 15th, and tennis September 3rd. I am not sure how ready I am for lots of exercise, but my days have pretty much gotten back to normal. The back pain is just minimal.

Bryan and I head back up to the lake later this week. We are looking forward to a last vacation of the summer! I have an appointment next week at UVA for an MRI (yuck), and hopefully my last doctors visit.

So, again...no news is good news! :)
Thank you to everyone for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Ashley is home!

** Dad did not want to pose. But, I'm sure mom has several on her camera of him!

I got back home last night, and it feels great to be back! However, I already miss mom and dad, as well as the lake. I am sure I overdid it today, but it really felt good to be productive. I'm sure my stomach will be sore tomorrow, but as long as I'm not lifting anything too heavy, it doesn't really matter.

Bryan was a huge help because he drove up to Virginia over the weekend to come get me! On the drive home, I got to drive for the first time in over a month, and it felt good. It's amazing how quickly I'm recovering. It seems like this past week I've made leaps and bounds. The back pain (hopefully) is over, and only minor stomach "pain," if you'd call it that.

Mom is continuing to do very well. Her blood work has come back "excellent" each time she's asked. As I said before, they will call her if there is a problem. She continues to look better and better each day!! Her skin is not jaundiced, her eyes are white, and she generally looks younger.

Dad is doing well too! He has been great taking mom back and forth to the blood work visits. He also runs all of the errands as well. I also know that he is making sure that mom is not lifting too much! However, I'm sure he can't keep her still...she is as busy as ever.

I just cannot thank the staff and surgeons at UVA enough for the wonderful experience we have had. One important note: We were the ONLY living liver transplant of 2010 so far. We didn't ask if there were any in 2009.... :)

So, I'm home and just getting myself reorganized. We go back to Virginia later this month for a little while for my doctors' visit and MRI.

So, again...no news is good news!

Thank you, everyone, for all your continued thoughts and prayers!

-ashley

No news is good news!

We are all still at the lake house enjoying the wonderful view! It's really a great place to recover.

Mom is continuing to do well. I keep telling her to take naps, but I don't think she is! She is looking great, eating well, and doing odds and ends to stay "active." She gets her blood work every Monday and Thursday, and we were told that no news is good news. So far, everything has gone well!

I have less energy than I expected at this point, but that is OK. The pain in the back and shoulder is still there, but other than that, I'd say there was no real pain.

My recent blood work was trending well too. On June 9th, one of my pancreas enzymes was 350 (normal is 7-78, I think), and now it is 89...so that's good news too! The liver enzymes of course are not normal yet, but are headed that way. I have an MRI here at UVA on July 20th, so I guess they will tell us how much has grown back!

Bryan will hopefully be able to come up to the lake to celebrate the 4th with us. He has been such a wonderful help to all of us!

Chloe seems to love me again, which is good news.

Not much to report! We look forward to being out on the tennis court again (September 3 for me...) soon!

-ashley

Smith Mountain Lake Bound!

Great doctors appointments today!! We are so thrilled with all of the UVA doctors, nurses, and transplant team members. Everyone is so thoughtful and caring. I want to give an extra special thank you to my own transplant coordinator, who I won't name on this blog, but she has gone above and beyond both pre and post-op.

So far, all of mom's blood work looks as it was to be expected, and her medicines seem to be regulated. She even was able to stop taking the slew of pills she had to take pre-transplant. She got all of her staples out today, I think there were 31 in there. She will have blood drawn in Bedford twice a week while we are there.

As for me, the blood work that has come back looks good. The pain in the side, could possibly be some sort of internal torn muscle. The doctor described the mechanism they put me in for surgery, and he described it as a "Chinese torture device." So, unless my fever gets worse, or the rest of the blood work comes back funky, it's nothing to worry about.

Both of us feel great, and are ready to get to the lake!

Mom's next appointment with UVA will be in three months. Mine will be July 20th for an MRI and a last visit with the wonderful doctors. I will probably come home before then, then drive myself back up for the appointment! I am no longer taking pain medicine, so she said once I feel safe driving, I can drive.

That's all for now! Lake Bound!

Things to keep in thoughts and prayers: healthy eating, SUNSCREEN for mom, no virus, good blood work, and continued incision healing.

-Ashley

One more day here!

Hopefully we will be lake bound tomorrow! Although the hotel has made me a little stir crazy, it's been a great place to relax. I highly recommend the Marriott Residence Inn. Our room had 2 bedrooms, a family area, and kitchen with full stove, fridge, etc. It also has a pool, workout room, and a free HUGE breakfast buffet. The other really nice perk is that they offer free dinner Monday-Wednesday nights.

Chloe still hates me, but she seems to be coming around a little bit.

Mom and I were pretty tired yesterday, hopefully some energy will be back today! I also had a slight fever yesterday, which was mysterious. I let the nurse know, but this morning it is back down to slightly above my "normal." My normal is 96.8...see, I really AM weird.

Today, mom is going to get a hair cut, and I will most likely get a pedicure. I also hope to go to Whole Foods before heading off to the lake tomorrow.

The doctor for me will be getting labs, looking at the scar, and seeing the doctors. Mom's will be labs, seeing the doctors, hopefully getting her staples out, and then we aren't exactly sure if she will have any scans or not.

After tomorrow, I'll probably have a more clear picture as to when I'll be able to come back to Georgia.

Last few days in Charlottesville...we hope!

Ashley here...

Things are continuing to go very well! Mom still looks great, eyes are white, skin looks good, and she is eating very well. Foods that used to upset her stomach are now doing just fine, which is an even better sign!

Yesterday was spent resting, and also going down to the nearby outside shopping center. Dad dropped us off, and we walked around for about an hour and a half. It was good to get out, although shopping is not my favorite. :) After that, we rested some more, then went over to the Garland's for dinner. It was really nice to see everyone, and the food was awesome!

My back is continuing to hurt at night, so I'm not sleeping much. I can't really complain too much though because nothing else hurts other than being a little sore. I think I said it before, but my former personal trainer had me more sore than this on a weekly basis. I am wondering when the back issues will go away though. Once I'm up and out of bed, it sort of fades.

As far as pain medicine goes, I stopped the Vicodin sometime last week. It is really not necessary. I am taking one Valium (smallest dose they offer) at night for my back, but it's really not helping, so we will see what the Dr. says on Tuesday. I'm pretty sure mom is not taking any at all, and if she is it's only occasionally.

The rash on my stomach is mysterious, but looks better today. It's so itchy though.

My dog is having some adjustment issues. Bryan left, so she is depressed or something. She also ignores me, which is sad because she used to be at my feet or by me all the time. I have to retrain her to sleep in my room again, as she had been spending all her time with Bryan. Finally at 1:30 last night I got her up on the bed and she is still here, but no where near me. At the lake, I took her down to the water, and usually she pulls and pulls on the leash to get down there. This time, I said, "careful, careful", and she would stop at every step and wait for me to take my step. So, I know she's not totally just being mean. :)

Today, I hope to get a pedicure! Maybe mom will come, but she is worried about infection. She has to be very careful since she cannot risk sickness or infection!

That's all for now! Thank you to everyone for all the well wishes for my family!

Back in Charlottesville

Bryan left this morning. It was sad to see him go, as he has been such a big help. He took my car, and will come back up to get me when it's time to go home. Chloe is having major withdrawals already. She followed him around everywhere he went for the past three weeks.

So, now it is just mom, dad, Chloe, and me. We will be at the hotel (yawn) until Tuesday. Tuesday we have our doctors appointments at UVA. If all goes as expected, we will head to the late after that.

When Bryan and I got back to the hotel last night, we could not believe how awesome mom looked! Her eyes are white, and her skin looks so much more healthy! We can't wait to hear what the doctor has to say.

The lake was nice...it's such a beautiful place. I know I over did it the past two days. The walk down to the dock is long. The walk to the mailbox is long. The ladder into the water is something I should not have done (The water just PULLED me in...just to my waist. I really couldn't help it.) :) I just didn't rest as much as I should have. But, overall, I'm just a little sore. I figure that can't be bad.

As far as pain goes, the back pain is still there at night, but other than that I tell people that my trainer has made me about 1,000% more sore than I am after this. The swelling and bloating is still there, which is...gross. The belly ring is gone forever since I've been so swollen.

When I had my trainer, I used to do these calf exercises with 30 pound weights. That was horrible. It's interesting that walking up and down the steps will give me that same feeling of soreness! I plan on walking more, to save muscle.