I wanted to post this here because IO and SU have been so wonderful. This is Keri's journal update from yesterday.


We have the greatest news to report tonight, we took Matty for his normal clinic visit and our doctor there had the report of his biopsies of his liver and here is the great news, EVERYTHING that they removed from his liver was dead tissue(thank you all for your prayers). We were a little concerned after they were removed last week, the surgeon said from a quick biopsy in the OR they may have been some living cells, so we didn't expect the news that we got today. We are very thankful to God tonight for answering our prayers. I said to Dr. Weiss(Matty's Oncologist) that at least I feel we are not "torturing" him unnecessarily!

He told us the news was great, I of course have been crying on and off since we found out tears of JOY! Matthew still has a long road ahead, but he is on his way! He is such a strong and inspirational little boy, we are very proud of him!! I told Chris for the first time in 6 months, I feel a little less stressed. So the upcoming plans for Matthew are, he has 4 more chemo's, the first of which will start on Monday. After that, the doctor said they will rescan when they are all done and if there is anything that they did miss, then he will talk to us about the radio frequency ablation procedure that would more than likely be done in Seattle, please pray that won't be necessary!

Matthew is doing ok, the doctor said he looks good and seems to be healing well. Justin went with us for his clinic visit and they both had a ball playing! I hope all of you have a fun Halloween and please think about all of the children who are sick at home or in the hospital who will not be able to enjoy! Thank you all for your support and prayers, it really gets us through this.

That is good news BC

Excellent news, lets just hope the next piece of news is even better.

Just thought I would post the last update for everyone to read

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2007 08:12 PM, CST


Matty had a good day, he was a little more irritable than he has been, but tries to be a trooper. Justin was not feeling too good today, hopefully it is nothing, but he cried a lot and if he is still like that tomorrow I will take him to the doctor. We had a quiet dinner at home; Matthew cant really be around too many people since his counts are low. I cooked dinner for Chris and I and the boys. It was nice to eat as a family. Nicholas told us he is thankful for us and that he is thankful for the medicine Matty gets to make him better.

I would first like to start by wishing all of you and your families a wonderful Thanksgiving!

I would now like to take the time to tell you what we are Thankful for this year.

1. We are most Thankful for Matthew still being with us and fighting this awful disease.

2. We are Thankful that all that has been removed from him has been dead tissue.

2. We are thankful for Nicholas, Justin and Laura being wonderful healthy kids.

3. We are thankful for the medications to make Matthew better.

4. We are thankful for the doctors/nurses and all of the staff involved in Matthews care.

5. We are thankful for the technology and knowledge being put into trying to find cure for the disease.

6. We are thankful for Family/Friends/Strangers who have supported us through this.


I would like to take this opportunity to tell you what all of you have meant to us. We are thankful for all of you have been there to listen/cry/hug and support us. All of you who have been there for us mean the world to us. We have been through an unbelievable roller coaster over the past 7 months. Matthew has been through unimaginable things that NO child should ever have to go through. He has lived through pain and sickness, when he should just be a kid playing with no worries. We are so proud of how well he has pulled through everything he has been through. He has gone through a total 36 days of chemotherapy and I would never think I would say how thankful I am for that drug. He has a total of 6 more days. He has spent countless days in the hospital for chemo, sickness associated with chemo, fever, sores, surgeries and continues to just play and be a kid. He is the most amazing baby I have ever seen and we love him with all of our heart. We tend to forget what the other kids are going through, Nicholas and Justin have gone through missing us, not understanding what is going on, watching their brother sick, not having our full attention, we have missed a lot of Justins firsts, we tend to forget he is only 10 months older than Matty. They have also been troopers through everything and we are proud of them also! Laura doesnt get to see her brothers, since we cant take Matty too far. I know we tend to not recognize her, but I know how much she loves her brothers and they love her and look forward to Matthews treatment being done so they can all see each other. Laura is a really good kid and we are proud of her. I can say I am Thankful to have met Chris and have her. I can share with you what Chris and I have gone through in the last 7 months, we have gone through things that NO parent should have to go through. We have watched our child be diagnosed with a horrible deadly disease, we have lived with the worry about what it will do to him, we have had countless sleepless nights, worrying about him, watching him, spending in the ER, watching him start chemo, watching him in pain, watching someone elses blood be transfused through him over and over and feeling completely helpless not knowing how to stop his pain and wanting to take it all away from him, giving him shots daily at home, changing dressings on his broviac, his arm, we were told he will never have a child of his own, we had to make the most awful decision to take his arm, we have had to worry about the other kids at home and make sure they were taken care of(which they always are with the help of MomMom, Aunt Gerry and Lisa). As a family, we havent had anytime to spend together, I had to leave my job, which financially was difficult for us. When we got pregnant with Matthew it was a shock to us, since Justin was under 2 months old, our condo was not big enough for all of us, we put it up for sale and moved in with MomMom and PopPop about 2 months before Matty was diagnosed, while we looked for a bigger house for all of us and I really believe God brought us there to be with them, since this was going to happen. Unfortunately when I had to leave my job and cant work, we really cant afford to move. Chris and I have no time to be together, the one thing I can say is that as bad as this is, I am thankful that I am going through this with Chris, he is an amazing father, he has been there through everything and has a wonderful shoulder to lean on/cry on and just be there. I know that I have said a lot and believe it or not there is so much more to be said! Again we thank all of you and God Bless you!

I totally agree, what a selfless act, I think everybody needs a friend like IO.