Max will start his treatment this coming week. He will be on 3 primary drugs chemo (cytoxan), prednisone (high dose steroid to suppress his immune system to keep it from attacking his brain), and IVIG (a blood product that will flush out all the harmful antibodies). There are a lot of side effects that could occur and we are praying that they will be minimal and more importantly that we as parents can understand the pain and side effects so we can treat them appropriately.
Common Side Effects are: nausea/vomiting, loss of appetite, hair loss, low blood counts, bladder irritation, metal taste, hormone changes, heart damage, increased appetite, weight gain, fluid retention, increased blood sugar, irritability, mood changes, headaches, and back pain.
We will most likely continue the chemo for 6 months and the other drugs up to 18 months depending on how he responds. We will also need to pray that he doesn't catch any colds or viruses, because this could cause his OMA symptoms to flair up again and we may need to start the treatment over again.
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