How
is she doing?
Thank you for stopping by
to check on Joann. We hope that this page is useful and we will try to keep it as
up-to-date as possible. Family and friends are invited to a picnic, today, at 4:00 PM, in
Albany's Washington Park, at the northeast end of New Scotland Avenue. Click
here for the map and directions. Joann, of course, will not be able to leave the
hospital, but she might be able to see the picnic, and she is not restricted as to
visitors. However, Jim asks that you keep visits brief so as not to tire her, and please
don't visit if you have a cold or infection, because her white blood cell count
is lower because of the chemotherapy. Happy birthday today to Brian Sokolowski - he's 22! How it started
| Baby Larissa | Jim | Blacky
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How she
is: As you know by now, Joann is at Albany Medical Center with a large, inoperable, cancerous tumor in her right lung. She is also 27 weeks pregnant. This has greatly complicated her treatment. Her doctors, Stephen H. Grund, MD, PhD, Oncology, and Marla S. Eglowstein, MD, Perinatology, have researched and consulted with colleagues around the country to design a treatment program that has started Joann on a road to recovery and is safe for her baby Larissa. Joann had her first chemotherapy on Wednesday. Overnight Wednesday/Thursday, her blood oxygen level dropped to 90%,and she began receiving supplemental oxygen early in the morning. Last night the blood oxygen level was back up to 100% at one reading, which is great! Joann has gained over 2 lbs. since her admission on Monday, so she is definitely doing her job to grow Larissa. Joann had a quiet day with visits from Janet Angelis at lunchtime and from Jim during the afternoon and evening. The entire hospital was very quiet. Dr. Eglowstein was on call, and stopped for long chat with Joann and Jim. Today is the picnic, so this edition has to be brief. Jim is making his special recipe iced tea. He's going to pick up a hot fudge sunday at Friendly's, too. Look back at the July 1 edition for more information about the chemotherapy treatment.
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About baby Larissa: Mommy is noticably bigger, and Daddy can feel Larissa bumping the front of Mommy's belly. Actually, Larissa's heartbeat has been so consistently strong that Dr. Eglowstein and the Obstetrics staff decided to reduce the fetal monitoring from once-a-shift to once-a-day. The means Mommy doesn't have to be awakened as many times at night. Mommy and Daddy visited the neonatal nursery yesterday afternoon. More about that in tomorrow's edition.
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What about Jim?  Well, Joann doesn't have a computer at the hospital yet, so Jim has a little bit of time to get straightened around. Check back here in a few days to see how he is doing.
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And Blacky? Blacky misses Mommy, but he is being very good about it. So far he has chewed up only one of Aunt Judy's Rubbermaid food containers. He slept on Mommy's recliner last night, but he came upstairs at 4:45 AM to tell Daddy he needed to go out to patrol the perimeter for cats.
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| How to reach Joann: She is going to be moving around, so check here for latest information. mail: visiting: phone: How to reach Larissa: How to reach Jim: mail: Ives & Shaughnessy 318 Wall Street, Suite 2A Kingston, NY 12401 visiting: phone:
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