Prayer Request

Please pray for Josiah as he is on his way into London hospital as he is not responding properly. Please pray for comfort for James and Nelly as well. I will update as soon as I know more.

Update:  Earlier this afternoon, Josiah vomited and then started shaking and wasn't responding to Nelly.  The conclusion that the Drs came to is that he fainted for some reason, possibly from choking while vomiting, or possibly because his body can't handle vomiting in his weakend state.  They are also checking for a blood infection. They did blood work to check his counts and those came back fine. He is feeling much better now. Thanks so much for your prayers!

June and July

James and Nelly would really appreciate your prayers for the coming weeks, as Josiah will be going through one of the most intense periods of chemo for his treatment. He will be receiving two different kinds of chemo every Friday, as well as being on steroids; 7 days on, 7 days off.  The common side effects of this treatment are hair loss, mouth sores, nausea, and vomiting.  The treatment is expected to bring his counts very low, making him much more susceptible to getting sick.  They have been told to expect to have to spend time staying in the hospital.  So far Josiah has tolerated the treatments very well, and we are very grateful to the Lord for this! Thank you so much for your continued prayers! :)

Josiah's weekly chemo process

Waiting for blood work results with Peter Rabit. The levels were good so he could have chemo.

Getting chemo from nurse Vivian, a very nice Christian lady :).

In the room where he gets his lumbar puncture.  He is put to sleep for that.

We get to stay until he is asleep.

Back in his room after the puncture.

He did not feel well after the puncture.  He was weak, a little disorientated and complained of a sore tummy on the way home but is feeling a little better this evening.

Nelly's mom has been taking Nelly and Josiah in for his chemo every week; here are some pictures and an update from her.  The last one is a selfie :). Josiah was feeling pretty good this week. Eating and walking and pretty happy. Thankfully he didn't get the flu that Nelly and the other kids had. His counts were up so he was able to resume his chemo.

Update

Josiah went in for his chemo treatment today, but they were unable to do it as his counts were too low.  

He is going back in on Friday, and they will retest to see if his counts have come up so that they can resume his chemo treatments.  

Update & picture of Josiah from his Oma

We are very thankful Josiah's fever is back in the normal range!! His hemoglobin is very low so they are giving him a blood transfusion today.  Thank you for your prayers!

Update

Joshiah is not doing well today, his temperature is at 100.4 on Tylenol, he is very sore and white, and may need a blood transfusion.  The chemo causes all of his nerve endings to be painful.   They have done some tests, and the results will be in tomorrow.  It is likely a virus as his immune system is down. He won't be allowed to go home until they can get his fever under control.  Please pray for pain relief, and a drop in his temperature.

Prayer Request

Josiah has been admitted to the hospital as he has a high fever, And his neutrophil counts are low which means that he's not fighting the infection.  He has to stay for a minimum of 48 hrs for monitoring.  Please pray that his fever goes down and his counts go up.

Joe is doing good. He isn't eating much but is happy. He had a break this Friday and didn't have to go in to the hospital. He is taking an oral chemo every day this month two hours after supper. Friday he goes in for two different kinds of chemo through the IV. He will go in every ten days for two months for an escalating amount. He has a cough right now like the rest of our kids, but not as bad, and seems to be fighting it on his own. James and Ian made it back safely from Mexico :).  Thanks for your continued prayers!  ~ James & Nelly

Josiah being weighed

Daily Chemo

Josiah had another lumbar puncture on Friday, and they are waiting for the results.  Nelly is now giving him daily chemo treatments at home, and he will continue his Friday lumbar punctures for a few more weeks.  He has lost his desire to eat, but other than that is happy and doing well. Please pray for James and his brother Ian who are currently in Mexico in the process of packing up their stuff to bring it back to Canada.  A few hours into their trip an axle broke on their trailer, and Ian's wallet was stolen from the vehicle.  Please pray for a quick repair to the trailer, no complications with replacing Ian's ID, and safe travels home.

Josiah started to run a fever yesterday so had to go back into the hospital.  He was allowed to go back home today, and was given a 24hr antibiotic that will help if it isn't a virus.  If it is a virus, it will have to run it's course.  They need to go back in tomorrow for a check up as they want to keep an eye on the fever. They would appreciate your prayers.

Recent Pic of Josiah - shaved head as his hair was falling out. He doesn't seem to mind the new look :)

Update from Nelly

Here's that latest picture of Josiah, all puffed out from the steroids :)

Today went well. We got to the hospital around 8:30am, and they took blood to see how Josiah was doing. Everything was up from last week except for his hemoglobin, but it wasn't down enough to cause alarm.  He wasn't allowed to eat after midnight last night so he was really hungry and kept asking for spaghetti.  This week a few times he had spaghetti for breakfast, lunch, and supper! He wakes up in the morning and the first thing he says is "want noodles". :). They sedated him around noon, in order to take a bone marrow sample, and do a lumbar puncture to take out some of the spinal fluid to check if there is any leukimia in the spine and brain fluid.  They injected some chemo into the spine to protect against any leukemia cells that might have gotten in when they did the puncture.  They are going to call us with the results of the tests next week and if they don't see any more leukaemia cells, Josiah will continue with the protocol. However if there is still a trace of leukaemia cells, they will have to change his protocol accordingly. He is off steroids for a while now, so his eating habits and mood swings should start going back to normal.  His legs are still so sore that he won't walk but they say that now that he is off the steroids and the chemo treatments are less strong, they should start to get better as well.  Thank everyone for their prayers and support!

Josiah's new chubby look :)

The appointments at the children's hospital yesterday went well. Josiah had another treatment of chemo.  All his blood counts were up so he didn't need another blood transfusion. Levi and Maquela (Josiah's brother and sister) were sick with a fever and vomiting yesterday and today. We are praying that  Joe doesn't get it as his immune system is very compromised right now. Josiah is on steroids and that is why he is gaining weight, craving salty food and having mood swings; but that should be over soon. We can still say God is in control. :)

Josiah's Appointment Today

Josiah had an appointment at the children's hospital at 8:30am this morning. When he arrived he was a little irritable with both the nurses and doctors. He seems to be able to tell that they are up to things that will be painful. However after a while he became more comfortable with everyone. They gave him another dose of Chemotherapy today, and also they gave him another blood transfusion, because both his hemoglobin and white blood counts were lower than they need to be.   Due to the steroids that he is taking, he has strong cravings for certain foods. So today he began asking for pizza at 9:30 am. His wish was granted him by supper time :).  He goes in for another treatment next Friday.

Thank-you for your prayers.

James &Nelly

Update

Yesterday (Friday) Josiah had another chemo treatment, along with a spinal tap.  They weren't able to see the dr after the test, but Josiah's case nurse said there wasn't anything alarming in the results, and that they were allowed to go home! They have to go in next Friday, and for the next few Fridays, for another round of chemo, but in the meantime they are back with the rest of the family at James' parents. :)

Update from James

 Josiah was discharged from the hospital today around noon, and we have been admitted across the street at the (RMH) Ronald McDonald House. Tomorrow (Friday) Josiah has to be at the hospital for 8am to get ready for some more chemo treatment. He will be under supervision until about 2:30pm and then if all goes as desired he will be allowed to come back to the RMH. He will need to be at the RMH for the first 30 days of treatment, and if all goes well he will be allowed to return home (Innerkip, Ontario), where he will be considered as an out patient. Josiah is happy and had a lot of fun playing with his Uncle Albert last evening before leaving the hospital! He also ate much better today and has increased his own desire for liquids, the doctors say that he should be drinking about one litre per day. 






Lunch time for Joe today



All smiles at hospital when he heard (let's go!)



At RMH watching a squirrel in the tree

Josiah had a visit from two of his cousins yesterday:) They thought his toys were great, and they had fun playing with him and watching "Curious George." The doctors are hopeful that Josiah will be able to be released today, and moved to the Ronald McDonald house across the street. They are very happy with how he is doing! Praise be to God!

How You Can Help

James and Nelly have been serving the Lord for the past 9 years in Mexico, and are currently here in Ontario visiting family. Since they have been out of the country for so long, they are no longer covered by OHIP; coverage will begin at the end of March, so they will be facing some significant medical bills for Josiah's care.  Many of you have asked how you can help.

There are three ways you can donate:

For those wanting a charitable receipt: you can donate by clicking on the following link:
http://www.gospeltrust.ca/UserProfile/tabid/61/userId/322/Default.aspx

For those not needing a receipt: cheques can be dropped off at any BMO branch. 
Cheques must be written out to "James Dyck" and the following info must be included on the memo line: Acct #8998-682 Transit #:0472

Cheques can also be mailed to:
James Dyck
775512 Blandford Rd.
Innerkip, ON
N0J 1M0

More than anything James and Nelly appreciate your prayers at this time.

Josiah's Story

Josiah is the little guy on James' lap

       We have created this blog to keep everyone updated on Josiah's condition.  Josiah is 2.5 years old, and the youngest of six siblings.  He has spent the majority of his little life in Mexico, where his parents James and Nelly Dyck have served as missionaries for the past 9 years.  During a visit to their hometown in Ontario this winter, James and Nelly noticed that Josiah had developed a limp.  They took him to the ER to investigate the cause. X-rays were done, and when there was no noticeable reason for the limp found, the Drs decided to do some blood work.  The results of the blood work were alarming, and James and Nelly were immediately sent to see a specialist at the children's hospital in London. After a long night and more blood work, they were given the results; Josiah had Leukaemia.
      Josiah was given a blood transfusion that night. During the next few days, a bone marrow aspiration, and spinal tap were done to confirm the type of Leukaemia, and to find out if it had travelled to his brain. The results were good.  The cancer had not travelled to his brain, and the type was ALL - acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.  The next step was to have a port placed in his chest to receive blood and medications. Josiah will be staying at Children's in London for the next few weeks to receive his chemo treatments.  The length of his treatment plan is 2-3 years.  James and Nelly would appreciate your prayers for Josiah and for their family, as this will be a big adjustment for everyone.