Chron's, UC, & PSC... Oh My!

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Co began battling his cholangitis symptoms this summer, so back to Mayo we go to find a solution!

We are exhausted after a long week of tests and appointments, but we finally have some answers and a plan. Turns out, our Coco was a bit sicker than we initially thought. BUT, after extensive testing and input from his Surgery team, Liver Team, & our new pals on the GI Team, they are c o n f i d e n t that there is NO cancer reoccurrence at this time!!

What we do know:
-Severe infection that’s nestled in his GI tract. Plan: 4 weeks of heavy antibiotics. He started this course last night and is already seeing signs of improvement.
-After 15 years of being diagnosed with Chron’s Disease, he was officially diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis this week. This current flare was described as “moderate” in severity with significant inflammation in the colon. Plan: start Entyvio infusions to suppress his immune system and decrease the UC symptoms once he clears the gut infection.
-Officially diagnosed with PSC. This is the disease that causes the bile ducts to narrow and can cause the liver to lose function over time. Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can really do about this at this time and if it progresses, Co might need a transplant at some point in his life. Nothing totally surprising there, though. However, his sweet baby liver is working hard and functioning surprisingly well, so we will just be keeping an eye on the PSC for the time being.
Whew! What a week! The docs said it would take roughly three months for Cody to see significant improvement from all of this, but they are confident that once we get a handle on these issues he will be back to his normal self. All in all, not a terrible report card when we consider all of the big-picture alternatives. Once again, we are blown away by the care and kindness we are shown each time we step foot into Mayo Clinic. We will never be able to put into words the sheer gratitude we have for Cody’s teams and their brilliant minds and skilled hands. We were cleared to come home so Co can continue to rest & heal from the comfort of his lazy boy, snuggles supervised by his best girls (Audi & Oakley)!

Thank you again for the love, messages & calls; it truly makes the time away easier. We love y’all dearly and will be home soon!
Now for the big question…y’all know the drill:
Whataburger or Mexican food for tomorrow’s supper ?!















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