Great blood work and a biopsy.

Jessie is in for her biopsy right now. I understand that it's a bone marrow biopsy, just to rule out leukemia.

The best news is that her blood work came back completely normal yesterday! Thank goodness. Dan and Stef talked to an orthopedic oncologist who said that the only two possibilities were LCH and Leukemia. I haven't heard of LCH. He mentioned that it's pretty much the same thing as LCPD (my completely unmedical diagnosis from yesterday) but that they've changed the name. I'll be looking it up today and sharing more info soon.

It's been a wacky 3 days for Jessie. She's been under goofy gas twice and had blood drawn twice and now she'll have three little stitches as a result of the ENORMOUS NEEDLE they have to use for her biopsy. Not to mention the MRI, X-Rays and bone scan. Whew! And she's only 5! Danny says she's been a trouper (how do you spell that word?) and I believe it. She's always been sunshine trapped in a little skinny body.

More news as soon as I get it.

UPDATE: Click here for a not very thorough description of LCH. It is NOT the same thing as LCPD. At all. However, it is not cancer, either.

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare disorder that primarily affects children. The disease was first described in medical literature around the turn of the 20th century.

A histiocyte is a form of white blood cell. Its job is to help destroy certain foreign materials and fight infection. For unknown reasons, patients with this disease have too many histiocytes (Langerhans cells). These cells accumulate in different organs and can result in a variety of symptoms.

And then this:

The cause of LCH is unknown. It may be triggered by an unusual reaction of the immune system from something commonly found in the environment. It is not a known infection or cancer. It is not known to be hereditary or communicable.

Over the years, cancer treatments have been used in patients with histiocytosis. Consequently, hematologists and oncologists, who treat cancer, also treat children with Langerhans cell histiocytosis. However, the disease is not cancer. Radiation therapy, if used, is given in much lower doses than that which cancer patients receive.

The vast majority of patients will survive the disease. Some may develop life-long chronic problems, while others remain symptom free. In some cases the disease is fatal. Usually these are very young infants who have a rapid downhill course and do not respond to any known treatment. Whether or not the disease responds to treatment will often depend on the extent of organ involvement; however, it is often difficult to make definite predictions. Physicians will be able to discuss the patient's likelihood of responding to treatment and doing well.

It is estimated that 8.9 of every 1,000,000 children under the age of 15 have histiocytosisSeventy-six (76) percent of the cases occur before ten (10) years of age, but the disease is also seen in adults of all ages.

Here's an interesting blog about a little gal who had LCH lesions on her skull. She went through a little bit of chemo was right as rain after that. Emily was 4 when she was diagnosed.