Yay! Treatment!

Yay!!!

We got a call yesterday morning saying they had a dermatology appointment available later that day for Jaxon. We jumped right on it and went to the doctor. She told us that we have two different options in treating Jaxon's hemangioma. 1. Try a less-invasive laser treatment. It will stop the growth of the hemangioma and eventually it'll involute when he's older. 2. We can take Propranolol as an oral medication which would stop the growth and help it shrink. The downside to the medication is that it needs to be highly regulated because he is so small and it will lower his heart rate, blood pressure and blood sugar if not watched properly. I know Jake and I can handle all those things no problem, but we wanted to try the less-invasive approach first. If we aren't pleased with the results she said we're more than welcome to change our minds and try the Propranolol. We aren't sure how many laser treatments he will need. Jake and I are thinking if we don't like it after the first one or two times then we'll switch to the medicine (which he'll also be older by then and it won't be as big of an issue then). Jaxon will get a topical numbing cream then get a few zaps with the laser. He should be able to nurse shortly after he gets it done. It's expected to have some swelling and be a little blue in color for a short time. Another thing we have to keep in mind is that the laser doesn't effect the tissue that deep. That being said, it might not stop the growth since recently we've seen that it has been bulging out from behind his hemangioma. I'll continue to take pictures and monitor the growth on a weekly basis after his treatment to look for results. His laser treatment is scheduled for a week from today at 0940. Unfortunately, it's all the way down in San Diego so it'll be a drive for us and we have to arrive an hour early. We actually check in with all the surgery patients because the laser is in an OR. I'm going to feel so bad seeing all the kids in there waiting to get surgery. This hospital is like Children's Mercy in Kansas City. So everyone pray for Jaxon for a speedy recovery, a painless procedure and great results afterwards!

Love you all,
Jake, Alycia and Jax