The first thing the doctors wanted to find out was what type of Leukaemia I had. It turned out I had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia which is not a rare type, but what we didn't know was I also had Philadelphia positive which is quite rare. I had to have quite a lot of medicines and tablets, one of the tablets was steroids and they made all my joints go stiff and I couldn't walk, they also made me eat like a horse so I did blow up quite a bit. Other medicines I had to have were chemotherapy drugs and they were the worst drugs of all because it made my hair fall out so I have to where a bandana and it made me feel sick. Also my sugar levels were very low and the doctors and nurses were worried they would diagnose me with diabetes, but luckily the levels went down. Every now and then I get a temperature and have to go up to my local hospital. Because I have got Philadelphia positive type leukaemia I will have to have a bone marrow transplant so I had to have a 3 lumen Hickman line put in my chest so the doctors can give me medicines and take my blood out of the 3 lumens. When it comes to having the transplant I will be given the marrow through my 3 lumens.

Elouise with her laptop

Every few weeks I have to be put to sleep and have a lumber puncture and a bone marrow test. The lumber puncture is a long thin needle injected into my spinal fluid and then the they pull back on the syringe and take out some flud. Next they inject a chemo drug called Intrathecal Methorexate in to my spinal fluid. The bone marrow test is a injection in my hip where they pull back some of my bone marrow and then test it to see how much leukaemia is left in my body and to make sure no leukaemia is floating into my brain. When I have had a bone marrow test it makes my hip really sore for a few days. Also I have a community nurse come round weekly to give me medicines through my lines or take my blood. I am going into hospital in a couple of weeks for intensive chemo and to get ready for my bone marrow transplant in April. Love from Elouise

Hi Chris and Ursula,

When I woke up this morning my mum told me to go on my laptop and look at your website and I found that my pictures and my story were on there. Thanks for putting them on. But now I have completely lost my hair and I have attached a photo of what I look like now. When I was on your website this morning I was reading about the oncology/ family room, and I realised that’s the room I stay in when I get a temperature or infection at home. So thank you for making the room so nice at my local hospital.

Love from

Elle
xx