Please forgive us for the long post.

We don’t post often but we are posting this asking for prayers for our daughter Kellye and her husband Derek. As a lot of you know, Kellye had anal caner 2 years ago and was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year. She underwent a double mastectomy and had implants. The day after she was released from the doctor for that, Derek became ill(7/13). Needless to say this has been a very stressful year for them.

Derek has an autoimmune disorder called Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome (APS).  The immune system mistakenly produces antibodies that make blood much more likely to clot. These antibodies can cause blood clots to form in arteries and veins.  Another symptom is low blood platelete counts (Thrombocytopenia).

When labs were run Derek's platelet count was at 2000....normal range for platelets is between 140,000-450,000.  So, he was admitted into the hospital for two weeks.  During this stay Derek underwent several treatments.  All of this in hopes to build his platelets back up. 

Saturday 08/12/2023 Derek was admitted back into the hospital.  Monday 08/14/2023 Derek underwent a spleen embolization.  By Tuesday 08/15/2023 his renal labs (kidney function) were still not good so it was decided that dialysis was needed in order to give his kidneys a rest.   While in the hospital his platelets have continued to improve and he underwent 7 Dialysis treatments. 

Thursday 08/24/2023-Derek was released from hospital with platelets at 34,000.  He will continue to receive outpatient dialysis on Tue-Th-Sat each week until his kidney function has returned.  The kidney doctor is wanting to do a kidney biopsy once Derek's platelets are above 50,000 to make sure there is no clotting within the tiny vessels in his kidneys. 

We are happy to have him home. This is definitely a marathon that he is running and not a sprint.  So it is going to take time to figure out what is next.  Please continue prayers for his kidneys to heal and recover and for his platelets to continue to increase. 

Their primary care doctor was able to get them an appointment at UTSW in Dallas on September 12^th, with specialists that are familiar with the Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome and all that is involved.

Specific prayer request:  Please pray that his platelets continue to increase, that his kidneys continue to improve and that he continues to gain his strength back.