Saturday, January 16, 2010

We Need Prayers For Tuesday

Hi Everybody,

We really need all your prayers again for our Natalie.

Natalie had her blood draw and clinic visit to UCSF this past Thursday, and we were surprised to find out that her platelets have dropped significantly from her last visit. She has been so happy, energetic, and eating well. Looking at her, you can't even tell that there's been any change in her blood chemistry. We feel like a bus has hit us out the blue again and it's painful.

Of course, we've had sleepless nights filled with worry and concern over why her platelets have dropped. We try to not let our fears and thoughts get too out of control, but it is very scary to be in this position of the unknown again.

We've been told that the low platelets situation may be a result of her body fighting a virus. Her hemoglobin level is normal. We are really praying and hoping that is the case.

Natalie is scheduled to go back to UCSF this coming Tuesday, January 19 for a blood draw and a biopsy. They want to do a biopsy make sure that the cancer has not come back. Please please pray a special prayer for us that day that the biopsy shows no signs of cancer at all.

Natalie is a little scared too. She's trying to stay positive and we are trying to hold it together so that we can help her be strong through this. We had a fun day together as a family hanging out.

Really, we can't go through again what we went through last year. It took everything out of us physically, emotionally, and spiritually to make it through. We are starting to feel like normal people again and we would like to continue to recuperate.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

Just checked in with you guys to see how things were going and if any updates. Praying and hoping all will be okay.
Love,
The Kiyunas

Jin K said...

What about Korean decent?

Heather said...

we've heard the news and are praying. Love you guys,
The Hannons

Unknown said...

Hello,

My name is Thomas Kim. I am not of Chinese or Japanese descent, but I am Korean. If anyone can put me in touch with this family, I would like to obtain more information on how and where I can test to see if I am a match.

Please, don't hesitate to call: (785) 285-8186

Thanks,

-Tom

Anonymous said...

Hi Tom, that's a good question that I have also. We are organizing a large bone marrow drive locally. You can also contact the Asian American Donor Program, they should be able to test you & add you to the registry, which they are pulling from for Natalie. DKMS is another agency that can test you.
Thank you!!!
-M. Kim, friend of the family.

Cynthia said...

Hello, followed a tweet here...
I'm half-Chinese (half caucasian) and am registered with the National Bone Marrow Donor registry. I assume if I was even a potential match for Natalie, I'd be contacted for further testing.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Cynthia-
yes your info is in the registry. Please check the DKMS website http://www.dkmsamericas.org/ to get info that you can pass on to your friends to get them registered. Anyone who is Asian is a potential match, especially those with Chinese or Japanese heritage. Thank you! (Actually, anyone could be a possible-rare- match, but most likely the match will come from someone who's Asian.)
-M. Kim

Unknown said...

There is now a fan page for Natalie on Facebook, titled "Finding a Match to Save Natalie Nakatani's Life!"

Here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/#/pages/Finding-a-Match-to-Save-Natalie-Nakatanis-Life/269179616125?ref=nf

stacie tamaki said...

I just heard about Natalie through the mom of one Natalie's cousin's friends. I am so very sorry to learn of her illness.

Last year my cousin Tami received a stem cell transplant after being diagnosed with Myelodysplasia, a blood cancer similar to Leukemia.

I now maintain several websites/blogs dedicated to donor recruitment. Please let me know if you would like me to feature Natalie's need on the home page of the http://HelpingTami.org website. I can also help to publicize any donor drives or fund raisers you may have in the future. Just let me know.

Tracy Lee said...

Hi Stacie...For more information about Natalie, please visit her website. Yes, it would be helpful if you can help spread the word about Natalie.

http://hopefornatalie.com/index.php