boomdeeyada

Babysitting- Siblings, yes. CK, no.

Cooking-freezer meals, yes. Fresh foods/produce, no. Google "neutropenic diet".

Taking them out- not for awhile. At least not until they are out of induction. If they are home, bring a six-pack or bottle of wine over. Just let them talk. They may talk about cancer, they may talk about the weather.

Things that were most helpful to us: 1-Cleaning service. A group of friends got together and arranged for a local cleaning service to come to our home once a week. The cleaning service ended up donating a lot of it.

2-Yard stuff. We had a neighbor send us a note. All it said was "Don't worry about the yard. -Bill" He kept our yard mowed, bushes trimmed, and flower beds clean for those first few months.

3-Front porch surprises. When our ck was neutropenic, we were in a bubble. We couldn't go out, and no one could come in without an increased risk of exposure. During flu season, people would drop things on our porch for us. Random things like toilet paper, magazines, dish soap, laundry detergent, etc. More than just the stuff, it reminded us that people were still with us.

Consider doing a fundraiser for them.

And most importantly, leukemia treatment is a marathon, not a sprint. The first part of treatment can take about a year. Maintenance is anywhere from 2-3 years. Text them, email them, Facebook them. They may not respond. They probably won't, actually. But don't take it personally, and don't stop. They literally cannot hold up their end of your relationship. All relationships take "work" and they just have nothing left in the tanks.

Guy goes to his doctor. Doctor says, "I'm sorry. But you have cancer AND dementia." Guy sighs and says, "well at least it's not cancer."

Pre-B ALL (MRD=VHR) Momcologist here. This might be helpful. http://i.imgur.com/RNurl1W.jpg

This shirt got us lots of laughs: http://www.cafepress.com/gotcancer.306567201

Super cute kid alert: http://i.imgur.com/fRvUOfB.jpg

I know this family. My son has the same type of leukemia with the same complication, so his mom and I connected in support groups.

Just wanted to say thanks for supporting them! When you do for one of us, you do for all of us.