Those
who follow me on Instagram know that we've been monitoring Hawke for signs of
Cystic Fibrosis. CF is a genetic disease and we know he is a carrier simply
from my DNA. You have to carry two CF genes to have the disease. We do not know
if my husband is a carrier or not, therefore we don't know Hawkes chances of
having it.
We've
been doing some testing for months now ("sweat tests") & the
other day we had an appointment for him to be evaluated at the Phoenix
Children's Center CF Clinic.
What
is a "sweat test"? They stimulate the sweat glands in your arms to
sweat and collect samples. With CF the sodium-chloride channels are defective.
This causes us to secrete a lot of, and crave salt. The samples are then run to
test the salt content in them. If their is an abnormally high salt content
collected, the chances of having CF are significant. If they are low/normal
ranges, then the chances of CF are low.
Previously
two sweat tests have been performed on Hawke and one came back
high/"borderline CF" & the other low/"normal".
At
clinic today he was evaluated by the main CF doctor and Pulmonologist. It was
determined that Hawke will do a third sweat test to see which of the previous
ones are the anomaly since they were on complete ends of the spectrum. A stool
sample was sent off - to look for pancreatic insufficiency, and a sputum
culture was taken - to see if he is growing any bacteria in his lungs that
CFer's can. Once we receive all these results, it will help us see a clearer
picture.
We
are grateful that at this time Hawke doesn't have any alarming or blaring
symptoms, which keeps us hopeful.
It
was a crazy experience taking my son to a CF appt. Not only because the chances
of him having CF are low, but because the thought of ever having my own child
was even lower. It was a proud experience for me as a CFer to be walking in
with my own child in my arms.
H
is not super happy to wear this new mask
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