The results of Jacey’s blood panel are here. It yielded new information and raised a few questions.
First, he is a carrier for cystic fibrosis. (That would be my side. Sorry, bud.) He doesn’t have it himself. Yay! This is relevant because premature infants who are CF carriers can have elevated bilirubin. If this is the cause, he will outgrow the issue in time.
The other scenario is not great. He could have a liver disease called biliary atresia, which is when the bile flow from the liver to the gallbladder is blocked. We’re lucky the doctors are investigating this early because if left unchecked, it would require a liver transplant for him to survive. Instead, his treatment would be major abdominal surgery. They need to reroute the bile so that it does not build up and cause damage to the liver cells.
Tomorrow morning at 10:30 am, they will do a liver biopsy. This will determine which of the two scenarios we’re dealing with. The results should be here by Thursday.
The biopsy itself is minimal. He will have to be under anesthesia, but the procedure is short and (relatively) painless. They will use a very small needle instead of making any incisions. Tonight he’s getting a blood transfusion to prep him. He can’t eat anything after midnight, which means he will miss three entire feeding times. I am so stressed.
Josiah and I plan to be at the hospital first thing to meet with doctors and sign forms. We are so fortunate my mom was delayed due to the polar vortex. I’m grateful to have her extra hands, ears, and support.
We continue to ask for your prayers. We are praying hard for the less invasive solution. I know God has been with him from the start and is not unaware of any of this, so we’re just taking things a day at a time until we figure out what the future holds.