justinelaymond.com

Latest New on Justine

october - to-date

OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2006

31st December 2006

Justine is doing ok, and lung function is just ok too, not going any higher though. Justine will be in Ireland for her best friends wedding in January, then away again to Centre Parc - both of which Justine is very excited by. So the website may be a couple of weeks into January before any updates/diary entries are made.

20th December 2006

Justine's consultant is still concerned with her lung function and wants the next check up in 2 weeks time. However, as Justine will be in Ireland for her best friends wedding - the next check up has been allowed for 3 weeks time. Although, Justine has been told that if there are any changes - then she will need to call into Harefield.

14th December 2006

Justine is visiting Harefield Hospital Monday 18th, and has been feeling very well except for the period when she had a cold.

Justine is also supporting another website:- www.livelifethengivelife.co.uk (website set up by Emily and Emma, Emily is waiting for a double lung transplant) about raising organ donation. A recent press release has been done about Justine's story and more media attention will happening this month, including a Radio piece for Dream 107 network!

25th November 2006

The recent visit to Harefield went well and the next check up is now in 4 weeks time. Justine is over the moon with this time off allowed. Also the last few trips there has been talk of perhaps stopping another tablet, Magnesium (which are 6 tablets a day). However, even though Justine takes magnesium - her levels are still low. So no alterations there.

21st November 2006

Justine will be back for another check up Thursday 23rd November.

9th November 2006

Justine's next Harefield check up will be in 2 weeks time after today's visit (see diary entry 9th November) and hopefully talks of lengthening the time between the next check ups have been mentioned.

24th October 2006

Everything went well for Justine - although a different medical term was mentioned in regards to the aspect of possible Chronic Rejection - Obliterative Bronchiolitis. Apparently, from the CT Scan taken previously that we were informed was ok..it actually showed perhaps an underlying Obliterative Bronchiolitis...which is why a further Aerosal Scan was done as also the lung function was slow to increase.

Obliterative bronchiolitis (OB) is an irreversible lung disease that occurs in children and adults after injury to the lower respiratory tract. There is concentric narrowing and distortion of the bronchiole walls caused by inflammation and fibrosis. Causes of OB include infection, transplantation, connective tissue disease, toxic fume inhalation and aspiration. The clinical course is very variable and the prognosis for any individual is often difficult to predict.

However, results from the Aerosal Scan showed that everything was normal...and there was an increase in Justine's lung function tests on Monday 23rd. The consultant said that perhaps Justine was/is a slow starter from the lung transplant in terms of getting a good lung function...even perhaps that mucus may be stuck in the airways. OB will not go away, but it's important that it doesn't get any worse. Justine's next visit to Harefield will be in 2 weeks time, and Justine is happy having an extra week off!

16th October 2006

Information here is about the Scan called "Your Nuclear Medicine DPTA Nebuliser Scan" (Aerosol Scan). What is Nuclear Medicine? It is a way of taking special images of the body. A special camera is used that detects gamma rays given out by a 'tracer' that is injected into the body. The tracer contains a small amount of radioactive material which means that the body shows up in images taken.

About the DPTA Nebuliser Scan, this scan is used to check the lining of the lungs. One needs to breathe in an aerosol containing a small amount of radioactive material which will show the lungs. This takes about 5 minutes. After this, you will need to lie on a bed for 40 minutes while a special camera is used to take images of the lungs.

There are no side effects from this so will not make you sleepy or stop you from driving. It will take a few days to know the result, but Justine is back at clinic next Monday - so will have to wait a week to find out the outcome.

12th October 2006

After Justine's aerosol scan on Monday she will be driving back to her G.P to have both the flu and pneumonia jabs!

9th October 2006

Justine's next visit to Harefield Hospital is on 16th October for the Aerosol Scan to check for chronic rejection. Justine is feeling apprenhensive and nervous, but knows that this needs to be done to move forward and is hoping that she will not need Radiation therapy.

4th October 2006

Justine will be undergoing further tests to check for chronic rejection as her lung function is not increasing. This will be done with an Aerosol Scan wherby Justine will inhale something that will highlight her small airways through the scan. Justine is now waiting to hear when this test will take place, and after completed will be able to go home. It normally takes a few days to hear the result. Please refer to Justine's diary for more information. This is being done as a precautionary method, although it may just be that Justine has a low lung function and is doing well in all other aspects.