Remission Status

At the start of Round 2, Allison was in a partial remission. This means that while her counts were low, they were not low enough to consider her in a complete remission.

She is enduring a second round in hopes that this will get rid of what is left. The search for a bone marrow match continues and we pray that we will find one soon! It is our hope and prayer that this round of treatment will put her in remission and that a donor will be found quickly so that we can move into the transplant phase of her treatment plan.

Thank you all for your continued thoughts and prayers as we continue on this journey.

Nicole & Shaun

(please read below for more info!)

Round 2 of Chemo almost complete!

Tomorrow is the final day of round 2 of chemo for Little Miss Allison. She has sailed through this session like a superstar! Inside her little body the chemotherapy is doing EXACTLY what it is supposed to do. On the outside she is acting every bit the toddler she is meant to be! She has learned the power of shaking her head "no"(but does not 'abuse' it!). She has mastered the art of making doggy sounds, clacking her tongue, and contorting her face into the perfect kissy fish face! She has taken 7 steps all on her own and now dances like Annette Funicello in Beach Blanket Bingo. Speaking of Annette...she even got her first pair of Mickey(Minnie) ears! Thanks Toni & Eric!

Although she is in good spirits overall, this round of chemo has brought more sleepiness, neediness(for extra snuggles), and fussiness that we've never endured before. She has been one tough cookie and is still surprising her doctor with her tenacity and happy-go-lucky attitude.

From the doctor:
“Allison has had a favorable response to the first course of chemotherapy for acute megakaryocytic leukemia,” says Susan K. Storch, MD, Chief of Pediatric Oncology at Kaiser Permanente’s Woodland Hills Medical Center.

“Her bone marrow examination results demonstrate a partial remission and she has now begun the next phase of chemotherapy. It is hoped that she will achieve a full remission in preparation for a bone marrow transplant, if a matched donor is found,” Dr. Storch continued.

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The search for a bone marrow match still continues. Thank you again to all those who participated in the drive at Kaiser Woodland Hills, and at subsequent drives around Southern California. The results from the drive(WH) should be put into the National Bone Marrow registry any day now and matched against Allison's type. Hopefully we will know more in the coming weeks!

August is going to be a busy month! Please check back tomorrow for updates on SFV area drives and even a fundraiser!

Warmest Regards,

Nicole - Allison's Mommy

Save the Date: Sunday, August 9

On Sunday, August 9th from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. there will be a Bone Marrow Drive in Allison's honor at American Martyrs in Manhattan Beach. You don't have to be a parishoner, or Catholic for that matter to come and register to be a bone marrow donor. The process is easy, fill out the paper work and get your cheek swabbed.

American Martyrs
624 Fifteenth Street
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Let's make this drive as successful as last week's KP drive. Team Allison is so excited to have found out that over 800 registered as Bone Marrow Donors and 150 people donated blood at last weeks drive at Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills!

Another drive at KP Woodland Hills is scheduled in Allison Zicree's name at the end of August.

Support Team in Training!

Carlos Pineda will be racing for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training! He is a friend of Team Allison. He needs to raise $400 more dollars in 9 days for the race. Please support Carlos and his mission to make the impossible...POSSIBLE!

http://ironmancarlitos.blogspot.com/

Bone Marrow Registration at all KP Blood Drives!

That's right! City of Hope will be at all KP Blood Drives for the remainder of 2009 doing bone marrow registration! So make your appointment now to have blood donated and your bone marrow registered!

Touching Hearts

This is an e-mail that went out from a lady that does not know the Zicrees, but was touched by Allison's story.

I don't ever want to forget yesterday...July 16, 2009 at 10:17am
...when I went to Kaiser to register with the National marrow Donor Program.

Where I joined hundreds of people, from all walks of life, gentlemen in suits on their way home from work, young people coming in from a day at the the beach (still with the fresh scent of sunscreen), mothers with their babies in tow. All waiting, patiently no less, for their turn to be tested, to see if they could be a match for little Allison a 14 month old girl, whose family is hoping a match can be found. Giving Allison a chance at a healthy happy long life.

It was surreal and beautiful, to be among these people. Basking in the generosity of spirit in the room. The quiet knowing that everyone was there to offer something so simple and yet so precious. Something we have no appreciation for, unless we need it.

Her uncle came into the room, to register himself and stood before the crowd, thanking us all for taking the time to do this. He said it meant everything to their family. That Allison is their heart and the only girl in their lives. They are hoping and praying for a miracle and one of us could be just that.

Its a one in a 200,000 chance that I will be her match. What's important is that we find a match. For Allison and countless others waiting for the same miracle.

My test results will go into the national registry where for the next ten years (you can only donate until your 60) people who need marrow can search for a match. Not just Allison, but anyone else who needs it.

This was a simple reminder about how precious life is and how grateful I am to be living here on planet earth able to recognize the goodness that surrounds me. Life is good.

For more information or to get registered: visit www.marrow.org

What is Allison up to?

Well this has been a busy week for little Miss Allison! As her mom, I'm proud to say that she has reached some fun and some interesting new milestones over the past few days! She was also able to have some 'pint-sized visitors' last week, which included cousins Bailey, Isabelle, and Daniel; friend Jamieson; and buddy Madison. She was so excited to get some playtime with people close to her size. She has also learned a few new words: blue, book, and WOW!

She is still a late-night party animal, but she's been taking more naps during the day - boy am I thankful for that! She caught up on current events, became an honorary member of the nursingg staff, and yesterday we had fun with stickers on her head. Today she received a balloon flower and a balloon rainbow (see below for pictures), she had so much fun with that! She even rearranged furniture(for reading time w/grandpa) in the playroom while using her new talent - WALKING!

Her newest (and quite possibly the coolest) trick is swabbing her own mouth. Several times a day we are required to swab Allison's mouth with a medicated mouthwash to prevent sores from the chemo. This proved to be an arduous task for all of us! It had to be done, so we did it, through the kicking and the tears. Now Allison has taken the task into her own hands. Tonight she dipped the sponge in the wash and swabbed her own mouth!

They say pictures are worth a thousand words, so please scroll down to see what Allison has been up to!

Please Consider Hosting a Bone Marrow Donor Drive

City of Hope is available to host bone marrow donor drives for Allison at churches, schools, businesses....anywhere that there is 20 interested people. There's a special need in communities that are mixed Hispanic and Caucasian....but that's most of SoCal!! Also, bone marrow drives are available to be done out of state!!

Please contact Jill Kendall at CoH for more information! e-Mail BeTheMatch@coh.org or jkendall@coh.org or call 626-301-8483 for specific questions and to set up your location.

2009 KP Blood Drive Schedule

We have received many e-mails from folks about donating blood for Allison in their area. The following is the remaining 2009 schedule for KP's blood drives, along with the area and the appointment phone number. Please call now to make your appointment and donate blood for Allison Zicree.

This just in...CITY OF HOPE WILL BE AT ALL OF THE BLOOD DRIVES doing bone marrow registration!!


Anaheim
714 279 4178
July 28-29
September 29-30
December 1-2

Baldwin Park
626 851 6183
August 5
October 7
December 9

Bellflower
562 461 6355
August 12
October 14

Downey Warehouse
562 657 2800
August 13

Fontana
909 427 7180
September 15-16
November 10-11

Independence Park
562 657 2800
September 1
October 27

Montebello
562 657 2800
September 24

Orchard (Downey)
562 657 2800
August 25
November 3

Palm Court
909 427 7180
August 27

Sand Canyon
949 932 2704
August 26
November 4

South Bay
310 517 4349
August 18-19
October 20-21
December 15-16

Vineyard
909 427 7180
July 21
September 22
November 17

West Covina
562 657 2800
September 10

Whittier
562 657 2800
September 2
October 28



There is a dire need for blood donors!! Only about 3 out of every 100 Americans donate blood regularly. And you can donate every 56 days (per pint)! Please, please consider being a blood donor!

Pint Sized Visitor

Allison finally got the okay from Dr. Storch to have a pint sized visitor. That visitor being my daughter. We went shopping for a gift, and of course, Daisy Duck was picked for Allison. So we headed over to the hosptial, and the girls spent a few hours together, playing, laughing, hugging and giving kisses. It was a happy day.

Nicole reminded me that almost a year ago to the day the girls had a breakfast date, which this picture was taken after.

Thanks to CBS47!

Sabrina Hill from CBS 47 is Fresno e-mailed us that she covered Allison story. You can check it out here! Thanks Sabrina!

Home is where the Heart is...

This morning Allison will be having a bone marrow draw to see whether the cancer has gone into remission. After the drive the Zicrees were going to go home for a few days. However, yesterday Nicole and Shaun made the decision to stay at the hospital. They felt that moving Allison from the hospital to their house and back to the hospital would not be benefical to their baby girl. Instead the love, support, and care they are receiving at KP has made it their home.

Please say a prayer this morning for Allison, and her parents Nicole and Shaun. So far the amazing support they are receiving is being felt and appreciated. God bless everyone who has taken an interest in Allison's story. I hope she has touched your life in a way no one has.

And thank you to the almost 400 people that came out to KP Woodland Hills for bone marrow testing yesterday. You are all rockstars!

Thanks FOX11!

Allison is Miss Popular today. Thanks to FOX11 for sharing Allison's story with everyone! Read about it here, and catch the story on the 10 p.m. news! Thanks Hal Eisner!

Thanks to ABC7!

ABC 7 did an amazing story on Allison today during the afternoon news. Check it out here! Thanks Denise Dador!

Thank you for everyone supporting Allison!!

Mercury News in Silicon Valley

LA Daily News in Los Angeles

American Martyrs Catholic Church in Manhattan Beach

KFI AM 640 in Los Angeles

insideBayArea.com in the Bay Area in Northern California


Scott Baio & Family for coming out to register!

Beach Baby Designs is donating 10% of all sales to Allison

KNX 1070 in Los Angeles

Whittier Daily News in Whittier, CA

A Million Memories Blog in Southern California

Thanks to CBS2 and KCAL9!

Guess who is becoming the most popular (and cutest) toddler around. Allison was featured on CBS and KCAL, too! Read it here!! Thank you Lisa Sigell!

Thank You KTLA!

KTLA did a story about Allison this morning! Check it out here! Thank you Wendy Burch!

Helping the Zicree's

The Zicree family would like to thank everyone for their generosity. The gift cards have been very helpful with meals and other day to day neccesities, and the monetary donations are helping cover remaining hospital bills.

These are tough times for everyone, but if you find your heart pulling you to help them, please keep reading! Every little bit helps!

Tax deductible donations for the family can be made through Top of the Mountain - Children's Disease Foundation. Donations can be made via paypal or by check - payableto Top of the Mountain(listing Allison Zicree on the memo line). Please visit their website for more information: http://www.topofthemountain.org/friends_Team_Allison.html

If you would like to donate anything else(gift cards, meals, etc.) or help in other ways please send an email via this blog or directly to team.allisonz@gmail.com for more info.

Going Home!

Miss Allison is going home on Friday! Whoo hoo! No word on how long she'll be able to visit her own crib. She'll be having bone marrow drawn on Friday, and by Tuesday or Wednesday the results will be known whether Allison is in remission or not. More info to come from Nicole soon!

In other Allison news, the child is walking. First 2 steps. Now 4. I mean hello, she's a busy girl who has to go places.

Don't forget to donate blood and platelets this Wednesday - Friday at KP Woodland Hills, Sunset or Orchard (Downey)! Call the location nearest you for an appointment. And don't forget to register to be a bone marrow donor and save a life. It could be Allison's!

Awesome Incentive for Donating!

Team Allison is pleased to announce that VIP Tickets will be offering a special coupon code for those who attend the blood donation event from 7/15 - 7/17. They will take $25 off any order of $100 or more with the code.

Also, they will be giving away a pair of Dodger tickets to a home game at Dodger Stadium to each person that can show proof that they donated. Quantity is limited to 50 tickets total. You can check for a posting soon on Facebook on VIP Tickets page.

Donate Blood & Platelets

When calling to make an appointment, please let them know that you are donating directly to Allison Zicree or on behalf of her! For more info, please e-mail Team Allison at team.allisonz@gmail.com.

Going Incognito

On Saturday, Allison got her hair buzzed off. It was falling out, getting in her mouth, and in her food, and just making life hard. So Mommy and Daddy said "Adios" to the brown locks. I can't wait to see how Alli-cat's hair will grow back in. They'll be gorgeous.

The waiting game continues with no new developments. Blood is drawn daily, for at a minimum of another 9 days. But no transfusions have been needed, which is good. Allison had/has a slight case of the sniffles, but I'm convinced that it's from cutting teeth. Four have come in since she's been in the hospital. She also bumped her head last week, and had to have a platelet transfusion. All in a day's work for a toddler. Oh, and Miss Allison can now stand up on her own. Pretty soon she'll be walking the pediatric floor!

See more pictures by clicking here!