LaLaLa

Wow! I haven't really blogged in awhile! Funny I blogged more when I didn't have a computer lol.

Not much to report. Kikyo is doing really really well. I'm so happy. I think I forgot to blog about her so here is the post I made in the PC on friday:

We got some really bad news today. Kevin took our cat into the vet cuz she was having trouble breathing. We didn't think it would be that serious. he came back a couple hours later crying. Originally they told us she had some kind of trauma which caused fluid to build up in her chest which was causing her trouble breathing. (like falling wrong or getting hit by a bike or something, but she's never outside) so we had them remove the fluid and test the fluid to see what was going on. They gave us antibiotics and said to bring her in tomorrow. that was bad enough, but then we got a call about an hour later (about 2 hours ago) from the vet himself. He did prelim testing before he sent it out expecting not to find much, instead he found cancer and she tested positive for feline leukemia. So Kevin just went and picked up some steroids from the vet but they don't give her much more time. weeks, maybe months. Chances are she got it cuz her mom was a carrier and has had it the whole time just never exhibited symptoms. Even recently aside from the difficulty breathing she hasn't been weird...well except for a couple days ago when she was really really affectionate with us and wouldn't let either one of us out of her sight and gave us love incessantly, which was odd for her, usually she likes about 5 minutes of love and she leaves for hours lol. The vet said that was probably her way of showing us how much she loved us vbefore she died. She would have died today by suffocation if we hadn't taken her to the vet.

Sorry for the long rambling post. I've been crying off and on for the past 3 hours over this. I know she's a cat, but she's been a part of our family and the first pet Kevin and I had together as a couple. August 23rd will be 2 years that we've had her.

*hugs*
Jaz

Right now she's laying on the couch next to me and sleeping soundly and breathing perfectly. She's been really really good about taking her medication. Funny. It took almost losing her to realize how much I rely on her everyday.

Wow I have much more to say but I'm so tired right now I'm gonna take a nap. I'll be back later. *hugs*

Epilepsy Drug Shows Promise in Treating HIV

OMG this is such great news! HIV hits way too close to home for me and the potential for a cure is overwhelming. I'm almost in tears of happiness right now.

Epilepsy Drug Shows Promise in Treating HIV:


Researchers have announced that very early studies of the seizure medication valproic acid indicate the medication may help "flush out" HIV from remote areas in the body that are difficult to reach with conventional therapies. The very small trial combined conventional HIV medications with the seizure medication valproic acid.
For years, scientists have tried without success to attack the HIV hidden deep in the DNA of human cells. This latent HIV lays in wait for an opportunity to proliferate, usually in the absence of effective HIV treatment. Scientist theorize that if they could eliminate this collection of latent HIV, the possibly then exists that HIV could be totally cleared from the body. Simply put, scientists believe if the latent HIV can be attacked, the potential for a cure is greatly increased.

While this data is extremely preliminary and years of research and trials would still be needed to confirm the early results, scientists believe this to be very important and exciting information.

McGill University researcher, Jean-Pierre Routy, MD, PhD commented;
"This is very serious data -- a very exciting piece of information," Routy tells WebMD. "For the first time, the disease may be attacked in the last cells where it is hiding. That is a sign of hope. We can expect one day to remove all these infected cells."

The leader of the study, David M. Margolis, MD warns that under no circumstances should patients add valproic acid to the medication regimen. The drug has serious side effects and many unknowns including how much of the drug to take and for how long. Margolis warns that valproic acid as part of an HIV regimen is many years away.

"We have to focus on HIV treatment today. Right now we must continue to prevent, detect, and treat HIV infection. Finding a vaccine to prevent AIDS is still very important. But that goal is no more challenging than the goal of eradicating infection. And that is a worthy goal as well."

Dr. Routy adds;

"Eradicating HIV from the body is a big hope. But the hope is not today."

I think we can all agree. As the pandemic continues around the world, any hope is welcome.