They're going to do what now?

 We've all heard words like "stem cell treatment", "spinal cord injury", and "bone marrow" thrown around a lot, but I think a little explanation may help us all understand what JoJo will be experiencing in the next few days in Panama. 

In the United States, the typical treatment for spinal cord injury is rehabilitation and extensive physical therapy.  As we have seen with JoJo, here in the States, the course of treatment is basically to teach the patient and their families to deal with the disabilities caused by the injury with no major recovery.  With stem cell treatment, patients internationally have experienced regained muscle control, increased mobility, and much improved quality of life.  Basically, through advances in medicine, God allows these doctors to change the course of the lives of patients with spinal cord injuries.  We are praying and believing for the maximum results from JoJo's treatment! 

JoJo had his stem cells harvested yesterday, I believe.  According to Jessica everything went perfectly!  They will begin to readminister his stem cells on Friday.

 

 

This is an example of how JoJo's schedule might look over the next few weeks.

 



• The first two days: medical evaluation, blood testing, and bone marrow collection

• 8 intrathecal (spinal canal) injections of expanded/non-expanded cord blood-derived stem cell

 (2 per week)

• 4 intravenous injections (IV) expanded cord blood-derived stem cells (1 per week)

• 2 intrathecal (lumbar puncture) injections of bone marrow-derived stem cells (during final week)

• 2 intravenous injections (IV) bone marrow-derived stem cells (during final week)

• 19 physical therapy sessions (throughout stay)

 

Still lots of communication mishaps. They finally broke down and asked for help with the microwave:

 

It's  working now, and they've already burnt atleast one bag of popcorn!

 

 

Now, back to business.  Let's pray that the stem cell treatments and physical therapy sessions are 100% successful, and that he will receive the MAXIMUM benefit!

Pray for the Ashlynn, Calli, and Cannon, and for Jessica and Jojo's parents as the distance may start to wear on them in the days ahead.

Pray that God will give Jessica and Jojo reassurance that their steps are ordered by Him.  This, too, is part of His master plan!

 

Also, don't feel 100% bad for Jessica, from what I hear, she spent the day by the pool in their year round 80 degree weather :-)

The Eagle Has Landed...Day 1!

 

 

It is with excitement and anticipation that I am here to announce, JoJo and Jessica began the next leg in their journey Saturday!

 

They had a send off from, where else, but the Birmingham Airport! 

 

On their way! 

 View from 20,000 feet!

 Seeing some of the sites on their way around town.

 

If I know an Alabama Power man, looking at this mess probably made his eye twitch.

 

 

 We knew the language barrier would be an issue, but poor Jess couldn't even microwave a bag of popcorn in the room because she couldn't understand the words on the buttons!

 Plan B?  McDonalds.  Nothing like a taste of home 1,000 miles away!

I'm told JoJo ordered with the use of his pocket translator!

It wasn't without confusion, and the two of them ended up with the same exact meal, whether they like it or not!!

 

The biggest hurdle for them so far is the language barrier.  All of the appliances are in Spanish, including the thermostat, so they spent a large part of the day literally chilling in their room, in a country that is super close to the Equator (Clearly, God has a sense of humor)!!  People keep trying to talk to them and Jessica just laughs, while Jojo feverishly tries to translate what they are saying.  There is one woman at the hotel that speaks English, and I feel certain that there will be some at the medical center who are English-speaking, so hopefully they can get some tips and tricks for making this all go a little

(a lot) smoother  than day one has! 

 

Also, the sidewalks in the city are not wheelchair accessible, and the actual streets are not that much better. Apparently wheelchairs aren't that common (atleast motorized ones) because she said people were pointing and watching them, and one man even said, "Little Car". They were able to visit the market where they bought fail safe foods like bread and peanut butter.  Jessica said it was quite stinky, though.  That and the combination of the bumpy roads sent them back to their room in a hurry! 

JoJo will be given a weekly itinerary. He will get started bright in the early morning, with some preliminary tests, and the actual harvesting of the stem cells and readministering of them will continue in the days after that!  I'll try to explain the harvesting, treatment and physical therapy in the next few days as those things begin to occur.

Specific prayer requests today:

• Ease of travel in the days/weeks to come
• Good health (we all know how climate change can affect travelers.)  Let's pray that they don't even get so much as the sniffles!
• Caring staff and extra assistance at every turn!
• Reassurance that if God has brought them to it, He will bring them through it!
• Also, remember their families, especially their three beautiful babies who are here at home!  We all believe that God has big plans for this family!  Thanks for following along in their incredible story!

Like, not Panama City, FL.

So, today, Jojo and Jessica start their month long journey by flying to Panama City. No, I am not referring to the Southern beach destination that we all know and love because, lets be real, if that's where they were headed they wouldn't be hopping on a plane.  They are headed to Central America, which is kind of a big deal around here.  Few of us have ever left the south, much less flown to another entire continent!  Panama City, Panama is the most important city in Central America.  Don't be worried that they are headed to some questionable under-developed, place.  This is a medical, banking, and commerce hub. 

      There are tropical forests and beaches around the borders of the city.  The average climate in October is 80 degrees.  They are in the middle of a wet season which lasts from May through December. 

     Panama City, Panama is home to atleast 14 hospitals.  Around 45% of the country's doctors are located in this city.  The standards in these hospitals are comparable to those here at home.  Medical Tourism, which is what Jessica and Jojo's trip would be categorized as, is a very common in Panama.

 This is the hospital where Jojo will have his treatment and his physical therapy.  Fancy, huh?!?

There are some specific things I would ask everyone to pray for at this stage in their trip:

• Safe travels
• Courteous staff at the airports, and once they land in the city
• Convenient settings in their hotel and for ease of travel around the city (rememember, Jojo is in a motorized wheelchair)
• Comfort and peace of mind for not only Jojo and Jessica as they leave sweet babies in the very capabale hands of her family, but also peace of mind for their families and friends who have prayed long and hard, and have worked hard to help Jojo realize his dream of the treatment he is about to receive
• give God thanks for getting them this far, and praise him in advance for what we are believing will be NOTHING short of a modern day miracle!

No doubt throughout this trip, the two of them will get homesick.  Please leave comments that would remind them of home, special memories you have of them, etc.  I think we would all be surprised how much this will help.  A little piece of home.

What happened?

First, let's try to understand what happened to JoJo on that fateful day two and a half years ago.  As you know, he was on a church youth trip at the beach.  As he dove into the water, the waves tossed him in such a way that two of the vertebrae in his spine were broken.  Although the hard bones of the spinal column protect the soft tissues of the spinal cord, vertebrae can still be broken or dislocated in a lot of different ways that can cause traumatic injury to the spinal cord. Injuries can occur at any level of the spinal cord. The segment of the cord that is injured, and the severity of the injury, will determine which body functions are compromised or lost.

JoJo has factured his Cervical-5 and Cervical-6 vertebrae (C5 and C6).   The cervical spinal nerves are located in the neck, and control signals to the back of the head, the neck and shoulders, the arms and hands, and the diaphragm (the muscle that controls breathing).  As you descend down the spine, the areas of movement that are controlled by that portion of the spine go down the body.  When the spinal cord is injured, the patient loses movement of the muscles controlled by the nerves not only in the injured portion of the spine, but every other portion below the site of injury, meaning Jojo has limited control of his hands/arms, and chest, and paralysis (loss of movement) of the areas beneath the mid-chest.

He spent the first several months after his injury hospitalized.  The first few weeks, he was intubated (which means he was hooked to a breathing machine that filled his lungs with air, and breathed for him).  As swelling decreased, he was able to come off of the ventilator and is now able to breathe unassisted (Praise God!!).  He is still the same JoJo that our whole town has grown to know and love over the years!  He travels by wheelchair, and through the support of his family and friends he has adapted quite well to his circumstances. 

I have heard a multitude of doctors say that the patient's outlook and their support system is the most important factor in their recovery.  I'd say that JoJo and Jessica have got those two things more than covered!

JoJo's Story

 

My name is Joseph Corley. I am 32 years old. I am married to the greatest woman on the planet: Jessica Corley. I have three children: Ashlynn (8) Calli (5) Cannon (2), I am saved by the blood of Jesus Christ, and on June 6, 2010 I suffered a spinal cord injury to my C-5 C-6 vertebrates leaving me paralyzed from my shoulders down.

This is my story...

On one of the most beautiful weekends you could imagine in Panama City, Fl. our church youth group along with several other churches were enjoying the sun and fun at a youth retreat. We had planned activities to be followed by evening service every day, where I was the speaker. Friday and Saturday went flawless, services were amazing and everyone was having such a great time. Sunday was the final day of the trip, but the beginning of a journey I was not ready for. The day started out like the previous two: blue skies, sand, and waves.

 

While preparing for a relay race, one of the team building activities, I noticed the flags were red on the beach. Thinking nothing of it, and being a good swimmer, I proceeded with the event. The way it was setup was, a person would run into the water swim to a man standing out in the water tag and swim back. Several team members went going out and coming back. It was my turn to go. I looked at the other team who was so far ahead of us, knowing we didn't have a chance, I ran toward the water.

 

(that's me in the "Event Staff" shirt)

 When my feet hit the water a wave deserving a red flag was approaching I dove toward the top of the wave to ride over it. That's when it happened; I was under water after the wave flipped me over driving my head into the sand. I was conscious but it had knocked the breath out me. I tried to stand up but couldn't. I tried to swim but couldn't. At that moment, I realized what had happened. I was paralyzed with no air left I began to pray my final prayer; "Lord if there is anything I've done wrong that I need forgiveness for I repent. Please take care of my family, Lord please!” Suddenly one of the youth workers lifted me up pulling me toward the beach. I immediately told them I broke my neck. I was lifeless and could hardly breathe. Immediately everyone crowded me and began to pray. Someone called 911 as if it were rehearsed. We began to wait for help and thousands of thoughts flooded my mind. I have unfinished work. I'm only 29. I'm too young to die. I'll never see my children again. How will my family support itself? All of these nightmares attacked me at once. I was terrified.

I remember the EMS arriving, I remember the ambulance ride to the hospital, I remember surgery prep, but anything after that was lost. When I came to full awareness of what had taken place it was Tuesday, and I was at UAB in Birmingham. I could not move anything. I had a breathing tube down my throat and the look on the doctors’ face told me enough. It was not good. I was right; my neck was broken at the C-5 and C-6 vertebrates. My spine had been injured and I am paralyzed. Bad news became worse news and my wife was told I would never walk again, I would never breathe on my own, and I had fluid on my lungs. The storm began, but God was not done with me. I slowly began to get better and better and better. I was in the ICU for three weeks. Then I was transferred to Spain Rehab, for the next two months, for therapy. I got some return with my arms and wrist. The trach was taken out and I was breathing freely on my own. Then came the next step, going home. Adjusting to life in a wheelchair was something I could not accept. Without use of my hands caused me to rely on my wife for every need I have. Bathing, eating, restroom, brushing my teeth, getting dressed, and all these simple tasks were now impossible feats without aid. I began to pray, "God I know you are bigger than this. I know this can't be it". I was reminded of the scripture where he tells us that he will never leave us nor forsake us, and I started holding onto that promise. Has it been easy? No! Have I had doubt? Yes! But God has not let us go one day without. He has made provision for us in every way. Our house needed remodeling to accommodate the wheelchair, we needed a van, we needed income because I was the breadwinner. All these needs were met through the hand and provision of God. Whether it was a fundraiser, a golf tournament, or selling t-shirts, He made the way!

It has been two years and three months since that horrible day and he is still providing, but I know He has more for me. I've been considering stem cell therapy in treatment for my injury for some time now but it is not offered in America. So, I looked into it and found several countries that offer this modern medicine. I contacted the Stem Cell Institute in Panama City, Panama and was impressed with their performance and care they offered. After contacting them I realized the cost was extreme but I still felt an overwhelming feeling to pursue it. Once again my friends and family jumped to the case and started fundraising for this need. The response has been great, more than I could imagine. I know with the grace of God and the help of those around me this next step toward the full recovery God has promised me will happen.