Her parents were worn out. The incessant cycle of hope and despair - it was excruciating. They wondered how much more of this Nadia's little body could take.
And then, as the days passed, Nadia's numbers stopped surging. Soon, her liver enzyme numbers dropped. She no longer fell sick at the slightest exposure.
Had she turned a corner?
Joe tried not to get his hopes up. He'd kept track of Nadia's ordeal: Since first arriving at CHOP more than a year ago, she'd spent 164 nights. She'd been admitted seven times. She'd had three major operations. She'd been through six liver biopsies.
He'd been by her side throughout.
He'd spent exactly 12 hours with his month-old son.
But Rand was sure. She had been very pleased with Nadia's lab work, and relieved - though not surprised - that the OKT3 had worked.
Rand discharged Nadia on Tuesday, June 5. Allison and Joe prayed it would be the last time.
A week later, they drove back for a clinic visit.
Nadia's enzyme numbers looked so good this time she didn't have to come back for two weeks.
Another milestone passed.
Allison and Joe smiled at each other. They had worried that Nadia would be readmitted yet again. Joe hadn't slept the night before.
Rand looked at the couple. She knew she couldn't give them a happy ending, just a new beginning.
The relief on their faces was obvious, but they were still afraid. It would take time. The transition to living with a transplant was hard, especially for the parents.
Nadia would bear the physical scars of her treatment forever, but she had the same potential for a fulfilling, happy life as any other 19-month-old.
Allison and Joe's scars were still raw. The trauma of Nadia's illness had left them in an almost constant state of fear. Yes, their lives were forever changed. But this was a gutsy set of parents. They had, after all, decided to have a second child despite what had happened to the first.
Medicine can get you only so far, and Rand could do only so much. It wasn't her job to heal these two, but she needed to give them a push.
For Nadia's sake, and for theirs, Allison and Joe needed to craft a different kind of life, a good life, one where they accepted that some things were beyond their control.
Where is Nadia sleeping? Rand asked.
Nadia still slept in her parents' bed. Rand wanted Nadia in her own room.
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