Medical update

Some folks have asked for more medical updates on our journey with leukemia. I usually weave these into the post for the day. And you can always use the blog search button to search for key words like update, Leukemia, etc. That said, here is a separate update.

Things are going so well, there’s not a lot to report, (thank you God). I made it through my first six months post stem cell transplant without fever or infection which is very good news. I continue to take precautions against infections but am generally released to normal interactions.

Except for the three months of not eating and being mostly bed ridden, the Graft Versus Host Disease (GVHD) has been minimal. And that seems to be resolved with the steroid treatment which has returned my normal appetite and allowed me to start gaining some of the 33 pounds lost during the spring and summer. The steroids again caused temporary diabetes which isn’t as stable as the first time around, but then it’s temporary. I am weaning off the steroids now and hope to be off them and the insulin by Thanksgiving. Steroids are a wonder drug but also can cause you to be ‘wired’, anxious, irritable, sleepless, etc. so it will be good to be off them!

I am tired every day and have to rest more than I am used to doing. But I really enjoy having more energy than I did and being able to get out in the community, take up to 1 – 1 1/2 mile walks, visit with more people (!) and start to help a little around the house, putting dishes away, and small things like that. Problem solving, concentration, and memory impairments continue to be a frustration but hopefully will improve over the next year or two.

I am excited to have started my childhood vaccinations since these were all lost in the treatment process. I got my first child level pneumonia vaccine and a four-strain influenza vaccine this week. I’ll get more pneumonia vaccines, working up to an adult version, plus most the other childhood vaccinations (polio, MMR, Diphtheria, tetanus, etc) over the next 18+ months as my immune system repairs itself enough to tolerate live vaccines. Taken too early the vaccine could transmit the actual disease. Due to that risk, the team tells me I might not be a candidate for some vaccines like chicken pox and shingles. The schedule for vaccines puts off a Bolivia move until summer of 2015 at earliest. Another factor influencing that is it may take another year or more to increase the number of bone marrow cells to their full numbers. Currently I am at 25-30% of normal production. Platelets, which God created to repair and heal our system, are still frustratingly low. Some of these things are just a matter of waiting.

Of course, the really good news is that the last bone marrow biopsy shows NO abnormal cells, <1% "blasts (normal), and NO indication of the very rare 10;17 chromosomal translocation that started this whole leukemia process in the first place; also NO indication of the presence of the 'aggressive' chromosomal markers at CD7 and CD56. Cancer continues to be in remission. Next test isn't scheduled until April 2014, unless problems occur.

So overall, an excellent report. Life is much slower these days, with increased time for meditation, reflection, and prayer; time for enjoying God's creation, and redeeming the time we have with others. JRR Tolkien's famous quote is applicable for all of us:
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time given us."

To quote Indiana Jones, "Choose wisely."

Don't be shellfish...