August 4, 2009 Two Months Later

It has now been two months since my transplant. Yet, the next couple of days are probably more important than any of the preceding ones. I have a 4 PM appointment to get my blood taken for the biggest test of my life. Much like when I was in college, I have spent little or no time studying for this one. Hopefully, I’ll do better than I did in college.

I would be a liar if I didn’t admit that I have spent a great deal of time thinking and worrying about this test. Unlike the SAT that we all took in high school, there is no real opportunity to retake it and hope for better results. When we met with the doctor four weeks ago, he was very confident that everything was going well and that I had an 80% chance of getting to at least a 90% remission level.

Because there is nothing that can completely wipe out the disease, 90% remission isn’t all that bad. The hope is that in any case, the cancer is knocked on its butt for a while and takes its time getting back to full strength.

If all goes well and I reach this level, I will then take occasional blood tests to check the progress. I am unaware of any medication that I would take while in remission. That is of course other than the regimen of medications that I am taking now to help my immune system. I still have roughly 40 days to go with that.

If things haven’t gone as expected, there are a number of options available. The bad thing about this disease is that it is not curable; the good thing is that the researchers have come up with a number of options if a transplant does not take. In addition, there are a number of clinicals going on that I could also become a part of.

Of course, there is the possibility of another transplant. The stem cells are already harvested, so we could pull this one off rather quickly if it made sense. The doctor would have to do some real convincing on that one. My biggest question would be, “If it didn’t work the first time, why would it work the second time?”

If I am in remission, I will attempt to convince the doctor that I should go back to work on a limited basis (this normally isn’t done until day 100). Never thought I’d be dying (probably poor choice of words) to go back to work, but I am. It’s not just the getting back to normal, but it is hard to feel a real sense of worth when your biggest job of the day is to take your pills and drink 64 ounces of water.

My appointment is at 11:30 on Thursday. I promise that I will get something up on the blog by evening, good or bad. I appreciate all of you accompanying me on this ride. Hopefully, we’ll be able to take our hands off of the roller coaster restraining bar and raise them skyward as we enjoy the ride down that first big hill.