So now that I'm home recovering, many of you have asked me: "what's next?"
I don't know the full answer to that question, but here's at least the short-term summary. Today I went to the doctor and learned that my counts are great and rebounding very well. I'll be seeing the doctor once a week and once a week (down from every other day) a nurse comes to my house to check my vital signs and to draw blood tests. Hopefully soon, that protocol will change to me going to a local clinic. Right now we're focused on balancing anti-rejection medications that continue to suppress my immune system, testing to see how the donor is engrafting through special blood tests (which I think begin next week), and managing any Graft Versus Host Disease. My doctor has explained that we want to see a bit of GVHD because it is also an indication that the new cells are attacking the lymphoma, but they don't want to see too much, as GVHD at it's most extreme can be fatal. This phase will last awhile - likely until day +100, at which point we'll repeat diagnostic scans to determine how this effort has worked. As of now, I expect to remain in Chicago throughout. I'm a bit hazy on the details of what happens after this, though at the end, the hope is that I'm cancer-free and ready to get back on track with my future plans.
3 comments:
Thanks for the update. As always, thinking of you & pulling for you & hoping you're back on track to your fabulous future very, very soon.
Ditto what my friend, Suburban Sweetheart, said!
Having you be cancer-free and getting back to your future plans is my end goal as well. :) Glad to hear that things are going well. I continue to send you healing thoughts from DC.
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