Well we are off one more time to Little Rock, Arkansas for our second of two stem cell transplants for Dave. We have been home the longest this last time and have actually felt somewhat "normal" in our day to day lives. Dave's fatigue is still ever present and his stamina is low, but we have managed to walk a lot and ride bicycles from time to time when we can get out before it gets too hot.
So on Tuesday we fly back east from California and we hit the ground running on Wednesday with MRI's, Bone Scans, blood work, etc and then meet with the doc on Friday and start the process on Saturday. Its 21 days from start to finish barring any significant issues. This is supposed to be our last BIG medical intervention before we move on to maintenance therapy for 3 years (ARGH!).
Dave is hopeful and upbeat and seems to have really gotten way past all the fear and trepidation that seemed to plague last year at this time.
As always, you can find regular updates at his caring bridge site.
Best,
Lori
"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain!"
www.caringbridge.org/visit/davidpuente
FormerMember
Wow, that came round fast - September already and off you go again! Hope it goes well for you both - best of luck for a brilliant result!
We met with docs this morning and went over Dave's overall health and test results. He "continues in remission" they said. Funny how they didn't really say he was early on, but now he "continues". Oh well, I'll take it. Since he is low risk and already in remission they have 85% success rate to have longterm overall event free survival. The numbers are fluid but its a steady upgraph for patients around the world in addition to specifically at Little Rock. We are waiting to do a CT Scan of the lungs and sinuses as a precautionary test before we start the SCT process tomorrow morning with 4 days of high dose chemo and then day #5 will be infusion of his stem cells. So beginning tomorrow the 21 day cycle begins.
The only not so good news, but not terrible news and somewhat expected, he has low bone density. This can be improved over time with exercise and zometa infusions. So my harping (yes we wives HARP! HARP! HARP!) about him getting some exercise came home to roost this morning. Hard not to be all smug about it! Well at least now he has gotten it officially! Get off your butt big guy and do some walking, and other stuff to get yourself moving! (Truth is, I've been a total sloth myself and have packed on the pounds too through all of this, so we both need to get off our lazy duffs and start taking care of the old bod!)
I do daily postings at Dave's caring bridge site, so you can always check on our progress there.
