3/7/14 – It
is Day +100… Woohoo!!! This morning when I awoke there was a huge rainbow in
the sky, all the snow had melted, the birds were all singing happy songs, little bunnies
hopped about my yard in joy and all my hair had returned… well, no that’s not
what really happened and to be honest I am really unsure what exactly is supposed to happen on
Day 100. It certainly is a marvelous milestone for me to have reached. There is
no doubt I have much to be joyful about.
The first 100
days after a stem cell transplant are significant because they carry highest
risk of having the worst reactions to the transplant. I have been so very
blessed to have made it through my first 100 days with flying colors. To add to
my blessings, at yesterday’s checkup I was told that my blood counts continue to
be great. I received more good news when I learned that I am now 100% of my
donor.
As I think
back about a year ago... I was doing so well on Ibrutinib and I was very
leery of having a stem cell/bone marrow transplant. I tried my best to get
educated about it but the more I read the more nervous I became. This made me want to seek out an alternative to having a transplant. I took it as far as asking Dr.
Goy if there was any way to avoid having a transplant. I even suggested that I
could maybe stay on Ibrutinib forever and possibly never need a transplant. It was then that
Dr. Goy assured me that the transplant was the way to go and that all would be fine.
Well, he was right.
So now that I
made it through 100 days what’s next for me? Well, I think this will be a bit
if a moving target but these are things I know so far:
·
I
will continue to be monitored periodically to make sure my counts are good and
that I am free of any and all things viral.
·
I
will be slowly taken off of my medications.
·
I
have been given the go ahead to resume working the first week of April with
some limitations that my doctors will communicate to my work.
·
At
around day 180 I will start getting my immunization shots.
·
I
can begin to get out more but still need to be very careful. Reaching this 100
day milestone does not mean I am ready to start giving hugs and shaking everyone’s
hand. I still need to be couscous of germs and infections.
·
Not
specific to a stem cell transplant but I simply need to live a healthy life. This
is something we should all do.
It is just so
hard for me to me to put into words just how happy and grateful I am for all
the good in my life and for all the people who have supported and prayed for
me.
God is Good! God is Great!
Today I will
celebrate my Day +100. Please join me. Here is a link to a fun song called “Happy”
to get us started:
May God Bless
you all
My next
appointment at the Cancer Center is Monday, March 17th (which
happens to be my birthday).
Great
is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.
Psalm 147:5
More to come…
