Finally...a Monday that produced some encouraging news. Mom had her appointment with the transplant doctor today. The news she received was uplifting and encouraging. He mapped out what her course of treatment would be including a self-donor stem cell transplant. What this means is they will take some of her bone marrow, which will be repaired by treatment, and will freeze it for up to 60 days. At that point, once the marrow is completely clean of cancer cells, they will then complete the transplant. The decision to go the self donor route produces a much higher survival rate than using outside donors. This was also good news whereas now we don't have to seek out a donor.
The doctor put her back on her medication and questioned why she was taken off of it in the first place. He was encouraged by the results of it beginning to kill the cancer cells and accredited the pain in her body to the effectiveness of the medication. The doctor is anticipating two rounds of medication (1 round=21 days on, 7 days off) prior to extracting the bone marrow. He also prescribed her Zometa, which will begin to repair her bone lesions as well as strengthen her bones.
Her next doctor's appointment will be in 3 weeks. However, she'll continue with her weekly blood tests to monitor her levels and track the effectiveness of the medication. We appreciate everyone's continued prayers for her recovery.
I'll keep you posted as treatment progresses.
Love you all,
Marcia
We are praying for all of you during this difficult time.
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Jeremy, Melissa and Family
Glad to hear the update! Take care, praying for you Trish, Dennis, Marcia & Ryan!love you all! Kathy & Bill
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