The Ball is Rolling

I spoke with Jan the transplant coordinator yesterday for almost 30 minutes, She is very good at listening and gathering the information that the medical team needs. I can't imagine the depth of her patience. I'm sure in her job she finds herself listening to many, many stories that really have nothing to do with the medical procedures for which she's preparing. Jan is awesome.

We confirmed my appointment for my lab work and physical exam on Monday the 21st. Bee, (another name story we'll get to) my oldest brother, has some airline miles so he booked a flight for me. The typical itinerary, Denver-Dallas-Madison. Yes, I said Dallas.

The exam should take two to three hours. Jan will teach me how to give myself a shot so I can administer the drug I'll need to ramp up the production of the cells that they need to harvest. Oh joy. The interesting thing about the drug is that it's made by a good client of our event planning business. The company, Amgen, has been a client for fifteen years or more. They are a great organization with very nice people. I look forward to thanking them for the role they'll play in Clyde's recovery.

On the other side, Clyde's tooth is healing well. She should get signed off by the UW Hospital oral surgeon today. Later this week, she'll get a dose of Rituxin, a monoclonal antibody that targets cancer cells and leaves healthy cells alone. She'll be admitted to the hospital on the 30th for a more robust round of treatment pre-transplant.

When Clyde and I spoke yesterday there was a moment when we shared a mutual sigh as the reality of the situation hit us. I don't want to speak for her, but my guess is that this is a veritable rollercoaster at this point as she balances the threat of the risks with the promise of being disease free. I have every confidence that we're moving towards a positive result.

When you think about Clyde's situation, please send positve thoughts out into the universe. If you pray, please pray for the most positve outcome. To some it sounds nutty, but I believe that we can create an energy around Clyde's treatment that will produce complete remission of her cancer.

Be well.