BLOOD OUT. BLOOD BACK IN!!
Thank you for your prayers. Not only was the Stem Cell Collection successful, but each day as they fastened the tubes to her, we both felt a sweet peacefulness and calm. The power of your prayers is very much felt.
Here are some pictures from this past week's line up of Cancer Adventures:
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (Days -9, -8, -7) were spent collecting stem cells. In case you haven't heard, here is how it went: (the doctor-ordered goal is six million stem cells)
Day 1: 2.5 million
Day 2: 2.25 million (total of 4.75 million)
Day 3: 2.5 million (total of 7.25 million)
The extra 1.25 million stem cells will remain frozen for future use, in case we must do this procedure again. The Mayo Doctor told us they will keep them for 15 years at least. Actually when we asked him, he said "why would anyone discard stem cells??"
A day in the life of Stem Cell Collection:
Arrive at the Transplant Center at 7am sharp. They told us we MUST eat breakfast and hydrate for the collection to be more successful. But a low-calorie, low- fat diet. They don't want the stem cells to have to compete with fat cells! So, we were getting up early.
Usually the lobby was full of several other Stem Cell Collection patients and their Caregivers. If it was quiet, which it usually was, Hanna would get them going by hollering "Hey! How you all doing?! How many Stem Cells you gonna get today?!" That always produced a bunch of smiles and then a ton of conversation as we all compared how we did the day before and how we needed to do today.
After a bit, the nurse would come get Hanna and take her back to be hooked up. They sanitize her port, flush it with saline, take a vial of blood for each port, set up the cool high-tech machine, then plug her in and turn it on.
Us Caregivers would carry on the conversation while we waited. One day a younger couple was there, probably in their 40's. He was the patient and she was the caregiver. She explained to me that he was originally diagnosed in 2008, had a very successful SCT at that time, and now was back for a Car-T procedure. (Google it. It's fascinating). Not because he has relapsed, but because Car-T is new and they want to see how it goes on someone who is still in remission. Hey. 2008. That's 14 years in remission folks! That gave us hope!
Another older "country looking" feller there told us he had been diagnosed because one of his cows butted him and threw him over the corral, breaking some bones. The X-rays showed the lesions which lead to the MM diagnosis. He's thankful for his ornery cow, even if it did throw him over the corral!
The Caregivers (me) are then allowed back. (We're just in the way before then..........)
The expensive machine whirrs away as it takes Hanna's blood from her vein via the port, separates the stem cells from the rest of the blood (similar to an old fashioned cream separator) and then returns the non-stem cells back to Hanna via the other tube in her port. Every 15 minutes it would clink and clatter as it processed a batch. The nurse, who was there watching us the entire time, would come over and check it, adjust it if need be, and off we would go, more whirring.
They took great pride in telling us that some medical researchers and IBM invented the machine. But once one was purchased by Mayo, one of their top blood cancer researchers, they called him a tinkerer, started, well, tinkering with it. And found that if they made certain adjustments at certain times, the whole process was more efficient. More stem cells in less time, thus less trauma to the patient and a higher stem cell count. They are the only hospital in the world that does it that way. The others leave it on default settings and let happen what will happen.
Also, their research indicated that the number of cells collected per minute looks much like a bell curve with the top being right around the 2.5-hour mark. By the five-hour mark, you are at the bottom of the bell curve again and they unhook you at that point because it really is futile to go longer than that.
Interesting stuff. And some of it too deep for my accounting brain. But I can tell you, if you bought one of these expensive machines and used it in your business, you could fully deduct it per SDA and/or Section 179 of the Internal Revenue Code.
The worst part of this process for the patient is..........BOREDOM! Being great Scouts, we came prepared with books, card games, snacks, and our Roku. The nurses found it hilarious that, after spending every day for two whole weeks in the hospital and now being confined for five hours straight, we chose to watch Gray's Anatomy on our Roku!
Just before the five hours was up, Hanna would be given another shot of Growth Factor to prepare for the next day.
Once back at home, we waited by the phone until it rang mid-afternoon to give us the count for that day. Fortunately, every day it was a relief and a joyous time!
And then back to the Clinic at 7pm to bet a booster shot each night to also prepare for the next day.
Go to bed. Get up early. Do over again...................
The afternoon was spent with Hanna resting a lot and me usually working remotely. Although on Thursday, Hanna was doing well, so I left her and found a same-day-appointment Chiropractic Clinic and got an adjustment and an E-Stim therapy. The Doc said he had never seen someone as stressed out and tight as I was. He fixed it. The Caretaker must also take time to Caretake himself, and so I did. And it felt good.
Also on Friday, instead of a booster (because we had reached our goal) we went out for apparent cancer-killing ice cream.
PHASE 2: COMPLETE AND SUCCESSFUL!!
Next up, a huge dose of Chemotherapy to kill the remaining straggling cancer cells and just about everything else. This is when things get real. Here are the common side-effects of Melphalan:
Chest pain, chills, cough, hoarseness, fever, lower back or side pain, painful or difficult urination, sores and ulcers on the lips and in the mouth, swollen glands, trouble breathing, unusual bleeding, unusual fatigue, hair loss, pain, loss of taste, loss of appetite.
Those start within 48 hours of treatment and last for up to two weeks.
Please don't stop praying for both of us anytime soon.
TODAY'S MIRACLE: Six million stem cells in three days. We had read stories of patients who couldn't collect enough and were sent home to deal with this nasty cancer without the benefit of a SCT. Hanna's numbers on Tuesday were low and it appeared we were on the "go home" track. We are so grateful for the prayers that cause these miracle.
Hanna's Inspirational 2 Bits:
As enthusiastic as I am to get on with this transplant, I’m
now having trouble sleeping due to increasing anxiety about it.
Today Isaiah’s words reminded me that God has the strength
to carry me through this.
“Fear not for I am with thee: be not dismayed: for I am
thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee
with the right hand of my righteousness.”
I needed the reminder to look to the source that has no
fear.
And now I’m already calm
and feeling upheld by his strong and helpful power.
Here’s more promises from the song How Firm a Foundation
which, miraculously, was part of the Tabernacle Choir’s broadcast today:
In
every condition—in sickness, in health
In
poverty’s vale or abounding in wealth,
At
home or abroad, on the land or the sea—
As
thy days may demand, so thy succor shall be.
Fear
not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismayed,
For I
am thy God and will still give thee aid.
I’ll
strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld
by my righteous omnipotent hand.
When
through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The
rivers of sorrow shall not thee o’erflow,
For I
will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And
sanctify to thee they deepest distress.
I can’t
find video of today’s performance, but in case you want to watch, this this one
is pretty great:
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