I'm not where I thought we would be this time last year. When it looked like the stem cells would result in a new immune system, I started thinking how great it would be to take the family to Hawaii at one year and have an open house for our friends to celebrate. Not so fast.... We have come so far but we still have a ways to go. Our oncologist commented on our "set back" due to the red cell aplasia, meaning Steven needing to convert to a different blood type. It was rough and I didn't realize that this part of the bone marrow transplant could have failed. It was dicier than I realized or wanted to realize. That put us behind "in a perfect world". I'm sure the fact that the donor had a different blood type was weighed heavily. We were told there were 3 possible donor matches, our donor being 12 out of 12 but it isn't that simple. No one is really a perfect match because they aren't you. The COH team that Steven has decided on which donor to use, not our oncologist. I would love to know all the mitigating factors involved but I'm sure will not have that opportunity. I reflect that a year ago this time, Steven was going through the hell of chemo called Fludarabine and getting ready to be admitted to City of Hope on 10/3/15. There was so much unknown. We were totally driven by faith and scientific knowledge that we were doing the right thing.
I am eternally grateful that Steven is alive and functioning. Having been in healthcare for 20 years, I know that not every situation ends up favorably. Our one year anniversary is this Friday, 10/7/16, 365 days of education, hope and success.
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