Thank you for all of the wonderful offers to get tested for the stem cell transplant. The doctors are telling us that after Vanessa and I they will go directly to the national transplant list and not test any other family members or friends. Valerie has very specific markers that will make it harder to match but he is very confident they will find a match quickly. After siblings, anyone has the same chance of being a match for Valerie. If you would like to be put on the transplant list please visit www.marrow.org or www.sandiegobloodbank.org however this will put you on the national registry and not specifically for Valerie! You will possibly be saving someone elses loved one!
For more information on stem cell transplants you might want to look over this: http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/attachments/National/br_1203086953.pdf This pdf is about 60 pages and I have not read the whole thing but it is the best info we have found.
The tentative schedule of events that the doctor shared with us last night is as follows:
Today, spinal tap and bone marrow biopsy (she is down there as I type this). She was very anxious about these procedures so they gave her Adavan.
Between now and around the 2nd week of October Valerie is going to be recovering from her first round of chemo.
The 2nd week of October she will probably get to go home for a week or so. During this week she will be going to appointments and getting ready to check back into Scripps and planning to check into UCSD for the transplant. This is also the week that Vanessa and I will be tested to see if we match.
Around the 3rd week of October Valerie will back into Scripps for another round of chemo. The time that it takes to work all of this out will be too long for her not to have another round, the leukemia will be back.
After this 2nd round she will have some recovery time and then she will be transferred to UCSD for a massive chemo which they call transplant preparation. Right after that will be the transplant.
Of course this all depends on what they find in the spinal tap today. If they find leukemia in the spinal fluid then we have a whole different plan of action to tackle. The MRI came back clean yesterday, which is a praise!
There is still a long fight ahead, keep praying!
For more information on stem cell transplants you might want to look over this: http://www.leukemia-lymphoma.org/attachments/National/br_1203086953.pdf This pdf is about 60 pages and I have not read the whole thing but it is the best info we have found.
The tentative schedule of events that the doctor shared with us last night is as follows:
Today, spinal tap and bone marrow biopsy (she is down there as I type this). She was very anxious about these procedures so they gave her Adavan.
Between now and around the 2nd week of October Valerie is going to be recovering from her first round of chemo.
The 2nd week of October she will probably get to go home for a week or so. During this week she will be going to appointments and getting ready to check back into Scripps and planning to check into UCSD for the transplant. This is also the week that Vanessa and I will be tested to see if we match.
Around the 3rd week of October Valerie will back into Scripps for another round of chemo. The time that it takes to work all of this out will be too long for her not to have another round, the leukemia will be back.
After this 2nd round she will have some recovery time and then she will be transferred to UCSD for a massive chemo which they call transplant preparation. Right after that will be the transplant.
Of course this all depends on what they find in the spinal tap today. If they find leukemia in the spinal fluid then we have a whole different plan of action to tackle. The MRI came back clean yesterday, which is a praise!
There is still a long fight ahead, keep praying!
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