"Just the Facts"-- Despite the medicine, blood levels seem to be holding! Other minerals are being challenged. Lab attendance reduced to 2 days a week. Able to eat triple washed lettuce.
Things seem to be progressing like I thought they would 3 months ago, but I am told repeatedly that the recovery is unique to each individual. The best thing that I have to report is that just this past week, B was able to go a full 2 weeks before needing blood. The significance of this is that this has not happened for over 7 plus months. You may recall that I mentioned that in 2010 B lived on blood transfusions every 2 weeks. His range was from an 8 to a low of a 6 (which is pretty low). In January he was going every week and just before the transplant he was down to 5 days. So, all this means that all the work and tough time of recovery has been worth it. Those wonderful little super cells are really reving up the production work. So not only have they recovered the bone marrow, but now they are working on getting blood production back up to normal. B still has a ways to go before not needed a blood transfusion, but this is what I use to measure the results. He is still on lots of meds to help manage the body chemistry. It is amazing what a delicate balance is needed for all these elements in the body. Sure makes you think of the master mind who put it all together!
The other great news for B is that he was released to going to infusion only twice a week. We are holding our breath on this as a few other patients we know have been here and then bounced back to 3 times and/or daily, so this new phase is tenuous at best, but we will accept the breather for now. B was also allowed to add 2 coveted foods into his diet. Lettuce and watermelon. The lettuce has to be triple washed and eaten right away, and the watermelon can only be the new hybrids and he can only have the center core, and the skin has to be washed, but yay, they are so good and an treat to eat. We have been walking regularly just before dark to keep muscle development happening. His muscles are all weak for all the steroids and laying around, so we are consistently working on this. The latest new medicine makes him highly susceptible to skin cancer, so we are in the shade and out of the sun all together. These adjustments to our lifestyle are minor compared to the hope of full recovery, which we believe is in sight.
Until next time,
Hopeful Believer.
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