Thursday, January 18, 2018

Another Brief Medical Update

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Yesterday we headed down to Stanford for some more blood tests and a follow-up visit with our bone marrow transplant doctor and his staff. We were blessed that Mark and Christine Freeman volunteered to drive us there and back this time. We were thankful because, after the week Joyce had with the pain of a lupus flare-up, it relieved her of a lot of stress of driving in the Bay Area. We were also blessed by less traffic than normal. We made the trip down in about 2 hours and 10 minutes and the trip back in 3 hours and 45 minutes. I think both are record times for us. We also had some nice fellowship and conversation all the way up and back that made the trip seem much shorter. Thank you Mark and Christine.

The doctor visit went well too. My blood numbers were even better than expected and the doctor was very encouraged by how I was recovering from the transplant process. He wants me to go ahead and get the PET scan in late February or early March. We are hoping to schedule it for March 2nd when we will be there for a consultation for my edema. We were urged to still be careful about infection (I will be taking anti-virals and antibiotics for the rest of this year until I can get revaccinated) but I am pretty much free to go out and be with people. The doctor reminded me that the recovery process from chemo lasts at least a year and to expect a few setbacks on the way. But, he also urged me to exercise and begin the work of rebuilding muscle and getting healthier. We were excited and happy about the visit and are very hopeful for more good news in March. Thank you for your prayers for the trip and for your ongoing prayers for the edema treatment. God Bless!

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