“I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has had to overcome while trying to succeed.” —Booker T. Washington
What an unexpected day we had today as we got our labs and waited to meet with our Doc. Dave’s MM is in full retreat with his MM marker (Lambda Light Chain) down from 40 at the start of this to 0.3. His WBC is still bouncing around a bit which is expected, though a different experience for us. With a SCT, it’s a steady climb. So this up and down and up again is new for us but not unexpected for our doctor. Several comments of “remarkable” were uttered as he re-looked at all the daily labs gathered through this process in a lovely graph form.
We are now every other day into Infusion B, which is an excellent way to transition when we leave. It’s always a little scary when you have been under such intensive daily care to head home and leave the shelter of those looking after your every need.
So Dave’s Myeloma is history for the most part in this leg of our journey. We’ll be happy to confirm its further retreat with scans and a bone marrow biopsy on the 24th and prepare to bug out of wonderful Little Rock and head WEST! I’m now in the jettison mode vs. the gathering mode! EEK! I’ve scheduled my free oil change before we hit the road. We have yet to make plans for our road trip home. Dave is still struggling with his femur break, so I’m not sure how adventurous we will be. Primarily due to the fatigue and everything else his body has been enduring. Once he’s heading solidly into stability with his WBC, I suspect he’ll pick up speed on that.
We have set some goals to attain with our PT person, like safely negotiating the stairs in the house when we get home using a cane and the railing.
Doing the Car T was an easy decision for us, as I mentioned to the reporter when he asked if there was difficulty in deciding to do this “new” treatment protocol. As I told him, there was a cliff standing before us and a barely seen path. We didn’t hesitate to take the path we were presented given the circumstances. I’m so glad we did. It was worth everything. How long? What comes next? We aren’t going to worry about the what-ifs. It has been what has worked for us, to be present, and enjoy the gifts of each and every day.
(Dave particularly loves that he will only be on Acyclovir, Dapsone, and a baby aspirin from here on out!)
Thank you for riding the wave with us! I’ll do my best to keep you updated on how Dave is doing, how his femur is healing, etc. We will come back for a usual quick in-and-out at the beginning of February.
