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Husband with AML facing a stem cell transplant

Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) & CAR-T Cell Therapy | Last Active: Sep 7 11:43pm | Replies (117)
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@mary612

Hi Lori!
Thanks for checking in. Well, we had a great visit at MD Anderson. They recommend we stay in Chicago for the transplant which I am very relieved with.
They also agreed with the treatment path this far with a little difference of opinion about treatment between now and transplant. The transplant doc down there strongly encourages continuing chemo until just before transplant. We reported this to our team at NW and they are going to consider this and let us know their thoughts. He is currently due to end cycle 3 on May 5. The projected admission date is June 5. So there is a month in between which is good for allowing his counts to rise but the concern would be whether the cancer has time to rebound. He will have another biopsy May 14 so we’ll know more about how complete his remission is at that point. His last biopsy showed great improvement with minimum residual disease except for a small percentage of one of the mutations.

We received great news today that his donor and his medical center have agreed to the end of May stem cell collection! The only hurdle left is the clearance portion of the donor’s testing. We’ll know more about that on May 22. Plus we are working extra hard to keep my husband healthy and safe with his low immunity. His energy is good and we are happy to have a clearer path. The doc at MD Anderson gave us hope as well, which is everything.
I’m feeling exhausted from all of this and am working on building up my strength for the long haul. We are hoping we can take a little time away together before he is admitted.

Hope you are doing well, enjoying the beautiful blooms all around us and looking forward to summer.

I’ll keep you posted as things progress.

Thank you,
Mary

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Replies to "Hi Lori! Thanks for checking in. Well, we had a great visit at MD Anderson. They..."
Lori, Volunteer Mentor | @loribmt | May 1 1:01pm

Hi Mary, That’s great news about being able to stay in Chicago for the transplant. Much easier than relocating to Texas for a few months, though I know you’d both do it in a heartbeat if it was the better option.

Regarding your husband having another round of chemo before June, if it helps, my transplant doctor had also recommended that as well. As you said, with his last chemo early in May, this gives your husband time to recover his blood counts and some energy again before transplant in June. It also helps assure that he has minimal disease. The cleaner going into transplant, the better. My transplant was June 28th (2019) so basically a similar time frame. My last week of chemo was May 16-21, so I was feeling pretty perky again by the time I got to Rochester June 13th for testing and admission.

There is also one more round of chemo, called Reconditioning, the week immediately prior to transplant. The goal of this chemo is to clean out the bone marrow and lymphatic system. It creates a blank canvas for the new stem cells. In the event that there are any bad actors left, the new immune system should recognize those leukemic cells and quietly take them out as they reemerge from dormancy.

Excellent news on the donor too! Love it when a plan comes together! Now’s the challenge for everyone to stay healthy and keep the anxiety level down, huh? LOL I know!! Easier said than done. The thing that cracked me up the most was all of this drama leading to transplant and it basically takes about 20 minutes for the actual event of transfusing the stem cells! Pretty anti-climactic. But what a gift of a second chance at life! We get new birth certificates! 😉 And yes, tell your husband he will get to celebrate 2 birthdays every year now!

I hope you two are able to get away for a little break somewhere to just veg out and try not to think of anything medical for a while. This does become all consuming with so much focus centered on your husband’s condition. This gets better I promise and then life resumes again for both of you. It all can feel overwhelming with the responsibilities of most everything falling on your shoulders, Mary. So just choose your priorities and if some inconsequential things fall through the cracks, let them go and rest when you can.

Right now it’s so gorgeous with all the spring blooms. I hope you’re both able to relax and enjoy the healing benefits of Mother Nature. Sending a hug!

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