This week has been filled with medical appointments that are focused on making sure everything is in tip-top shape before my stem cell transplant.
Because the conditioning process for the transplant will essentially wipe out my immune system, my team needs to make sure there aren’t any infections hiding out that could rear their ugly heads when I no longer have an immune system to fight them. That has meant checking just about everything.
I had a sinus CT, which found a that there may be an infection brewing near the root, so I need a root canal before transplant to prevent it from turning into an abscess.
I also had a chest CT and needed pulmonary to clear me. That sounds like it should have been fairly straightforward, but getting the appointment, and ultimately the clearance, was anything but easy.
Next up, I see dermatology on Monday so they can look at the biopsy site on my arm from my hospitalization at VCU. Then I’ll have the root canal on Tuesday. If all goes according to plan, I will finally be cleared and ready to begin the conditioning protocol.
At that point, I’ll also find out which arm of the clinical trial I’ve been assigned to. The trial compares two different conditioning protocols, which is the chemo and immunosuppression used to prepare my body for the transplant. One protocol lasts about a week, while the other lasts about three weeks.
The earliest I could have my transplant is November 3, although that may be delayed if my white blood cell counts need more time to recover. If I’m assigned to the longer conditioning protocol, my transplant would be about two weeks later, which puts us very close to Thanksgiving, which is wild.
I truly cannot believe we are almost in November. I’m not even going to begin unpacking how I feel about the upcoming holidays. That will have to be a post of its own.
For today, I am still incredibly proud of my body for staying in remission through all of this. And I am so grateful for the village surrounding me, the people who keep showing up, helping me clear each new hurdle and carrying me closer to this transplant.
A special thank-you to Gigi for being right by my side through what I originally told her would be a “slow week.” Clearly, I have lost the ability to predict what a slow week looks like, but I’m so grateful she was here for all of it. There are still unknowns ahead, but we are getting there.