T-34 and counting

This shot is from January 1st. It is out of order, but I like it! Ed and I had a bit of a snowy day driving up to Huntsman yesterday. It turned out to be a long day, but the sun finally came out. Here's the low-down.

I can start the CAR-T treatment on February 17th at Huntsman. That would be the day they draw my blood. Then you wait 3 or 4 weeks to get your new T-cells. That would make today T-34. My WBC went up to 178 yesterday. We could change drugs, but we're hoping this one will help us limp along till we try something else. There is no guarantee with any drug, and the other options have some serious side effects. If I go up at the rate of 5k per day, I would be at 348 by the time they draw my blood and then we still have to wait for weeks to get the new T-cells back. I didn't want to ask Dr. Stephens if there is a limit to enter the study! I've been up to 585k before, but don't want to do that again!

City of Hope in California said I can have a consultation on January 27th. I'm waiting to see if they could beat the February 17th date for the initial blood draw or not. It's a race!

I also had such pain in my left arm this week that I had an ultra-sound to see if I had a blood clot. No, I don't. It seems like the pain is from the radiation. I have to hold my arms above my head in a very uncomfortable position, and it has become unbearable. In the meantime, I finished the radiation on my left flank and we've cancelled the radiation on my right flank, as there is a limit to having radiation before CAR-T. I won't be sorry not to be tortured anymore on the radiation table!

In an attempt to help Ed have a life while Judy sleeps (which is quite often), Brittany and John are introducing him to Sea of Thieves, a game in which you can learn to express your inner pirate. It has been fun for him, although he thinks he's a pretty pathetic excuse for a swashbuckler! It is a group game, and he even had to buy his own microphone headset to join in on the fun!