Fri,
03 Oct 2003
Day
28
Hey
everybody, it's Day 28. That means Jade went off of
one of the immune suppressant drugs (CellCept) today.
(But starts another drug on Sunday.)
We went into the BMT clinic for his appt and they
took extra blood to test his chymerism (sp?) which
means they will be able to tell us what percentage
of stem cells are Jade vs. Jared. We won't have the
results of this test for another three to ten days.
The hope is that at Day 28 it would be 50% - 50%.
They had discussed doing a bone marrow biopsy but
decided they wouldn't for now. Results from all his
other lab work seem within normal/acceptable ranges.
We continue to do a magnesium infusion at nights and
will do this until he's off the other immune suppressant
drug (cyclosporine). He is down to taking 125 mgs
of cyclosporine which is good since he was started
at 600 mgs on Sept 5th with receiving Jared's stem
cells.
Jade has a mild rash - pinkish tint to some of his
skin (arms, legs, stomach). They are hoping it is
a side effect of the medication and not early signs
of graft vs host disease. Going off the drugs though
we are likely to see graft vs host disease symptoms
at anytime - the next few days, next few weeks or
possibly never. Jade needs to develop at least a mild
form of graft vs host but would have serious complications
if it turns into moderate to severe symptoms. Without
some graft vs host disease you don't get graft vs
tumor effect. When and how quickly they take Jade
off the second immune suppressant drug will depend
on how he responds this next week. It's a delicate
dance of removing the two drugs and seeing how Jade's
body is tolerating everything. One good bit of news
is that for now we can go from appts at the BMT clinic
three times a week to once a week - unless there are
problems. That's great to have some time back again.
While there is some anxiety wondering about what the
next few days/weeks will bring, we are optimistic
and hopeful. Jade continues to have a very positive,
focused attitude. We're grateful for the faith, love,
friendship and prayers as we start yet another phase
of his treatment. We are very appreciative!
Garrett and Sadie are both doing good. They seem to
be joined at the hip and constantly by each other.
Both still love having Jade around and playing with
him. Jade is trying to not go crazy with not being
able to hunt this fall. He even asked the BMT staff
if the "thirty minutes from the hospital"
rule could apply to helicopter/plane rather than just
a car. They weren't amused. We have taken a coulple
drives up the canyon to look at the changing leaves.
We'll keep you posted with what happens in the next
week. Please know how grateful we are for all your
help and support.
Much love and gratitude......................Tanya
and co.
