I'm not really sure how to start this update because the past few days have been so incredible. I wanted to insert lots of pictures but I don't want to overload anyone's email system so I will try to explain what I can and to attach a few photos at the end. I got to the house sometime before 9 pm on Thursday night and Dad looked incredible. Diane had already spent the day donating stem cells and was scheduled to put in another day starting at 7:45 am (on Friday). Mom and Dad were scheduled to check into the hospital at 8am and it was clear to me that taking a different car would work best for everyone. When I arrived at the hospital, a few hours after everyone else, Diane was almost halfway through her blood donation. She had an excellent support team and I was very excited to see my cousin Barbie and Uncle Jim who were reading Winnie the Pooh. By the time I got up to Dad's room he had already been taken in for radiation. Much to my surprise, I heard him call my name in the hallway, as I went to heat up a Boca burger (veggie burgers that I am for some reason addicted to). I had expected him to be less chipper, or at least to look tired and in pain. He still looked great and was requesting food.

We had been told that the transplant would start around 3pm so we all sat around and talked until the stems cells were brought in (around 4pm). There was something almost anticlimactic about the delivery of the donation bag that was at the same time so much more emotional than any of us anticipated. To think that the cells that were going into Dad had been in Aunt Diane that morning and that those cells contained so much hope for so many of us. We all kept looking at the bag as if somehow words would come to us to describe our feelings. So we watched in awe as the doctors and nurses performed a mini stem cell transplant before our eyes. There was something about Dad sitting in a relaxing chair while we all talked that made the process look more like a family gathering than an innovative medical procedure.

After the bag was drained, we watched part of a movie and ate take-out. Dad's vital signs were measured often and each time they were normal. I think we were all expecting a reaction. It's been almost 24 hours since the transplant started and Dad is still doing well. We've been told that there is a long period of time for reactions to occur so for the moment I think we all have feelings of guarded optimism.

I really want to thank Diane and her support team for their help. There are no words to describe our gratitude. I also want to thank Dad's other sister Carol for her continued support.

Thank you again for all of your good wishes.
Have a good weekend and Go Raiders (I really only care about the commercials but I'm trying to work on community spirit).
Love,
Dina

PS Benjamin can now walk behind a push toy. I'll send pictures of him again in the next update.

Picture 1: Mom and Dad at the hospital this morning
Picture 2: Dad, Diane, and the donated cells (the red bag)
Picture 3: Dad and Diane discussing their youth during the transplant

Hi Everyone!

Dad is doing really well. The first set of drugs for the transplant (a new immunosuppressive) started on Friday. Dad will be receiving the immunosuppressive drug from Friday plus another immunosuppressive drug (chemotherapy) on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. On Friday
he will receive full body radiation and the transplant. We anticipate that he will be in the hospital for about 24 hours starting on Friday. Then he will come home. Although the time for the actual transplant is short, the transition period is much longer. I don't really understand how long this period is but I think I remember hearing 9 months to a year (more on this in the next update).

I will be flying out on Thursday. We are all very optimistic and Dad is in excellent health. You might be wondering, what is excellent health? Well, Dad has gained back a healthy amount of weight, he is eating well, exercising, working, and reading. The bone marrow test showed no signs of the leukemic blast cells and he is now officially in remission! I'm assuming that your next question is something like, if he's in remission then why does he need the transplant? Although Dad is in excellent health, the leukemia can return at any time. We feel very fortunate that all of the chemotherapy has gone so well but there are no guarantees for the future and the window for when the transplant is a viable option is not very large. So, it was a hard decision to make but Dad (and Mom) have chosen to do the transplant now. We are very supportive of the decision and very happy that we have this opportunity. The bottom line is that a transplant is the only chance for eliminating the leukemia completely.

We really appreciate your support and are looking forward to when Dad can travel again.

Much love,
Dina

ps Ben is keeping us busy by emptying bookshelves and drawers (see
below). I'd like to pretend that he is learning about gravity but I'm
afraid that the gravity experiments will be more destructive. He's not
walking but he's able to get into pretty much anything in the house by
crawling. For those who have asked, Ben turned 9 months on the 16th and
shares Dad's birthday in April.

Hi and Happy New Year!

Dad continues to do well at home. He and Mom are taking walks together and enjoying themselves. His white cell counts and hemoglobin have remained high and he has some new boot cut jeans from the Gap.

The next step will be a mini transplant to completely get rid of the cancerous cells. Dad's sister, Diane, is an ideal match and we are all very grateful (we are also grateful that Dad's other sister, Carol, was happy to help out too). I don't completely understand the process yet so I will write more when I have a better idea of what is going to happen. Dad will have another bone marrow test next Friday and the date for the transplant will be set after the tests have been analyzed. We think that it will probably be in mid to late January. Prior to the transplant, Dad will have more chemotherapy, full body radiation, and immunosuppressive drugs. Aunt Diane was out over the holidays to meet with Dad's doctor and everyone is feeling very positive about the transplant. Diane will return to Delaware once the date for the transplant has been set.

In the meantime, Dad is working on gaining weight and drinking more fluids. He looks great and wants to be as strong as possible for thetransplant.

We hope you have had a very happy New Year.
Thank you again for all of your support.
Love,
Dina