Let's get this show on the road!!!!!

We met with the doctor on Friday and went over all the test results.  All of the test results looked good so it was time to sign the consent forms and schedule a date for the transplant.  At first, I hesitated to write about what was actually said only because I don't want to freak anyone out.  I really needed to digest it all.  So then I decided I would present all the facts.  First of all, Jim is in complete remission, (finally, after the last 3 months of chemo here in Seattle).  It may seem weird but one needs to be free of cancer before one can go through this process.   He goes into the hospital on Tuesday.  There will be 5 days of intense chemotherapy, a day of rest, and then they will infuse the stored stem cells over the course of 2 days.  We were warned that this will be a high risk transplant because of his heart and lungs and because of his age.  We were given all the possible side effects like liver and kidney damage.  The doctor said there is a 10% chance that he might not make it.  But, if he didn't go ahead and do this the cancer would definitely come back and his chance of survival would be close to none.   Because of the risks, Jim will more than likely spend the majority of recovery time in the hospital which will be about 3-4 weeks.  With the treatment, it has been said that there is a 50/50 chance that they will be able to keep the cancer in remission.  But, because this is such a rare form of cancer they don't have a lot of experience curing it.  They are going by other forms of Lymphoma that they have treated.
We are trying to remain positive and appreciate anyone who supports this attitude.  We would like to believe that everything will go off without a hitch but are realistic and know that Jim will be real sick.  We would love to hear from you especially if you have words of hope or any kind of inspiration.  Since Jim will be pretty weak,  he asked that I leave my cell number for anyone who would like to contact us.  You can reach me at (509)998-1754.  I will continue to keep you abreast of the latest updates via this blog.  But I have a feeling things will be happening at a quicker pace from here on out.