We got a little bit more info today. We will go down to Houston on Wednesday, Adrian will get the I & the E from ICE and then do the 'conditioning' in preparation for collecting stem cells. The conditioning is to free the stem cells so they are easier to collect. (something like that)
After chemo he will go on check ups to see how the levels are coming along. They will give big doses of Neupogen to boost the white blood cell count. (it is the same as Neulasta). When levels are high enough they will collect the stem cells and I am not sure how much and how long it takes. Because he is young and strong it should be easy.
When that is done, he will have a week or so, then head to Houston for transplant. Very very rough estimate is that it will happen right around Christmas. Probably just before, if everything runs as planned right now. Things all depend on when they collect the stem cells.
I really liked what our neighbor told me tonight, "Get it started and get it over with quicker". It is very true, lets re-boot and then start the recovery. The day they will do the transplant will count as day 1, the next day as 2 and so on.
The reason they give another dose of chemo before collecting stem cells even though the biopsy came back negative, is because they want to make sure there are no hidden cells anywhere. Adrian will get one more dose of chemo right before the transplant, from what I read this is to make room for the new stem cells to come in and grow. Also to bring his 'sick' immune system back to square one and re-boot his body.
Normally when he has chemo and his immune system is low, he doesn't feel that bad. Weird how it works. His immune system is low and that is when he is on the 'mend' from chemo and starting to feel pretty good again.
Now, if this is the case when he has the transplant, I have no idea. We will soon find out though. I have read about people who have had good and people who have had bad experiences. Even the ones that had bad experiences say, they would do it again in a heartbeat - if they had to.
My Mac battery is about to die and so is my internal one ... time to go and recharge with some sleep!
Ciao!!
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