January 27, 2010 11:15 PM 25 days to go

Much to talk about!

The doctor's visit went as well as it could go. He said that my counts were all doing fine though he wished for me to continue taking my prednisone and immuno-suppressant medication as I have been with an eye to starting to reduce the prednisone at my next visit which is March 3rd. I will be weaned off of the prednisone first and then the immuno-suppressant. It's always done one at a time. How can I argue with him when during our discussion he mentioned that Dana-Farber does 500 bone marrow transplants a year! They know their business!

By the same token, he said that my next appointment after March 3rd would not need to be for three months! I figured maybe two at best! Also, at my March 3rd appointment, I begin getting my vaccinations - another step forward!

I also asked if I could now visit the dentist and he gave his approval for that as well and even threw in the comment that I no longer needed to wear a mask or gloves when I visited the clinic. I kind of OD'ed on uppers today - there was no negative news at all!

A fellow transplant patient who had his transplant 12 days before me was there this morning as well. We have crossed paths quite a few times over the last year so we spoke for a while this morning to catch up on our progress. He has been plaqued by fatigue and sore joints along with an ongoing case of graft vs host disease from almost the very beginning. This coupled with the fact that his original drug doses were much more than mine has delayed his getting off of the drugs and hampered his recovery somewhat - although he was scheduled to get his first vaccinations today. When I hear stories like this I realize how fortunate I have been.

Since we were in Boston this morning, we also purchased the wine for the party. Obviously, after today, the party goes on for sure! Just pray for good weather! It's no problem being able to handle drinking all that wine on our own over time - but consuming all the food that needs to be prepared would take some doing!

I am really turning the corner now...

Bob