The Six Million Dollar Man

In a surprisingly relatively easy step, the stem cell infusion occurred today around noon.

The setup was extensive. Lots of preparatory drugs for side effects. The standard stuff: nausea, headache, allergic reaction. The medical stuff: anti-viral, anti-fungal for the dimininished auto-immune system.

But the infusion went quickly and without a hitch. I was loopy for most of it, but it was painless. No surgery. Thank the Lord.

Coming out of it, I ordered a real meal: Chicken noodle soup (what else, of course) and a fruit platter and got it all down which was very different from yesterday.

The two best things that happened today (and they are most mundane): I got to take a walk outside along Crittenden Blvd in the sun, and I got to take a shower.

Yep, things are looking up.

The next major tasks to monitor are: the dropping of my white blood cell count to zero over the next days, and the apperance of the GI track side-effects. Not pleasant to discuss so I won't, but that is why I am still here for the foreseeable future.

I asked why the malphalan does not affect the infused stem cells. The melphalan has an active period of approx 24 hours in which it kills it target cells. It takes days for the "poisoned" cells to clear the system, but the melphalan has done its job. That is why it does not interfere with the cleaned stem cells infused today.

Medicine is so far progressed over even 20 years ago!!