No More EPOCH

I came home from NIH today free from my PICC line and hopefully done with EPOCH-CR for the rest of my life. WOOHOO. Celebrate!
Its a strange feeling though. I remember walking out of NIH last January with Kate feeling incredibly happy and positive when I had my sixth PICC line pulled. At that point we thought I was done with chemotherapy for good, and only had to wait for the great news that we ended up receiving at the end of the month. I was told I was in remission, and we didn't expect to be going through this again. Last January it was definitely a different, and more joyous celebration than what we are feeling today.
I'm happy today. 12 rounds of this chemotherapy is more than anybody should have to deal with, but it has been my life for the last fourteen months. I also feel confident that on December 4th when I have my next PET scan, that the doctors will tell me once again that my cancer is in remission. However, my experience has shown me that remission doesn't guarantee anything. Remission doesn't mean a clean bill of health, and I'll have to be prepared for any more obstacles that get put in my way.
The other big difference is that when I left NIH on January 31, 2008, my only plan was to return in three months for a CT scan and a checkup. After my checkup on December 4th, I'll be back at NIH the very next day getting ready for my bone marrow transplant. That weekend should hopefully be full of fun, because the plan is for me to begin my inpatient stay on the 10th or 11th of December. That will be a crazy time in my family's life. As much as we feel prepared for that time coming up, its going to be hard to deal with when it hits. Hopefully the transplant will be a huge success, which will only make the disruption of a long term hospital stay feel like a nuisance as time passes.