DAY 0 Transplant Day

I was too exhausted last night to write an entry on my re-birthday. The day started out poorly again, as I puked in the toilet shortly after waking up. Morning sickness isn't just for pregnant women, but cancer patients as well. The nausea died down again after that incident, but I just didn't feel like eating much most of the day.

The day went quickly with the help of some naps in the morning and afternoon. During one of my boughts of consciousness the nurse who coordinates the transplants came in and let me know the transplant would take place at some time between four and six. So at three o'clock I was awake and ready to get going. About that time I was given another message that the transplant would arrive at 5:30. So I got around to ordering dinner, and pacing the room anxiously when it arrived because my stomach wasn't quite ready for it.

At one point I decided to take a lap around the hallways to try and ease myself. As I head out the door I see a couple of familiar faces standing next to the nurses station with one person I didn't recognize holding a Playmate cooler. I knew the new cells were in that cooler, just like how they transport organs in movies or tv. So I made my walk a quick one, and layed down to get ready for the transplant.

When they brought the cells in for the transplant, they let us know that they had harvested enough cells from the donor that they could have done two full transplants. Thats great news because they are able to freeze the extra cells and could potentially use them later to give my new immune system a boost if necessary. I also take it as good news, becauses if my donor could produce that many cells for donation, then he must be pretty healthy. For the actual transplant I would be receiving five million cells. I've read online about that being the optimal amount for transplant recipients, but I've also heard about people going through with transplants with as little as 2 million. So all of the signs I've received about the donated cells seem to be in my favor.

The transplant is pretty much like a blood transfusion. The bag of cells looked like watered-down blood. It was still red, but more of a creamy tomato soup red instead of a dark crimson color. I was able to lay back and relax as the cells were infused over the course of a half an hour. There were not any notable signs of flushing, fever, or any other type of reaction. So while the I've spent so much time getting ready for this bone marrow transplant, the procedure was in fact quite ordinary and unexciting.

While my parents and Kate had been with me most of the day, Isaiah arrived with his Godmama and Monkey Matt. Most people probably aren't aware of Monkey Matt, but thats what he gets called around Isaiah. After they arrived some of the nurses from the floor brought over a cake and sang happy birthday to celebrate my re-birthday. I was feeling really good at this point and we were able to celebrate in a laid back atmosphere.

So the new cells are flowing through my body right now, and hopefully latching on to the marrow. The next few days might remain kind of boring, but the big news will come in a week or so when tests are done to see how well the new cells have taken over. For now...all is good. And I'm thankful for all the thoughts and prayers I've received while going through this.