Day +98

Today was my last appointment at NIH before day +100, but as one of my doctors pointed out, it was somewhat anti-climactic. For people who live out of town, of whom there are many at NIH, reaching day +100 in good health means they get to return home. I've been lucky enough to be at home since January, so its not as big a milestone for me.

I could be celebrating the last of my twice weekly NIH visits, but since I have a follow up appointment with the dermatologist on Monday, I'll be heading back two times next week as well. The rash I had on my face has cleared up somewhat. My face doesn't itch as much, and it looks to have cleared up around my jaw line. There is still a decent amount of the rash on my forehead and around my eyes. I have been itching more on my upper back, and have noticed some spots on my upper chest. The doctors haven't said definitively that it is Graft Versus Host Disease (GVHD), but the lead doctor has hinted that it might be.

In addition to the rash, the two doctors I saw today noticed some spots inside my cheeks that they think might be minor GVHD symptoms as well. So the plan is to add a dental visit as well to next week's schedule to get that looked at. If they suspect that either area is indeed a sign of GVHD, I'll probably have a skin biopsy in both areas so the sample can be tested.

Although the idea of GVHD scared me before the transplant, the doctors don't seem worried by what they see, and I'm not so worried either. The itching is only a minor irritant, and whatever they saw in my mouth hasn't bothered me at all.

One doctor also shared with me that my bone marrow biopsy from Monday showed I had about 50 to 60% bone marrow activity. She explained that bone marrow activity is usually 100 minus your age, so if I were completely healthy mine would be about 70 or a slight bit higher. She thought where I am now was good though.

As part of my day +100 testing I had an echocardiogram and a pulmonary functioning test. Both of the technicians who ran those tests said my heart and lungs look great. So nothing to worry about there. I also went to the eye doctor yesterday, and my prescription hasn't changed in the last year. So in terms of those three organs it doesn't look like there has been any negative effects of the chemotherapy and other drugs.

So the process goes on. My positive thinking is that if the rash and whatever mouth issue is going on are GVHD, then there is probably some more Graft Versus Tumor effect going on. At this point in the transplant protocol, the next scan would take place in three months. However, since I still have some disease in my body the transplant team wants me to have my next PET Scan in four weeks. So towards the end of April we will have another idea of how successfully the treatment is going.