April 17, 2023
I’m fairly wiped out from all this so far.
Saturday I had my first round of chemo after getting a PICC line put in earlier that morning. Before I left the clinic, I was outfitted with a HEPA mask which I have to wear anytime I'm outside the Clinic or my hotel room. Outside and even in the car. After the procedure, Polly drove me . . .
April 14, 2023
This is Quox whom I've adopted as my email handle (quox@att.net). Quox is a character in the 36 original books of the Wizard of OZ from 1900 to 1942. Quox is a friendly blue dragon who wears pearls. In this particular illustration, Quox is opening a locket that contains magic pills that stop the evil Gnome King in his tracks.
April 7, 2023
The clock is ticking! Only a week to go before my big trip to Stanford on April 15. I’ve pretty much have everything done including far too many different lists that I’m constantly updating: meds to take in a heap of pill boxes; what to put in one of 5 duffel bags/suitcases; directions for watering my houseplants and feeding the . . .
March 20, 2023
First Day of Spring!
The countdown to CAR-T begins. I’m due to head off to Stanford on April 15 (formerly known as ’Tax Day.’) I’ll be staying in a nearby hotel with my caregiver Polly until I’m admitted to the hospital on April 19. “D-Day” is April 20. That’s when my Carvykti bioengineered T-cells are scheduled to be infused. There are several . . .
February 25, 2023
Another whirlwind week, but it ended on a promising note. Apologies for this really long "medical" blog!
On Monday, Marguerite drove me to Stanford for my apheresis (extracting my T-cells). When I got there, the nurses told me they couldn’t proceed because I didn’t have a required lab test within the last 24 hours. Don’t . . .
February 14, 2023
Valentine's Day
Lately, I feel like I’ve been sucked into a whirlpool. Medical developments have moved quickly -- occasionally with a few speed bumps.
Stanford called me on Thursday evening with the go ahead for CAR-T now that I’ve decided to go with Carvykti. It has more risks than the other choice (Acbema), but the disease progression with . . .
February 5, 2023
On Friday, my friend Chuck and I were on our way to Stinson Beach (north of San Francisco) for a leisurely luncheon and walk along the beach with some friends. Just before we arrived, I got a call from Stanford. Stanford tried calling me three times on my car phone as we were driving along, but I’ve never used my car phone so I ignored the . . .
