Transplant Complete

Yesterday was the big day. Sylvia went into the University of Washington Medical Center early for surgery to harvest bone marrow. The procedure was over early in the afternoon. She spent the night recovering in the hospital and was discharged this morning. She is doing well although she is tired and stiff. She is looking forward to getting some light walks in to loosen up and hasten the recovery.

Jill received the bone marrow last evening. That procedure also went well. She had some discomfort overnight but is doing quite well. She now starts receiving series of drugs to control the Graft Versus Host Disease that follows transplantation. I will let you know how that goes in the next posting.

Thank you all for your messages and emails.

tom

All set for the transplant

Everything is ‘go’ for Jill’s transplant tomorrow. Jill had her last dose of chemo yesterday. Today she had full-body irradiation. First thing tomorrow morning Sylvia will go in for the bone marrow harvest and Jill will receive the marrow later in the day.

Jill is tired but feeling well. The chemo has had the desired effects and her blood counts are just where the medical team wants them to be.

Scott and I are both in Seattle for the week to help out. The four of us are enjoying the chance to visit a little between procedures.

I will post another entry later this week to let everyone know how things go after the transplant.

tom

Martin Luther King Day message

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in the US--a day when we celebrate the civil rights movement and the progress made toward justice and racial equality. This day has also become a national Day of Service when people renew their commitment to public service and community. I hope you will all have a moment to reflect upon Dr. King's ideals of justice, equity and public service.

Last week Jill got the very good news that the cancer had been arrested by the combination of chemo and radiation that she has received over the last month. This means that the transplant will proceed under ideal conditions. Her last radiation treatment was on Wednesday. She is now preparing for the transplant. She will go into the hospital on Wednesday of this week. She will have 6 days of chemo followed by full-body radiation on January 29th and the transplant on the 30th. She will be in the hospital for a total of two weeks during which time she will be isolated as much as possible to prevent infections.

Scott and I will both be going out to Seattle this weekend and staying a week to help out. I'm sure Jill would enjoy hearing from you.

tom

Nearly done radiation

Everything is still a "go" for Jill's transplant in two weeks. Jill has four more days of targeted radiation. She continues to get regular infusions of fluids and blood parts. She is tired but is staying healthy. Her white cell count is continuing to rise which is a very good sign.

Scott flew out on Thursday to spend the weekend. Sylvia, Scott and Jill got out for several short hikes and enjoyed the moderate Seattle winter weather.

tom

Happy New Year

Best wishes for 2008. The Korns and Johnsons are looking forward to a healthier 2008.

Jill is on-course for her bone marrow transplant later this month. She is recovering from chemotherapy, which finished about a week ago. Her white blood cell count and platelets were very low following the chemotherapy but are now rising. She still has a couple of weeks of targeted radiation left. On January 24th she will go into the hospital at the University of Washington for about two weeks. She will have almost a week of pre-transplant treatment. On January 29th she will receive a mild full-body irradiation. On January 30, doctors will harvest bone marrow from Sylvia and infuse it into Jill's blood stream. Jill will remain in the hospital for one more week so that the medical team can monitor and control the inevitable graft versus host disease (GVHD). This will be followed by another 100 days of recovery in Seattle.

Thank you all for your holiday greetings and good wishes.

tom