Transplant Calendar—Finally!

Last Monday, Mike got his transplant workup testing. We finally have dates on a calendar. Things just got really real. Mom is in rehab regaining her strength after getting a rude Christmas gift - Covid. Blech!

Mom’s Christmas Covid

The Monday before Christmas, Mom returned to the hospital with Covid pneumonia. She was admitted and spent a little over a week there, then went to an excellent local rehab facility on Wednesday this week. She has instructed them to “kick her butt” with the physical therapy so she can get back to her independent self. I have no doubt that she will. She’s determined!

Transplant!

We finally have dates! But first, let me explain a little bit about what kind of transplant Mike will be receiving. We’ve had some questions about that from some of our more curious friends. I love learning, so for those of you who are like me, settle in for a short lesson.

Mike will be receiving an autologous stem cell transplant. The “auto” in autologous means “self.” So, Mike will be receiving his own stem cells. How do they do this? I’m glad you asked! First, they give him growth-stimulating factor shots for several days leading up to collection day. Then, Mike is hooked up to an apheresis machine that will strip the stem cells from his blood and then return his blood back to him. This process is very similar to dialysis. The cells are then frozen for later use. They collect enough for two cycles on collection day.

The next step is to admit Mike for high-dose chemotherapy treatment (HDCT). This is the most intense, grueling part of the whole process. HDCT is no joke. It completely strips your immune system and tanks your blood counts. You see, cancer is caused by a faulty immune system. To kill off the persistent cancer cells, the immune system has to be reset. HDCT does that reset.

This is where those stem cells that were collected at the beginning come in. Because HDCT has stripped his immune system down to virtually nothing, he needs healthy cells to come in and take over. He receives the stem cells and is monitored by daily visits to the clinic for the remainder of the cycle after he’s discharged. After his counts come back up, he will be re-admitted to do it all over again.

Life During Transplant (Dates!)

January 27th is slated as Collection Day. Mike will be on the apheresis machine for six hours that day and possibly the next, depending on how many they can collect on the first day. February 3rd is his final clearance appointment with Dr. Long, the transplant doctor. And February 5th is the day Mike will be admitted and begin the HDCT. Beginning January 27th, we will be staying in the Raleigh-Durham area for 8-12 weeks.

While Mike is going through the transplant cycles, he has to reside 30 minutes or less from Duke University Hospital so that should any trouble arise that requires immediate attention, he can be directly admitted to their transplant unit. Thankfully, we lived in Raleigh for 10 years and have lots of connections there. The Lord has provided several kind friends who have opened their homes to us over the last several months as a free refuge during this storm. One of these homes meets the transplant distance requirements perfectly and will be our home base when Mike is not admitted.

There are so many food and hygiene rules to follow during this time of intentionally reduced immune function! For example, several foods are off limits completely, no eating in restaurants during transplant cycles and for 90 days afterwards, meat temperatures must be checked with a meat thermometer (and NO undercooked meats or eggs—so no medium rare steak or overeasy eggs). As far as hygiene goes, Mike has to do everything he can to avoid any bleeding—so, no clipping fingernails (filing only), brushing his teeth with very soft-bristled brushes and replacing them weekly, no razor blades (only electric razors), he can’t even blow his nose! There’s so much stuff in the regulations that you would never think about; daily things we all do that we take for granted.

The Last Cancer Mountain

Obviously, this will be the hardest part of Mike’s life yet. It will require more fight and more prayers than he’s ever needed for anything before. 2024 was a hellish year for both of us, but it has bled into 2025. We thought we would be finished with this journey by now. We have climbed several mountains and lived through several deep valleys. We’re excited to be facing our final mountain and we’re expecting God to be faithful and move this one too.

We are starting out 2025 doing the same 90-day rapid read through the Bible that we began 2024 with. The Bible was such an anchor for our souls during last year’s tumultuous beginnings and the rapid read helped us focus on the Gospel and keep Christ central in our lives. In addition, we pray the Daily Office together most days of the week. This centuries-old practice of praying daily prayers with the saints is a sweet reminder that, though we often feel alone in our walk with the Lord these days, there are saints everywhere praying the same prayers we are and there are many who have gone before us that did the same. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

We’re hopeful, but also apprehensive. There are lots of unknowns ahead. We hold hope in one hand and fear in the other. We work hard to balance faith and worry. We preach to ourselves to squash doubt and trepidation. It’s a moment-by-moment battle of the mind to choose hope when fear creeps up in every dark corner. Please pray that our faith, hope, and endurance win at the end of each day. Pray that when we lay our heads to rest each day, we praise the Lord for every drop of grace we receive. Pray that we notice the grace in each day and stop to be grateful for it. Perspective is everything when you’re fighting cancer. Perspective and hope are what keep you in the fight. Help us keep perspective by praying daily and boldy for us. We love our supporters so much! Without your prayers and encouragement, we wouldn’t be standing today. Thank you.