The In-Between Time
Time for an update... Overall the last few months have been great. I feel better than I have in years! Funny what the right diagnosis and treatment can do... My 16-weeks of chemo went by quickly and relatively painlessly. I can't say I loved it - the weekly blood work 'pokes' and hours waiting in the cancer centre were not exactly fun. Not to mention the pharmaceutical and side-effect side of things. However, the trade off was worth it. My energy levels, strength and mobility have improved so much, it's really encouraging. I finished chemo at the beginning of January and am now getting ready for the main event - a stem cell transplant (gulp). I'm having what's known as an autologous stem cell transplant (asct), which uses my own stem cells rather than relying on a donor. It's a basically a two step process - first they harvest and freeze my stem cells (following a dose of chemo and a week of injections), then they put them back (following a big nast...