Sitting at Detroit Metro Airport right now, waiting to board my Delta flight to Houston, and I've had a little time to reminisce on treatment thus far.
In short, I don't things could possibly be going better than they are. The results are, thus far, tremendous. Blood counts are normal across the board - WBC, RBC, hemoglobin, platelets....and all the rest of them are normal. I'll take a more detailed blood test and bone marrow biopsy sometime this summer to get a more detailed look at how many CLL cells per 1 million blood cells (if any) remain in my bloodstream and bone marrow, but in the meantime my blood tests suggest the following:
1. Most, if not all, CLL cells have been cleared from my bloodstream (huge)
2. My bone marrow is also clearing. This is important because marrow is the last section to clear (after blood stream and lymph nodes). If the marrow was still crowded with CLL cells, my RBC and hemoglobin would likely be abnormally low (because they're crowded out). Further, this would suggest a shorter remission as the abundance of CLL in my marrow would soon multiply and return to the bloodstream.
Who knows? I might be in remission already. What my elite early response also suggests, is that I'll likely be in a complete remission when all is said and done. In other words, undetectable cancer in the bloodstream and bone marrow. This would point to one of two outcomes:
1. Many years of remission, followed by a slow relapse and even more effective (maybe curative) therapies available when I need them in the future OR
2. A functional or true cure. Meaning we either got every last CLL cell (less likely) or we got just about all of them, and all that remains are weak ones that my immune system can contain (more feasible). The doctors at MD Anderson believe that the treatment I'm receiving will end up being a cure for some patients - why not me?
I realize, oh loyal reader, that I've been posting less frequently over the past month or so, and it mostly has to do with how clinically uneventful these Houston trips have become. I head in, get a blood test, sit around and wait for the reults, get great news, and head home. Rinse, repeat.
I've also learned that, as far as cancer appointments go, boring is good. I want these appointments to be as mundane and ho-hum as possible, and that's exactly what I'm getting.
And now I board the flight. Excited for this one, as I'll be able to watch the Michigan/Michigan State game in its entirety as it starts about 15 minutes after this flight takes off. I've reunited with some extended family in the Houston area, and they'll be waiting for me when I land.
Go Spartans!
