Category: Stem Cell Transplant

“Six Months” features MM Patient

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I just ran across a program on the Biography Channel called "Six Months."

The program is about people living with deadly diseases, one being multiple myeloma. If you’re on the US west coast or central or mountain time, you can still catch tonight’s showing.

There are two more upcoming showings:

Thursday, December 6 3:00am
Saturday, December 15 1:00pm

From the Biography Channel web site:
Six Months: This emotional and heart-wrenching special features the stories of real people who are making the journey through the final months of their lives. After Eric and Janice both receive a terminal diagnosis, they quickly begin to see things from a unique perspective, and they challenge others to examine their own lives for the things that are truly important.

Janice has MM. Eric has a form of sarcoma.

I hope you can see this program. I haven’t found that it’s available on DVD, but if I do, I’ll post details.

This is Janice Chaffee’s web site: http://www.janicechaffee.com/.   MM took her life in early 2007. You may remember seeing the notice if you subscribe to Google Alerts.

Be prepared to cry.

Take care, everyone.
Beth

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This is a Neostar Triple Lumen Catheter

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Neostar Triple Lumen Catheter
Neostar Triple Lumen Catheter

This is the Neostar triple lumen catheter I had at Wake Forest last year (in 2006).  It was noticeably heavier than the hickman double lumen. I had this thing in a plastic bag for almost a year. It had never been taken out and cleaned since it was removed, so you can imagine how gunky it was.  I tried to flush it with bleach and water, which wouldn’t go through due to a clog.

The Hickman (Bard) catheter I had at Duke during the summer can be found here.

I think it’s time for a new blog theme.  I’ll be on the lookout.  Expect a change soon!

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Some lab values

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I got the results of the tests done Monday at Duke. The full report was faxed to my office, and I haven’t seen it yet, but here’s what I have so far.

M-Spikes (I have two m-spikes)

Last month: 0.19 and 0.12 g/dL (Total is 0.31 g/dL)
This month: 0.16 and 0.22 g/dL (Total is 0.38 g/dL)

Immunoglobulin Profile

Last month: IgA 374 mg/dL Reference: 46-287
This month: IgA 465 mg/dL Reference: 46-287 (up 91)
Last month: IgG 709 mg/dL Reference: 588-1573
This month: IgG 603 mg/dL Reference: 588-1573 (down 106)

I have July and August here. Needless to say, I was fervently hoping for a drop in the IgA and an increase in the IgG.  The one good thing is that the IgG is still in the normal range, where it has never been since I learned I had MM.  It was usually below 300 mg/dL.

Can someone give me a good explanation about why I have two m-spikes? I’ve asked doctors about a zillion times, and I have either forgotten what they told me or didn’t understand it well enough to even remember.

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Hair Update

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I thought I’d give a visual progress report of my hair growth.  Here’s a picture I took today.  You can compare it to one I took on October 13, 2007.

Hair growing back after stem cell transplant

Kind of weird, huh?  And, not too attractive. My hair started to fall out in September, after I had high dose chemo (melphalan) on August 28th. Some spots still look bald, even though there’s a covering of very fine, nearly invisible hair.

I had a follow up appointment at Duke today.  I won’t have any results until Wednesday afternoon.  Not anything important, anyway.  I didn’t even bother getting a copy of my CBCs. Dr. Long just told me they were completely normal. Throughout my entire MM experience, my CBC’s have hardly ever been anything but normal.

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Hickman Catheter

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Bard Hickman Catheter
Hickman double lumen catheter

This is a picture of the Hickman catheter that was installed in my chest for the stem cell collection and SCT during the summer. You can see a picture of the insertion site here.  I got the idea of taking a picture from Eric Vogt, who photographed his from tandem SCTs.

You can see a picture of the Neostar triple lumen catheter here. That’s what I had inserted at Wake Forest prior to chemo and stem cell collection.

Below is a diagram I found which depicts the insertion of the catheter. Click on the image to view full size.

Insertion of the Hickman catheter
Insertion of the Hickman catheter
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New hat

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This is a new hat brought to me from New Mexico by Sharon. Isn’t it beautiful?

Here in NC, we’re under voluntary water restrictions due to extreme drought conditions. Some of the people in my neighborhood are ignoring it though. I’ve noticed a few people washing cars at dusk, so as not to attract attention to themselves. I think we should have mandatory restrictions statewide. Some cities are fining people for car washing and watering lawns.

My hate from New Mexico

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Test results

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I got the results of the tests done last week at Duke. The report states, “Compared to 8/3/07, no significant change in previously characterized IgA lambda components from 0.28 to 0.19 and 0.12 to 0.18 g/dL.” The PA let me know that it’s possible for the m-spike(s) to drop more in the next few months. One good thing is that my IgG is normal for the first time in five years (probably a few more). It was 223 in February, 2003, for example.

Immunoglobulin Profile
IgG 709 mg/dL Reference: 588-1573
IgA 374 mg/dL Reference: 46-287
IgM 29 mg/dL Reference: 57-237
IgE 12 mg/dL Reference: 4-269

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Uncle Fester

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I think I look like Uncle Fester. All I need is an ankle length black coat with a (faux) fur collar. If you run across anything like this, let me know. I need one for my wardrobe.

You probably think I’m just joking!

It seems like little bits of hair are starting to grow. I predict that I’ll have what could be thought of as a normal amount of hair by spring. I can’t remember what happened last year. It seemed as though I had a short curly head of hair by spring.

This is what my head looks like now.

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