Well, it's set!
Cindy & I saw Dr. LeMaistre in San Antonio yesterday and stem cell transplant is now scheduled. He was happy with what we accomplished in the last two rounds of chemo and he was surprised I had withstood it so well. He wants me to recooperate a little more, but we are now scheduled to start next week. This is the plan:
11/01 Dilantin pills to prepare for chemo - move to SA
11/02 Fludarabine + Busulfan CHEMO in SA (8AM to 3PM ??)
11/03 Fludarabine + Busulfan CHEMO in SA (8AM to 3PM ??)
11/04 Fludarabine CHEMO in SA (8AM to 1PM ??)
11/05 Fludarabine CHEMO in SA (8AM to 1PM ??)
11/06 Fludarabine CHEMO in SA (8AM to 1PM ??)
11/07 Day of Rest
11/08 TRANSPLANT DAY
11/09 Cindy & I will lock ourselves in the apartment for a week or so and avoid contact with most everyone until my blood counts recover. Telephone & email will be our form of communication for a while. We will have to go to the clinic daily and may have to have a few transfusions, so our days will be pretty busy. Please forgive any delay in getting back to you. We will, but dealing with the cancer comes first.
Cindy & I will spend most of November & December in San Antonio. We have a great apartment near LaCantera, where I hope to play a little golf while recovering. I will, of course, do everything the doctor instructs, but I also intend to work part of every day. I will have my computer and cell phone and files will be sent or transferred frequently to and from the office. Gary, Norma & Nick will be helping me stay on top of things and handling all client service needs from Austin.
Norma will always have my schedule of appointments and my medical schedule. Please call her at 512-329-6100 to arrange a telephone appointment.
As always, thank you for your friendship, your support and your prayers.
RICK
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
The Hook 'Em / Gig 'Em
Coach Royal joined me at the Barton Creek Lessons for Life fundraiser for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Saturday 10/13/07
Good morning!
Early this morning I went down to the Capitol to support Lance Armstrong's effort to get Proposition 15 passed. I believe Proposition 15 will advance cancer research and, perhaps, save your kids or my kids from having to endure the kind of treatment I am going through. Please vote for it and, far more importantly, please use all your contacts and influence with others to get them on board.
P.S. ANN: I did keep my distance from people.
UPDATE: I saw Dr. Doty yesterday. The lymph nodes in the neck and underarm appear to be resolved. There are some very small, mushy nodes in the right groin, but all the poison hasn't soaked in yet. I believe we are on track for transplant the week of 10/28. I intend to sign an apartment lease as of 10/26 and move in that weekend.
From now to then I will need to be very cautious as a cold or an infection could decimate our plans. For that reason Cindy and I will avoid crowds and any other form of "contamination". This will be difficult for Cindy as she really needs to be with people.
THE PLAN (with lots of assumptions):
Early this morning I went down to the Capitol to support Lance Armstrong's effort to get Proposition 15 passed. I believe Proposition 15 will advance cancer research and, perhaps, save your kids or my kids from having to endure the kind of treatment I am going through. Please vote for it and, far more importantly, please use all your contacts and influence with others to get them on board.
P.S. ANN: I did keep my distance from people.
UPDATE: I saw Dr. Doty yesterday. The lymph nodes in the neck and underarm appear to be resolved. There are some very small, mushy nodes in the right groin, but all the poison hasn't soaked in yet. I believe we are on track for transplant the week of 10/28. I intend to sign an apartment lease as of 10/26 and move in that weekend.
From now to then I will need to be very cautious as a cold or an infection could decimate our plans. For that reason Cindy and I will avoid crowds and any other form of "contamination". This will be difficult for Cindy as she really needs to be with people.
THE PLAN (with lots of assumptions):
- 10/15 - a short chemo infusion (Vincristine) and start steroids again
- 10/17 - PET/CAT scan
- 10/19 - meet with Dr. LeMaistre ???
- 10/24 - see Dr. Doty again
- 10/26 - sign lease and start move to San Antonio
- 10/29, 30 - chemo killing bone marrow at Methodist ???
- 10/31 - infuse Ann's stem cells into my system
- 11/01/07 - life starts all over and gets better every day!!!
Thanks for checking in.
RICK
Monday, October 8, 2007
UPDATE Monday October 08, 2007
Last Friday at 8:30 AM I met with Dr. Doty for my scheduled checkup. Lab reports were good (where we needed them before I could start the next round of chemo that was scheduled for the today). He suggested I go back to Seton that morning and start early.
I dropped everything and checked in by 9:30 and had the first bag of Rituxan hooked up to my chest before noon. That was finished by 4 PM and I started Zofran, Mesna and Cytoxan by 5 PM. I was well on my way with the second round of Rituxan + Hyper CVAD before I even had office things and clothes for the 5-day stay!
I will finish Wednesday about 6 PM and get two days in the office this week that I had not expected. We will try to schedule PET/CAT scans for next Wednesday and a meeting with Dr. LeMaistre in San Antonio for the following Friday 10/19. If we can get all our ducks in a row we hope to start the lease on the San Antonio apartment 10/26 and be ready to infuse Ann's stem cells on 10/31. That will make the week of 10/29 my "sick week" and, hopefully, I will be on a track for recovery the following week. Maybe I can be home for Christmas! Of course all of this depends on getting my ducks in a row (tests, good labs, coordinating with Ann, etc.).
Things are going well! Please keep sending up the prayers. He is listening.
RICK
I dropped everything and checked in by 9:30 and had the first bag of Rituxan hooked up to my chest before noon. That was finished by 4 PM and I started Zofran, Mesna and Cytoxan by 5 PM. I was well on my way with the second round of Rituxan + Hyper CVAD before I even had office things and clothes for the 5-day stay!
I will finish Wednesday about 6 PM and get two days in the office this week that I had not expected. We will try to schedule PET/CAT scans for next Wednesday and a meeting with Dr. LeMaistre in San Antonio for the following Friday 10/19. If we can get all our ducks in a row we hope to start the lease on the San Antonio apartment 10/26 and be ready to infuse Ann's stem cells on 10/31. That will make the week of 10/29 my "sick week" and, hopefully, I will be on a track for recovery the following week. Maybe I can be home for Christmas! Of course all of this depends on getting my ducks in a row (tests, good labs, coordinating with Ann, etc.).
Things are going well! Please keep sending up the prayers. He is listening.
RICK
Regan's Trip to the Farm
On September 29 & 30 (one week after Regan's birthday) I took Regan for an overnighter to the family farm in Placid. All the way there, while we walked around our farm, and while we walked around the farm the had belonged to my grandparents (Ma & Pa) the next day we recorded stories of when I was growing up. I showed her where siblings and cousins swam and played as kids, where I hunted rabbits, where Pa & I hunted arrowheads, and Bear Cave. I also attempted to answer "all her unanswered questions". It was a great trip for both of us. The picture of me is in front Ma & Pa's house. I spent most of the first 6 years of my life and many summers after living in that house.
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