Category: Uncategorized

We were settling into a period of normalcy that had eluded my family for years. It was the spring of 2003 and I was beginning to feel like my old self. My appetite was tremendous now and I was getting used to the medication that for as far as I knew, I would be taking for the rest of my life. Remission still eluded my PCR testing and the reduction in the Leukemia markers were moving ever so slowly…. In the right direction though. The new store was humming along and keeping me very busy as well as coaching the boys in hockey and soccer too. I loved coaching those kids. Lori had been working as the director of the classified department at the Carrier Pigeon newspaper for many years and was always busy at her job. Very good at it too. She was an extremely dedicated employee wherever she worked. A graduate of Manhattan College in New York majoring in Computer Science, she was one of the smartest women I’d ever known. She gave up an effluent position in Technical computer related sales in NYC to move to Philadelphia when we got engaged. But there was a problem. The Carrier Pigeon was closing its doors. For good.

Lori’s job was very important to our family. Besides helping carry us through a lot of our financial burden during my illness and lack of working for so long, she was the source of our healthcare benefits. My new medication alone cost $10,000 per month besides all of the other doctor and hospital visits required for my ongoing care. Her company closing and the loss of our benefits would be a huge blow. What’s going to happen now? Luckily, I was back earning full time at the store and financially, things were improving rapidly. She would also collect unemployment for a while but we would have to join the Cobra plan her company offered to keep our health insurance. We thought that there wasn’t much else that we could do. Fortunately, a friend alerted me to, and I was able to join the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce and become a part of their insurance network. The savings were excellent and I would now take over the responsibility through my business.

Lor was now at a crossroads situation in her career. The print advertising business was in decline as the advent of the internet was weighing heavily on the industry. Should she look for a new job in the same field or change careers entirely? This was a big decision. Enter Marie Giralamo. Marie was one of Lori’s oldest and dearest friends. Marie had decided to begin a new career recently and was studying in the field of Library Science. A degree in Library Science provided many avenues of employment in schools, universities, corporations, etc. Interesting she thought. Lor asked me, “What if I pursue a degree in the same venue?” So, we explored the opportunity. Her decision would be to pursue a Masters in Education degree with a concentration in Library Science. This would require two years of full time study at Arcadia University in Glenside, PA. A huge commitment, but an equally huge reward. She deserved the break, if you want to call it that. The past six years were hell on her. We would get through it. After a quick interview and enrollment period, Lor would again become a college student. Summer of 2003 start. Before we would know it, she would become an Elementary school Librarian. Six semesters of hard work, long nights of studying and multiple certifications later, her Masters Degree would be in the books! Literally. The boys and I were so proud of her commitment. This decision would prove to be huge for our family going forward. Gitter done Mom!

Next Up: Nonno

My crew and I cruised through another holiday season with little to no fanfare. I was back to working full time now and in full recovery mode, both in business and in health. The last six years were the ultimate test in survival. I had a tremendous amount of support from my family and a tremendous amount of support from my vendors. It was now time to pay back the massive amount of bills, taxes and invoices that had been postponed or pushed aside in my absence. The holiday rush helped the situation a little but it would be up to me now to retake the helm with what I hoped would be a relapse free existence. I was still expected to be front and center every month at Dr. Dave’s office to monitor my blood counts. They still needed to improve and it would be some time until normalcy would be a reality. At least, I hoped it would. Fatigue and other maladies were still a regular part of my daily routine. While Gleevec did its job, it did a job on me. No time to whine.

I began obtaining all of the necessary permits and estimates for the new store on Cottman Avenue. This was a big job. I built my own stores so the costs for construction were always lower than the norm. Having the ability to GC my own job let me have control over my time between running the store and guiding/participating in the construction. The months between February and October of 2002 would be very busy. I would go from selling diamonds and gold to building partition walls, painting and coordinating my subs. Seven days a week. This constant movement exhausted me physically but helped me mentally. I had no time to dwell on the past few years. I could only move forward to the future as I watched every penny go from one store to the other. Lol, I was used to that though. This would be my sixth move in fourteen years. I could only hope that this move may be my final for a long time. The location was excellent. Twenty four hundred square feet of space, next door to a Hallmark Card and Gift store. A large shopping strip mall on a main road with great visibility. I was pretty psyched. As long as my health stayed in check, this would be my comeback.

The next eight months leading up to our grand opening in the new location were very eventful as expected. I added to the fray by jumping into more responsibility by helping coach Nick’s baseball team in Upper Moreland in the spring and then Joey’s first Mite ice hockey team at the Wintersports Royals club in the fall. My hands were full but my heart was even fuller. I was in heaven. Not the heaven that I had dreaded the past six years but the heaven that was being here for my family. The mental abyss that had plagued me inside for so long was diminishing with every swing of the bat. Every goal that was scored. Every smile that shined so brightly on my boys faces. I had so much to live for. But, I knew that. That’s what I fought for all of these years.

Time was flying and everything was falling into place. I have to admit it…I was good. The last few weeks before and right up to the grand opening were hectic as hell. The new sign was going up, the new counters all going in, all of the special lighting and new fixtures being installed. The finishing touches all mattered so much. I was buying like crazy too. I needed the inventory to match the size of the store. Diving deeper in debt was not unusual. Inventory is your lifeblood in the jewelry business. The opening would be heading right into the holiday season as I had engineered it to be. Advertising was ramped up, new employees were hired and everyone was working up to the last minute. We closed the Bustleton avenue location for three days to move my safes and office furniture. Two more days after to merchandise, train and organize. It was go time.

Once again, a rinse and repeat season! The new store was a huge success. Our customers loved the layout, the new merchandise and the new location. Business boomed, especially with the Hallmark Card store right next to us. Location, location, location. Things were good. Life was good. A lot going on. I could handle it. No pressure, no diamonds. Yep… but no remission.

Next up: Library Science

Time was moving at a more relaxed and in much less stressful of a pace. It was the summer of 2001 and I began my first foray into coaching Baseball with Nick. I was trying to feel so much better, both in body and mind. Gaining weight and gaining confidence. My quarterly bloodwork was showing astonishing results. My White counts were virtually normal as well as my other pertinent blood markers. My PCR results were encouraging too. There was no more need for the dreaded bone marrow aspirations as the protocol testing was behind me but the statistics were being kept just the same. My Hemoglobin was still not recovering as well as expected but the fatigue was not holding me back. I was focused on my goal. A full hematalogical response. No sign of any CML in my bone marrow or blood. Hopefully the drug will live up to expectations and rid me of this burden.

My store was rolling along and we were making a real go of it at our new location. The hours were shorter and we had two days off now with our customers getting comfortable with the change of venue. I was getting back to the groove and back to a normal life again. That didn’t last too long. I received a letter from my new landlord that my new location was to be torn down and replaced by a Target Department store. The letter stated that within one year, I needed to vacate the premises and my lease would be terminated. Well, lucky me! I really didn’t have enough going on at the time…did I? I was offered, as a consolation, a store around the corner on Cottman Avenue. In a larger shopping center with greater visibility, the store was a former ice cream shop that had been vacant for some time. The landlord would help with the relocation and give me free rent for four months as a perk for being such a good sport. It was my only option. Here we go again. November 2002 would be our target to complete the move just in time for the Christmas rush. There was a lot of prep, construction, money and time involved with this one. Time to prepare.

My staff and family were caught off guard just as much as I was. After barely a minute to relax, more stress and much more work lie ahead. We were heading into the fall season. The warmup to Christmas and the mayhem that comes with it. First thing first, we finish the holiday season then plan for the move. But I also had other things going on. The battle that I had just went through over the last year and a half, and so far was playing in my favor, had done a number on my psyche. Mentally, unbeknownst to mostly everyone, I was in horrible shape. The quiet, internal, intense test of my will to live “Again”, had changed me. To fight on through the daily rigors of the onslaught of bad news, bad test results, bad everything day after day…week after week. The misery was constant and relentless. Remission. I was in remission back in 1999. No more. It was two years later and the “R” word had still escaped me. It’s all I wanted. All that I needed again. Dr.Dave couldn’t give me an answer either. I was a Guinea pig still. A test dummy. An empty shell waiting to be filled with the hope of yet another birth. A rebirth that could maybe make me whole again. Cancer takes such a huge physical toll on you. Mentally, it’s worse. I needed to hear that word again. “Remission”. How about it Dr. Dave? I’m hurtin.

Next up: The Big Move.

My next blog was supposed to be about Remission. This is not. This blog is about a special person in my life. A person that I met many years ago that had probably the most profound impact on my life that one could ever imagine. It has been many years since we last spoke but the unforgettable gesture of wisdom that this young man imparted upon me will forever be ingrained in the story of my life.

A very professional, humble, soft-spoken and gentile person, Ed Ciecko was just a little bit older than me and had just begun his first week in a new medical office. I hadn’t been to a doctor in ten years and when I called for an appointment to see a doctor at my new primary office in Northeast Philly, they only had appointments available with Dr. Ciecko. I have mentioned him prior in the beginning of my blog, if you remember back that far. I made the appointment to see him about a lingering cough and cold but his offer to run some bloodwork on that Monday, May 21st, 1996, to have me on record, was the decision that saved my life. He called me two days later on the 23rd at 8:00 am, with an appointment he already set, to be at the Hemotologist at Frankford Torresdale Hospital by 9:00 am. “I need you to go there right away, there are some inconsistencies in your bloodwork that we need to follow up with.”, was all he said. This was the first volley fired at me in my 25 year plus battle with Leukemia. Pressed for more information, he kindly implored me to be at the Hemotologist by 9am… no delay please. I’m sure he knew the dilemma that was confronting me. He just wanted to be 100 percent. Without his request, persistence and insight, I may not be here today.

I received information today that Dr. Ciecko passed away this weekend unexpectedly at 62 years old. Still practicing medicine. Still helping so many people all of these years. There is an outpouring of love online with countless stories of his amazing ethic and professionalism. He was a special doctor. A special man. A lifesaver to myself and so many others. I am heartbroken. Life can be so unfair. This is one of those moments.

Rest peacefully Doc. With love and utmost respect…I Thank You❤

I realized that as I was navigating the waters of the medical world, the working world, the youth sports world and the friends and family world….relationships were the veins of life. Think about it. You have to cohabitate with your coworkers many hours a day and make things work. Businesses have to run smoothly and depend on a certain amount of trust among employees that can work together to produce a quality product to sell at market. In my instance, excellent relationships between my employees and myself were the key to a successful collaboration and successful business. I strive for that. This cohesive crew, happy crew, would translate to happy clientele and fabulous business. Therefore…excellent relationships with our customers. Our relationships continue to flow happily and generously through our wholesale vendors. So important these relationships were. To bring the finest, prettiest pieces of jewelry to market, our vendors were key. Their input and various styles of jewelry and fine diamonds and gemstones were the cornerstone of my business. I dealt with many to always have a spectacular array of fine jewelry for our customers to choose from. Relationships.

Relationships with young children when teaching them skills in sports like soccer, baseball and ice hockey, especially from a young age, are so fulfilling. Watching these young athletes complete different skill levels and increase their skills week by week is especially exciting to the coach…me! Their faces smiling ear to ear , scoring goals, navigating the bases or the blue line. Fabulous! Relationships with the athletes parents. Tentative to say the least. Expecting so much of their children, and their coaches to get them there. Sometimes an impossible feat but every child got the same treatment and somewhat more attention if needed. Teaching manners, ethics and sportsmanship was paramount to the whole package. And fun. The most important aspect of your job. Work hard, play hard, have fun! Relationships with the parents were always good, bad or ugly. I always tried to keep it good.

The most satisfying relationships that I had were with the huge array of talented and compassionate medical staff who saved my life. The relationship that you have and grow with for a very long time. The doctors, the nurses, the phlebotomists, the techs, the custodial staff, the surgeons, the specialists, the kitchen staff and the administration. They have the responsibility to make you feel safe and secure, alleviate your many anxieties, take care of you pre and post surgery and counsel you when you are just feeling like hell. Kudos to them.

The most important relationship you actually have is the one gets you through it all. The one that is there for you when things get bad, get scary, get emotional and get better. The people that show you how much you are loved. That show you that anything can be beaten down…Cancer specifically. Yes…love conquers all. My wife, my boys, my parents, my siblings and friends. My Rocks. Relationships.

The relationship that I had with myself was special too. The battle was still raging. The counts were still all out of whack. The fatigue was debilitating. The relationship with myself…tiring. Mentally exhausting. With all of the relationships that I had going on in my life though? They all had my back. A village of hope and a desire of all..to help me succeed.

What more could a guy ask for!

Relationships….I had the best.

Next Up: The Next Phase- Remission

As I listen to the sounds of fireworks all around me, I remember all of the fun 4th of July’s that we had with the boys and our family. I am writing my blog tonight down at the seashore on Long Beach Island. It sounds like World War Three right now. The rockets red glare, bombs bursting in air is in full effect. A glaring difference to last year’s Covid summer. It’s so wonderful to see all of the families celebrating here, the barbecues, the walkers and bike riders, the beach goers and laughter all around. “We’re back America!”

Fade back to spring of 2001. I was beginning to feel alive again. Slowly moving forward everyday on the path of wellness and hematalogic remission. Before my body began to betray me again following my second Doner Lymphocyte Infusion a year ago, I was able to take Joseph out on the ice for his first ice skating lesson. He was three and a half years old and ever so eager to get out there. Hell, he was just in nursery school. I bought him a hockey helmet and some warm gloves and off we went. I rented him figure skates to start, just to see how it would play out. He loved it! After the usual boards grabbing, getting his legs, warm up, off he went. We had such a great time. Joe was a natural. This was the first and last time for a while though. I was going down hill very fast and the Interferon was debilitating me. You know the story.

Joe was now four and a half and raring to go. I started picking him up at his pre-k around noon every Wednesday, taking him to the Face Off Circle arena. He was totally outfitted in a complete set of Hockey equipment, hockey skates, pants, gloves, shin pads, stick, etc, with an attitude to seal the deal. The kid had mounds of confidence. Lookout big guys, here I come. I literally dropped him through the door of the boards and said good luck buddy! Baptism by fire. Get out there, stay low, don’t skate in front of or behind the net. Missiles were flying everywhere. A couple weeks in, he was participating in scrimmages with the men out there! I had his back though. He was not even five years old yet. They loved him though and took care of him too. This was the beginning of Joe’s love for the game of Hockey. And my resurgence into coaching. I had boys. All guys want boys. Especially sports guys.

We lived in Upper Moreland Township at the time. A big sports town. Their baseball complex was among the best you would ever see! I was fortunate to coach Nick and Joe in Soccer and Baseball for many seasons, Hockey at our local arena- The Wintersports Royals and the Upper Moreland Middle school hockey team. I enjoyed so much the relationships that I formed with all of the young boys and girls that I was so fortunate to coach. I always felt great when they called me “Coach”. I always took my job seriously and my goal was to teach sportsmanship , skills and humility. Work hard, play hard, play fair and win. Life lessons. Also had to play the politics too. They were the worst part of being a coach. I played the game though. Never a dull moment. I’ll get into some ” You won’t believe this shit” moments, later. But for now, times were great. Gleevec was doing its job. I had both of my boys on the ice. Nick was becoming a smooth skater. Joe was tearing it up. I was in my glory…. and life was getting better. Day by day.

Next up: Relationships

I was a few months into the non FDA administration of my new miracle cancer drug Gleevec. The side effects were harsh as expected but the expected outcome of success at a gradual pace made it worth the while. I was making bi- monthly treks down to the city to see Dr. Dave for bloodwork and general examination. Even though the trial was over, Gleevec patients needed to be closely monitored for any severe side effects and to make sure our responses were consistent. At last, there were no more bone marrow aspirations. Thank God. My hips were permanently scarred by so many deep intrusions into my bone. I knew that there were more to come at some point but a break from the action was well deserved, mentally and physically. Since patients in the Philadelphia area that were taking Gleevec were far and few between, remember “rare” cancer, information about other patients in the same realm was hard to share. Information about dosages, side effects, outcomes and general discussions by contemporaries were non existent.

Most Leukemia patients at the time of my diagnosis would get up to date information about their disease through a small international website called CML BY ANJANA. A young Indian woman had started this very informational chat site to learn all that she could learn about CML and ascertain information about the cancer. Anjana, herself a scientist, was having her own crisis as her husband was diagnosed with CML himself. Her site was amazing. Informative, insightful and compassionate, Anjana would answer and break down any questions for anyone who needed useful information about the disease. I myself used her site often and followed along with the chat. So much information could be found about our cancer. A collaboration of ill people seeking answers and dishing out love and well wishes along with hope and civility.

Through the website, I received an email from a gentleman named David W. He was a CML patient who lived in the Philadelphia area and was in search of other like people who were currently taking Gleevec. He had recently been diagnosed with CML and immediately began a regimen of the newly approved drug. His desire was to find a few recipients of the drug who might want to get together for dinner and discuss our similarities and exchange conversation about our experiences with CML and Gleevec. The first Philadelphia Chapter CML Club was born. Dave and I along with three other woman recently diagnosed met at an Asian Fusion style restaurant in Center City Philadelphia. The conversation was deep and very scientific. After the usual pleasantries and introductions we delved deeply into our stories, our situations, our medications, our side effects and our outcomes. I was the only person in the group to have been diagnosed pre- Gleevec and had suffered through years of medical torture, multiple aspirations and a bone marrow transplant. The main gist of our conversation was that we all were responding to the drug. We agreed to meet again after a three hour soiree and followed up at one of the women’s homes as our second spot. The meetings continued every third month and as our numbers grew, we needed to find a venue large enough to hold the many other new patients joining the club. After about eight months, the Leukemia/ Lymphoma Society of America became our new meeting place. The huge LLS building near the Philadelphia Airport would accommodate our crowd along with a Chapter nurse and LLS administrator to proctor and answer technical medical questions…. much better. My participation began to wane after a while. Being an original founder, I needed a break. I was on the road to recovery. The club had so many new members who needed a lot of care. And hope. It was dragging me down. I needed to turn the page and handle my own recovery. I wasn’t being selfish. I was just the longest diagnosed patient there. I’d been through so much more. I was still not in remission and still not seeing that light at the end of the tunnel. I left the last meeting that I would attend with only well wishes for all and never looked back. I was looking for that light and had all the information I needed. My philanthropy had not ended though. I owed much more. Much more.

Next Up: The Beginning

Before we delve into the scientific origins of and the mechanics of the drug named Gleevec, let’s review the diagnosis of CML-Chronic Mylogenous Leukemia. CML is defined as a rare, slowly progressing blood cell cancer that begins in the Bone Marrow. A genetic change in the body’s Myeloid cells caused by a mutation that forms an abnormal gene called the BCR-ABL gene begins turning cells into CML cells. Most people diagnosed with CML have an abnormal chromosome in their DNA called the Philadelphia Chromosome. With CML, the patients Leukemic cells grow and divide rapidly, building up in the Bone Marrow and spilling over into the blood. These cells are very immature and are not suitable for fighting infection. Once the population of these cells become uncontrollable, they can spill into other organs and keep other cells in the body from working properly. Without treatment a patients immune system becomes overtly compromised and eventually enters the phase called a Blast Crisis from which recovery is rare and death inevitable. This cycle untreated can last anywhere from one to four years after diagnoses before succumbing to the Cancer. Past treatments included the drugs Hydroxyurea and Interferon, Chemotherapeutic treatment and eventually a Bone Marrow Transplant. Until the early 1990’s when the Bone Marrow Transplant began to be widely used, other treatments were not curative. Still, Bone Marrow Transplants were not a slam dunk. Patients had a 50/50 chance of making it through the transplant and then a 50/50 chance of it being a cure. Until Gleevec.

In 1996, the year that I was originally diagnosed with CML, a doctor named Brian Druker partnered with the drug company Novartis to test compounds that Novartis had been creating called “Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors”. These compounds were created to stop the uninhibited growth of the proteins that trigger the CML cells to divide uncontrollably. The proliferation of these Tyrosine kinase proteins causes the overproduction and accumulation of immature white blood cells, the hallmark of CML. After 30 years of scientific research, Dr. Druker focused on one particular compound that would eventually become STI-571. In the first targeted FDA trial of STI-571 conducted in 1999, 31 patients were enrolled and 31 out of 31 experienced complete remission. This was virtually unheard of. Being well tolerated, the drug entered a second phase that showed the same results as Phase 1. I was luckily a recipient of STI-571 in the second phase. This would save my life. As I stated in my last blog, the drug would go on to be one of the fastest drugs ever approved for general use to the public. I entered the trial in October of 2000 and the drug was approved by the FDA in April of 2001.

As far as I am concerned, Dr. Brian Drucker is deserving the title of American Hero. His dedication for so many years to the search for a cure to this devastating cancer has saved thousands of lives and relieved so many, the hardships of the devastating treatments needed to survive CML. Now, the frontline treatment for treating the disease is compromised of simply digesting one or two pills a day, side effects withstanding. The discovery of Gleevec has subsequently led to the development of additional stronger Kinase Inhibitors that are used for patients not able to achieve a lasting remission on Gleevec.

Gleevec is indeed a miracle drug. It has made me a living miracle. I owe my life to Dr. Druker and his team as well as my other Doctors, especially Dr. Dave. To this day, I can email or call Dr Druker in Portland, Oregon and he will get back to me personally and quickly. Unbelievable.

Next up: The Philadelphia Chapter of the CML Club

So I was ending the fourth month of my new treatment. The drug labeled STI-571 was working well at this point. I was laboring along with side effects that were very evident yet expected. Night sweats, upset stomach, fatigue, rash, bowel issues and bad reflux. As the drug worked its magic, systematically eliminating the production of new Leukemic cells, I gradually responded to the therapy. My White blood cell count was gradually reducing and my other counts like my Red cells, Hemoglobin and Platelets were dropping lower as well. Collateral damage Dr. Topolsky called it. My midterm appointment with Dr. Dave was so emotional and uplifting for both of us. We worked together for so long and so hard to defeat this animal. We were finally winning. He was so happy. “I told you.Keenan”..”You ain’t dying”. Bad grammer and all, he nailed it!

My next stop that week was JHUH. Dr. Miller was very upbeat and happy to see me. “Jeff, your counts are great!”. This “shit” WAS really good! After drawing blood and hitting the Aspiration table for another round of Shish Kabob by the death princess, I would again receive a transfusion of Platelets and Hemoglobin. Just a pump me up for the week to come. Dr. Miller said that hopefully this would be the last time that I would need them. Hopefully. I would now only have to come once a month to Baltimore to see her but in between a visit for a regular blood draw at Hahnemann. There’s that light!…at the end of the tunnel. Such a long freaking tunnel it was.

The next two months went off without a hitch. The spring of 2001 was here and the prospect for a great year was wide open. We repeated the appointments and the protocol as warranted by the FDA and presented my data religiously. As we entered April, I received a call from Dr’s Topolsky and Miller. “Must be big” , I said. The STI-571 drug trial was over! The second trial was halted due to the drug being declared as an emergency use trial drug with immediate distribution to all patients suffering from CML. The drug was working so well that the FDA felt that it had to be approved for general and international use right now. The fastest drug ever approved for general use to the public. One year from the first trial of approximately 65 people and only 8 months into the second trial of approximately 450 patients with CML. The trials were finished. The drug would be available in our Pharmacies within two weeks. The trial nurse gave me just enough drug to hold me over until.i could fill my first prescription. Thirty brown oval pills. 400 mg once a day, every day, at night as usual at the fabulous price of only Ten Thousand Dollars…a month. Yep, that’s only $330.00 per pill. Thank God for insurance!! It would be called “Gleevec”. Yes…”Gleevec”. I’m gonna miss those crabs though!

Next up: So What is Gleevec?

Luckily, the fiscal year at Belaggio Jewelers ended on a great note. The store was up in revenue about ten percent higher than 1999 and xmas returns were far and few between. Always a great relief….returns suck. I did have some time to rest after Christmas between the 25th and the New Years holiday. Well earned days off by all. As far as I was concerned, I was feeling really low. Soooo tired. My visits to Hopkins were now being stretched to monthly visits. The first week in January we would be heading down to JHU hospital, right after new years. The trek began early in January. The weather down in Maryland in January was just so- so and the trek much more treacherous the day we drove down. My Dad and I weathered the storm and frigid cold ready for another round of the STI-571 protocol. We arrived on time and readied to meet with Dr. Miller. She looked at me and immediately took me by herself directly to the Phlebotomist. She knew that I was not well. Blood drawn, we would need a quick response.

The results came back soon and let Dr Miller know that her suspicions were correct. My Hemoglobin result came in very low. The average male has a correct Hemoglobin count of between 14k and 16k. This is the average count I would be shooting for. Not this day. My Hemoglobin count was literally 3k. Extremely low. Susceptible to disease of all kinds and passing out. Hemoglobin oxygenates your blood. It is necessary to maintain normal cell levels for a healthy life. Dr. Miller told my father and I that I would need to stay in the hospital and receive one, maybe two, units of Hemoglobin blood products before I could leave. This is why I was dragging so bad. No energy. Always trying to nap. Hopkins had special units for transfusions. Basically a gurney that you laid on while a thick IV style needle was placed in your arm to receive the blood products. It took about two hours to complete the process. Receive one unit, test the blood, receive the second unit, test the blood. When it was over, the transfusion blood oxyginated my blood to an acceptable level of around 7.5k.

After a short resting period to allow me to get my faculties in order, I was given a reprieve on the scheduled bone marrow aspiration. What a relief! The Phlebotomist had also taken all of the blood needed for my new study and my CBC results were great. WBC count still reducing, red cells a little too low but Hemoglobin acceptable enough to go home. Dr. Miller would need to see me in two weeks again. Sooner than I had hoped. I was told that Dr. Topolsky wanted see me too. I was exhausted but needed a quick stop at O’Bricky’s for some crabs and a Coke. Always makes the trip a little better. There are always ups and downs when being treated for cancer…for Leukemia. There was no choice. Roll with the punches and hope for the best. And sleep. I needed sleep. My Dad would drive me home and after a quick rundown for Lor, I would be hitting my pillow. Better days ahead. They’re definitely coming…Yep.

Next up: Gleevec… the Miracle Drug

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