Transplant - The Finale

Hi again, time to continue with this story.
Basically, all we had to do now was to wait. Wait for the new cells to take to my body, settle in my bone marrow and start working. I had started Immuno-suppressants, which were to stop my own immune system from rejecting the new cells and vice versa. There were a load of other medications too, to stop me from getting ill, as my immune system was flat, and it would be a while before the new cells would start making neutraphils (to fight infection).
I did get ill at times though, including extremely high temperatures, sometimes I even had whats called "Rigors" (A rigor is an episode of shaking or exaggerated shivering which can occur with a high fever. It is an extreme reflex response which occurs for a variety of reasons. It should not be ignored, as it is often a marker for significant and sometimes serious infections). The rigors were nasty, I couldn't stop myself from shaking violently from head to toe, which made me feel pretty out of control and uncomfortable.
I was having blood transfusions regularly, and was having all sorts of scans, CT scans, Ultrasound scans of different organs to check for infection because of the temperatures. They did eventually find the problem and things settled down. By now my apetite had completely gone, and I was relying on my feeding tube to provide my nutrition.
Usually, people get neutraphils by around Day +28, and my 16th birthday fell on Day +27. I was hoping that I might have a neutraphil for a special birthday present. That didn't happen. In fact, I didn't even have half a neutraphil by Day +50! This was a concern, not only for me and my family, but for the doctors too. It was starting to look like a second transplant was pretty imminent. Luckily Rachel Hough, my doctor, and a leading expert in cord cell transplants, decided to speak to the man that trained her. She spoke to John Wagner, the man who instigated the first ever cord cell transplant over in America. They decided that they should persist with my current cells, stopped one of my drugs, and doubled a drug called GCSF (which stimulates the body and the new cells into producing white blood cells).
Day +52 - guess how many neutraphils? ... 1.94! Dr Wagner and Dr Hough had managed to kick my lazy-arse cells into shape! From then on my cells gradually increased, and I started to get visitors and was starting to feel better. After about 55 days of being confined to my room, I was allowed out to explore the ward.
I did spike temperatures again, but this time the doctors couldn't find the cause. Eventually, after scanning and investigating every possibility, they decided to remove my hickman line. Its very common for the lines to get infected, so it had to go. After 3 years of loyal service, on Day +60, they took him away (after a struggle to separate him from my veins). But there is some good news. They let me keep some of it as a souvenir!


Dr John E. Wagner, me (with newly inserted PICC line in my arm)
and Dr Rachel Hough. I have so much to thank these two for.



Day +73 Dr John Wagner was visiting the UK to give lectures and said that he really wanted to meet me. So after having a new PICC line inserted into my arm to replace the old faithful hickman, John came to the ward and visited me. I got to meet the man who helped save my transplant, and he had done so all the way over in America. It was a real honour to meet him.
Day +74 I FINALLY CAME HOME! It felt so great to be home after 12 weeks of being in for transplant (if you include the conditioning and stuff)

My next post will be about life at home and what happens next (we're pretty much up to date now)

thanks guys

Andrew

:)