HERE WE GO...

OKAY, CLEARLY I AM NOT A PHYSICIAN AND APPARENTLY AM UNABLE TO UNDERSTAND 99.9% OF WHAT PHYSICIANS SAY, BUT HERE WE GO REGARDLESS...

BIG POPPA (THAT'S HIS RINGTONE ON MY CELL!) GOT HIS BONE MARROW RESULTS BACK YESTERDAY. I STILL AM QUITE CONFUSED AS TO WHAT THESE RESULTS MEAN, ALTHOUGH FOR THE TIME BEING THEY SEEM TO BE POSITIVE. I THINK SO, ANYWAYS.

OKAY, SO WE HAVE AN OFFICIAL DIAGNOSIS OF CHRONIC MYLOGENEOUS LEUKEMIA. WITHIN THIS DIAGNOSIS IS THE OVERWHELMING PRESENCE OF A GENETICALLY ABNORMAL "MUTANT" CELL CALLED THE PHILADELPHIA CHROMOSOME. BASICALLY IF YOU HAVE THIS CHROMOSOME IT STARTS AS ONE SINGLE ABNORMAL CELL AND THEN SLOWLY CONTAMINATES THE GOOD CELLS WHICH EVENTUALLY RESULTS IN LEUKEMIA. AND ALTHOUGH IT IS GENETIC IT DOES NOT MEAN THAT HE GOT IT FROM ANY MEMBER OF HIS FAMILY OR COULD GIVE IT TO ME OR MY BROTHER. IT'S SIMPLY JUST A MUTANT CELL THAT HE HAS WHICH HAS RESULTED IN LEUKEMIA. THIS PHILADELPHIA CHROMOSOME WAS PRESENT IN 10 OF THE 11 CELLS BIOPSIED FROM HIS BONE MARROW.

ALSO, I LEARNED YESTERDAY THAT THE WHITE BLOOD CELL COUNT OF THE HEALTHY PERSON IS 15. MY DAD'S BLOOD WORK HAS BEEN PROCESSED THREE TIMES IN THE PAST WEEK AND IT HAS RANGED FROM 188,000 TO 81,000. THIS SEEMS SO RANDOM TO ME, AND IT'S HARD TO EXPLAIN ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT. HE FEELS FINE THOUGH, EXCEPT MORE TIRED THAN USUAL.

SO, INSTEAD OF GOING THE GLEEVEC ROUTE, WHICH WE HAD ORIGINALLY PLANNED, HE HAS BEEN SELECTED AS A CANDIDATE FOR A CLINICAL TRIAL OF THE DRUG TASIGNA
. APPARENTLY THE DIFFERENCE IN THESE TWO MEDICATIONS ISN'T KNOWN TO BE THAT BIG OF A DIFFERENCE. THE SIDE EFFECTS OF GLEEVEC ARE PRETTY HARSH. AND THE SIDE EFFECTS OF TASIGNA AREN'T FABULOUS EITHER, BUT THEY CAUSE LESS FATIGUE. LESS FATIGUE IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT TO MY DADDY. HE IS THE MOST ACTIVE MAN I KNOW. I AM AFRAID THAT TAKING AWAY OR INHIBITING HIS ABILITY TO KEEP LIVING HIS LIFE AS ACTIVELY AS POSSIBLE WOULD BE MORE DETRIMENTAL TO HIS HEALTH THAN PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING ELSE.

THIS DRUG IS ALSO FARING SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER THAN THE GLEEVEC IS. AND IT IS ADMINISTERED TO PATIENTS AT THE #1 LEUKEMIA HOSPITAL IN THE COUNTRY, THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS M. D. ANDERSON CANCER CENTER IN HOUSTON, TEXAS. SO, MY PARENTS ARE EXPECTING A CALL ANY MINUTE NOW FROM THIS HOSPITAL AND ARE ALREADY PACKED AND READY TO GO SINCE THEY WILL BE BOOKED ON A FLIGHT WITHIN HOURS OF THIS CALL.

HE WILL BE ADMITTED FOR A MINIMUM OF 5 DAYS AND THEN WILL RETURN AT LEAST ONE TIME A MONTH FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS. IF ALL CONTINUES TO GO WELL HE WILL RETURN A MINIMUM OF ONCE EVERY 6 MONTHS AFTER THAT. I AM ASSUMING THAT THIS WILL BE THE CASE FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE. AND HE WILL HAVE TO STAY ON THIS DRUG FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE, AS WELL. ALTHOUGH IF THE TASIGNA DOES NOT WORK THEN GLEEVEC IS NO LONGER AN OPTION AND A SIGNIFICANTLY MORE AGGRESSIVE FORM OF TREATMENT WILL BE NECESSARY.

SO I AM ENCOURAGING YOU ALL TO GO TO THE NATIONAL BONE MARROW DONOR SITE AND CHECK IT OUT. I AM NOT ASKING YOU TO REGISTER YOURSELF AS A DONOR FOR MY DAD OR ANYONE ELSE FOR THAT MATTER. I JUST THINK IT'S WORTH A LOOK.

I REALIZE THAT THIS POST IS OF THE UTMOST CONFUSION, AND THAT IS BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE I AM SPEAKING A DIFFERENT LANGUAGE WITH MY PATHETIC ATTEMPTS AT ALL THIS MEDICAL LINGO. MOM AND DAD SEEM VERY POSITIVE ABOUT THIS AND THAT MAKES ME BELIEVE THAT I SHOULD BE AS WELL. BUT I CAN'T HELP TO WONDER WHY THIS CHANGE OF COURSE IN TREATMENT IS NECESSARY AND WHAT MAKES DAD A CANDIDATE FOR THIS CLINICAL TRIAL AS OPPOSED TO ALL THE OTHER PATIENTS HIS ONCOLOGIST TREATS.

SO, ALL IN ALL, NOT THE BEST CASE SCENARIO WE HAD HOPED FOR (MIS-DIAGNOSIS) OR THE WORST CASE SCENARIO (IMMEDIATE BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT).

HERE'S HOPING FOR THE BEST!!!! :-)

MUCH LOVE & HUGS TO YOU OUT THERE...

BAXTER

PS- ALSO WISHING PATRICK SWAYZE (WHOSE RECENT NEWS WAS SHOCKING TO SAY THE LEAST) AND THE MILLIONS OF OTHERS BATTLING CANCER THE SAME LUCK WE ARE HOPING FOR. MANY BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL...