That Light in the Tunnel is NOT the Train!

Best Good News Day in  a long time! Had meeting with the Oncologist today, blood counts took a big jump and are almost back to normal, and she took me off the antibiotics I was taking to fend off infection. Said the drug I am taking is "working wonderfully" and could not be more pleased. Released me to be able to go to a restaurant or store and most important told me I can do anything that I feel strong enough to do. Warned against lifting too much till the hemorrhoids are fixed but OK to eat dairy products again. Still need weekly blood tests and continue drug on a 5 week cycle. The doctor in Seattle (Chauncy) is very conservative and unless we get a good match from siblings will be cautious to proceed with a BMT because a match from the national pool may be not as safe (because of my age).

Did you notice that I kinda skimmed that little statement about hemorrhoids.....well last Friday came down with a mega case of the "Big H" after a bout with constipation (probably caused by the drug). The advice nurse said I better go to ER because of possibility of infection. Well, Sharon was busy with pups so about 9:30AM called my good friend Don and he readily gave up any plans and said "Let's go".....it is a good thing to have a good friend! Long story short, at about 1:00PM finally got to see a doctor, took one look and said "Uh-Oh", now from  patient's point of view "Uh-Oh" is not what you want to hear, especally when it is followed by "I think I better call a surgeon". Seems she thought I had blown out my backside.....when the surgeon arrived he said it was ONLY a great big Old Hemorrhoid. So....I was wondering if this should make me feel better..... when he said I think we better put you to sleep and see if we can push that back where it belongs, I definetly did not feel better!

After listening to the goings on next door when they brought in a guy who had almost blown off his hand and looked like a 4th of July hot dog after he had tried to cut the top off a 55 gal drum with gas in it, I figured out maybe I wasn't so bad off. Especially when they had me coumt backwards from 100, I think I got to 96, and then I woke up and asked the nurse when they were going to start, she pointed at the clock and almost an hour had gone by, so I asked her why I still hurt, she peeked and said "Damn. it popped back out" and proceeded to call the surgeon. Now, that is not really what I wanted to hear either and when the surgeon said "there is not a whole lot more we can do" I started getting used to hearing things that I really did not want to hear. We got home about 7:30PM that night, in about the same condition that we left. Carrying a shopping bag full of pills, powders, cushions and creams, encouraged by the admonition that "it should go away within a few weeks......by the way, PreparationH does not do a whole lot for me. I have a fancy new cure ordered from the web and I think things are starting to calm down back there, by the way, I know first hand what it means to be a "pain in the ass", and think I know where that term came from.