Cancer Treatment

Tricia will (hopefully) begin her chemo within the next hour or so. If they wait too late today, they're going to want to keep her until Friday, which wouldn't be cool. They'll give the rituximab (the drug she has already been receiving the past few weeks) first, and then three other drugs.

The rituximab should take about 2-3 hours, and we already know that Tricia should not have any adverse reaction to that. The other three drugs may leave her nausiated, with headaches, and with fatigue...no way to know until tonight. If she does feel fatigued, it may be, at least, a few days before she'll be feeling better.

More than likely, she'll start to lose most of her hair within the first two weeks (more on this later).

We're both feeling much better today. Tricia would have slept well, except a few of her neighbors spent much of the night yelling (normal life in the hospital). I would have slept well, except my roommate decided that she wanted to stay up until 11pm, and then have some play time between 3 and 5am...

Thank you for your encouraging words and continue prayer and kind thoughts. They sincerely do mean a great deal to us, and I spend time every day reading every word (of the "encouraging" comments).

As a synopsis/clarification (as several people have asked), Read This to learn more about Tricia's original (and continued) Post-Transplant Lymphoma Disorder diagnosis. This kind of cancer shows up in about 10% of transplant patients and is a result of several factors, including her immunosuppressant drugs and the presence of the Epstein Barr Virus. In Tricia's case, the lymphoma has presented itself in the lungs. It is NOT something that was in the donor lungs before they were given to Tricia.

Thanks!

Nate