Day 2 of Stem Cell Collection

Day 2 Begins!!!  Well we arrived here at the Jimmy Fund Collection Center at 7AM.  I was just told by the nurse that we actually collected 5.75 million stem cells.  That is enough for 2 stem cell transplants!  The goal is to collect 10 million.  My white blood count is still pretty low, about 50.  Usually for Multiple Myeloma Patients the count is expected to be about 200.  So my collection process is a little slower.  So they boosted me again with another Neupogen Shot!  So hopefully we will be in full collection mode today!  And hopefully we will meet our goal of 10 million today.

Today almost every bed is full.  I have enjoyed talking with everyone around me hearing their stories.  The young man next to me is only 24 and diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma.  So sad, he is so young.  This disease has robbed him of most of his pelvis bone and hips and he is on crutches and can not walk.  He will be one of my transplant buddies next week.  I also have met a man with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and he has a very positive attitude as well.  He will be another one of my buddies next week. 

I am full of emotions today.  I finally feel like I am not the only one with this disease.  I am surrounded by people who are going through the same scary process with me.  Most of them already have their Hickman Lines put in.  We all here with the same fears and anxieties.  Next week at this time I will be receiving some very high doses of chemo and I will be settling in for my 3 week stay at the Brigham and Woman's Hospital.  I am missing my kids and dog so much and I've only been away for 24 hours.  Three weeks is going to feel like an eternity.  But I know that I need to go through this process to hopefully get my life back.  I know that I am in wonderful hands here and I feel so blessed to be at one of the world's best Cancer Institute.

We will keep you posted.  I will be hooked up to the big collection machine in about 10 minutes.  So I need to enjoy my last few minutes of moving my arms around.  Mike will be taking over my blog for the rest of  the day.

Thanks for all your support, messages and prayers. 

Love,
Jeanie xo