Round 2A continues

This week we continue our chemo round 2A (AKA round 3) treatments, this time visiting our hospital’s outpatient cancer clinic instead of being admitted full-time like we were in round 1, which is awesome. (Not that we don’t absolutely LOVE all of the amazing nurses and entire staff helping us while we’re admitted but there’s something extra special about getting to be home with your dogs and sleeping in your own bed, even if it means somewhat regularly commuting an hour one way across town!)

Nick getting taken down for his first lumbar puncture with intrathecal chemo of chemo round 2A.

Like he did last week, Nick got a lumbar puncture with intrathecal chemo (chemo that’s injected directly into the spine) already this week, plus we have a separate day with another chemo (given with an IV) later this week. In addition to having multiple intravenous and pill-form chemotherapy medicines, each round we’ve been getting two lumbar punctures with chemo. The idea behind this complex (and strategically structured) chemotherapy regimen made up of many different meds is that when combined they aggressively combat the cancer cell as a whole and at each part in the cell’s growth cycle, really tackling it at every step along the way.

New to us this week we also have a radiation consultation. For each of the three days leading up to our transplant day Nick will be receiving two rounds of full body radiation. I had always thought radiation was used to kill the cancer itself, (and it definitely can and would be used that way if needed) however, in our case the radiation he’ll be receiving is to help further suppress his already low but still somewhat remaining immune system so that the donor stem cells have an easier time to (healthily) take over his body like we want without his body fighting it.

The meeting this week to discuss the radiation process means we’re getting that much closer to cured!!!