Chemo Round #1

After a bone marrow biopsy confirmed that cancer is now in her bones, Celeste started her first round of RICE chemotherapy on Thursday 2/16. RICE is a more aggressive chemo than the RCHOP that she had 6 rounds of last year. RICE is an acronym for 4 medications used over 4 days. On the first day Rituxan is used. For 3 subsequent days Ifex, Cisplatin, and Etoposide are used each day. She finished her last day of this round of  chemotherapy yesterday. She will stay in the hospital and be supported by transfusions and antibiotics until she hits her nadir (low point) and her blood levels start to climb back up. She hasn't had a fever for a few days. That is huge! She continues on 4 IV antibiotics, an antiviral and antifungal. She is still coughing but not as uncontrollably. Oxygen and an inhaler have been the most help.

Today she felt well enough to take a walk around the ninth floor. Her spirits are good. As we sat and looked out a big picture window at the beautiful snow covered mountains she wondered what people do who do not have so many people praying for them. She feels very supported by your prayers. Our whole family feel the strength and blessing of all your love and prayers.

The plan for the future is a second round of RICE chemo and then a 3rd round of chemotherapy in the bone marrow transplant unit at LDS Hospital in preparation for the transplant. We don't really have a time line for that because it will be driven by how fast she recovers between chemo sessions and can be ready for another.

News

Well, the past month has been interesting.  I saw an immunologist, but she still wants to take more tests before she can decide anything.  Also, I have some bad news........I've not been feeling well the past couple of weeks and we all thought I had the flu.  I saw a doctor at Utah Cancer Specialists on Tuesday, and he gave me some antibiotics for all of the fevers that I was having and a blood transfusion cause my hematocrit was low.  That night I woke up twice because my heart was racing and I was really dizzy.  It lasted for a few minutes each time.  Wednesday night, the same thing happened five times.  I had been checking my pulse when these episodes occurred and the highest was 118.  After the 5th time it happened (@ 3:00 am) I called the on-call doctor at UCS and explained the situation. Plus, I was still having fevers.  She told me to go to the ER.  That was Thursday morning.  They admitted me to the hospital (IMC again) and have been running a bunch of tests.  It seems that I have an infection that has been driving my blood counts really low, so they're giving me antibiotics for that.  The really bad news is........I am no longer in remission.  The lymphoma came back and the scan is worse than the one they did last July.  I will have to start chemo again, and maybe on a different regimen than before.  They will also most likely do a bone marrow transplant this time.  I took the news pretty hard at first, but I want you all to know that I'm still fighting and that this isn't going to take before I at least give it a good fight.  I'm really hoping that the bone marrow transplant will help.  Basically all I ask from all of you is what I always ask for: PRAYERS.  I'm gonna need a lot of strength to get through this.  Thank you.