So I got my IV port implanted today. I was under general anesthesia, so it was technically "surgery", but the procedure was pretty quick, and I was home by 1-ish, which was good. They gave me some hardcore pain meds (hydrocodone), but I'm in minimal pain, so now I'm looking forward to a couple of pain-free days (what's that like?) and a nice weekend before I start chemo on Monday.

Also, notice the new "needle count" on the right side of the page. It took them 4 tries to get my IV in for surgery today (hand IV's hurt like a bitch), and I'm curious to see how many it adds up to at the end of this thing.

I knew there were gonna be some good days and some bad ones. These past few days haven't been great. I had my lumbar puncture on Friday, and I'm still feeling some "spinal headaches" from the procedure. It's a huge pain in the ass, feeling pretty much completely paralyzed with pain every time I leave the house for more than half an hour. Grrrr...

Anyways, I get my semi-permanent IV port surgically implanted tomorrow. Because I'm gonna get poked a lot in the coming months, a port is the best option because it means that I won't need to get an IV stuck in me every week or whatever. Basically, it rests under the skin near my neck, so when I need IV infusions, they just poke through a little skin to get access to my veins. Once it's in, it's not supposed to be too bothersome, so I'm not too worried. A nurse was telling me last week that one of her patients has had one in for 12 years. I'm obviously not planning on having mine in as long ::crosses fingers::.

I start chemo on Monday. I'm pretty nervous, but I'm also anxious to get my treatment started so I can put this behind me. More details to come later.

Smell the glove

Ahhh, the miracles of lidocaine...

As I previously mentioned, I was scheduled to get a bone marrow biopsy (BMB) on Friday, which I was totally dreading. I think I have a fairly high pain tolerance, and I've had plenty of procedures before, but for some reason, the thought of a huge needle going through my hip bones on both sides freaked my shit out. Anyways, it ended up not being nearly as bad as I thought, thanks to a local anesthetic called lidocaine (pretty much the same stuff they use at the dentist). In fact, them injecting that into my skin was probably the most painful part. Burned like a mofo. I could barely feel anything else, and it actually felt kinda cool. When they took out a part of bone, it reminded me of pulling a tooth out. Weird.

After finishing the quick BMB, I was told last-minute by the nurses that I needed to get a lumbar puncture, AKA a:



I've been doing most of my stuff at Beaumont so far, but it looks like I'm going to transfer to U of M, who deals with more PTLD patients and is obviously closer to where I am, making everything much more convenient. As a result, my new U of M doc, unlike the Beaumont doctors, requested the spinal tap to make sure that the lymphoma hadn't spread to my central nervous system. Again, like the BMB, it wasn't painful getting a needle stuck into my spine thanks to, yes, more lidocaine. They numbed me up pretty good, but since the of the risks from the procedure is a "spinal headache", I had to lay completely flat in a hospital bed for 4 hours. Lame. So much for a quick 30 minute BMB.

Anyways, everything went fine, and it wasn't nearly as painful or uncomfortable as I expected, although I did experience a bit of a lidocaine hangover today. A little soreness was to be expected, I suppose. The nurses said the bruising from the bone marrow biopsy would be similar to "running into a desk". I also had a sweet trifecta of bandages on my back, and after tallying it up, I counted that I had gotten 7(!) needle pokes. Pretty rad.

So far, it looks like my lymphoma is pretty localized, which is good. After getting results back from the spinal tap, abdomen CAT scan, and PET scan, they know that it hasn't spread to my central nervous system and is not located anywhere in my chest. Juuuust my poop chute. All we need to know now is whether it is EBV (Epstein-Barr Virus [related to mono]) positive or not, and the results of the BMB. Hopefully, the lymphoma is EBV positive, which means that it can hopefully be treated with some antiviral drugs and a reduction in my immuno-suppressant medication.

Sorry to ramble. The end.

And so it begins...

Well well well, here we go...

I initially created this blog a few weeks ago in anticipation of creating this very post, but I've been sitting on my hands waiting for the final word. I guess now is the right time to get this shindig started...

After feeling shitty a couple weeks ago and undergoing a battery of tests including 3 CAT scans, 1 PET scan, 2 colonoscopies, and 2 Emergency room visits, I've been diagnosed with PTLD, a type of lymphoma (cancer) due to my taking immuno-suppressant medication for 11 years since my kidney transplant. Kind of a bitch, huh?

I suppose this blog will kind of act as an an update on my health situation for all those interested. Like my other blog, I'm sure I'll also be posting random shit that I find funny, stupid, or otherwise post-worthy, so hopefully it won't all be a Debbie Downer borefest. I'll try to update as often as I can.

Luckily, I feel good and am very optimistic about this fight ahead. Even with this diagnosis, my spirits are high and I look forward to beating this thing and getting on with my life. I'm sure that some days will be better than others, and it's cool how I've already started to see big changes in the way I see things in life.

Tomorrow morning I'm having a bilateral bone marrow biopsy, which I'm not too psyched about. Basically, it sounds like it involves getting a huge needle stuck through both my hip bones and getting a sample of bone marrow. Ouch. I'll let you know how it goes.