November 21

Hello friends, Here we are, Bob, Glenna & me, down in Maryland at NIH and Glenna has just begun her treatment. She and Bob arrived Monday and Glenna was able to stay in the family lodge with him. She was very impressed with how beautiful and welcoming it is. I joined them last night - after a very stressful, extremely crowded airport experience and flight - yuk! Jacob is flying down to meet us today, and I can only imagine it will be even worse. But it will be so great to all be together for Thanksgiving - and once this treatment works, we will have alot to be thankful for!

She just finished receiving her first dose of the high-dose chemo. She will get one more high-dose tomorrow, and after that will get 5 days of low-dose chemo. So far, so good. It is anticipated that she will feel pretty lousy the first few days, but should feel better quickly after that. Then, after that first week, she will receive her cells through infusion. They will give her doses of Interlukin II along with her infusion, and continue it as long as she can tolerate it. The interlukin is supposed to stimulate the white blood cell production and help the cells to do their job (killing the cancer cells...YEAH!) As usual, we are positive and anxious to get through this and see results.

We received alot of literature about this whole procedure - and I did want to mention something important to all of you who may want to visit Glenna when she returns home. It states in her instructions that her immune system will be compromised for up to 6 months after treatment. It is best for her not to be exposed to anyone with an infection or illness. She will be on an antibiotic for 6 months as a precaution, but if anyone is feeling sick or has been around anyone with colds or other illnesses, it would be very appreciated not to be in close contact with Glenna for awhile. I don't mean to sound unwelcoming, but after all she has gone through to get this far, we can't take any chances. Please understand and just be cautious.

Auntie Jeanne is at our house taking care of the pooches & cat. She will be coming down to be with Glenna next Monday and will probably stay here a couple of weeks. Glenna has a big, private room, so she's pretty comfortable here. There may even be a couple of days between the "bad" chemo and her cell infusion that she will be able to get out of here for part of the day and maybe even sleep at the lodge. That would be a big help.

Well, until the next post, goodbye for now, and I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. Remember to be thankful for all of the everyday miracles that are in your life.

Love much, MK