A great smile

http://zengarage.com.au/2013/03/marina-abramovic-and-ulay/

Become a donor and save a life.

Got the news that the new chemo I am on knocked out 75% of the old cancer but some new stuff is potentially growing and on top of that my brother and sister are not matches for bone marrow transplant.

Sounds much more invasive than it it, but getting registered you just give 2 vials of blood and can find a spot here http://marrow.org/Home.aspx and if you are a lucky lottery winner besides potentially saving someone's life they don't drill into your marrow but just hook you up to a dialysis type machine for 4 hours to collect cells. Again painless and makes you need a nap that day. That is all. So for myself and all the folks fighting for their lives from cancer please consider just dropping some blood and potentially saving a life. A great link to a video below of that it can do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MksKGPSPhA4&feature=player_embedded

Be The Match: Hope for patients with leukemia, lymphoma, blood cancer and sickle cell disease

marrow.org

Sadly

The Cancer has returned. More pervasive than ever. Been a hard few months as through my training to get my body stronger I could feel it returning. Plan now is to knock it out using a newish drug, SGN-35. I have already have had one dose last week and it is kicking my butt. Lost 10 lbs in 6 days with the yaks. Sad given it is supposed to be the non big side effect drug. I get a PET scan after 2 doses and then we go from there. Doctors want to go towards an allo treatment where I get the wbc of a donor but as of now I have decided I am not up for that given how tired I am. And will try to hold remission from SGN if it comes as long as possible. Please pray for me and my strength and ability to handle more SGN-35 as I can feel it working and shrinking my tumors. As the doc said not too many more options after this so a scary outlook for me. I am thankful for all of your prayers so far and for lifting my family up in your thoughts as I am not ready to leave just yet. Have a ND National Championship to watch and many more silly adventures to go on. All our love, Charles, Emilia and the man missing 2 teeth Aidan Paul

A good reason to sign up for the bone marrow registry

Just a great video.

It is alive--Sgt. Hulka Returns

First, thank-you all for your e-mails, cards, pictures. To wake up every morning and to see a full e-mail in box or to look to the walls and see photos really kept me going. No words can explain how important this support was for me wanting to get up each day and fight through some very hard times.

Now onto the facts. I am day +21 from my transplant and I am feeling better everyday. I am still wiped out. Running at about 50% and eating 30% of normal which is probably good for me. Lost 25 lbs in the hospital so getting closer to the target weight. My docs think I am doing great though and should be at about 100% at day +100. They are monitoring my counts almost daily and they say if things continue to go well I should be able to go home early next week to be monitored by my San Antonio oncologist. 

Also in the good news category I met with a radiation oncologist yesterday and she thought that the risks from radiation to the areas that might benefit from it would outweigh the benefits. I feel like the old body just needs a break after almost 2 years of chemo so this was certainly a whew moment after being told I would be needing radiation shortly after transplant.

As far as the transplant for those that are interested in more details please e mail me but certainly not something I would ever wish on my worst enemy. Not a fun experience. At the low points I pictured Dr. Mengele telling my docs "don't you think you are overdoing it a bit with this patient" ha. 

More later but I am again so thankful for those that e-mailed and sent cards during the process, they really helped keep me going through some days I didn't think I was going to see the end of the day. Onward and Upward and am so excited to get home and continue to get stronger everyday. 

Nuclear Chemo begins tomorrow, T minus 7 days until I get my cells back

I feel like Andy Dufresne from Shawshank my room is so small. As you can see by the attached video Emilia and I will be in close quarters for the next 21 days. Good news is that the final cleanse has begun and I am 7 days out from getting my new immune system. Hydration today, 6 days of fun chemo  begins tomorrow and then I get the cells on the 26th. Then another 2 weeks in the hospital until my counts are up. 2 weeks at a hotel close by for daily blood tests then I should be able to go home for house arrest for a few months. Doc thinks I will feel relatively decent by Halloween and by mid January will feel like I did before I had cancer.

I am surprisingly calm, now that I am finally in the room. Think knowing that this is the final stretch helps. I am also amazingly tired given all of the stress of the past few months to get to this point. From Aidan being in the hospital twice, 3 rounds of chemo, fits and starts with the doctors, too many tests to count . To be honest I think it is a true miracle I sit here today in complete remission and able to begin this journey. I truly feel it is only through the prayers of others that I even had a chance.

Everyone has different experiences with stem cell, for a lucky few boredom is the worst element, for most others they puke themselves silly and are unable to make it to the bathroom on time. Regardless it makes you tired and not too up for typing or e-mailing. Given I am stuck inside in a room and the halls of the 11th floor here at MD Anderson for the next 21 days be great if folks could send on any funny you tube videos or articles they find to help pass the time. charles.a.cavanaugh@gmail.com Thanks so much for all of the prayers, could use some of those too.

Please pray for the A man as well. He is off on an adventure with his abuela and a few of Emilia's aunts to Guadalajara for some therapy and nice weather. It kills me being away from him for so long but I am excited for the day he and I are back under the same roof and laughing at dinosaur train videos.