It's follow up treatment time

Well, as I was told by dad, "City of Hope was like pulling into a major casino in Vegas… truly beautiful and the staff was amazing too.  Everything from start to finish was seamless." Needless to say, they had a great trip on Friday.  They met with Dr. Pullarkat from City of Hope and he basically confirmed everything dad has been told thus far here in Bakersfield. (this was great news!) He told dad that the bone spots are a secondary issue and having follow up treatment for the leukemia is priority number 1.

Dr. P reminded dad that this isn't an incurable form of cancer, and to fight the fight.  The day he will be admitted is my parents' wedding anniversary - 38 years of marriage....it was a little sad that another special occasion will be spent in the hospital,  however (obviously) the most important thing is devoting everything to fighting and beating this disease.  In my opinion,  it was a refreshing wave and a renewed sense of hope coming straight from a new doctor that gave us all a pep in our step. We never lost hope, but a new cheerleader that happens to be the tending physician to dad at this facility is really empowering.

He also said it is imperative that dad have a bone marrow test, taking a sample of the bone marrow to test the cells, on Tuesday.  This will tell the doctors if there are any leukemic cells in his body.  Either way, dad will be headed to the hospital on Thursday to begin his second round of chemo.  The doctor stressed the importance of staying on a correct timeline and having the follow up chemo treatment, which includes two more post induction chemo rounds after this round.  A lapse in the follow up treatment gives the leukemic cells an opportunity to come back and if they do, it is much more difficult to treat and those cells can actually become immune to the chemo treatments.  It's a very fine line for the physicians to call when he is ready to begin, as dad had so many complications last round (which according to Dr. Pullarkat this happens about 20% of the time) and his body has needed time to recover and to get into the best shape possible before starting this treatment again, as it is harsh.  If he is still in remission, the chemo that will be administered will be about half as bad as the first induction chemo.  Also in dads favor is the fact that he is better and stronger this time around (he went into the hospital last round in critical condition plus had to start chemo)

Dad hasn't decided definitively if he will be heading to City of Hope for his follow up treatment yet, but I think they are inclined to do that particularly since City of Hope is a cancer center only and they have experience treating many other people who have had the exact same experiences as dad.  For now he is at the beach enjoying one more relaxing trip before his 3 week stay in a hospital for follow up chemo.  As always, thanks for following dad's story.  Thank you for taking the time to read our blog and more importantly thank you for praying for my dad.  He is covered in prayer and positive energy which I know has helped him through this battle for his life!! THANK YOU!

Love you all!
Nicole and Jenny

P.S.- We are sharing all messages with him (like always!) but haven't been getting many comments

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