I took the train to Boston Tuesday, where I was able to see Ronni for lunch. It was a beautiful day to sit outside and compare war stories. She escorted me to Dana-Farber and the new clinic. Ronni went off to the Museum and I waited for my blood draw and my appointment with Dr. Antin, my transplant doctor. His advice: double the prednisone, double the Cellcept, add sirolimus back in, and start Rituxin, a B-cell inhibitor. In other words, lets get aggressive with the graft vs. host disease. Let's try to control it instead of it controlling me. The prednisone will be the first to go if I improve significantly.
This is what I wanted to hear. Dr. Antin is going to send a report to my NY doctor with his recommendations. I suspect she'll go along with them.. Dr. Antin recommended a bone density scan (I had one a year ago) to see if the osteporosis has improved or not. There's another stronger med I can take for my bones. Really, I feel I have a rubber coating protecting me. I fall a lot and haven't broken anything but my spirits.
I asked Dr. Antin about altitude medication since I'll be going to Peru to visit my daughter in December. There is something I can take, but he said I can chew cocoa leaves and that will control some of the symptoms. Where do I get those? Oh, they just give them to you. You can also drink tea made from it.
Is there any doubt why I love this doctor?
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2 comments:
I hope your NYC doctor takes your Boston doctor's recommendations to heart. You've been dealing with GvHD for what seems like forever. I can't remember if you've ever had rituxan before. The first dose gives you rigors and chills. Each dose thereafter is smooth sailing. I hope this new course of treatment does the trick.
Glad that he gave you a plan. It was great seeing you.
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