Decision Made...No Looking Back

We did get the results of the MD Anderson bone marrow biopsy. Monosony 7 showed up in 50% of Jo’s cells. 50% is really the same as 60%, which isn’t much different really than 20%. Jo’s bone marrow is moving in the wrong direction.

On Friday, Jo saw another Hematologist/Oncologist here in Colorado. We had met this lady one time before when she was covering for Dr. Alvarez at one of our local hospitals. She appears to be somewhat close to Jo’s age and she has a wonderful connection when she speaks to you. She looked at Jo and said, “You have flawed bone marrow that is now again showing signs of breaking down. I think you will have to get a transplant eventually no matter what you do today. If it were me, I’d do it now.”

There was much more to this conversation than just the words. There was a woman to woman connection. Her words seemed to go right to Jo’s heart and I could tell Jo’s decision making process was coming to an end…the anxiety of having to make a tough decision had been replaced with the peace of having made it.

Our schedule is still being worked out with MD Anderson in Houston, but our hope is to start Jo’s transplant in mid October and be back in Denver by February or March. MD Anderson does roughly 600 transplants per year and they are considered some of the world’s foremost experts. Jo’s family is just 2 hours north or Houston, which is a huge help when it comes to the support necessary to get through a procedure like this.

And what about Anna? Anna is going to live in the Magical Kingdom at Disney World the entire time we are in Houston. Of course I’m kidding, but it’s not actually that far from the truth. Our wonderful friends, David and BeLynda who live about 30 minutes north of MD Anderson have volunteered to keep Anna while we are in Houston. Now to the Disney World part…

David and BeLynda have TRIPLETS (2 boys and 1 girl) that are just 9 months older than Anna and they also started Kindergarten earlier this month. Having triplets requires a lot of structure, discipline and a bit of help. David and BeLynda make that part look easy. In addition to that they are two of the most loving and creative parents we have ever met.

A brand new sister and 2 brothers is pretty “Magical” for a 5-year old, but there is a lot more to this story and I’ll let that unfold as we head into the fall.

For the record, Jo’s Monosomy 7 is the primary concern right now. Since the bone marrow produces our blood elements, all malfunctions are considered very serious. However, there is still a spectrum of bad to really bad. Aplastic Anemia is at the left end of that spectrum. It’s bad, but it’s nowhere near the end of the world. Monosomy 7 and some other things starting to show up in Jo’s marrow indicate that Jo is moving to the right. The stuff in the middle is not good, but on the far right is Leukemia. We’ve talked to the best doctors in the world, and the consensus is that with a perfect bone marrow match, the time to transplant is now.