GOOD NEWS!!

So I got some amazing news last week! I had my PET/CT scan the week before, and felt pretty good about it. This is the first scan I've had since having the heavy chemo and the transplant and everything, so we were all anxious to find out if it was a success. I hadn't been feeling any pains or feeling sick ever, so like I said, I felt pretty good about it, but still a tad nervous.

The results couldn't have been better! There was no sign of cancerous lymph nodes in my body! There were 2 nodes still larger than normal, but they said this is usually just scar tissue and happens to most Hodgekin's patients. I'll have another scan in December just to be sure. They don't like to use the word "cured" until about 5 years of clean scans she said, so technically you would say I am in remission.

It's kind of a weird feeling! I've had this for so long, almost 2 years now, that I kinda don't know what to do with myself! I feel like I should be running and shouting joy all over town, but I'd probably run a few steps and be too tired to go any farther! So I still have a little ways to go before I'm back to 100%, but I'm getting there. It does feel very good to think that the future is wide open, I can do anything now that I don't have the worry that I may have treatments coming up soon and would have to cancel big plans. It's a little overwhelming, so I actually haven't made any solid big plans yet!! I do plan on getting back to school next January, but that's about the only thing.

I'd love a fun vacation somewhere while there is still a bit of summer left. I'd love to still have some time to finish up some little projects I'm working on here and there before "real life" starts again with a job and school. I'd love to have a girlfriend to celebrate this all with!! ;)

So we will see how things go! Next week I have to go back up to LDS hospital to do a few little tests. Heart and lung stuff and blood work, just to make sure there isn't anything weird going on after the transplant. Shouldn't be too bad at all.

Guess that's about it for now! We'll see how often I update this blog. Perhaps now I'll move on to just random things that aren't really about my journey with cancer. Not sure yet!

Quick Update

Just a quickie. Wanted to show how my hair is coming along, since I am thankful to have it back! It's very nice, and it's sooooo soft! I think this is because it is brand new hair, like a babies, only thicker! It is great.

1 Week of Radiation & Some Hair

So my hair is starting to come back! It'd be nice if it was growing a little faster, but oh well. I also haven't shaved all week, just for fun and to enjoy having hair, but I'll probably shave it off before church tomorrow. On Tuesday I started radiation close here at the American Fork clinic. It's nice not to have to go up to Salt Lake anymore! Radiation hasn't been bad at all, it's quick each day ea and so far I haven't noticed any side effects. Maybe I'm a little more tired but not a whole lot. Each day I go in and lie on a table that moves me under a machine. There are laser lights that come out of the ceiling and walls so they can line my body up in the same spot each day. The lights line up with marks made with permanent markers on my chest and sides. Then the machine shoots concentrated x-rays into me from two different angles and then I'm done. I'm usually in and out of the place in less than ten minutes. I'll do this every weekday for about a month; it'll be 20 treatment times total. They say it might give me a sore throat in the latter weeks, but so far I've felt fine.

It's also been really nice lately to be able to get out of the house more! I've been able to hang out with my friends a lot more lately and go to church on Sundays too. I wanna go see a movie soon also. Nothing in particular, I just haven't been to a movie theater in a long time! I know in May there are a bunch of movies I'm really looking forward to, but I'm not sure if there is anything good out now or during April... I'll have to check!

Exiting from LDS Hospital

Today was my exit consultation with the doctor and nurses at LDS hospital. From now on I'll just have to drive a few blocks to American Fork hospital instead of the 45 minutes to get up to Salt Lake! It'll be so much nicer. Things are looking good blood wise, all my counts are continuing to rise, though still a bit slower than we'd like. They also took out my Hickman line that was in my chest. It's kinda weird not to have odd foreign objects protruding from my chest anymore! I had my old port in since September 2007 I think, and this new one was placed the same day they removed the old. That does mean that from now when they do any blood work they will have to poke a vein the old fasioned way. No big deal though.

We also met with a radiation oncologist up there who says it'd be best to have spot radiation treatments on the one spot near my esophogas that was the last to show any cancerous activity. I meet next week with the radiation oncologist down here in AF to schedule all that, but it shouldn't be too big of a deal. Last year when I had radiation it wasn't bad at all, just kinda made me tired but that was it. No other side effects. This is just to be absolutely sure the cancer won't return, so it's fine by me if we go ahead with it!

Again I just wanna say thanks to everyone for your prayers and well-wishes, visits and phone calls, online conversations and blog comments!! You guys have all been so great in helping me and my family get through all this! THANK YOU!

It's Been Awhile....

Yes, it's been awhile since we've posted any new updates. Looking at it from a positive side, no new posts for a couple of weeks must mean everything is good, right? That has beent he case here for the most part. Ryan has been enjoying being back home after his 3 week stay at the BMT Unit. He can eat when he wants and what he wants. He can sleep when he wants and doesn't get woke up at 4:00am every morning for blood work and, most importantly, he has many more satellite TV channels to choose from! We still have to take him back to the hospital about every 3 days or so for blood work and vitals. He's had to have platelets a couple of times and his white blood counts haven't been rising like they should. His white count has been hovering around 2,000. A normal count is between 4,200 and just below 11,000, so that's a bit worrisome. His greatest risk right now is infection. We are trying to keep the house sterilized and clean but it's not always an easy thing to do. He's done an almost feinting thing a couple of times recently but hasn't quite hit the floor in a stupor! We are still greatful that he's come through in relatively good shape and that the prognosis is good. When we were at the BMT Unit last week, a young couple came in with a newborn baby. The husband has non-hodgkins lymphoma. We asked about their situation. Their baby is 3 months old and they've been married just a short time. He was diagnosed in December. They looked too young to be married and with a baby let alone to have to go through something like this too. Sad! We also found out this week that the wife of some very good friends of ours has liver cancer. They were in our last ward and have kids the same age as ours and always hung out together. Their one boy is on his mission in California and just passed his one year mark. A couple of summers ago, they invited us to spend a few days with them at their family ranch in Wyoming where we got to go horseback riding and just hang out. Judy made us the best swedish pancakes I've ever had (sorry Grandma Adams!). Our hearts ache for them and our prayers are with them.

FREEDOM!

This is my excited face.

Today I was released from the hospital! I just barely got home and thought I better hurry and post the good news before anyone else decides to come visit me and finds and empty room! My aunt Nola just barely made it in before I was discharged, and another friend was going to come this afternoon before I text him that I was going home!

It feels really good to be home. I'm so glad things went so well the entire time I was in the hospital and I was able to be released so soon. The nurse said that most patients are feeling pretty lousy even when they are discharged, so again I feel very blessed to be doing so well! I have to be careful for the next few weeks still, with my diet and avoiding crowds and sick people. I have to wear the mask each time I go back up to the hospital for check ups and such, and if I'm in public places. I think I'll just mostly stay home to avoid any risks anyway. At least I am home though, and don't have to be woken up at 4 AM every day to have my blood drawn, amongst other annoyances of hospital life!