BLOG 49

10 November 2014

Hello All,

Stem Cell Transplant Timetable for Jodie

Pre-Transplant Work-Up/Testing will start in the 3rd week of November. Medical dates sometimes change depending on hospital requirements.

10/11/12th November

Jodie will have three days of testing, pre-transplant to make sure her body and organ's are healthy enough to progress to transplant. The comprehensive physical work-up also includes skin and dental check's. The cost of the transplant is approximately $200,000AUD, covered by Medicare. Jodie's donor has been chosen - a 30 year old male from overseas, he is a 10/10 tissue match. Even so, a great deal of care is taken in terms of monitoring, as the new cell's are not identical to Jodie's. Only a small amount of information to released about Jodie to the donor and also about the donor to Jodie, this is for privacy reasons - however, both Jodie and/or the donor may elect to make contact and/or meet each other around the recommended time of approx. one year after transplant.

29th November

HICKMANS CATHERTER SURGERY: hickmans catherer insertion surgery and admitted to the bone marrow transplant unit.

30th November to 6th December

TRANSPLANT REVERSE COUNTDOWN STARTS | IN-PATIENT CHEMOTHERAPY COMMENCES: seven doses (1 dose each day) 5 x Fludarabine and 2 x Melphalan. During this time, Jodie's international donor will be injecting G-CSF into his stomach twice daily to increase his stem cell production, via his bone marrow. These extra stem cell's will be released peripherally into his blood stream, where they will be collected via an Apheresis Machine and separated, from the rest of his blood which (of course) is returned to his body. The stem cell's are then preserved and prepared for the trip to Australia. The donor rests for 1-2 days after collection.

4th or 5th December

DONOR STEM CELLS COLLECTED: in the donor's overseas country.

5th and 6th December

DONOR STEM CELLS TRANSPORTED: from overseas to Australia.

07th December

TRANSPLANT DAY PLANNED: (no chemo on this day) the donor's stem cells would have already arrived at Jodie's hospital or may still be on their last leg of their journey. The cells will be contained in a large box of ice and look like a full bag of blood. From the day of transplant the reverse count is halted and a positive count up begins. The first 100 days post transplant are the most critical for Jodie, as her body copes with no immune system, plus get's used to another set of stem cell's/bone marrow making themselves at home in Jodie's body.

08th December

TRANSPLANT COUNT-UP STARTS: post transplant day +01 DAY ONE.

08th December 2014 to 19th January, 2015

SIX WEEKS (Post Transplant) IN HOSPITAL/CLOSELY MONITORED: if Jodie is well enough to leave, she will be discharged from hospital around the 19th January, 2015.

19th January to 19th March, 2015

TWO MONTHS OF FAMILY CARE: doctors have requested that Jodie be monitored closely and cared for by a family member, post transplant. A large amount of anti-rejection and anti-infection drugs are given to Jodie, post-transplant to take and she will need to be taken to hospital twice per week for doctors visits.

19th March, 2015

COME BACK HOME: after Jodie has been cared for approx. two months by family, she will be ready to come back to her home with Greg and the girls, hopefully by the above date.

For Many Years

WATCHING JODIE: Jodie's Hematologists and transplant team will closely watch Jodie for the rest of her life. The goal is cure or at the very least long-term control of Jodie's two blood diseases. Cure is usually assumed after 10+ years post transplant

Thank you for reading,
Much Love,
Jodie & The Guerrero Family xx