40 seems like a nice even number. Only a minimum of 60 to go before we are released to return home. Still a long way to go.

Today’s big event was a skin biopsy to determine if a slight rash that I have is related to Graft vs Host Disease (GVHD). We will know in 2-3 days after the pathologists make their determination.

Otherwise a bit of a stepback day for me as I have been quite fatigued today. No apparent cause, just the way things roll. I still got my 2+ miles of walking in with a few naps interspersed through the day. We take these days one at a time and tomorrow is another day of IV hydration and IV magnesium. That will be the main event for tomorrow. Hope you are well.

Larry and Sharon

Another day in the clinic today for my infusion and weekly consultation with my doctors. All things considered all is well. Just need to kick out this congestion. I will begin courses of sudafed to try to open up my ears. My O2 Sat was better today at a number of 92. So not as much worry about that.

I do have a bit of a skin rash which I have had for several weeks. This is a common side effect of transplants and what is included in the Graft vs Host Disease lingering problems. Tomorrow I will have a skin biopsy to consider how significant this is and whether the use of topical steroids is indicated.

My scorecard is good today. On the blood test side, Total WBC = 3.52, HCT= 36, Platelets= 144,000, ANC= 1,230. And on the walking side, again I made it up the hill today walking to the clinic. I know I keep mentioning the hill and so you may ask how steep? According to my Apple watch over a 2-block span the rise in elevation is 45 feet. So a climb of 4+ stories in a building over 2 blocks. The staff has been impressed that I have been able to do this. Overall steps today were 8,460 with 2.5 miles in distance. We keep pushing.

Larry and Sharon

Today was an interesting day of contrasts. On one hand, I conquered the hill going up to the clinic. First time since prior to when my chemo began. Felt like a victory. Given that effort, our afternoon walk was a bit shorter. Tomorrow I need to be at the clinic lab very early morning for blood tests and then back at noon for my infusion and visit with my docs. If I feel up to it, we will again walk the hill for the noon visit.

Now, once I made it to the clinic the contrast began. As a background, recall that when Covid hit, there became widely known a test for oxygen saturation – O2 Sat. It was the early sign of whether a person would need supplemental oxygen and be admitted to the hospital. Even Apple incorporated this test into their watch. This was not a new test. It had been done for decades as part of routine vital signs. It just became more notable.

Today as my vital signs were taken my O2 Sat was low and no matter how many deep breaths I took it remained low. That got everybody’s attention and an impromptu visit from my doctor team. And, BTW, my Apple Watch correlated this with the vital sign machine.

As I have written, I have been fighting this Rhinovirus with nasal congestion and loss of hearing. I have had serial chest x-rays along the way, each one non-specific of any pneumonia.

So this evening I have started a course of antibiotics to see if we can clear any of this out, as I have been fighting this for over 5-weeks. I do hope it helps. We take this day by day.

Larry and Sharon

Day to day things are pretty normalized, as I have been writing. Today was another such day. Infusion clinic, walk back to our apartment, snack, coffee, 2-mile walk on the South Lake Union walking path, a nap dinner and so on. I gather things could be a lot worse. My biggest frustration is that I continue to have hearing loss, I assume based on the Rhinovirus I am fighting and resulting fluid in my middle ear that won’t drain. I do hope this will resolve. In my past I have had exquisite hearing so this rough to deal with. As I said, with all the side effects of a transplant, things could be a lot worse,

Sharon is watching over me like a hawk. It is amazing to see her dedication to all details that keep me going. Living with an immunocompromised person is not easy. Food preparation is different, cleaning our living space needs to be immaculate and so on. Also her making sure she is not missing any changes in my behavior that means a side effect from my treatment. She does this without me prodding her. I know it is hard and lonely and I can’t thank her enough.

Next set of scoreboard stats will coordinate with the baseball All Star home run derby on Monday. I hope to hit things out of the park.

Larry and Sharon

We keep truckin’ on. Pretty much same routine. Today was cooler here so I extended my walking and also pushed the pace a bit. For those of you keeping score here are my stats for the day:

Steps = 7,729, distance walking (home from clinic and around South Lake Union) = 2.5 miles. Pace = 25 minutes/mile.

My main irritation is the Rhinovirus. I just can’t shake that and its symptoms, cough, congestion, plugged up ears. I guess there has to be something. otherwise I might think we are cruising through this process.

More of the same planned for the weekend. Daily visits to the infusion clinic and walking as best as I can. I am hoping that soon, I can conquer the hill up to the clinic. Not exactly heartbreak hill in Boston, although for me that is the next hill I need to climb.

Hope you are enjoying your summer days.

Larry and Sharon