It is a hidden fact that good dental health is essential to avoid side effects from a bone marrow transplant. Reason being is that a carrie (cavity) contains bacteria. If the immune system is suppressed these hidden treasures may be released and cause much harm.

Knowing this, about 6-weeks prior to arriving here I went to my dentist and received a new crown and fixed an old filling.

Included in my prep workup is visits to the oral health clinic. Lo and behold, yesterday they found a subtle new cavity leaking out from one of my old fillings. Without fixing this the transplant could not proceed.

So this morning I paid (literally had to pay) a visit to a recommended local dentist who was very kind and repaired the tooth. One less problem to have to worry about.

When I was a medical student in Chicago at Cook County Hospital in the mid 70’s, one day I had to have my required annual screening for tuberculosis. I came up positive and was treated for just under a year with an antibiotic against TB. Again, another hiding infection risk for a transplant.

Good news today is the specialized test to see if I had any TB lurking within me was negative. Check that box off as well.

As Arlo Guthrie sang in “Alice’s Restaurant” they are leaving no parts of me untouched.

I had the afternoon off today and Sharon and I took a walk around a place in Seattle called Greenlake. It was beautiful and peaceful.