Day 480

I received a pleasant call from my oncologist, Dr. Tokaz, inviting me and my wife to a concert called Band Against Cancer with headliner Martina McBride.  It was such a surprise and a great thing to hear from him with non-treatment related issues.  

Our VIP badges

I went to pick them up from his office and stopped by to see some of my favorite nurses at South Austin Medical Center, BMT.  Notice how I said some, nurses are tremendously jealous creatures and effort must be made in order to not upset them.  Beth, usually the charge nurse, had her favorite "Happy Fall Y'all" sign up.  She runs a tight ship and was always super great to me!  

Board with all the nurses and staff's names on it.  

Denetta (on the phone), me, Holly, and Natalie.  Three of the all-stars!!

 We had FRONT row seats.  No one in front of us!  It was truly amazing.   My wife and I were able to meet other survivors and many of the staff members that we have come to know and love.

Cassadee Pope

Holly, Wife, me, and Cathy

We saw Cathy, one of my night nurses early in my treatment.  She moved to the clinic where she gave me several blood transfusions.  

Enjoying victory! 

Dr. Tokaz in the back with his survivors!!  

 There is Dr. Tokaz in all his glory!  Thank you sir for all that you have done for me, my family, and many others!

Martina Right in front of me.  We shared a few deep stares and laughs during "Rose Garden"

Thanks to Sarah Cannon for supporting bone marrow transplant centers in local communities so patients can receive treatment with their support groups close to home.  I personally benefited from my local center the BMT floor @ St. Davids South Austin.  

"Approximately every 3 minutes one person in the United States (US) is diagnosed with a blood cancer.  Approximately every 9 minutes, someone in the US dies from a blood cancer. This statistic represents approximately 160 people each day or more than six people every hour."

Concerts like this help raise money and awareness for the need for a cure and for people to join the bone marrow registry! Register Here

Day 465

I had my final follow up with my pulmonologist to make sure my organizing pneumonia had not returned.  A final CT showed that it is still clear and all that remains is some scare tissue that shouldn't cause any problems.  My labs have been OK, the only thing that was low was my white blood cells, which is a good problem since Leukemia makes your white blood cells high!
I have my next follow up with my oncologist in November so other than that I am just on cruise control.
My son started 2nd grade and my daughter is doing ballet, these are the things that you really cherish when you had a period of time that you couldn't participate or even see them!

September is Leukemia awareness month.  Get your blood checked once a year at your physical exam!