Mary's Life with Apocolypse, CPA

For several days my absolute neutrophil count was zero as I tried to get a new immune system jump started.  On the 26th of December it jumped to 400, and I needed it to be 500 or more for three days in order to be released back home.  On Tuesday, the next day, it jumped to 4300!  That was unusual.  The normal range is 1900 to 7000, and I was well past the minimum.  That seldom happens, or at least I would judge that it seldom happens by everyone's reaction at the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit.  Usually it bounces around 300-1000, going up and down as it tries to stay above 500. They took me off of the nupagen, which was stimulating white blood cell growth.  That caused my count to go down to 2160 on Wednesday.  But it was still good enough to convince the attending Dr. Boyor that I could go a day early. I felt like a prisoner being released from a low security federal prison.  I couldn't be happier.  Then they went over the home care and release instructions with Mary and I,

Good News! My ANC count jumped from 0 to 400 in one day, an amazing development.  This means my new immune system is starting to build.  I can get out of the hospital, but not quite home to Idaho, if I can keep my ANC above 500, without a fever, for three days straight.  I am hoping they will fudge the rules and count this day as day one.  Dr. Sborov, the attending, seemed to give me some hint that it could be the case, especially if the climb goes above 1,000 in the next two days.  I continue to walk, ride the exercise bike, and keep my activity levels up so my body will keep the pace going.  Nothing is harder than exercising when you hardly feel like moving and you just want to sleep.  It is tempting to just sit in bed and ask for Ativan and Ambian all day and night.  I am sure it happens.  But I am determined to get out of here as soon as possible.     I had to have a transfusion because my platelets were so low, risking uncontrolled bleeding.  But it is just a precaution.  Platel

Zero can be a wonderful thing.  A zero Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC) means that I have no immune system, but it also means my old immune system with the accompanying mutant genes and cancer cells is gone (or mostly gone).  I got this news on December 23rd, 2016.  My ANC stayed at zero as I struggled with really bad diarrhea and nausea through Christmas.  My entire GI track was blasted by the chemo ( Melphalan ).  Before I could get an Imodium to treat the diarrhea, they had to do a test to make sure my diarrhea wasn't related to C. difficile infection, because the symptoms I had, although common with Melphalan, were also indicative of C. difficile infection.   I got some relief on Christmas afternoon when the tests came back negative for C. diff (as they call it). Here is a quote my wife had framed and gave to me on Christmas.  My sentiments exactly.

After receiving Melphalan on Day -1, I received my stem cells back on Day 0 the next day.  The staff surprised me by singing Happy Birthday and giving me a very nice present (Skull Candy head phones).  Pat, Mary's sister, had sent up Birthday cupcakes, which were delicious (Pat is the one taking the pic).  So we had a very cool little celebration on December 15, 2016, my new Birthday.  Now I share a Birthday with Mary's brother Chris.  Sorry Chris, didn't mean to steal your thunder dude.  They brought my stem cells in a container with liquid nitrogen to keep the stem cells from thawing.  They are kept in a preservative that smells like cream corn when it evaporates.  So I smelled like corn for several days after the transplant.  My cousin Brad used to call me corn when I was little.  Maybe he knew something I didn't. 

My brother Butch sat with me all day long during my first day of stem cell harvest on November 28.  They started giving me Neupogen right after Thanksgiving on November 25th.  I went in every day for another shot to boost my white blood cell count, and therefore the stem cell count, since they are precursors to other blood cells (red, white, platelet).  The Neupogen made my bones ache, because the marrow was engorged with stem cells crowding out each other.  Claritin helped ease the pain, the same stuff that helps with a lot of reactions I have had through this process.  If you have cancer, keep a bottle of Claritin nearby. Then on Monday, November 28, I was ready to get started.  My blood was packed full of stem cells that had escaped the bone marrow and were floating around in my blood.  The machine in the background is an all purpose machine that can be used to extract platelets, plasma, mono-nuclear cells like stem cells, etc.  There is a kit that is all self-contained with res

Left to Right: Hallie Gale, Lynne Gale, Tina Gale (Lynne and daughters) After a courageous battle with lung cancer, my sister Lynne Gale passed away on Saturday, December 3, 2016, age 52.  She never smoked, so her cancer must have been an environmental and genetic problem. Lynne served others. She embraced opportunities to serve her second family--her ward family, in the LDS Church. She enjoyed visiting friends and family, always finding time in her schedule to make others feel the love she had for them. She taught others to sew, quilt, cross stitch, and crochet. She tried to teach everyone to iron, a hobby of hers, and her greatest stress relief. She was a closet gamer, for a while her kids could not match her skills at Dr. Mario, Solitaire, Bejeweled and Sudoku. Christmas was her chance to find special gifts for all of her loved ones, making it one of her favorite times. She loved putting puzzles together with her parents and children while sharing memories and tak

I had three bone marrow biopsies in Idaho.  They were CT directed by radiologists who would find the exact spot, and use a tool to extract bone marrow very quickly after adding some especially funking drugs to my IV. In Utah, at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, they do it by hand.  The size of the entry tool they use is bigger.  And instead of snapping in and out, they screw it into a location on my bone that they hope is a good spot with a hand tool that reminds me of a screwdriver.  They could at least spring for a Dewault and get the job done.  During my latest biopsy in November, two different PAs had to try a total of about 5 places on the bone.  My bone was so hard after the Zometa treatments, they were having a hard time penetrating the surface.  They gave me lidocaine, but that only works on the surface, and you can still feel the pressure.  Pressure is synonymous with pain in the health care industry, if you have ever seen the Brian Reagan skit on the subject, you will know wh

On November 15, 2016, I traveled to Utah to begin a week of testing that would provide information enough to begin the stem cell harvest.  That in turn would give me the stem cells I needed to start the transplant in December.  I had to get clearance from my cardiologist.  He ordered a cardiac MRI, which took two hours, at Primary Children's Hospital.  That is the only Hospital around with that special equipment.  I got to watch "Planes" the kid's movie while I went through the battery of tests around my heart and connected valves.  I have a deformed pulmonary valve that is 6 cm in diameter instead of the normal 2 cm.  But it isn't growing, so it is probably genetic and doesn't represent any type of advancing disease.  I just needed his blessing.  Dr. Hoskoppal read the MRI and met with me on November 18th.  He gave me a clean bill of health and a thumbs up. We stayed with Lori that weekend as family started to arrive for Thanksgiving.  I had some other te

This is a video of my first round of Velcade (Bortezomib), which helps proteins in my body naturally break down and kill the cancer cells in my blood.  It sometimes has nerve damage as a side effect, but I haven't experienced any numbness or signs of nerve damage.  I have a little gastro intestinal effect, but it is manageable.  It makes food taste metallic, like many other types of chemo therapy.  But I hate being hungry worse, so I stopped loosing weight after about 10 pounds.  I could probably lose a few more, but they tell me to force myself to eat.  Searles have no problem eating, so I haven't found it too difficult to do so.  Velcade has been a miracle drug for me personally.  It has helped me get my light chain protein (bad protein expelled by cancer cells) from a count of 2400, down to 90 after just two rounds of chemo.   

It's been awhile since my last post. We moved to Draper, then Idaho Falls. I broke my neck, lost my job, got a new one in Idaho at Northwest Cosmetic Labs, moved the family, and was diagnosed with cancer the first day Mary moved into the new house in Idaho Falls. Got it? Time to start blogging again so my friends and family can stay abreast. I realized I need to put my story out there after visiting my old Ward in Draper the day it was split (October 9, 2016, which was also Mary's Birthday). My friends had so many questions. They have all been so supportive and helpful. I really feel everyone's prayers in my life. My pain has been lessened, my mind is clear, I have been able to thrive at my new job, I have been aware of the Spirit's guidance in my life. I will start to answer all of your questions, but first, a few of my favorite photos from the last few years. Some of my favorite memories of the last few years were: my trip to Arches with Brinley, Dana, and

I found out I had Multiple Myeloma when my shoulder pain from a basketball injury wouldn't go away (Andy Boyce was right, I am too old for that youngsters game. But I will probably be playing again as soon as I can, Andy). Three months passed before I had it checked by a orthopedic specialist. He looked at the x-ray and thought I either had a torn rotator cuff, or some kind of legion. A legion is basically a tumor, but at the time I thought he just meant I might have a small benign growth of some kind on my bone. When the MRI that he ordered came back, he told me I had cancer as he directed me to an oncologist he had setup for me to see that day. Mary had just moved to Idaho. I didn't want to tell her the first day she had moved in. I toyed with the idea of waiting until I knew more. But I couldn't keep anything from her. I never could. She sees right through me, and knew something was wrong. So I told her at lunch the day I found out, so she could accompany me