8-11-2008

Things went well today... I got my last dose of ATG and I am getting all prepped up for receiving my sister's cells tomorrow. The doctors and nurses are anticipating that it will go well.

My sister will come in early and have a "pick" line put in place in order to harvest her stem cells. The line will be placed in her neck (jugular vein) to insure that there is adequate amount of fluid flowing through the line to run the machine. This prevents collapsing the vessels as well. The pick line should be a triple lumen; one for removing blood, one for returning blood after the removal of the stem cells and lastly one for fluids or any type of IV assistants. Her stem cells will be counted and then given directly to me through an IV bag. They will estimate the number cells to be injected and several infusions may be needed to reach a safe level.

Thanks for all the prayers and support.