Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT)

The BMT was administered this afternoon at noon and took about two hours.  There were several staff members in the room doing last minute testing, delivery of stem cells, double confirmation for identification and treatment.  Nick and I just took it all in.  It was "uneventful" for most of the staff, but to us, just seeing the donor's stem cells come through the door was an amazing moment. Once Nick was "hooked up", we taped a blessed St. Peregrine medallion to the stem cell bag after saying the prayers Mrs. Rita (Greg's mother-in-law) sent us.  Thank you Rita!  This provided a sense of calm as we watched the stem cells being transplanted.  All I could think about is how amazing it all is. How blessed we are that the stem cells were in fact donated by this courageous young woman, and how incredible that they are being transplanted to save Nick.  Thank you all for offering your prayers these last few days.  I am convinced that your prayers are being answered.  I can only beg you to keep them coming.  The next two weeks will be absolutely critical for Nick.  His white blood cells (WBC) will "bottom out" as grafting goes to work and should come back up within the next two weeks if the transplant was successful.  It now becomes a bit of a "waiting game" where we protect Nick from any outside illness because of his compromised immune system and keep him as comfortable as possible.  After that, we will be watching him (like a hawk) to ward off any possible graft vs host issues.  Love to you all.  Thank you for your unending prayers.