Day 9

Aloha from G1140 on Holcombe Boulevard! (Skype snapshot of Vlad this morning)

Vlad is feeling better today than yesterday. The mouth sores are starting to build. And yesterday his thighs ached. That is because the stem cells are starting to graft into the marrow there.

Dr. Anderssen came by this morning and said Vlad is exactly on schedule. It was a Goldilocks moment. The doc said he likes to see "on schedule" progress, rather than too fast or too slow. The doc ordered some more drugs. Vlad's getting an injection of Neupogen today, one of a series of injections, I believe, to help the grafting process. He's also getting an IV pain med to be named later. He's back on the "Magic Mouthwash," which is a topical pain reliever - it has lidocaine and something else - and does bring him relief, especially before meals.

It's Christmas Eve and Alex and I are going up this evening. I'm going to attempt to work and cook a small dinner (I bought a nice Logan Farms ham last night) and haul it and presents to the hospital. I think it will be worth it.