Day 132

At my clinic appointment today, the blood counts were not significantly changed. My hemoglobin was down a bit, but since I am not excessively fatigued, they are still willing to forgo meds that would bump it up.

WBC – 3.9 (down from 4.8 but still at a good level)
Plt – 230 (up from 200 and at a good level)
Hgb – 10.0 (down from 10.5 and not at a good level, but not alarmingly low)

Most significantly, my doctor did decide to reduce the anti-rejection drug (Prograf or tacrolimus) from 3 a day to 2 a day. Yes, he is going to be gone until 1/17/05 (back home to southern India, but not the coast, so his family was safe from the tsunami) and he told me to come back in two weeks instead of the usual one. I asked him if that meant he didn’t expect a reaction to the decrease in the medication right away and he said no, it didn’t mean that, and if I started to notice increasing signs of GvHD, I should call in and get seen sooner than two weeks. I’m glad to get started on the weaning process and feel good that the doctor is willing to start it when he won’t even be around for a couple of weeks.

I am going in to the office where I work a few days a week now and it seems to be working well. My hair is growing slowly and seems to be curlier than before. It may also be grayer, but it may also be that the gray hair is growing faster than the darker hair.

Since I don’t have another clinic visit scheduled until 1/13/05, if I continue to cruise along without significant change, I may not write here until after that appointment. However, if I have something to report before then, I will.

I find myself thinking about the people affected by the earthquake/tsunami in southern Asia and feeling very sad for the destruction of people’s lives and property there. Once again, it can be a reminder that while I know I am not any more blessed by God than any other person, I do have much to be grateful for. There is much that we all take for granted and it is good to remember that we do so and try to be mindful of some of the those good things we take for granted most of the time.

Have a good new year.

Love,
Justin