Luke’s transplant was originally scheduled for January 28th. Unfortunately when they did blood work on the donor last week it was a bit off. Most likely they have a cold so the transplant has been delayed. While this isn’t what we were expecting, it does mean that we have some more time to prepare.

He was supposed to go into the hospital today because before the transplant can happen he needs to get chemo and radiation to prepare to receive the new stem cells. While a delay may seem like a bad thing, it isn’t. The immune therapy that he has been receiving for the last six months or so can be hard on the liver, especially in those who go on to get a stem cell transplant. Having the transplant pushed back means that there is more time for his body to recover from his last round of the inotuzumab before the transplant which may reduce the chance of liver complications.

In addition to this it will give him time to strengthen up before going in as well. His last transplant was rough on him. This time since the donor is a 10 out of 10 match they don’t need to go as intense with the conditioning regimen before the transplant (lower intensity chemo and half the radiation). Despite it being less intense it will still be hard on his body, so the extra time at home will help him build up his strength.

They will retest the donor in another week or so to check how their blood counts are and then determine when the transplant will be. We are staying positive that this will all work out. In the meantime we will enjoy our time together before Luke has to go into the hospital and go through the transplant. Most importantly he will have more time to snuggle Penny before he has to go into the hospital!

Continue your positive thoughts, prayers, words of encouragement, support, etc. We truly appreciate it. I apologize for not keeping up with the updates. Life has been pretty busy lately but I will try to keep up with the updates as best as I can.