And So the Battle Begins

    The past two days have been exhausting and I'm very much ready to go to bed so no deep thoughts from me today, just instead an update.
     Today didn't really go like we had planned.   One thing we thought would happen today was that he would get a bone marrow biopsy to provide the information they need to determine the treatment.   We also thought that the blood tests from yesterday would come back and they would confirm for sure their diagnosis.  We also thought that with the confirmation, he would be transferring over to Huntsman.
      Nephrology wanted to do dialysis today and waited until about 2:30 to try and save time for the IR team to fit him in.  About 20 minutes after they started IR called and said they could take him.   Arrrg...   Near the end of his 3 1/2 dialysis today, Dr Sborov came and Dr Solomon came to talk to us.   They decided to start one of his treatments tonight.   A high dose of an IV steroid will hopefully start killing the bad cells.   He will be on it for about four days, and after that time they should have more information about the next step.  Chemo could likely start as early as next week, and then after some time for observation he could return home.  Our nurse did the first shot today at about 9:00.
      The results of his full body x-rays came back yesterday, and they were all pretty much normal.   There can be problems with his bones being weakened so that was good news. 
      Today we also said goodbye to two amazing people.   His nurse Eric and CNA Kayla.   Kayla is actually off for at least a month and Eric won't be back until Sunday.   He said he would call in on Saturday and find out if we were still here and make sure that he was assigned us if we are still here.  They both have done such a amazing job of taking care of both of us during these difficult times.
      A highlight today was a visit from his brother Andrew (Fred).   He showed up late last night and I caught up with him for a bit while Chris slept soundly.   When Chris needed some help adjusting, I got on one side and had him on the other, and the look on his face when he realized who was helping was priceless.   He came up again and was there while the doctors did their rounds.   They weren't able to make their standby flight, so he brought up Laura and Herbert.
      Another tender hug was the one between Chris and Dr Cho.  With about 5-6 other doctors/students in the room, Chris apologized for being so frustrated with her earlier this week and sincerely thanked her for continuing to search and find an answer.   I wasn't fast enough to snap a picture, I wish I had.