DAY ZERO

STEM CELL TRANSPLANT DAY

We arrived at the hospital at 5:30 a.m. to begin our 14 hour day. The first four hours are anti-climatic as they infuse normal saline to hydrate the kidneys.

The transplant took about 2 hours. First they gave Lee medications designed to help curb and reaction to the preservative the the cells are frozen in. The stem cells come up frozen in a cooler on a cart with a sterile double-boiler like mechanism which is kept out side Lee's room, the technician is there with the frozen cells ready to thaw. The nurse inside the room nods through the window to the tech and he begins to thaw the first bag of stem cells, only to the point that they are liquid. He then fills the first syringe with stem cell solution and gives it to the nurse.
The nurse begins to slowly infuse the solution into Lee's central line. The cells are infused slowly so as to monitor any reaction Lee would have.

This goes on for 8 syringes, thawing only as the cells are needed. Lee did great, he had no reaction really, just a flushed face, and the preservative smell kind of like creamed corn cooking(that will go on for 48 hours while it disapates). After the two hour transplant there is another 4 hour saline hydration. We left at about 4;30p.m. quite happy that things went so smoothly.

Have you ever wondered how sitting around all day can be so exhausting? We came home ate a little dinner watched Shrek 3 and went to bed early.