August 2020 Update

Greetings from hazy Larkspur, as a million acres of wildfires sparked by lightening burn in Northern California. With Covid, fires and hurricanes, 2020 has been an apocalyptic year. We wish you and your families good health, safety and as much sanity as possible amidst it all.

I am fighting my way back from two setbacks and look forward to leaving cancer behind. The first setback was hemolytic anemia, a rare side effect that destroys red blood cells faster than they are made. My white blood cells crashed at the same time. Rituxan infusions and high dosages of Prednisone worked together to stabilize my blood counts. While still considerably below normal, UCSF regards my blood counts as sustainable for Myelofibrosis, which scars bone marrow and reduces space for normal blood cell production. UCSF continues to experiment with medications to treat graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), which has manifested as my donor’s immune system attacking my gastrointestinal tract, causing regular nausea.

The second setback was the rupture of both my Achilles, a rarer side effect caused by taking Levaquin at the same time as Prednisone. My ankles have been immobilized for months but, fortunately, the ruptured tendons have started to weave back together without surgery. I am walking — more wobbling — and doing physical therapy to build mobility and strength. Yesterday, I walked around the block twice, the farthest I’ve walked since April. My goal is to resume trail running, which the doctor says is nine months to a year away. At least the recovery periods from the transplant and the ruptured Achilles will overlap!

We love living close to the Fillingers and my sister and her family as well as our kids. Tyler and his girlfriend, Olivia, moved to LA recently so now are driving distance away. We’re not sure what we would have done without Ryan’s help and sense of humor at home. He is transferring to Northwestern in September and excited for his next adventure. Kai just started ninth grade at Redwood High School and has become an avid mountain biker. Like so many schools, classes at both Northwestern and Redwood are online. 

We appreciate your prayers and thoughts.