Vince's Journey

Here is an update following our visit to the James Cancer Center at Ohio State University on Wednesday....

We met with Christie Blume, a highly regarded doctor in the field of research and treatments for lymphomas. We were very comfortable with her from the start and she was easy to talk with as well as ask questions about my situation. She spent a great deal of time with us and said there were numerous ways we could move forward. She also added that eventually I will need to do a stem cell transplant as it is the only known treatment that could lead to a cure. She said 30 to 40 percent of the time stem cell therapies can cure people with follicular lymphoma. This was the first time we had truly ever heard there is a possibility for a cure. In addition, even if it's not curative, stem cell therapy also has the best chance at leading to a prolonged remission period. She said this is something we don't necessarily need to do know but recommended we don't do it any later than a third treatment. She said there are a few ways to treat me now that most likely would lead to a remission period of 2 to 3 years but once the lymphoma does return we should take the steps to do the stem cell.

With this being a senior year for both Abbey and Judd (at UD) we are thinking to do the treatment now, buy a few years and then do the stem cell procedure. I really don't want to be weak and/or sick throughout Abbey's senior year and Dr. Blume said there is a treatment that should be effective which is less toxic than my original treatment of CHOP chemotherapy. It will still have a cumulative beat down of my system but it should be easier to tolerate and allow me to keep my normal schedule. When I do finally have the stem cell procedure it will require a 3 week hospital stay at least and a 3 to 4 month recovery period. With all the activities of Abbey's senior year I really don't want to be in a situation where I'll have to miss everything. Things could change down the line but right now we're thinking we'll do the treatment, watch until the lymphoma resurfaces and then take steps to do the stem cell transplant. In the mean time we're going to meet with the transplant docotr to have a better feel for what it all entails and try to line up who the donor will be. Dr. Blume said the best scenario is that the donor comes from one of my siblings - she said 1 in 4 is usually a perfect match and since I have 6 potential donors one of them should be the match. Going outside a sibling is more risky since the donor wouldn't have the same biological make-up. So hopefully we'll find a match among my siblings.

This is all a little scary but also very encouraging to know this could lead to a cure. It would obviously be very worthwhile to feel like shit for several months if the end result is to be cured from this worthless disease. My next appointment at Ohio State is July 27 and we should learn a great deal more about the transplant procedure. I would guess we'll begin treatments for my current situation shortly after that. We will be sure to keep you posted as we move forward.

Since I'm dealing with a pretty big 'villain' in follicualr lymphoma I thought I'd list my 10 least favorite (villains) contestants from Survivor. In my next post I'll list my favorite Survivors....

10. Parvati (Heroes vs Villains, and two other seasons) - To be honest, I just got sick of Parvati - she's been on the show 3 times and her act wore out in the last season - they should have voted her out the first vote. I'm glad she didn't win again.

9. Natalie (Micronesia) Some how she wound up on the fans vs favorites show and she thought she was the hottest thing going. Plus the way she played the idiot, Erik, for the immunity idol and then flaunted it made me glad to see her leave the next week.

8. Courtney (China and Heroes vs Villains) Quite possibly the biggest waste of a Survivor contestant slot of all time and they had her on twice. When your strength is you're weak, an outcast socially and absolute no threat at all you might as well stay home and watch the show on television.

7. Jonathan Penner (Micronesia) This guy was pompous, arrogant and basically an actor. Left the show due to injury, wish he would have been voted off.

6. Corrine (Gabon) Should have been on the villains team, she was a real bitch who thought she had superior intelligence and that her you know what didn't stink. Loved it when Sugar flipped her off at the final tribal council.

5. Lex (Africa) Lex dates back to one of the first seasons. He was plastered with tats and thought he was the coolest thing since Coolio. It was awesome when he got the axe.

4. Randy (Gabon) Perhaps my favorite Survivor moment of all time was when Randy tried to play the fake immunity idol made by Bob. It was priceless and couldn't have happened to a bigger boob.

3. Johnny Fairplay (Micornesia) Just a train wreck of an idiot who went so far as to act like his grandmother ghad died to garner sympathy from the rest of tribe. Then he came back on the Fans vs Favorites episode and quit to be the first contestant eliminated.

2. Coach Wade (Tocantins) The warrior - this guy was a lunatic and no one could have possibly beleived anything he said or have an ounce of respect for him. He was basically played like a pawn both the times he was on the show.

1. TIE Richard Hatch (Borneo) and Russell Hantz (Somoa) - Ironic that their last names are similar. Richard was the original villain and Russell took the role to a new level. Russell's problem was he didn't realize that social skills are a big part of the game - sure he was able to lie and cheat his way to the final but if you piss everyone along the the way, you're not going to win. There is a reason the others want to take a boorish oaf to the final tribal council and it's because they all know no-one is going to vote for him. And yet, there was Russell at the reunion shows insisting that he still won, even though the votes said differently. Just an absolute moron and Richard was so stupid he wound up in prison for not paying taxes on his winnings.

Next post look for my favorites. Happy 4th of July to everyone!!!