(Later on Monday)
Monday is Mara's first collection day.
There had been talk of using a femoral vein instead of her arm, since there is some thought we didn't get the optimal number of stem cells in the winter because her veins were not cooperative. However, they went with the arm again today. They had no problem getting the volume of blood they wanted, but there were not as many stem cells as they hoped for.
They collected 1.1 million today. I thought this was pretty good, since I remember 2 million being the target in the winter. We only got 1.7 million back then, but the doctors decided to proceed anyway. It turns out 2 million is the minimal amount they like to transplant. The real target is 5 million.
Mara came over to my room around dinnertime, bringing with her some excellent coffee ice cream. I'm gradually adding foods to what I feel like eating, and coffee ice cream is definitely on the list.
Only 3.9 million cells to go! Wow.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of ice cream, if you can get hold of Haagen Dazs Dulce de Leche flavor, it might well make it onto your list as well. For myself I kind of wish I hadn't discovered it, but man, is it delicious. Coffee sounds great too though. Glad you're feeling like eating a bit more than before.