Of Hip Replacements for John and the First Day of Spring

It's the First Day of Spring -- March 20, 2010

Even today as I look around, I see some patches of snow in the very cold part of Pennsylvania in which I live, but the snow is almost gone. Two days ago, as John and I were on our way to Hershey Medical Center, his cancer treatment center, I saw my first real promise that Spring would be here soon -- a clump of deep, vibrant purple crocuses. Then as John and I pulled into the hospital parking lot we saw a sea of yellow daffodils! I knew Spring was approaching fast!
Today I can see and feel Spring everywhere and I'm finally feeling good.

This has been the longest, coldest Winter I can remember. There has been snow on the ground for months, and it has perhaps been snowing more days than not this Winter. Or so it seems. And I feel I've finally made it through a long, dark time.

And yet, there will be some more tough days to come. When we were up at Hershey Medical Center these past few days, my husband John found that Graft Versus Host Disease had returned to his eyes. GVHD can be a sign that your donor has rejected you after a bone marrow transplant, and that your cancer will return or has returned.

No, John's donor has not rejected him -- most likely -- and he is still in remission from his two cancers. Thank God for that. John is just having problems with his eyes -- itching, burning, and a little trouble seeing.

Another thing John has been dealing with on this visit is a lump and something suspicious possibly indicative of cancer found in his body during a CT scan last week. That's one of the reasons we're in Hershey right now. But John and I are not worrying. Gee, if we worried about every scare, we'd go nuts! So we'll wait and see what happens. We're going home on Saturday (first day of Spring!) and John will most likely get the suspicious areas looked at there, by his local oncologist, Dr. Ford. If not, we'll come back to Hershey soon.

If it does turn out that John does have another cancer, he could possibly even be treated where we live. That would mean that we wouldn't have to make so many trips to Hershey Medical Center. We believe Hershey is the best place to go in the world if you need cancer treatment. It is just becoming difficult to make the 210+ mile round trip for us when John goes for check-ups or receives treatments.

I guess I should mention one more thing about John. While at home, a few days before leaving for Hershey Medical Center, he had an MRI, because he had a pain level of 7 for several months in his pelvic area (on his backside).

The MRI showed Osteo Necrosis. For those of you who don't know how to
translate that, Osteo means "bones" and necrosis means "dead" or "dying."
As in "dead bones."

John will have to get two hip replacements to correct the Osteo Necrosis -- one in each hip.

Dr. Claxton wants John to get treatment for the Osteo Necrosis, at least initially, back where we live. First he will get bone medication, then he will get the hip replacements. John will see an Orthopedic Surgeon as soon as he gets back home.

We don't know how soon the replacements will be -- within days or years. We'll have to go back home and ask our local Orthopedic Surgeon.

Yes, I'm glad it's Spring, but I'm already tired from the challenges that lay ahead!

But John and I are always up for challenges, I guess, because that's the way we live our lives. So, one day at a time, onward...

love you all, krissy :)