So I’m back on the roller coaster of fortnightly monitoring through blood tests. I’m gaining a whole new education as I learn about blood cancer and the definitive factors which will impact upon my care – the importance of numbers of red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets etc.
Through how I was feeling physically, the fatigue, the shortness of breath, the extreme bruising plus this new understanding of regular blood tests – I could tell things were sliding and quickly.
My last appointment with Dr Kennedy backed this up. I’d shown a marked decline in the last 2.5 months of records and he felt we should be aiming for transplant prior to Christmas. WHOAH…….. This was a shock for my family and I. It appears I was a whole lot sicker than any of us realised.
He indicated if there was anything I desperately wanted to do, that it was a good idea to do it now, as it’d be a while before I was well enough. My first question was to ask if we could wait until after Christmas as my little brother David was getting married and it would be odd for the family if I wasn’t there. The answer was ‘on this current trajectory Kate, you probably can’t hold on’.
Next – I asked if I could squeese a trip to New York in, in between my fortnightly bloods. The answer was an emphatic yes! So long as I went soon. Dr K said it was the best medical advice he could give and that I should experience the Empire State building at night.

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