After enjoying several weeks of IV-freedom, Michelle was readmitted to Kaiser on Friday for another round of MEC Chemotherapy to keep her body in remission. Creepy blue chemicals flow into her permcath at 8pm every night.

(permacath)

Although the tumor we discovered in Michelle’s head shrunk during the last round of regular chemo, doctors have recommended treating the mass directly to improve odds of eliminating any cancerous cells that her normal treatment might not kill. It’s all part of the preparation for her pending bone marrow transplant–we want her body to be as cancer-free as possible before she gets the new stem cells. After 5 days of MEC to keep her leukemia in check, we’re going to start chemotherapy directly to her central nervous system to treat the remains of her tumor. She’ll receive the first of 6 cycles of intrathecal chemo via a lumbar puncture on Tuesday, and then radiation to her brain in the coming weeks.

(lumbar puncture)

Chemo tends to wipe out Michelle’s energy, so recent days have been filled with naps and mindless VH1 celebrity gossip specials. She’s fighting hard to prepare for her transplant and sends a huge thanks to everyone who is continuing the search for her match. We know her donor is out there somewhere, and with our growing team of volunteers they’ll get admitted into the registry in no time. Best of luck to everyone at the drives this weekend. Engage, educate and get all those minorities registered!