Day 201

Good Evening,

OK - here is the long awaited update. Sorry we haven't posted but there really hasen't been any news as Rita has been home just trying to get stronger and get ready for the stem cell transplant. Today we went to Buffalo to get the results of Rita's most recent bone marrow biopsy and the official "go" for stem cell transplant. As I am sure you can imagine, we were pretty anxious about the news we would get today. So here it is - first a Resident came in and gave us Rtia's numbers and they were all very good. He then gave us the results of her bone marrow biopsy and that was - no evidence of leukemia - the exact words we wanted to hear. So, then Dr. Wetzler came in and basically said "You have done well and now I turn you over to the transplant team - I'll see you in about a year. That is exactly what we wanted to hear.

So now, we will go back to Buffalo on Wednesday and start the stem cell process on Thursday. The acutal transplant date is 2/24/2011. After that, we will be in new territority and it will all depend on how Rita responds to the transplant. I could give you estimates of how long this next phase will take but, it is really an individual thing. We will just have to stay flexible and patient while keeping our focus on the ultimate outcome. As long as the outcome is that Rita is curred, it really dosen't matter how long it takes.

I will keep the updates more frequent now that we are entering a new phase. Please keep the prayers coming - you can't believe how much that has meant to Rita.

Take care and we Love You, Dave & Rita.