[john guimond]

Thank you Rose. All the best to you and your husband.

[john guimond]

Hello Rose,My Name is John. I am 63yrs old. I live in Alberta, Canada. In April 2018 my routine blood work showed my CBC,s steadily dropping.( 5 Blood Transfusions since then). My family doctor referred me to a hematologist. She requested a bone marrow biopsy. In Jan 2019, I was diagnosed with high risk more advanced MDS. She basically layed the cards on the table and informed me that this MDS has a greater chance of turning into AML, meaning my life expectancy is about a year. Whoaaaa!!!, talk about a sudden and rude awakening!!! She said that sometime in the last year or so I was exposed to some kind of toxin or chemical that caused my bone marrow to shutdown. I work in the coal mining industry in a coal processing plant. My job is with the maintenance department as a plant oiler, so i’m exposed to several types of oils and chemicals. I have been off work since July 2018. I was told that there is no cure for this condition. Scary!!!! However i was offered a drug called Vidaza (chemotherapy) 7 days 21 days off. This treatment is supposed to delay the onset of AML and give me a better quality of life, as well as give me a few more years. Yahoo i thought!!!! this is fantastic !! Unfortunately, still not a cure. So i’m given another option and a chance for a cure. YES a bone marrow transplant!! I have two older siblings who are being screened for a possible match.( If your husband’s sister is 100% match, this is a good positive thing.) I started my first cycle of Vidaza last month. second cycle starting today. If I choose to go with the transplant, I will have to live in Calgary for 3 months (1 month in hospital). The transplant center sent me a big binder to read. Whow, lots of terrifying and overwhelming information.!! But there is also some good information, which in the end seems to outweigh the bad. I guess it all depends on the individual’s health age etc..I was told by my Doctor that an individual in my town just had a successful transplant. Apparently he is doing well so far. I am hoping to meet him. I can relate to what you are going through. My prayers are with your husband. I have come to the realization that i am very ill, and if one of my siblings is a match, i’m going ahead with the transplant. I’ve also decided that positive thoughts is the only chance of getting through this. We seem to be bombarded with all these negative testimonials! I choose to ignore because negativety produces bad results. I wish you all the best, and will let you know how my journey goes.

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