Get down with the sickness...

I'm sure the title will be lost on most of you, but it's a song title.

As it happens, it also relates to chemotherapy.

I've mentioned recently that Dr. BB's work at least speaks in terms of a cure. That much is great. But now I'm researching a lot on it...and it involves hardcore chemotherapy. Four kinds of it, in fact. And it is daunting to think about how sick I will get. With the one-transplant standard protocol, we're talking about two days of very intensive chemo, and one kind (Melphalan). That's destructive enough. But BB has FOUR MONTHS of FOUR DIFFERENT KINDS of chemo in total, PLUS four days of intensive Melphalan.

The mortality rate for a standard transplant is about .5%, and given my age, Dr. SH told me my risk is about 1 in 1,000. Frankly, with my luck lately, that doesn't strike me as all that great.

But BB's treatment-related mortality is 5%. TEN TIMES as great. This stuff makes you very, very sick. Now granted, my age should be helpful. If the same co-efficient applies, I might still be considered a 1 in 100 mortality risk. I think I could live with that, if his data is true that there's a 50 percent chance that I'll be cured.

I heard back from one woman who went through BB's Total Therapy 3 protocol. It's the holidays and she is busy but she indicated she would write more to me later this week, and I will ask her all about side effects and her treatment experience.

More to come.