Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. You do bless us with your support and your prayers. Thank you. In 2013 I found that I have a Jak 2 mutation which is a Myeloprolific disorder. In plain English, I have something wrong with my bone marrow, where our blood is made. The type of Jak 2 I have, makes too many platelets, but I am also anemic, which means I do not have enough red blood cells. I have twice been close to a major bleed from blockages coming out of my spleen. Because of this danger I am now in the process of going into and through a bone marrow transplant. The great thing is that this is a full cure of the disease I have. Unlike other transplants, there is no surgery involved in a bone marrow transplant. What they do is give me chemo therapy for 5 days which kills all of my existing bone marrow cells. A couple days after that they inject me with blood which has stem cells from a donor which will grow into normal bone marrow cells. I am told that recovery takes a year which I find hard to imagine. What we do know is that I will be in the Froedtert hospital in Milwaukee for one month and then have to be close to the hospital for another two months. As we progress I, Mary Jane, and my daughters Kelley, Kathy, and Mandy will update this site to share the latest with you. Thanks again for your support, prayers, and love!
CaringBridge is a nonprofit social network dedicated to helping family and friends communicate with and support loved ones during a health journey. Learn more about CaringBridge.
