DeLeal Wininger

Thank you for reaching out. Here is what we are being told about future treatment needed.  During the first couple weeks of July I must have my 3rd bone marrow biopsy (plugs of marrow taken from my hip) and will continue my 4-drug cocktail of chemo poison weekly until the week of the 19th of July.

If my results are excellent, I will then enter the maintenance portion of treatment. Normal MM patients would only have to keep taking the daily poison pill for 6 months until blood work is checked again, but my chromosomal mutation of (17p deletion) makes me still have to go to Kirklin every 2 weeks for chemo aimed specifically at the cytogenetics abnormality. I will still have to take the poison pill daily. Doesn't sound like "maintenance" to me.

As I've told y'all, there is not a cure for this cancer, and the genetic abnormality causes any remission I might achieve to likely be cut in half, necessitating the extensive treatment during the maintenance period. Oh well...  maybe a year, or 2 or 3. When the chemo does not control the disease's progression, my team of doctors will present other options.  The bottom line is that depending on my blood work, I may only have a couple of years left on this Earth.

Please know that I have no doubts that I have an excellent team of doctors who are utilizing the very latest and best techniques available.  Stephanie spends every spare minute of her day learning specifics in forums, pouring over medical treatises and signing up for every educational seminar there is on MM.  What my team of doctors at UAB are recommending and implementing is on par and above the standard for the treatment on MM across the globe.

Thank you all for your continued support. Please keep all of my friends, of course especially Lee Wallace Dye, Hugh Dye, Mary Jean Baker LaMay, Anita Vail in your prayers who have shown the real meaning of love, for the sake of love and for no other reason. The food deliveries we received, especially during the recent Holidays were wonderful and made our difficult days just a little bit easier.

If you have a few minutes of quiet time in your day, please pray for strength for Stephanie who has been my everything during this entire process.  I can see she is weary but never complains.  As you know, caregivers not only deal with the patient's medical and emotional state but are also dealing with the most significant and difficult part of their own lives.

Also, please continue to pray for Col. Chuck Ford who is going above and beyond on a daily basis to care of Momma in her fast dissent into late stage Alzheimer's.  He, as Stephanie, makes day to day life possible and who I know is weary but who would also never complain.

While I'm here I would be a true asshole if I did not remind everyone here that families don't often have just ONE physical problem among its members. My Mom is not doing well at all; her Alzheimer's is heartbreaking. Chuck does more than any 89 year old I have ever known. and is completely SELFLESS.

If you need any information about Momma, Susan will know. If you ever knew Momma, you know exactly why this is happening. She taught us right from wrong.  She was our rock.  She taught us about unconditional love. Susan is doing everything in her power to make Momma's last years as comfortable as possible.