I wanted to post this yesterday while my emotions and thoughts were raw but my eyes simply wouldn't allow it (and sweet boy needed extra cuddles to get off to sleep).
Yesterday was transplant day. Just after 11:00am Kiah's new stem cells were transferred into his body through his Broviac (central line). There were several Nurses in the room as well as his primary transplant Doctor. We comforted our boy as the cells were pushed in. He screamed in pain and anxiousness but in just a few short minutes they were in his body. All we could do was try to reassure him that he was okay. He comforted himself by saying "all done... all done" over and over and chewing the corners of his monkey while sobbing. It took just a short time for his breathing to slow and his emotions to settle out. Immediately the smell of creamed corn filled the room (apparently this is normal for stem cell transplants due to a preservative used to save umbilical cord blood stem cells and it takes a few days to dissipate as he is excreting it through his lungs). It is quite potent but I suppose there is far worst things he could smell of.
We spent some time relaxing and by the afternoon he was already playing basketball in his hospital bed. This morning he ran around the room, you guessed it, playing basketball, football and doing some sort of touchdown dance with Daddy.
I feel some relief knowing that the cells are now in his body. But I am also fearful of how his body will respond to them over time. The next few weeks are critical as the Chemotherapy continues to wipe out his own cells. He is at an extremely high risk of getting an infection and not being able to fight it. If this stage is successful in about 3-4 weeks his blood counts will begin to climb as the new cells engraft.
In the meantime we wait... Wait and shoot hoops to the smell of creamed corn.
Oh and today is day plus one.
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