Diana Petty-Stone

Diana was able to return to her apartment on Tuesday. She actually had two bacterial infections, one being caused by the catheter. She's taking more antibiotics and is improving.

Diana went in for blood work on Friday morning. She has a new infection. They removed the tube from her chest and readmitted her to MDA Friday. They sent the tube for lab work to see if it is the source of the infection. Saturday's blood work shows the white blood cells and the platelets dropping. More when I get it. Its already been a long weekend.

Diana came to dinner today. She looked good and ate good. Her taste buds are coming back. She is still having trouble with her eyes, so reading is hard. Diana is pictured here with grand dog Gizmo.

I have been discharged and am packing my stuff while Gibbs gets my prescriptions filled (10 of them!). The wi-fi at the apartments is sporadic according to the manager so I might not have internet access unless I am at MDA for appointments. I will carry my laptop with me and check emails then. I have to be back here at 6:40 (groan) in the morning for labs.

A slight complication ... Because I am still having problems swallowing there is a possibility I will not get discharged Sunday. Stay tuned.

The good news is that my white blood cell count is coming back up which means the transplant is working. The better news is the doctor told me this morning that he plans to release me Saturday or Sunday I am still having problems swallowing but the doctor thinks that will clear up in another day or two. I will be moving to an apartment about a mile from MDA and will be there for at least 100 days. Thank you so much for your prayers, emails, NetNotes and cards. You have helped me get through this and on the road to recovery. Stay tuned for more good news.

Beth and I went to see Diana yesterday. Her white blood cell count is still not coming up. They are giving her injections in an attempt to induce them. She has the mouth sores again, making it hard to eat or talk. She is still in good spirits. We took her some "cake balls" from a local bakery for her birthday cake. It was a day early. Beth and I have to much to do today and Gibbs and Kim will switch out today. We will send her a Net note to go with the cake balls today. They say it can take up to a week for the injections to work.

Still waiting on blood count to go up. MDA patient number is forever(*) , and net notes still work. She will try and send email today. She is a little shaky today.

Diana completed chemo today. Shaky but doing good. The transfer will be some time Friday morning. The remodeling going on at MDA makes the Internet unpredictable.

I got a bed! MDA just called and I'm on my way back to Houston. I start chemo tonight so the next message you get may come from J.R., depending on how I'm feeling and IF I can get the laptop to work. With all the construction everyone keeps having problems.

Well, another hold up. We spent the entire day at MDA waiting and waiting for them to admit me. Finally around 5:30 they started telling all of us who had been waiting in admissions, there were about six of us, that there were no available beds and we would have to check back tomorrow. We came on back to the farm and I will call in the morning and see what the status is. With six of us waiting I'm not sure who gets the first bed. One man, who is also getting a stem cell transplant, got extremely upset and become belligerent with the admissions people. I understand his frustration but sometimes you just have to realize that there are some people sicker than we are. I'm OK with this setback and feel confident I'll get a bed within the next couple of days. Maybe they should start a BYOB program - Bring Your Own Bed. ;) Stay tuned!

Kim will stay with me in my room the first week and then Gibbs will come up for the transplant and relieve Kim. After that they will rotate out each week. This will keep them from burning out and give them a little R&R back at the farm along with the usual chores needed to be done here. I'll be in the hospital at least 30 days and then after that, we move to an apartment close to MD Anderson for another 100 days. With any luck at all I will be back home before Thanksgiving.

The first year after transplant can be a bit of a roller coaster ride with constant monitoring, some of which will be done in Austin, and more transfusions. I will still have to avoid children, large crowds and of course anyone with anything I might catch and the sun. I will have to have all my baby shots again and until that happens I have to be very very careful. The whole stem cell transplant is not nearly as scary to me as it was in the beginning. After going through the induction chemo in May with all it's side effects as well as the side effects from some of the antibiotics and antifungal drugs I figure I can handle just about anything. I am going into this with the firm belief that I will survive and that the transplant will be successful.

A big thank you to all my prayer warriors who have kept me lifted on the wings of angels with your prayers, to everyone out there who has done so much to make my life and my family's life just a little bit easier through all this and to everyone for just being my friend. You are all a treasure to me. Love and ((hugs)) to each and every one of you.

It has been like heaven being at the farmhouse for this long weekend but now it is time to return to Houston and start all the pre-transplant testing. I don't have a date yet for when I admit myself to the hospital but should have that by next Tuesday. Testing is scheduled for Thursday and Friday of this week and Monday and Tuesday of next week. My plan is to come back to the farm Friday afternoon and return to Houston early Monday morning. I am hoping to squeeze in one more day at the farm between the end of testing Tuesday and hospital admission which I'm hoping won't be until Wednesday afternoon. Being home has been the best thing for me. I have gotten stronger and my appetite got better and now I feel ready to start the next stage of this process. I will let you know when I go into the hospital and when they will actually do the transplant. As always, thank you for the phone calls, the cards, the fundraisers, the books, the crochet supplies, the blood and platelet donations, the prayers and most of all for being my friend. Blessing to all of you. Keep the faith because I know I am!!

I'm just now beginning to feel normal again. I have a bit more energy than I had when we left Houston. I'm going to go through the box of books and other goodies from the fun raiser today. I can't wait to see what all I have. It'll be like a treasure chest! The MDA library had a book sale the last day we were there and their hardback books were a $1 each. I found the cutest book about a lady who found a 5 day old wounded baby owl and raised it. It became her pet and lived something like 19 years. I can't wait to read it! The library was going to sell the books by the bag, $5 a bag, after 2:00 that day but we had to go back and check out of the Quality Inn and couldn't hang around and wait for it. I'm sure I could have stuffed plenty of books in my bag!!!! I was amazed at what they did have and they had it sorted and arranged really well. I'm thinking they do that every year so I'll have to be sure and make the one next year.

It looks like my scheduled appointments will start Thursday morning so we'll be heading back to Houston Wednesday afternoon. I'm hoping to return for the weekend after the last appointment Friday and then return Monday morning, spend the night and come home again after the last appointment on Tuesday. Two appointments have not been posted yet and I don't have the hospital admission date yet so my plan could change. I'm hoping to be able to come home before hospital admission so I can re-pack and hug all the animals one more time. I'll keep you posted.

I get to go home!!!!! Yeah! After camping out at the Quality Inn on the South Loop near Reliant Stadium for a little over a week it is really really good news for us. I've been going back and forth for labs and doctor appointments and for a platelet transfusion. I will probably be back in Houston by the middle of next week doing pre-transplant testing and the plan at this point it to go into the hospital next Sunday to begin the chemo before the transplant. All this is tentative at this point and nothing is confirmed until my schedule gets posted to my MDA calendar. I will keep you posted. In the meantime I plan to enjoy some R&R at the farm and making sure all my animals remember who I am. This last round of chemo has left me very weak and about 15 pounds lighter (true, I have plenty to spare). I'm hoping to be able to build up my energy level before we start the next stage. When I leave there next week to come back to MDA I won't be back home until late November/early December and I get to be back in the Houston area during hurricane season!. Once again I thank you for all your prayers, cards, contributions to my cancer fund, Net Notes (I look forward to getting more!) and for just being my friend. Love and ((hugs)) to everyone and keep the faith!!

First I would like to thank all that was involved in the fund raiser. Beth, Bill and I plus our friends "The

irst I would like to thank all that was involved in the fund raiser. Beth, Bill and I plus our friends "The Peppers" had a very good time, and really good food. I sent Diana 7 photos. Her white blood count keeps going up and she had a good night's sleep. Gibbs and Kim are with her now. She will try and send out an email tomorrow after the Doctor comes by.

Just a little note to let you know I'm still hanging in there and to also let you know I have been feeling the power of all your prayers. I've had a pretty rough time with side effects from the chemo and also from some of the drugs they are pumping in me. Hopefully I will be able to be discharged next week. Unfortunately, I won't get to go home. I will have to stay in a hotel close by so I can go back and forth for testing and transfusions. I am really really hoping that I do get to go home for a day or two before the transplant. Thank you so very much to those of you who sent me NetNotes. They were my link to the outside world. I am having some major issues with my eyes focusing which makes it hard for me to use the computer as much as I'd like. Love and ((hugs)).

Diana still has low white blood cell count. problem swallowing and focusing. This makes using the computer hard. I thought by now she would have emailed. She should have one out tomorrow; hopefully. She is eating a little and getting little sleep. She is still getting and loving the net notes.

Diana has had a really bad weekend. the fevers and chills got worse. MDA called in the infectious disease control team on Saturday. Saturday night they put her in a bubble and took her down for a CT scan. Found a mass on her liver and an issue with her spleen. The MDA doctor is aware of the mass on her liver - it was noted 20 years ago. They have changed her antibiotic and are still giving her whole blood and platelets. Beth and I went Saturday and today; Kim and Gibbs went Sunday. Beth and I camped out until the Dr. came by. She has not been eating much and I got permission from the Dr. to get a high protein smoothie from the Smoothie King at MDA. The Dr. said if she wants one and will drink as much as she can that would be a good thing. They have also stopped several clinical trails she had volunteered for due to the issues she is having.

The fund raiser in La Grange is a "drive through." I do not think they have drinks there. Beth and I will be going to the Fairgrounds/Park after we drive through (we will also be stopping and meeting those holding the fund raiser). The park is north of town on 77. You turn left into the fairground. On Google earth it looks like a large area.

I still do not have the hours for the blood drive. Normally it was 9 to 6. I do not know what changes they will do. we have a layoff on June 4 we will no longer have a night shift and day shift ends a 4:00 pm.

Hopefully she will have a good night.

Beth and I went to see her this morning and she looks a lot better then she sounds. She has a sore dry throat. She is on yet another new antibiotic. She had a better night made it all the why to 3 am before the fever and chills hit. Hopefully that is a sign that it is coming to an end!!! Constant traffic in and out of her room the whole hour.

I just got off the phone with Diana. She is getting and appreciates the "net notes".** She has had a very bad night and day - she is fighting an infection. She is being heavily medicated. They are taking samples, x-rays, and blood every time she turns around. She has fever then chills. She is on an antibody drip.

Hopefully by tomorrow they will know where and what type of infection so they can stop it. Keep the prayers and the "net notes" coming. I know that they help. She has never been in a hospital this long. This is the first time she has been in isolation; it will not be the last and we can not let her get depressed. Or think she is alone.

I forward all email I get to her and she has read some of them. She was working on sending one when the fever returned. They also started her on platelets today. I do not know how many of you are in the Clear Lake area, but my company will be having a blood drive for her with the MDA blood mobile in June. If anybody is interested, I will send the date and address when it is set. That's all I have for now.

Beth and I just got back from MDA. Diana looks and feels good. Her fever is down and blood count is closer to what it should be. Laptop is also up and running and when she feels a little better she will be sending out emails. Her last round of chemo is tonight. She had therapy this morning for her joints - they were hurting when the fever hit its high. She has a nice size room and we talked using the phone looking in a window. She has a nice view out her big window. She has received several "notes to patients".

Diana started chemo late last night. She got little sleep; People where in and out every 45 min or so. They have started her on whole blood. I have requested where can people donate blood in her name. When I get the info I will send it out for those of you willing to donate. For now she is in a temporary room and Gibbs could not get the Internet to work. She will be moved tonight or tomorrow to a true isolation room. The need to get started outweighed the waiting for a room. Hopefully when she is moved they will set up the computer, she did not want to trouble them for the temp room. She will be done with this round of chemo Sunday and the 28 day clock will start when she can come out of isolation or round two. I will give out the new room number when I get it.

What a roller coaster ride this has all been!! Some of you already know that as a result of my last bone marrow biopsy this past Monday we discovered that the blasts are now too high to safely do the transplant. My disease has now become AML, Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. I was referred to a leukemia specialist and met with him and his team Friday afternoon. I made the decision to become part of a clinical research study which will use three chemo drugs together to try and kill the leukemia cells and reduce the number of blasts. For those of you who are going to ask me, the drugs are gemtuzumab ozogamicin, fludarabine and cytarabine. All are FDA approved drugs but have not been approved to be used in this combination. I will be admitted to the hospital Monday and have chemo for five days. I will have to stay in the hospital and in isolation (I will not be able to see any of my family during this time) until all my blood counts come back up. There is a very high risk of infection until that happens. We wait 28 days and do another bone marrow biopsy (ouch!). If the blasts are destroyed then I will be able to go back to the transplant doctor and we will proceed with the transplant. If the blasts are still there then I will do another round of chemo and another 28 days of waiting. I am confident that I will still be able to do the transplant. It is the only thing that will save my life. My brother, who is my donor, has already given his stem cells and they were frozen until I am ready for them. We were a 12/12 match which is a bit rare. Just one of the many signs that this is meant to be. It has been a difficult journey into this world of cancer and there have been so many ups and downs and I have been, at times, very very frustrated. Then I look around at all the other people who have come to MD Anderson for treatment. I see people who have had numerous surgeries and procedures and have not given up. I see people of all ages who have been fighting the battle so much longer than I have. I have also been aware of those around me who have been told that there is nothing else that can be done for them. It is not unusual to over hear someone's cell phone call to family and friends with good news as well as the dreaded bad news. You can't help but feel for these people. I rejoice in their triumphs and shed tears in their pain. I can't help but feel all of it. I believe there is a reason for all of this. I believe I will be one of the survivors. I believe God has a mission for me once I am back on my feet. I will have my laptop while I am in the hospital but not my cellphone. If for any reason I cannot send you an update it will come from my son J.R. and his email address is thunderdeath2000@att.net. Thank you, once again, for all your prayers, cards, phone calls and most of all your friendship. Keep the faith!!

I found out late yesterday, four days before I would have been admitted to the hospital, that the transplant is on hold and might possibly not happen. I had a bone marrow biopsy done Monday and the blasts are now too high, which means it would be way too risky to do the transplant. I am being referred to a leukemia specialist, hopefully tomorrow. I'm not sure just yet what all this means. I really thought I was off that roller coaster ride I had been on, but evidently not. I'm going to use the research library at MDA today to see what information I can find. I know when one door closes another one opens. I just have to find out what that next door has to offer. Stay tuned.

While we were at MDA yesterday, we had a meeting with the social worker. She asked me if we were driving back and forth and we told her we were. She told me they would put us up in a hotel because the trip was getting to be too much for me. Isn't that fantastic??!! Plus they gave us a $115 parking chip so we don't have to pay the $12 a day parking fee for awhile. Isnt that wonderful??!! But wait... there is more!

She asked me what I was worried the most about. The transplant? Were there other concerns? What was my biggest stress? So I told her it was not knowing where I was going after I left the hospital. It was really a problem for me not knowing if we were going to get the free apartment or have to figure out how to pay between $1500 to $2200 a month for one. So she reaches across the table and touches my hand and says "we'll put you in a hotel until the apartment becomes available". OMG!!!!!! Can you believe it????? Just like that this fairy Godmother has granted me three wishes!!!!!! We had to come back home last night to get our stuff and are about to head back into Houston. We'll be back Friday evening and then leave again Sunday afternoon for the next week of testing and classes. I am so happy and wanted to share my good news with you.

I'm back on track with MDA! They finally posted my schedule late last night. I do testing again on the 5th, 6th, 7th, 10th, 12th, 13th and the catheter inserted on the 14th, admit myself to the hospital the following week for chemo with transplant the week after that (week of 24th). I'll let you know if there are any changes.

Well, we didn't learn a whole lot today. I'm still on hold, probably for another week at least. MDA now wants to do a bone marrow biopsy on my brother to make sure his marrow is okay. They are not going to schedule me for anything until this is done and they get the results. If he checks out okay then they will take his T-cells and some of the marrow and freeze it until I'm ready. Barring any more problems, they plan to start testing me again the second week in May, chemo the third week and transplant the fourth week. Of course all that could change again so stay tuned.

I'm trying to remain hopeful. Yesterday's trip was really hard on me. The doctor did tell me that the nausea and the pain I am having is all part of the disease. I though it was just something I ate. The pain has been mostly in my legs and keeps me from walking much.

This month has been very difficult for me and my whole family. I learned on March 23rd that my brother William can be my bone marrow donor. On April 1st, the oncologist agreed that I should go ahead with the transplant. That meant that I could skip the next round of chemo. No more road trips! Then a week later, I learned that the chemo I have been doing in Austin has been totally ineffective and my disease has progressed. According to my MDA oncologist, we have a very small window of opportunity in which to get this transplant done so everything is on fast forward. Because of the progression of the MDS, the transplant is very high risk now. It was my decision to go forward with it. If everything stayed on schedule I would be admitted to the hospital the week of the 26th. I would go through one week of very intense chemo and then we would do the transplant the following week. However, we learned that there is a problem with one of the medications my brother takes and it could delay the transplant. His doctor says he would need to be off of it for 30 days. Today (April 15th) I learned that the transplant is being put on hold for two weeks.. My brother William, who is my donor, has some health problems that are causing the transplant team to hesitate going forward at this point. William will continue with some testing next week and the week after. Once he is finished, the transplant team will review the results and hopefully okay it. Then there has to be a final blessing from the head of the department. At this point, it is all very iffy and all I can do is wait and pray. While I was at MDA, they ran my information through the bone marrow registry in hopes of finding another donor but there is no match for me. So, it's my brother or nothing. Please keep me, Gibbs, William, and my children in your prayers. This has been a very difficult roller coaster ride for all of us. One way or another, this part of it will come to an end in a couple of weeks, and whatever the outcome, I am totally okay with it.

I saw the oncologist in Austin yesterday and he agreed that we should stop the chemo and go ahead with the transplant. First thing will be scheduling my brother for his physical and then meeting with the transplant oncologist and my brother and I together. Then they will give me a date. I have much to do and am glad I'm not doing chemo next week. I need to be thinking clearly and functioning. The Austin oncologist wants to see me in four weeks IF I am not already in MDA. Also, if the transplant has not taken place within three months, I will have to start chemo again. I'm hoping all the wheels start turning and we get this going within the next 3 to 6 weeks max! Stay tuned and keep praying.

I just got a call from MD Anderson and my brother will be my bone marrow donor. HE'S A MATCH!! I have an appointment with the oncologist in Austin, who has been handling my chemo, next Wednesday and MDA said to talk to him and see if he thinks I should do the next round which starts April 5th. He will confer with the MDA oncologist and then MDA will give me a date for the transplant. Stay tuned and don't stop praying yet!!!

Hello to all my wonderful praying friends at Mt. Calvary. I spent a week in Houston being tested by MD Anderson for the bone marrow transplant followed by a week going back and forth to Austin for my third round of chemo. I'm so relieved to not be on the road again for awhile. I have three weeks of chill time before any more appointments and that is a big relief to me. The testing at MDA seemed to go well and my brother and three children will be tested as possible donor matches. If one of them matches, then we will be able to go ahead with the transplant. If they are not a match, then MDA will start searching the donor bank. That process could take up to two months or longer. Chemo, in Austin, will continue until the donor is found. After the transplant, I will be staying in an apartment in Houston for 90 days before I can return home. My daughter Kim, who was living in Virginia, has moved in with us and will be one of my caregivers during this process. Gibbs will be my other one. MDA requires that someone be with me 24/7 from the time of the transplant until I return home. The plan is for them to rotate out with one staying in Houston with me for a week, and the other one here at the farm chilling out and taking care of the animals and whatever needs to be done here. This is going to be a long hard road for all three of us and I wanted to make sure it did not become too stressful on either one of them. A big thank you to each and every one of you for your prayers, cards, emails and most of all for your treasured friendship. I truly miss being there at the church and miss just being able to see and visit everyone. My immune system, or lack of one, keeps me homebound. Blessing and love to all!

2. Give blood! The La Grange Community Blood Drive working with the Blood Center of Central Texas is having their second blood drive of 2010 on Thursday, April 22, 2010 at 12 p.m. – 6 p.m. This blood drive is to benefit Diana Petty-Stone. The host is St. Paul Lutheran Church at 110 West Walnut, La Grange , in the Fellowship Hall. Contact Al Henneke, ahenneke@verizon.net, (979) 986-5523.

5. Diana also would love to have crochet yarn, patterns and embroidery supplies to keep busy while she is recuperating.

6. Grocery store gift cards (especially those stores with gasoline too) would be so very appreciated!

7. Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church & Preschool's Mary/Martha Guild will be hosting their annual Mother's Day bake sale on Friday, May 7th, in front of the National Bank Building from 8:00am until all baked goods are sold. The proceeds raised from this event will go to the Diana Petty Stone fundraiser to help defray medical costs for her upcoming bone marrow transplant. For more information, please call (979) 968-3938.

8. Buy a ticket for the pork steak dinner fundraiser being held by Mt. Calvary for Diana's benefit on Sunday, June 13th from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM. Tickets are $7.50 each and can be purchased at the church office, La Grange Chevron, at Lukas Bakery, or at the drive-thru. We are also collecting gift cards, books, crochet yarn, patterns, and embroidery supplies to help Diana keep busy during her long recuperation. These items can be dropped off at the drive-thru on June 13th or placed in the box in the narthex before then.