Re: Re: Jus

[Guest guest]

I'm so sorry to hear that the donor match with 's sister isn't workable.

I wish you well in your search.

Kathy's diagnosis of COPD is another blow. What saddening news. You wondered

abut COPD as an AD. Below is one bit of information, dated March 2008, that

speaks to a new understanding of COPD. You can find much more on this subject if

you do a search.

http://copdnewsoftheday.com/

Pulmonaryspecialists at the University ofPittsburgh School of Medicine are

reporting solid evidence that chronicobstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an

autoimmune disease in many patients.Previous speculation that COPD may have an

autoimmune component has remainedunproven until now. The finding, reported

recently in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical CareMedicine, holds

particular relevance regarding possible futuretreatments, including a clinical

trial of inhaled cyclosporine now enrollingpatients at the University of

Pittsburgh. . . . Thefourth-leading cause of death and second-leading cause of

disability in theUnited States, COPD is a lung disease commonly related to

smoking thatdiminishes breathing capacity over time and includes conditions such

as chronicbronchitis and emphysema. The National Institutes of Health estimates

that 12million adults have a current diagnosis of COPD, with an additional 12

millionunaware that they have the disorder.

I hope things go well for all of you.

Harper

[ ] Re: Just an Update...

We found out that there will be a slim to no chance of his sister being a donor

for him...Which might be for the best anyways...She was just diagnosed with COPD

(which I believe is an auto immune disease)...This picture is gonna get even

more complicated before it all comes into focus, isn't it???

>

> We went through 2 days in hell otherwise known as Pittsburgh, PA last

week...I'm serious, who in their right mind would choose to drive in that

traffic EVERY day???

>

> We had two very busy days scheduled for us but were also confused because they

kept asking us about what we did on Monday...Um, we were only scheduled Tuesday

and Wednesday...I guess the Transplant Evaluation is normally three days, but we

were only scheduled for two so I don't know if that is a good thing or not...

>

> Everything seemed to go pretty smoothly the first day, it started out with

bloodwork and some testing throughout the day...Day two came and people were

coming in the room so fast it kept our head spinning...Literally as soon as one

would leave someone else would come in...They even had to take 's picture

(guess they wanna make sure they are operating on the right person eventually?

LOL) The doctor came in, introduced himself and asked questions/verified

information they had been given. Then he did an exam of sorts on and

said his spleen is much larger than his liver, it is at least 4 to 5 times if

not more larger than it should be...Holy Crap!!! Then he sat down, looked at

everyone in the room (, Me, his sister Kathy and her boyfriend Layman) and

said " he is very sick. No matter how sick he thinks he is he is sicker than he

thinks he is. He is VEEERRRRRYYYY sick. " He asked if we had any questions and

he answered them. Then he got up shook 's hand and said " Welcome to the

family " and " You should be on the list within the next week or so " ...

>

> Then we were off to more tests...After that we saw the Social Worker and a few

other people...The clincher came when Behavioral Health came in to speak with

us...She decided to inform us that he had to quit rubbing snuff before he could

be put on the transplant list...Great...He has rubbed for 20 years so this isn't

going to be an easy endeavor with the stress he is already feeling...He only

rubs a can a week so hopefully it will be a bit easier than I anticipate...She

wants us to call two weeks after he quits so they can do a blood test to confirm

this...

>

> So, the transplant team was supposed to meet today and review whether they

were gonna allow him to be on the list...I don't know if the doctor would

over-ride the behavioral health lady (who seemed to be the only one opposed to

him being listed right away) or not...

>

> His sister is considering being a live donor for him and his transplant doctor

said once he is listed, they can start the workup on her if she definitely wants

to do it...So there is lots going on right now...

>