And now on to Lenny Zakim.
Some of you will recognize the name as being associated with the 'new bridge' in Boston - the Zakim bridge. It's a nice looking bridge, especially at night.
Lenny Zakim was a bridge builder, not in the sense of being a bridge designer or a construction worker. No, he built bridges amongst people and within communities. He worked to find connections between people of different faiths, ethnicities, and social and economic backgrounds. He was the Executive Director of the New England chapter of the Anti-Defamation League. Civil rights was his passion and he worked tirelessly for social justice for all.
And he had multiple myeloma. (and you can guess who his doctor was)
He died in 1999, just 5 years after being diagnosed. During the myeloma part of his life, he insisted that people living with cancer must be active participants in their health care. What could people with cancer do to create and maintain their own good health? He wanted people of all backgrounds to have access to therapies that would give them comfort, renew their spirits, and support their physical recovery. Thus, just before his death, he announced the establishment of the Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies at Dana Farber. The Center opened a year later.
The Zakim Center offers a variety of complementary therapies that have been supported through evidence-based clinical research. Acupuncture, Qi-Gong, reiki, nutrition, creative arts - those are just a few of the therapies currently available. Starting next week, I'll be participating in some of these therapies, notably acupuncture and nutritional counseling, to support my continued good health.
And yes, my health is good! My myeloma tests continue to show enduring stability since my stem cell transplant. I feel well and I've finally settled in with my new medication routine - a cycle of 7 days on and 7 days off of Revlimid. That seems to be a good regimin for me. I'll have more myeloma test results late next week, but the good Dr. A seems to think it will be more of the same good news.
I've been fortunate to find a medication protocol that works well. It was a struggle to get here, but I think I'm settled. My side effects are relatively mild. My WBC still struggles to be at the normal level, but now it is just low, and not neutropenically low as it had been in January and February...and part of March. And my platelets must get cranky if they get within the normal range, so I guess they are going to stay somewhat low, too. I do get occasional unexplained bruises and sometimes my hands and feet are a bit swollen and tender, but hey - the myeloma cells are out of sight, so I'll welcome the bruises and the swelling any day!
As for my hair, well, it continues to be a...hmm...an interesting journey. This time last year, I had that nice wavy brown hair. Remember that? Yes, it was colored but underneath there were only a few gray hairs. Ok, maybe there were more than a few, but definitely not a headful. Really. And then in August I was bald. You know, I didn't really realize just how bald I was. I mean, I thought I had fuzz on the top of my head, but no. I was bald! But then I got the fuzz :-) And then I got hair. And then I got curls, which became kinky tight curls that were black and really gray. And as my hair grew, the curls became tighter and I surely looked like I belonged back in the 70s. Anyway, you know that I then colored my hair and cut it but the curls persisted. Until the last hair cut: the curls now have loosened, so that I don't have those tight kinky curls. Nope, no kinky curls for me. Now I have frizz. Loose frizz on most of my head, especially the top which is so thick. The sides are starting to play nicely and are settling down to some waviness, without frizz. Are you getting the picture of what my hair looks like??? Scary! Oh, lest I forget - the color is fading and yes indeed, the gray is bursting through, shouting "Susan, I'm back!"
BUT...no myeloma cells :-) So I'll shout "Welcome, bruises, swelling, and frizz!"
Happy Mother's Day to all the fabulous women in my life! I love you all!!
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