Happy New Year, friends. In our last installment of Dea news, our heroine was getting ready to begin a new type of chemotherapy, she had just been ruled out of a bunch of clinical trials, but we also reported that “they are still evaluating one CAR T-cell study.” Well, a couple holidays, a couple infusions, and a couple phone calls later, things are moving on every front. Dea wanted to share an update.
Dea’s new chemo began on December 10. Because it required frequent blood tests and infusions, she opted to have an infusion port surgically implanted just before that day. This whole process has been a big commitment, she’s been a trooper through the first several infusions, but the new medication wiped out her white blood cells rather quickly and rather thoroughly. For this reason, shortly before Christmas they had to hit pause on the chemo until she can reconstitute her immune system. At the moment our girl is resting hard, eating deliberately, and working to rebuild her immune system in order to reopen the chemo spigot, so to speak. Truth be told, it seems clear that the current balance of active cancer and active medication imparts some serious exhaustion, and some serious discomfort. So a little break from the meds may have had some upside during Christmas holidays.
Just when all those developments were shaking out around mid-December, Dea decided to get scrappy and push her team to resolve outstanding questions about that outstanding CAR T clinical trial possibility. When she nudged, the team started calling around, and learned that her tumor biochemistry does indeed align with requirements for one active CAR T trial in Seattle. What does this mean? The immediate path is strewn with questions about her immunocompromised state, the risks of CoViD 19, and possibilities for getting “the vaccine,” but the team is digging in to sort all this out. She’s got an appointment to meet with leaders of the clinical trial at the end of January and, you have to admit, this woman does know how to clear a path.
In many ways, this may be a bit of a teaser moment for an update. There is so much actively going on. So much to do. So much up in the air. But, the possibilities are also so enticing, and it is so much richer to share the journey than to walk it alone. It looks like, one way or another, there will be interesting news over the next few weeks. We can’t wait to see what happens, and also to share the tales.
With everything going on, I have just updated and revised the meal calendar, and I added some more dates for 2021. If you (ever!) want to review the dates that you’ve signed up for, or if you want to look over the new openings, there’s a link to the meal sign-up sheet at the top of every page at www.DeaPerry.com (this site!), or you can just go here. Also, with her immune system on the ropes, Dea is trying to keep her clan out of public places. If you are heading to the grocery store and have an extra minute, please consider pinging Dea to see if she’s got any grocery requests at the moment? This might just be a clever way to sneak in a little hello, and it might help them tremendously.
It’s heartwarming to connect with all of you who are part of this circle. Here’s to you, to the circle, to 2021, and here’s to Dea.
Matt