All our best Drewboyaus......

[Bloodyaussie]

Many of you might not know but Drew has been going through chemo treatment this week to knock that prick of a cancer on its ass...

Everything is on hold in his life while he deals with this and I know that it would be hard to come to forums like this to read trips being planned and so on..

He has been posting on Facebook with how it is all going and being this is the 2nd time he has gone through this it is like he is going through the motions and knows what to expect at each faze.

Drew is a good mate and I wish him well.... I cannot visit him in hospital as I am sick which is pissing me off.

I might have to go and mow his lawn....... lol.

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x260/jpgpz/10386372_10204268808734255_8031638656371862309_n_z psab9bfba9.jpg (http://s184.photobucket.com/user/jpgpz/media/10386372_10204268808734255_8031638656371862309_n_z psab9bfba9.jpg.html)

[jack]

All the best Drew, keep on fighting - you'll beat this again.

[krbrooking]

Have met Drew a few times now and he is a top bloke and seems to be really up beat and strong. I am sure he will pull through this. Best of luck Drew and family.

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[AB]

All the best drew, keep fighting old mate and you'll come out on top bud!

[mudski]

All the best Drew. Your a good bloke. Sh!t like this shouldn't happen to people like yourself. Look forward to catching with you soon mate.

[Clunk]

All the best Drew

[Hodge]

Wish you the best of luck Drewey!! I'm sure you'll kick that c#%t of a thing away for good mate!

[Winnie]

Keep on battling Drew, we are all behind you 100%

[93patrol]

All the best mate and good luck

[mudnut]

Why are you showing us your finger? Did you get a splinter in it or hit it with a hammer, mate? I will be thinking of you as you fight this mongrel thing.

[Alitis007]

All the best Drew!! Yell out if you need anything mate

[TPC]

All the best Drew, you will beat this.

[threedogs]

he has a sore finger I suspect, get well bloke Hospitals are a shite of a place at the best of times

[lucus30]

Good luck mate. What a bastard of a thing cancer is

[Stropp]

all the best Drew, keep on keeping on mate.

[Bob]

Lorraine and I thoughts are with you and your family Drew.

[Maxhead]

Smash it Drew! We know you will

.....on the move

[happygu]

All the best for your treatment Drew.

I hope you can knock it in the head

[Avo]

mate hope you are doing OK in there...all the best....from the Williams tribe

[Sir Roofy]

Funny thing that sent you a pm yesterday and here you are
all the best mate stay strong

[Cuppa]

Still haven’t met you yet Drew, but I want to one day. Thinking positive thoughts for you.

[megatexture]

All the best mate, wouldn't wish this upon anyone but it sounds like your a battler though.

[Woof]

Great photo Drew, with an attitude like that mate you will beat that bastard for sure mate.............my thoughts are with you anyway

[cgm]

All the best Drew!

[growler2058]

All the way cock!

[MEGOMONSTER]

All the best Drewboy, don't forget as a patient you can slap the nurses on their asses and just blame the meds.

[pearcey]

Thoughts and prayers to you and your family mate and wishing you a speedy recovery.
Only positive thoughts mate.
Pearcey and family

[fracster]

It can be fought and can be beat, I hope you succeed in both fella.

Good luck from the other side of the world.

[Drewboyaus]

Thanks to everyone for your well wishes. It's little things that make a big difference.
As Johno mentioned this is my second crack at knocking this shit on the head....full remission for about 16 months the first time and unlucky to have it come back but what can you do?
This time, I'm in for the full reboot....stem cell transplant. At the moment I'm going through the conditioning chemo phase morning and night chemo sessions for 5 days with a big hit coming on Monday that will wipe out my bone marrow and leave me with no immune system for anywhere between 3 and 7 days until my stem cells mature and start making new "clean" bone marrow. For the last couple of months leading up to this I've been having some chemo to knock it back quickly into remission and allow my stem cells to be harvested from my blood which happened an couple of weeks ago.
I know what to expect from the chemo these days and can manage that as best as I can but I guess the looming lack of immunity is certain to be a tough experience that will be all down to how my physiology works.
I've had a plan that I've been working to diligently since I discovered it was back to make sure I'm in the best physical and mental shape to get through the other side as unscathed (relatively) as possible. To this point the plan has been executed perfectly and general chemo "meh" and "blah" aside I am feeling remarkably good.
Daz dropped in to see me yesterday and dropped off an espresso machine to save me from the horrid hospital coffee and to see the well-wishes from those on here is a great boost. At the moment I can leave the hospital to go for walks and I've been doing a lot of that as its good for the mind and the body and I firmly believe it helps the chemo both do its job and pass through my system more quickly, helping me to feel better. There is a day coming though where I won't be leaving here for a week or more and my total anticipated stay is going to be around 20 days so just got to make the best out of a shit situation.
Anyway, I will be out of here before Christmas and hope to somehow make the meet at Krisso's joint on Australia Day (might be solo and perhaps fly up and camp rather than drive) so hopefully there will be plenty of stories for that campfire.....just less achohol (for me) Growler so no more photo opportunities! LOL
All the best boys and girls and I'll see you on a track out there sooner rather than later!
Thanks again,
Drew

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[mudnut]

Your toughness shows in your positive attitude, Drew. I hope the treatment doesn't make you feel too horrid and that you can enjoy Christmas and hit the tracks soon.

[Drewboyaus]

And Doggy, a special thanks mate because as I remember you've had to go through this from the other side of the bed and my hat goes off to you after seeing what my lovely wife has to get done each day before even running the household.
Your words meant a lot.

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[growler2058]

Krisso will give me many a photo opportunity I'm sure ;)

[AB]

Some members have asked that we stick this thread so it doesn't get lost in the wrath and that they can easily check on your progress Drew :)

[taslucas]

It was great to read that last post of yours drew. Wishing you all the best mate. It's amazing what they can do these days.
And Darren, an espresso machine!? What a champ!
Drew I reckon you could set up a coffee shop side business for patients and workers alike Haha

[Gecko17]

Sorry to hear that you're having to go through this again Drew but, having read all the posts as well as yours, I am reassured that not only do you have the strength of will to kick this again but that you are being well looked after and cared for. All the best mate and look forward to catching up with you one day for a beverage of your choice. (We may have to organise a trip over from here....)

[mudnut]

http://i184.photobucket.com/albums/x260/jpgpz/10386372_10204268808734255_8031638656371862309_n_z psab9bfba9.jpg[/IMG] (http://s184.photobucket.com/user/jpgpz/media/10386372_10204268808734255_8031638656371862309_n_z psab9bfba9.jpg.html)

He could call it, "The Middle Finger Coffee Shoppe"

[Drewboyaus]

Sorry to hear that you're having to go through this again Drew but, having read all the posts as well as yours, I am reassured that not only do you have the strength of will to kick this again but that you are being well looked after and cared for. All the best mate and look forward to catching up with you one day for a beverage of your choice. (We may have to organise a trip over from here....)

Thanks mate, I'm hoping the family and I can get across to WA soon-ish. All my mums family are from there (Freo) and I haven't seen them for a number of years....it would also be great to hang out with some of you boys and girls over there by a fire in the bush somewhere......

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[Gecko17]

Sounds great Drew. Give us a heads-up if you do come over and I'm sure we can arrange a fairly decent shindig for you over here. Be great to meet you.

[Drewboyaus]

A quick update:
I'm at day zero today (re-boot day). Finished all my chemo up yesterday and today at 2pm get my harvested stem cells back. Still possibly got the toughest third of the journey in front of me (with an immune system declining to nothing over the next 7-10 days)......but who knows. With luck and good hygiene management, maybe not.
Onwards and Upwards! (Thanks Johno, LOL)

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[Winnie]

What do they do to your stem cells while they are out?

[Drewboyaus]

What do they do to your stem cells while they are out?

Don't really know. Not much, I think the assumption is that they will be clean and ready to start producing healthy cells again.
Sometimes it doesn't pay to ask! LOL

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[threedogs]

dont they warm/heat them up to kill off the baddies leaving just the goodies

[Drewboyaus]

dont they warm/heat them up to kill off the baddies leaving just the goodies

No mate, heating them up to kill anything would kill my cells too.
The chemo treatment beforehand was designed to knock the disease into remission so the stem cells would be as "clean" as possible at the time of collection.
They had to carefully defrost them slowly so the cells didn't break down.

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[taslucas]

So two minutes in the microwave on high wouldn't do it?

[Drewboyaus]

So two minutes in the microwave on high wouldn't do it?

Haha, perhaps for soup!

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[threedogs]

Ive had cell saver on my ops before, but thats only recycling my blood after being washed.
Strength to your right arm Drew.

[mudski]

It's bloody amazing what they can do these days.

[Stropp]

again mate all the best and i hope things are on the up and up heres to a full recovery :)

[Drewboyaus]

So an update:
After 5 or 6 days of neutropenic state (no white cells to fight infection) and feeling pretty rubbish, I was woken by the nurse at 6am this morning for some IV antibiotics with the news my 4am blood test result had showed a significant jump up in white cell and neutrophils......that's probably a couple of days ahead of the "norm" so I'm quite pleased. I'm still officially neutropenic but if the rate of increase continues (it should quicken) then by tomorrow I should no longer be neutropenic. Then it's the wait for my platelets to bounce back and I could be out of here and recovering at home earlier than scheduled.
I am a happy man today.

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[TPC]

Great news Drew, hope it keeps going well.

[Stropp]

as i said mate that is great news and makes us all happy :) home for christmas :santa:

[Sir Roofy]

Good to hear drew a good xmas comming up

[krbrooking]

That's awesome news Drew. I hope you are way before Xmass and get to spend tat time with the family.

[krbrooking]

Damb double posts, didn't think it had gone through so re sent it only to find out it did.

[Bob]

Great news Drew so now for a awesome Christmas at Home.

[threedogs]

Great news Drew have a very happy xmas mate might even pop in for that beer

[cgm]

Yeah, good stuff mate.

[growler2058]

Sh1t Hot Mate!!

[pearcey]

Great to hear the good news mate.
Our thoughts and prayers are still with you for a quick and positive recovery.
Pearcey and family.

[AB]

Great news Drew, merry Christmas mate, that's fantastic!!!

[taslucas]

That's awesome mate, great to hear!
Keep on whooping it buddy!

Ho, ho ho

[Rossco]

Hey Drew, haven't been on the forum much lately so have missed a bit, but all the very best mate and hope you have a great chrissy at home with fam. Looking forward to catching up in the bush sometime soon sounds like things are going well. Big upps!!! (Onwards & upwards!!)

[Drewboyaus]

So the good news is that I'm being discharged today, 4 days ahead of schedule! You ripper, back home to the family.

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[Bloodyaussie]

Bloody brilliant mate.... this will be a huge strain off Tory.

I catch up soon.... order the bits for the hubs to ya nob so if an opportunity pops up we can do it.

[growler2058]

Awesome mate

[pearcey]

Great news mate.
All the best for the future
Beers and Cheers

[threedogs]

Always liked a happy ending, good stuff Drew, strength to you mate

[TPC]

Great stuff Drew, always like hearing good news.

[mudnut]

That's really good news, Drew. There is no place like home to relax and recover. All the best, mate.

[Drewboyaus]

It's a bit over 4 weeks since I was discharged from hospital after the stem cell transplant and given I'm starting back at work tomorrow, I thought I'd add a short update to my progress.
The first week was quite difficult. I'm not sure if it was the emotional let-down from being released from hospital or just the physical damage that had been done to me.....or both but I struggled to do anything for more than an hour without needing an hour's worth of nanna nap to restore my energy levels. Fortunately those levels of fatigue haven't continued beyond the first week or so and at the end of each week, I've noticed a general improvement to my physical condition.....It is in fact quite amazing how generally resilient the human body is.
I made the decision to pretty much completely rest and enjoy being at home with my family again in the lead up to Christmas with the day following boxing day set as the day to begin the long job of restoring my fitness levels again. From that point I have begun introducing different forms of physical activity from long walks every couple of days to rollerblading, generally finding whatever excuse I can to move. When I feel tired I have rested.
It is working. In more recent days I have been back on the bike again and yesterday putting just short of 46km under the wheels. Today I feel ok. In another week or two I'll begin my interval and strength training routine again under the watchful eye of my EP to make sure I don't go too hard, too quickly and from here it goes on.
Now I just need to find myself an event to train for.........
A number of people have asked me "When will I get the all-clear?" and I am one of the fortunate cancer survivors who had an illness that indeed has a cure. The best way I can answer that question would be to say that my risk of re-occurrence diminishes with every year that passes and when we are speaking to each other 40 years from now (or tweeting, or however we will be communicating then) and I can reflect and say "Ha, It never came back", then I will know it was "job done".
From here, it is time to begin living life "normally" again and I use the term "normally" with a degree of relativity because for the second time in my life and the life of my family, our normality is forever different.......but life goes on and so do we. As BA would say "Onwards and upwards!"

Separately, I'd like to say thanks to everyone who has offered their support. I received lots of PM's, text messages and emails of support from people here and it really helped me to grind out a very tough period. Thank you!

[growler2058]

Gotta pic of you in your roller blade get up
I have an amusing image in my head hahahahaha

[Drewboyaus]

Gotta pic of you in your roller blade get up I have an amusing image in my head hahahahaha

Here ya go....


53809

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[mudnut]

Reading that has lifted my spirits no end, Drew. This year is gunna be a good one.

[TPC]

Here ya go....


53809

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I think Growler was picturing lycra & knee & elbow pads.

Good to hear you are doing well.

[growler2058]

Here ya go....


53809

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Pretty funny but my mental image is funnier! White lycra hahahahhahaa

[growler2058]

http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=53839&stc=1 This is kinda what im thinking

[Drewboyaus]

........grrrr....photo post didn't work....properly

[growler2058]

Like this hahahahhaah