Project Khanh

Van, Marshawn and I woke up early on Sunday to get to St. Patrick Proto Cathedral to help set up the drive. It was a cold gray morning and I was shivering as I walked towards the church, but the sight of Khanh standing in front of the church holding 20 gigantic balloon really warmed my heart. He eagerly greeted me with a big smile and his positive energy was contagious.

I couldn't believe Khanh was at the drive so early in the morning. He's on a regimen of chemo every 2 weeks until the doctors find him a suitable donor. I can recall how exhausted and weak I was a week after chemo and I could only imagine how tired he must be. Khanh did not show an ounce of fatigue as he spoke in front of hundreds of people to share his story. After his speech he immediately ran back to our tables so he could review forms, translate information and answer questions for the frantic and impatient crowds of people. His friendly and charming personality made it really easy for him to talk to strangers and convince people to register. Throughout the drive he kept on asking me how I was doing.

The drive was very successful with 93 new registrants -- 84 were Vietnamese who have higher chances of matching Khanh (or me). The success of the drive was due to Khanh and his energetic team of family and friends. I am praying that we will be able to find a match for Khanh.

I also met a Vietnamese Cal alumn that has a 21 year old sister (also at UC Berkeley) who was recently diagnosed with AML. She's taking the year off and getting treated at Stanford. I just can't believe so many young people are getting sick. And why does it seem to be happening to all the good people? Why, why, why????

Project Michelle registrant count is up to 2710!

Our efforts have brought in a total of 2710 new people on the bone marrow donor registry! My mom and Dr. Do have been doing a fantastic job publicizing the drives on the Vietnamese radio waves.

I hope to see many people register this Sunday at St. Maria Goretti Parish in San Jose (2980 Senter Rd). Van and I will be there bright and early to volunteer. It starts at 7:30am for the early birds going to church.

DRIVE IT HOME

Please support Khanh!!! Bring your mom, dad, brothers, sisters, cousins, uncles, friends, acquaintances, colleagues, students, customers, etc to the drives. Time is of the essence. There will be drives this Sunday (St. Maria Goretti) and next Sunday (St. Patrick Proto Cathedral) to find Khanh and other patients like him a donor match. See the flyers for details.

The Itchy and Scratchy Show

Previously I mentioned that each cancer patient develops his/her own slew of unique complications from the chemo treatment. For example, some people get eye infections because the chemo seeps into the ducts in their eyes, others get pneumonias because their body can't fight off microorganisms invading their lungs and then there are folks like me that develop skin issues.

Our skin is the largest and heaviest organ in our body. Our skin not only gives us our appearance and shape, but it serves as our first line of defense to protect us from heat, cold, bacteria, viruses, fungi, etc. When your immune system is suppressed, your skin is not as effective in doing its job. Consequently, it is very easy for things to sneak their way into your body and wreak havoc. I developed two major skin infections during my chemo treatment that were extremely painful.

Well I figured since my counts are up now, my skin/immune system is back to normal working order. I've never had any skin problems up until I started chemotherapy, but I am soon learning that I may have to deal with skin issues for a little while longer. :(

Towards the end of my Spain trip in March I started getting small bumps on the right side of my face. I thought they were just zits, but I was suprised how many and how itchy they were. Plus it was weird that they were only on the right side of my face. When I came back to the states I made an appointment and found out that it was impetigo (the wikipedia picture is of a very severe case....mine is 100 times less ugly) caused by a common staph bacteria called staphylococcus aureus. Since we have learned that I am allergic to many to antibiotics the doctor could only give me an ointment. Luckily the bumps went away in a week.

However, I am sad to say that I think I have another breakout of these little suckers. Luckily they are not on my face, but unluckily they are in random patches all over my body (stomach, elbows, arms, etc.). It is soooo itchy. I have an appointment tomorrow to get it checked out. Hopefully we can nip this in the bud asap.

My sister's biology professor mentioned to her that even though my counts are normal it may take some time for my immune system to completely heal. These skin infections are little reminders that maybe I'm not as back to normal as I think I am. ARg.

Khanh Van Vo

Everytime I hear about a new young person in search of a bone marrow donor I just want to throw up my hands and scream "When does it ever end??!?"

Khanh Van Vo is only 22 years old. He is Vietnamese (like me) and was diagnosed with Lymphoproliferative Disorder, a very rare form of blood cancer, in December of 2007. He enjoys fishing, camping and snowboarding. He is currently searching for a donor.

My mom has been doing a weekly Vietnamese radio show about leukemia and bone marrow transplants and she's had the opportunity to work with Khanh's friends and family at a recent marrow drive. This past weekend many of Khanh's friends came out to get registered at the Starbucks drive my mom helped organize (Thanks Starbucks!). There is a big push in the Vietnamese community to get more people registered.

But we still need more help. Please get registered (and convince your friends and family to do it too).

Here are some upcoming drives targeting the Vietnamese community:

April 27, 2008 (Sunday)
St. Maria Goretti Church, San Jose
9-11 am & 3-5 pm

May 4, 2008 (Sunday)
St.Patrick Proto-Cathedral
7:30-10:30 am

birds of a feather, flock together

I've never been much of a blog writer or a blog reader. Ever since I got sick, however, one thing that keeps me inspired and motivated is reading up on other patients whom I found through the AADP website. I have learned a TON by reading their online journals. It makes me feel like I'm not alone. I feel like I am right by their side...smiling, screaming, throwing my hands up, crying and laughing with them as they go through their treatment. Their blogs give me a little window into their wonderful world of chemotherapy which is very different and yet similar to my own. The list of potential effects are the same....nausea, fatigue, hairloss, risk of infections, etc. It's pretty much guaranteed that we all lose our hair, but figuring out which infections or other complications we each develop seems to be the luck of the draw. There are so many types of infections/diseases to choose from when your immune system is suppressed.

The things that we do share in common are love, hope and perseverance.

I thought I'd share my favorites cancer warrior websites. (Some of these sites are old) Everyday I am amazed by how brave, honest, optimistic, intelligent, thoughtful, and amazing these people are.

• Ann Gregory
• Erica Murray
• Help Vinay
• Luke Do
• Match Pia

Reconnecting

One of the best things that have come out of Operation Kill Luke has been reconnecting with my extended family. Although my immediate family is super close, I am sad to say that we rarely keep in touch with our aunts, uncles and cousins. When I got sick, I didn't want to tell them I was sick. I just wasn't ready to share my situation with the world or even family members who barely knew me. I especially didn't want people's sympathy. I felt like if they really cared they would have contacted me before I got sick.

Anyways, my take on this has changed a lot. I really appreciate the fact that when sh*t hit my fan, many of my family members stepped up and supported me. I really admire their courage to reach out. If I was in their shoes I might have felt like it was too weird to reconnect. What do you say to a cousin you haven't seen over 10 years?

I want to take the time to thank a few family members who really touched me (in no particular order).

1. Auntie Diep and my cousin Chi Ha - They were bone marrow drive champions and volunteered at many of my bone marrow drives. They wouldn't take no for an answer and were very effective at getting people to register. Di Diep and Chi Ha have a lot of activities on their plates, but they dropped everything in a heartbeat to help me out.

2. Auntie Lieu and her family - My aunt Di Lieu cooked up a storm while I was in the hospital so I could always have a homecooked meal. Her kids (my cousin) even planned a special brunch so we could have a small reunion.

3. My cousin Marie - Marie lives in Miami and refused to let the distance get in her way of supporting me. She got weekly updates from my dad when I was too weak to talk. She sent me waaaay too many thoughtful gifts to make my treatment go a little more smoothly. She was by far my most persistent fan.

I am also very thankful to all of my other family that volunteered at drives and visited me in the hospital. It's nice to feel loved.

This past weekend I visited Marie, her husband David and their daughter Anna. They made me feel so welcomed and planned a fun filled weekend so I could get a taste of Miami. It was a blast. I can't wait to see them again. I am very grateful that my illness brought us closer together.