#camillestrong: I am enrolled at Stanford! (kinda)

Hello all! I am going to try to write a blog post every week, or whenever I get a chance. I feel like it is important to update all my #camillestrong supporters!

Finals are over and I am back at home before school starts again the first week of January! This week has been never ending. Started the week off on Monday by meeting with my fertility specialist with my parents. My doctor was afraid that my egg count would still be low like it was a year and a half ago before I started chemotherapy but we decided to still draw blood and find out if my egg count would be high enough to retrieve eggs before the clinical trial and bone marrow transplant. A year and a half ago, I think my doctor said that my level for that certain hormone (for egg retrieval- but I forgot the name of it) was around 0.1 and they were expecting a 19 year old female to be closer to 2.0… so we were afraid that there was no use in doing the daily shots and freezing my eggs this year unless my blood results showed over 2.0

Unfortunately, we got the call on Wednesday morning that my blood results weren’t high enough and my doctor did not recommend the time, energy and money in freezing my eggs this year. I was heartbroken to hear this news but I know that God will find a plan for me to have children in the future.

Since freezing eggs aren’t going to work, my oncologist and her team decided for me to start treatment for the clinical trial this Monday... December 21 around 11am!! I am going to be getting an infusion for the first drug called brentuximab. This infusion should last about an hour. Then I will get the second drug, nivolumab, on December 28th. Today, my mom and I got to see where I will be getting treatment. My nurse warned me that I am only allowed to have two visitors at a time.. and if anyone visited me for chemotherapy they know that was an issue! I loved having visitors and I always had at least 5 people coming to see me… let’s just say my nurses were constantly frustrated with me but I need my #camillestrong supporters!! I know Palo Alto is a long drive, so we will see how this visitor rule goes :)

My treatment schedule looks like it will be 1 to 2 times a week for the first few weeks to make sure I am feeling and reacting okay to the drugs. Then I will get the two drugs together every other Monday until end of February.

Still haven’t figured out a set plan for Winter Quarter at Cal Poly. I am enrolled in 16 unites (4 classes) and I hope that I can balance both treatment and classes. I need to email my professors over break to see if it is a possibility to be missing Mondays and possibly Tuesdays as I travel back to SLO after treatment.

Throughout this week, my mom and I went to Stanford yesterday and Today for testing before I start treatment on Monday. I have been in contact with my coordinator for the trial so many times that I added him to my list of favorites on my phone! Lol! We have to talk almost every day so that he lets me know when and where my different appointments are around the Stanford campus. Yesterday I went to the wrong place two times because I was so confused. I know I will get used to the campus and schedule during my 4 months of treatment here!

Besides oncology appointments at Stanford this week, my mom also wanted me to meet with my orthodontist to make sure my teeth hadn’t moved since I had braces in 9^th grade. Well, lucky me.. my teeth have moved and I need to start Invisalign for 6 months. Just another medical thing to add to my list but Ill be okay! Just don’t make fun of me if you see me around talking with a lisp :)

Here’s a little bit of information about the trial I will be a part of… I am only 1 of 3 patients at Stanford!!! And 1 of 6 around the country! I think that is pretty cool. http://med.stanford.edu/clinicaltrials/trials/NCT02572167