I actually got to sleep about 15 minutes later than I had last week, so I got up and moving at about 6:15am. I ended up leaving the house at around 8:20am.
9:30am - Infectious Disease Consultation TC (
This appointment was pretty simple though I wasn't really sure what all would be involved with this meeting. I thought it was going to be geared more towards my culturing MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphlococcus Aereus), but it was not.
The doctor came in and talked to me a little about whether or not I had been exposed to TB - which according to my test results from last week the answer to that is NO. Then he asked how often I am admitted, he asked what bacteria I culture and about drug allergies and such. He also told me that from his perspective I would be a GOOD candidate for transplant because I HAVE been exposed to all of the viruses that they WANT me exposed to - meaning I have all of the antibodies for those things - and I have NOT been exposed to the things they do NOT want me exposed too. The things that they want me to have been exposed to are EBV - Epstein Barr Virus, CMV - Cytomegalovirus and Chicken Pox. He said that those viruses can be potentially deadly in a person post transplant if they have NEVER been exposed to them before. He really emphasized that with Chicken Pox. He said there was a vaccine that could be given for chicken pox now, but if there had been NO exposure to chicken pox pre-transplant and a person were to catch it they could find themselves in a desperate situation.
At this appointment I asked him the following:
Is it possible for me to get a MRSA infection in other parts of my body when I am transplanted - with my lungs being removed and the bacteria being exposed to other areas of my body?
Yes - He said that in any situation where a person cultures bacteria and the bacteria has the opportunity to be in contact with other areas of the body it is POSSIBLE. He also said that it is unlikely, but still it is possible. They closely monitor all patients post transplant in the event that did happen. There are ways to treat such things - though he did say that in a small - very small - percentage of cases sepsis can occur if the infection is not identified.
I asked them what drugs/antibiotics they would treat me with post transplant because at the very least I would be taking something initially.
His response is that since I am able to take Cipro they would most likely prescribe Cipro and some other drugs within the same family.
He also said that often times with Cystic Fibrosis patients they have problems post transplant with their sinuses re-infecting their lungs. He said that is something that we would need to closely monitor. He said in many instances it can be controlled but because in most cases the bacteria in our lungs is also in our sinuses as well we will need to be careful. He also said that in that instance it may require antibiotics, but the problems that we have with ongoing lung infections now - with CF diseased lungs - would not be as much of an issue and the infection could be handled and treated much easier than it is now.
11:00am - Psychiatry Consultation:
This appointment was simple too. We got there at about 11:25am. I had to fill out a form that asked a bunch of questions. Then once I completed that they called me back.
I talked to the psychiatrist for about an hour or so. She was great. She was easy to talk to and just asked about my interests, school, if I worked - where I had worked, my personal life. She asked how I felt about transplant, if I was ever diagnosed with depression, if I had anxiety, if I had ever taken any medication for either.
1:40pm - Radiology Mammogram:
I was dreading this appointment and turns out I dreaded it for no reason. I went through the motions, but when it came time for the actual test the tech said I was too young to need this done. They talked to the radiologist and then sent me on my merry way without having the test done.
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