Last October, I had a new carcinoma treated by dynamic phototherapy. Yesterday, I had an appointment in dermatology at the Tenon hospital to check if the treatment had some effect on the carcinoma. Although this carcinoma was located on the left temple under hair so not visible, I could “feel” some roughness under my fingers…. So I was confident that the carcinoma was still there.

My doctor told me that I was right. So something should be done to remove it. She first considered removing it by surgery (I had already two removed by surgery), but as it is “a big one ” (the size of a two euros coin), she decided to try before, as a last chance, a new cream I never used before: fluorouracile-containing cream Efudix.

I have to put this cream once a day for a month…Then, I will meet again my doctor to evaluate the evolution. If there is no result, then it will be again surgery… As pointed out by my doctor, it will be “tricky” as it is located next to the one removed before. The “reserve” in skin is not so large so that there might be some difficulties to close the wound… It could be another “free lifting” :-)! Another experience ;-).

Meanwhile, before, I will meet my nice graft doctor to evaluate my situation regarding the steam cells graft…. almost the 5th anniversary!

Last week, on april 22, I visited the Tenon hospital and met with my dermatologist to evaluate the “action” of the new cream on the carcinoma… Well, according to her, it was not clear. It was still kind of “redish” but she did not know if it was coming from the irritating effect of the cream, or just that the carcinoma was still there. So, she decided to make a new biopsy… She will give me the result in a few days. If it is the same carcinoma, I will need a new surgery to remove it…

Last week, I got the answer: it is not a carcinoma! No cancerous cells! Just some “wounded cells from the previous surgery!

So for the first time in years, I am carcinoma free! It is a very good news! Next apointment for a regular check next october…

With love :-)!

After a slow start, the vaccine campaign in France was supposed to speed up. Monday January 18th was the first day when people older that 75 and “at risk people” were supposed to start to receive vaccines. The least we can say is that it has been a difficult task to register to have appointments to get the vaccine… After just a few days, there were so many people interested in getting it that the schedule was full for at least two weeks… It was mainly due to the limited number of doses available…

As “an old collaborator” with the Curie Institute, I was offered the possibility to be vaccinated. I was really happy, until the day before the “day” when I got an email informing me that all the appointments for friday 22nd have been canceled: no vaccines available :-(!

What could I do? Of course, I did not register to other places, as “I was sure” to get the vaccine from my working place… I was left without any possibility to be vaccinated before several weeks, this being optimistic! I was crying…

After discussing with an Italian doctor who worked at Saint Antoine at the time I had the stem cells transplant, she suggested that I might try to contact people at Saint Antoine to ask them if they had any idea “to save me again”… I contacted my best friend at Saint Antoine, i.e. my fantastic graft doctor, who registered me to be vaccinated at the hospital at the end of the second week of February. Again, she saved me! How could I thank her… maybe some chocolates ;-)!

But, 3 days before the scheduled appointment, I got a phone call: appointment is canceled, no vaccine available… I might be contacted again when the vaccines delivery will resume: bad luck. But I stay confident that at some point, I will get it…maybe for the 5th anniversary of my stem cells graft in June. I keep optimistic. I trust my graft doctor.

Last week, I took the chance to contact people at Curie Institute to check if there was any possibility to have the vaccine at Curie. I got an answer, not too optimistic, that I could show up at the Curie Hospital to check if there were some extra doses of Pfizer RNA vaccine left after all the scheduled people, nurses and doctors, had received the shot. The answer was yes, so that I had my first shot of Pfizer vaccine yesterday! So happy!

In three to four weeks, I will need to find a place where I could get the second shot…Saint Antoine hospital or Curie hospital?

I first contacted people at Curie, but after a few days I got a negative answer: no Pfizer vaccine would be available…

I turned back to Saint Antoine, my last chance. After a short discussion (usually they don’t like too much doing only the second shot), I got a positive answer: yes! Saint Antoine hospital doctors are always there when I need them. Love them! The appointment was for tuesday march 23, then wednesday 24th….hope it will work…

Then, unexpectedly, I got an email last week from Curie, with the news: I might get the second shot on Friday 19th. I applied the precept: mieux vaut tenir que courir (half a loaf is better than no bread) and went to curie for the second shot! So now I am fully vaccinated!

In two weeks, I will go to the Saint Antoine Hospital to have the serology to check for the quality of the immune response…

Two weeks ago, I visited the Saint Antoine hospital to have a blood analysis. It was mainly for a serologic analysis of the antibodies against SARS-Cov2. A few days later, I got the results from my kind graft doctor: high level of antibodies detected! Yes! As stated out by my wonderful graft doctor in her mail, it is ” a very good news :-)”!

Before getting the results, I was not 100% confident as I had read in the scientific literature that the response to the RNA vaccine in people who had hematopoietic stem cells transplant was not always optimal… Of course, I forgot that I am “in a special situation”: I am old but my stem cells are young since my donor was a very young lady :-)!

A next step could be to follow the evolution with time of the antibodies … So to be continued!

Love you all!

To be continued…