Chapter Twenty Four
Destiny
I have been stuck in this place for almost 11 months. 11 agonizing months of chemotherapy, that didn't seem to do anything but make me feel like I had a never-ending flu. School had started and was almost over but because of this stupid cancer my mom decided to homeschool me. Maybe it was for the best. I had lost all my hair. Anna and Lizzy only came on the weekends, again because of school. Luckily because of the iPad they got me, I could facebook them after school, before school and sometimes (shhh) during school. Of course we video chatted all the time. Once school started and they left, I never realized how alone I felt without them. My mom took as much time off work as she could to be here but her boss was still a coldhearted idiot.
Suddenly I heard a knock on my door. My oncologist walked in.
"Hello Ms. Johnson and Destiny. Please sit back down, I'm afraid my news is not good." My mother sat back down onto the sofa.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
"Yeah, what's wrong with me now?" I asked, logging off Facebook.
"I don't have very good news."
"You've said that twice already. What is so horrible? She's already got cancer, what else can be wrong?" My mother stood up, then sat back down again.
"The chemotherapy - we've been trying for almost a year to slow down the progression of your cancer. I don't know why but your body isn't responding to treatment. The chemo isn't helping at all." My mother gasped. I just sat there, a billion thoughts shooting into my head.
"So what? We're just going to let her die?!" My mother exclaimed.
"No of course not! There is another idea we could try. A bone marrow transplant." I remembered from when i was first admitted when they tested for cancer. A bone marrow aspiration and biopsy confirmed what they thought but it was extremely painful.
"What happens during the procedure?" My mom asked.
"Mom - don't ask! I don't want to do that! That last bone marrow thing hurt like crap! I don't want to do that again!" I said.
"Shh Destiny! Just let the doctor explain first!" I sighed and sat back, waiting for him to answer.
"Well first off, you have to choose your donor. Someone close to you in relation, for example, your mother. She will have to be tested to see if she is a close enough match. Then after a number of tests and legalities, we will blast you with heavy doses of chemo and radiation therapy. This is called 'conditioning'."
"More chemo? You DO realize how sick it made me?" I said.
"Yes I understand. But if this bone marrow transplant works, you should go into remission! Anyway, you will be conditioned for about a week. This will make your immune system very very weak. You might have to be put into an isolation room to make sure no pathogens get in. Even the smallest bacterial infection could kill you when your immune system is that low."
"Ok, ok. What happens after?" I asked.
"You will have to stay another 3 months for observation. Weekly blood draws and other tests will be required. After that, if your white cell count goes up and your vitals improve, you can be discharged from the hospital."
"Another three months? Forget it." I turned away from him, knowing what I just chose will inevitably end to my death.
My mom and the doctor and I argued for the next 30 minutes. My mom couldn't believe that I was giving up and the doctor thought I wanted to die. I tried to convince them that it wasn't the case. I wasn't giving up I told them, I just thought we should explore other options. The more I argued, the more I realized I was giving up.
Finally we all came to an agreement. I would stop the chemotherapy - knowing that in 3-6 months the cancer would spread even more and end up killing me. I told them that I don't want to live the rest of my life hooked up to tubes and taking pills that made me sick. I was done. Done with the hospital, done with the stress of sickness. Now they understood.
Two days later I was finally discharged. I video chatted Anna, Lizzy and Damien over Facebook on the ride to the airport. We laughed and cried together. I couldn't believe it! I was going home!
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Hey sorry the last few chapters have been short! I'm trying to get them longer just bear with me! The next few also will be short - sorry! :(
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Teen Fiction"You have Leukemia. It's a type of cancer. With the right treatments, we might be able to rid your body of it. The success rate in children your age is around 76 percent. We did catch it pretty late though." The doctor said. I swallowed. I felt...
