Pelotonia: I need your help!

Alright kids. 

I did it. 

I registered to be a 2012 Pelotonia virtual rider!

And I'm looking for your help! 

First, things first. What is Pelotonia?
If you've been around these parts for a while you probably already know what it is. For those of you who are new or are not from the Ohio area you may have no idea what I'm talking about.

Pelotonia is an annual bike ride put on each year (this will be the 4th year) to raise money for cancer research. All proceeds are given directly to the James Comprehensive Cancer Center, but you'll read more about that below.

Who I'm Riding for?

I am riding for my Mother-in-Law (Kev's Stepmom) Lynn.

Lynn with Amanda & Megan (my beautiful sisters-in-law)!

Earlier this year, the Feb/March time frame Lynn was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma.
Multiple Myeloma is a cancer of the plasma cells, white blood cells, in your bone marrow.

Source: bing.com via Monica on Pinterest

Most people that are diagnosed with this type of cancer are older, like in their 70's, but more and more people in the 40-50 age ranges are starting to be diagnosed as the awareness of this type of cancer and cancer in general is rising.

Lynn was having some back and hip pain issues. She'd had them for a while, but also attributed it to something else. She finally couldn't take it and went to the hospital and they started running tests.

It took a couple days and several tests for them to feel confident in diagnosing her with this type of cancer, as it can look like other types of cancers depending on the tests that are run. 

It was a rough couple of weeks for the family to say the least. We were all very worried and upset, but we know Lynn is a fighter, and they always say it's all about attitude!

The O'Dell/Ringley's at Lynn's benefit in March.

Lynn went through the appropriate steps of hospital visits, testing, and has undergone a full round of chemo. She had a one week on, two weeks off type of situation. So it was a steady stream of hosiptal visitis for several weeks. 

 

Luckily she responded very well to the initial round of chemo and was put into a remission status.

However, to get her into a more concrete remission status, she currently is in the hospital after a super dose of a chemo and a healthy plasma transplant. As this blast of chemo has wiped out her immune system she has had to stay in the hospital for three weeks to ensure she does not get an illness (even the most common of bacteria) that could make her very sick, or even kill her as she's missing all of the fighting antibodies our bodies would normally have. 

After several...and I mean hours worth...of ice-ies to prevent thrush due to chemo her tongue got a litttle blue.

  Once her three weeks are up she is going home but has to be on a very strict regime when it comes to the foods she eats and the activities she partakes in - including not being able to touch her own dogs due to bacteria they carry.

I contribute a lot of Lynn's success to the James Cancer Hospital and Reserach Department. They have kept her very comfortable and, although it's not a cure, they have given her a regime that seems to be working extremely well. 

I think it's great to note that Lynn's type of cancer treatment has been directly affected by research done at the James. They discovered that myeloma patients no longer have to worry about getting healthy marrow from an outside marrow donor, but the cancer patients themselves are able to use their own healthy marrow to regenerate their own white body cells. That means there is very, very low risk of rejection and infection, and a lot let pain for the patient and an outside donor. 

(this doesn't mean that donated marrow is still not needed at times for this and other illnesses, but it's a great start!)

So all this being said I'd love all your help and support being a virtual rider.

No matter the size of your donation, 100% of your tax-deductible contribution goes directly to cancer research at the James Comprehensive Cancer Center (The James Cancer Hospital) and Solove Research Institute. The James is one of only 40 centers in the United States designated by the National Cancer Institute as a Comprehensive Cancer Center, and is a national leader in creating and testing new therapies based on scientific research, many of which are offered nowhere else in the world. Also, know that Limited Brands, the company I work for, will match whatever I raise 100% so the more donations I can get, the more donations the overall. Any donation is greatly appreciated.

If that story wasn't enough for you, I'll add some comic relief with a video that my co-worker John made. 

You can also see Kev and I as a couple of the extra's! See if you can find us :)

 

You can find my rider profile here: Pelotonia Virtual Rider Profile: Megan O.

Happy Thursday :)