Hello everyone, 

It has been a while since I have given an update. Until last week, we have been business as usual with the treatment that we began in September. There was not much news to share as things have been going smoothly. Glen has been enjoying school, and has done a great job getting back into a routine in the classroom. 

Last Monday, October 20, we found out that Glen had been accepted into a trial program at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). This program is specifically for T-Cell Leukemia and stems from successful treatment in B Cell Leukemia. We put Glen on the wait-list for this back in September. To begin this program, we needed to determine where Glen’s Minimal Residual Disease (MRD)  levels are, this is the amount of cancer that they find in the biopsy of bone marrow. We had originally planned on waiting until mid-November before checking this for Glen, but CHOP needed this information to move forward. So on October 22, Glen underwent a bone marrow biopsy. We received the results of that back this past Monday, October 27. While we had hoped for better news, his MRD levels have unfortunately increased since the last biopsy. This news was difficult to digest, but I am thankful we have another plan to move forward. 

Glen’s medical team feels that participating in the CAR T-Cell trial is Glen’s best option for treatment, and his dad and I agree. This trial offers a promising approach that could significantly improve his chances at recovery and in a much shorter time frame than other traditional approaches. We will be leaving for Philadelphia on Thursday, November 6th, and our stay is expected to last until sometime during the week of December 15. After this, we will have about a week off, which will fall over Christmas, and then we will move forward with the bone marrow transplant. 

As we  prepare for this next chapter with so much unknown, I want to thank you all for your continued support. We are hopeful that this treatment will be the bridge to get us to transplant to rid Glen of this disease. Please continue to keep Glen and our family in your thoughts as we embark on this journey. 

With love, 

Glen’s Mom (Anna)