October 1, 2026
I’ve had a couple of encouraging developments over the past few days as the possibility of a stem cell transplant begins to feel a little less theoretical and a little more real.
Earlier this week, I received a call from the donor-search specialist at MD Anderson who is working on my case. The search is being conducted through a worldwide donor registry, and so far they have identified one likely unrelated donor who is a 9-out-of-10 match for me.
They had previously identified a 10-out-of-10 match, but when that person was contacted, they decided not to proceed with the donation. That is, of course, entirely their decision to make. The search team is continuing to look worldwide for other 10-out-of-10 matches while also identifying backup donors in case something happens with the current 9-out-of-10 candidate.
So nothing is final on the donor side yet, but knowing that a promising candidate has already been identified is very encouraging.
Then today I received another piece of good news: Cigna has formally approved MD Anderson’s request for an unrelated-donor allogeneic stem cell transplant.
That does not mean the transplant is happening anytime soon, or that a date has been set. I still need to continue responding to treatment, reach the point where my doctors believe I am ready, and complete a number of other steps before a transplant can take place. On the current schedule, the earliest I would expect the transplant to occur would be sometime in late spring or early summer of 2027.
But this is a significant hurdle to have cleared. A transplant and all of the medical care surrounding it can potentially cost $1 million or more, so this is not just another routine insurance authorization. It could ultimately represent a seven-figure benefit decision.
There is another reason the approval is particularly meaningful to me. I have been strongly advised to maintain the private insurance coverage I have through my wife. My understanding is that if I were relying solely on Medicare, coverage for this particular transplant in Texas could be a problem, and I might have to travel to another state where different Medicare coverage rules apply. That makes having Cigna’s authorization in place especially important.
Coming just a few days after my oncologist told me that I am “marching firmly” toward remission, it feels as though several pieces of this very complicated puzzle are beginning to move into place.
There is still a long road ahead. I have to get into remission, the donor situation has to be finalized, and there are many other medical steps before transplant. But this week brought two pieces of genuinely encouraging news: a likely donor has been identified, and the insurance authorization is in place.
For now, I’m very happy to put a check mark next to those.
Related: Transplant | Treatment Timeline | Journal
