Cellular-level R and D

By Kat Joyce.   In late July/August, I undertook a very intensive few weeks of solo research and development: working title – having and recovering from a stem cell transplant. My 'residency' took place in hospital – I was in hospital and mostly in isolation for the best part of a month.    A bit of background: I've been a bit quiet this year, and a bit less involved in Tangled Feet productions, because at the end of February I was diagnosed with lymphoma, which is a type of blood cancer. I had become more and more unwell through the January/February lockdown with a load of weird and increasingly alarming symptoms, and  eventually had a scary emergency hospital admission where an xray and a CT scan picked up a large mass which was squashing my heart and lungs. I was diagnosed as Primary Mediastinal B Cell Lymphoma. Somewhat ironically the b-cells in my blood – which are a part of my immune system – had gone rogue and were effectively trying to kill me. It goes without saying that being diagnosed with an aggressive cancer at 41 is completely terrifying and causes your world to shift on its axis.