A Big Day

I thought this post deserved a new Pill Art offering!

Yesterday was a big day in the CF world.

Remember this time last year, when I blogged about a new drug that had the potential to help me become "Almost Normal"?

Yesterday, the FDA granted approval to Kalydeco, the brand name for the drug formerly known as VX-770.

I can't even begin to describe what a big deal this is. In all honesty, my brain can hardly process it. It's quite likely that I won't personally get on it right away—besides the huge question of whether or not our insurance will actually cover it (since the drug will cost nearly $300,000 a year, one of the highest price tags of anything on the pharmaceutical market to date), there are a couple of reasons it might not be the best idea for me to start it immediately—but I hope to do so before too long. And when I do?

My hopes are high. This new drug is by no means a cure, and the jury's still out on how much it will actually change my day-to-day care routine, but it's opening up possibilities I've never even dared to consider before. A life that is less ruled by hospitalizations and the fear of the next big cold. A life that goes well past age forty. The chance that maybe that double lung transplant I've always considered to be a certainty in my eventual future will no longer be necessary. These are things I've never allowed myself to put too much thought into, never allowed myself to really even hope for.

I have no idea what the future will bring, any more than anybody else. But I can say this: After yesterday, I'm more excited to face it than ever.