SPRINGFIELD, IL - State Representative Raymond Poe (R-Springfield) is continuing to recover in Texas after receiving a stem cell transplant to fight myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a blood disease.
Poe's office assistant Vicki Crawford says the representative is doing well and the treatment appears to be working. Poe, now 70, told her he is now producing red blood cells.
After being diagnosed in May, Poe’s treatment has included chemotherapy to wipe out bone marrow including cancerous cells, and implantation of healthy marrow, which produces blood cells. Before traveling to Houston for the transplant, Poe was receiving blood transfusions to offset his low production of red blood cells.
While Poe is in Texas receiving treatment as an out-patient, his office is working with three other lawmakers to cover constituent needs, his office website says. He has served in the Illinois House since 1994.
