Judge Recovering From Bone Marrow Transplant

He’s not out of the woods yet, but Superior Court Judge Frederick A. Jones is recovering well after undergoing a bone marrow transplant earlier this week.

“He’s fine; everything’s proceeding as planned,” said Lana Jones, the judge’s wife. “He’s very, very strong and doing, I think, as well as can be expected.”

Jones, who recently presided over the high-profile trial of convicted killer Diana Haun, was diagnosed with leukemia in 1994.

The 54-year-old jurist had hoped to avoid a bone marrow transplant to treat his illness, but doctors told him late last year the risky procedure was necessary to fend off the disease.

Jones took an extended leave of absence from the court in December. He was scheduled to begin treatments at UCLA Medical Center right after Christmas, but the procedure was postponed after he came down with a cold.

Last week, Jones began three days of radiation and two days of chemotherapy treatments, which precede a bone marrow transplant. The actual transplant occurred Tuesday when he received his younger brother’s bone marrow, which had been frozen and stored.

“It’s a good match,” said his wife, a language specialist in the Ventura Unified School District. She said doctors won’t know for several days whether the judge’s body will reject the new cells.

During the coming months, Jones will remain in a special medical ward to protect against infection. He previously told reporters that he expects to remain at the Westwood medical center for four to six months.

If he responds well to the treatments, he will be allowed to return to his Santa Paula-area home, he said. He hopes to return to the courthouse and resume work later this year.

“We’ll just have to wait and see,” said Sheila Gonzalez, executive officer of the Ventura County courts. “We think the world of him and want him to get well.”

Vince Ordonez Jr., assistant executive officer of the courts, agreed that the next 14 days will be significant in gauging the success of the transplant, and he should know. Ordonez underwent a bone marrow transplant at UCLA almost two years ago to treat cancer. He even had the same doctor.

“After you go through the first six days of heavy chemo, it wipes out your immune system,” Ordonez said. “You are basically left helpless because you are susceptible to anything.”

The transplant itself is similar to a blood transfusion, Ordonez said. In the days that followed his own procedure, the medical staff at UCLA posted a chart in his room to gauge the new production of cells, he said.

“On the day you are having the transplant,” he recalled, “they come in and sing ‘Happy Birthday,’ because it’s like starting a new life.”

Ordonez said he is now in remission from the cancer but must still go to UCLA every three months for testing.

Away from the courthouse, Ordonez counsels cancer patients who are about to go through the same procedure. He has not spoken to Jones, he said.

“He is a very private person,” Ordonez said, adding: “For me it was very difficult to talk about my illness prior to the transplant.”