Steady as She Goes

I've been on a routine and things are going fairly well. I had my 4th straight "good number" with the CEA reading, so I think we are going to stay on this schedule for a while. I go in every other Tuesday and have the pump on until Thursday when I get "disconnected". I still get neuropathy from the chemo, but it isn't too bad. As a matter of fact, I was able to swim today at Barton Springs (for a little while).

Something is Working!

I've had five sessions in a row now, and things seem to be working well. I had a CT scan on Monday and the results were good - a decrease in size of the "multiple liver lesions suggesting response to therapy" and "no additional evidence to suggest progression of metastatic disease". My CEA numbers have also dropped four sessions in a row, to its lowest level in a year. I think the new doctor's aggressive treatment is working! I'm trying not to get overly excited about this because they still can't "cure" me, but any good news like this is very welcome indeed!

They tried to make me go to rehab, I said "No, no, no"!

Actually I said "Yes". I started a program at Seton for cancer patients who are experiencing fatigue after chemo treatments. It's a study that started out from the Lance Armstrong Foundation and now is a State program and Seton received a grant. They take patients like me and run them through an exercise program over the course of 3 to 6 months to tell if it will reduce fatigue. I think the results are obvious; if you exercise, your fatigue will decrease. The cool thing about this is that I basically have a personal trainer now twice a week - for FREE!

Back in the Saddle Again

I had my first treatment in a long time today, and I'm glad to be back. The doctor is going to give me a shot for the white blood cells on Thursday when I get my pump disconnected, so we're hoping that won't be a problem anymore. You never know.

It's been a while - I'm feeling very tired, and that metallic taste in my mouth, and the sensitivity to cold... but I'm still happy we got it done. Time to kill some cancer cells!

New Doc, New Treatment, 19th Nervous Breakdown

I had a nervous breakdown yesterday. I was going to say I almost "lost it" but I actually did lose it. It was when UnitedHealthcare did not approve a CT scan my new doctor requested. I don't know why they did not approve it - I've already had two of them done at the same place. I'm getting convinced that they will deny any claim, no matter what. I'm fighting them on several fronts - they still claim a common drug used for colorectal cancer I received is "experimental". They want me to pony up $7500 for each of six treatments. I'm not sure how much that is but I know I don't have that much in my savings account.

The CT scan was finally approved after about 4 hours on the phone and I'm going in this morning. It's important that it gets done today so the doctor can review it this afternoon and we can start treatment next week. I haven't had treatment in several weeks and my markers are going up, so I'm ready to get back on track.

The good news is that I really like my new doctor and she is ready to get aggressive with the new treatment. So we're going to get after the cancer - now I need to work on my mental health!

Easter Weekend

It's been a nice Easter weekend. John and Elsie are in town and we had a huge Easter feast today. Yesterday I actually went swimming - if only for a very short time. I've been avoiding the pool because one of the side effects from the chemo is a hyper-sensitivity to cold. For a few days after treatment, I can't drink anything cold and if I touch something cold I get a tingling and numb feeling in my fingers. It's very uncomfortable and a dip in Barton Springs is out of the question. Fortunately, it doesn't last forever and after last treatment it didn't seem so bad.

I have another treatment this week (provided my white blood cell count is high enough). I also have an appointment with the surgeon and he's going to check out the tumor once again. I'm not really looking forward to the week, but I really enjoyed this weekend.

The Lab

Almost every time I go to the doctor's office I have to first go to the lab, where they take your blood and have it analyzed before treatment. I went in today expecting treatment, but because my white blood cell count is low again, I'm going to wait another week before treatment. At first I was concerned but the doc says this happens and not to worry. That's fine by me, it's not like I enjoy the infusions. He said we may have to go on a different schedule - every three weeks instead of every other week. As long as my numbers stay steady we can do that. That's just fine with me!