I just finished my chemo session and it went well. There is lots of time to think while I sit there doing nothing except being the receiver of a chemical concoction (that I have found out is out of this world expensive). This time I got a little smarter - I took my IPOD and cranked up the worship tunes. A friend gave me CD of Alvin Slaughter's "God Can" album and wow! for those of you who are into praise music this CD is awesome.
We praise the Lord for life and each day we have. We received great news yesterday as we visited with the oncologist. The cancer marker (benchmark) dropped from 461 to 144. Now I don't claim to understand anything except this is great news per the Dr. I talked to the nurse today to try to get a layman's understanding and basically I think this reflects an enzyme count that is put out by the cancer cells. Healthy people who don't smoke should have less than 2.5. My Dr. isn't concerned about the bottom number - he was wanting to see that the number was dropping. That means the treatment is working!
Other reality facts that came up in the discussion (you know, reality is not an option but I prefer fantasy...denial...). For those have asked I am on a Folfox-6 plus Avastin treatment. Its working. I'll continue to see the Dr. every 4 weeks with chemo every 2 weeks. No surgery is scheduled - because for folks that have "too numerous to count cancer spots on the liver" such as I do surgery of the primary site is not considered to be a priority. The only reason surgery would be planned would be if the colon became constricted or I was passing blood. And I am suffering none of those symptoms at this time.
Life expectancy for those who have colon cancer that involves the liver like my case is 2 to 2 1/2 years. Some have made it 5 years. Others of course don't make it 2 years. But the good news is the science of colon cancer continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Of course, we trust the Lord and all the prayers for complete healing.
Now I have some things to do to help the healing along. The Dr. wants me to exercise more - even on the days I have the pump attached to me at home. So Sandy and I will "hit the dusty trail" more now and get the walking routine increased.
We discussed optional opinions and treatments at MD Anderson (Dallas) and National Cancer Institute (Bethseda). Mayo was also discussed. None of those are really an option until I quit responding to the current treatment. And as I understand it at some point (8 months to 1 1/2 years) my body will begin to resist the current treatment and we'll have to switch to a different program.
You see - what I have is "treatable" but not "curable". Hmmm,,,,,that brings a guy up short. It makes me think all kinds of things: selfish bucket list items, grief for failures to accomplish certain dreams, determination to launch a successful new business venture, spiritual goals and people goals. I don't claim to have it all sorted out - because it seems that daily life (financial affairs, health management, family and church activities) is consuming all my energy.
Speaking of energy - I have been asked to join a clinical trial on fatigue. To steal Sarah Palin's colloquialism my response is "YOU BETCHA' ". Sign me up. The fatigue factor is a real drain. I'll think of something I want to do and 1/2 hour later I am still sitting in the chair waiting for the old body to get the message that its time to get moving! So this clinical trail has something to do with ginseng. Nuts, I'll probably get the placebo....
My Dr. recommended the following sites: http://www.uptodate.com/patients/index.html and http://www.cancercenterofkansas.com/
So stay tuned while we figure this out. We have good days and bad days. But the Dr. says I'll be much stronger is 3-4 months. And he said I was much stronger this time (we all realize I was one sick puppy the last time I saw him - that rascally colon cancer sneaked up on me and just about had me on the ropes).
Gary
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