Tag: cycle 4

C04D15: CT results.

So I had a CT on C04D11 (Thursday of the second week of the fourth cycle — this now sounds like the specification of a religious holiday). (Also, we don’t start a story with “So I…” Well, I just did.)

Also, I would have posted this earlier, except we went on a holiday… the kind where there is no WiFi, and where there are horses. Like this gorgeous guy:

IMG_1674

CT results are in, and we are HAPPY. (Doctor: “I am happy, that means you should be too.”)

Lymph nodes are generally smaller than they were at the time of my original diagnosis. Although size can still be bigger than normal, this can also be because of some “scarring”, ie. when the cancer cells disappear from the nodes, they still have these scars (fibrous tissue, maybe?), adding some size. Sounds scarry!

Lungs are OK. (We knew before too — I didn’t have any problem with them during treatment.)

Splenomegaly (enlarged spleen) is gone, my spleen is back to normal size — this also means the hypodense areas are now healed too. I can start lifting shit.

My liver is close to OK too: although I didn’t get a chance to process the values, they are “very close to normal” according to my doc, which, considering some of the liver values were almost 20x the normal value back in Apr, is a good thing too. (But again, no details here, yet.)

So what’s next? First of all, Cycle #5. Then, Cycle #6. Then, 4 weeks of returning to normal life. And then: a PET/CT to see them lymph nodes are really the real deal and even if some of them are somewhat bigger still, there is no active lymphoma in them.

So far so good then. For me the two big takeaways are these: my approach to the therapy has been verified as working, and my spleen is back to normal, no risk of a rupture.

To close, a rooster:

IMG_1681

Hb +1.5.

Just received my 900 ml of new blood today. This should bounce my Hb count to healthy levels, +.5 count per pack as I just learned.

Very funny feeling this, when your brain, operating on backup power for the better half (actually, most) of the past week, suddenly starts up and starts processing stuff other than what to eat, get off the couch and go shower, and let’s watch Tropic Thunder and Graham Norton Show.

And now suddenly I want to

  • go cycling (did it the past days, but at the end I was dragging myself a bit)
  • go take photos
  • do work
  • go sit in a cafe

and stuff.

So to put it in another way, at first I was all like

bacon-dancing-spoon-brain-guy-o

and

terminator_aux_batt

But then I

180px-SMB_W1-1_Glitch3

‘d, and now I’m like

roombaporog

 

 

So there. And now: walk!

(That red pic by the way is from Terminator, in case you were wondering. The famous “aux batt” scene, anyone?)

C04D10: fun with the new side effect, and D11 preparations.

My new fun side effect goes by the name Polyneuropathy:

Polyneuropathy or symmetrical polyneuropathy (poly- + neuro- + -pathy) is damage or disease affecting peripheral nerves (peripheral neuropathy) in roughly the same areas on both sides of the body, featuring weakness, numbness, pins-and-needles, and burning pain.

What it comes down to in my case is numbness in my fingertips, more annoying than a real problem. For now, there is nothing to do, this is chemo side effect. Doctor’s advice for now is keeping our eyes open and if it’s getting worse (e.g. I become unable to type or use my phone), dosage will be reduced for the remaining rounds.

 

D11: tomorrow I’ll have a long day. Monday’s results showed anaemia again (C04D08 blood screen: Hb 6.1, Tr 105, Lk 2), so I’m getting blood. I’m doing my normal workouts, but have trouble doing stuff that requires brain, or more precisely: that requires my brain to require oxygen, I guess. I suspect this blogpost is ultra basic too, but I’ll go with the basics happily for now. Like “we watched Tropic Thunder yesterday” basic.

Okay, so here’s the schedule for tomorrow:

  • I start at the Dagbehandeling at 8:30 (ouch), to get myself cyborg’d up (okay, I’ll get a branula for the day), and to do the cross check for blood type (fun fact: they always have to do this before blood transfusion, even if your blood type is obviously known).
  • Then over to CT – this is exciting on its own merit (first time since the start of the treatment to actually see how much progress I’ve made), but I’ll only get results on Monday. CT starts at 10:00 (for thorax; and 10:07 for abdomen), no eating beforehand (boo).
  • After CT, I’ll get to eat something (yay), and then head back to Dagbehandeling, where 3 packs of blood will be waiting for me. Blood transfusion takes 4.5 hours plus tax.

So I’ll basically spend my day at the hospital tomorrow (not thrilled), and there is a chance I’ll have some bone pain starting too (G-CSF week, remember?), but on the other hand, will come back with new blood, and I suspect (from experience) I’ll be in high mode on Friday.

Oh, and: next week we are off to Leidschendam, for a mini holid(y)ay!

C04D01 status: some good news, and some more good news.

First off, C04D01 blood results, my feelings were right about me being in a good state: Hb (red blood cells) 7.4; Tr (platelets): 256; Lk (white blood cells): 5.5. The blood screen of a healthy person! Wbc probably something to do with the G-CSF I shot last Monday (but still good to know I can get it up to a normal value without too much pain), red blood cells and platelets increased on their own significantly during rest week. Yay!

Other piece of good news: I will only have 6 cycles, not 8. Not sure where this comes from (or rather: how could we misunderstand 6 for 8), but now it’s confirmed by two doctors, so I decided to believe it. Yay!

I’ll also have a CT sometime next week (tbc next Monday), to see (or rather: not see) my tumors.

This is how we roll in C04.