Hey kids, as I prepared to write this post, I reviewed some of the past ones and I have to say that it feels really good to finally have some good news. Seriously, there were about two months there that I had absolutely NO good news whatsoever. And since Marye's been feeling better lately, incrementally, reading those earlier posts reminds me of how bad things looked and how much has changed lately.
Ok, on to the update... Marye had her third chemo treatment yesterday (Thursday). Like the last one, she took steroids beforehand. These were NPO (oral), vice the IV ones three weeks ago. In any event, as we were sitting in the waiting room at the clinic yesterday, they kicked in, and Marye turned into a Chatty Kathy. I have had very little exposure to steroids in my life, but apparently there really is something to them. She wasn't lifting weights or running a four-minute mile, mind you. But there is a marked increase in her energy level when she takes them. Anyway, they took her blood, and everything looks great. Her white blood cell count is good, her red blood cell count is good. Hemoglobin, bilirubin, potassium: all good. But the biggest news was her tumor markers were way down. Last month, her CA 27.29 levels were around 1480. The doctor says that they're happy if the marker levels go down by 100 each month. But on Thursday, Marye's markers were down to 946. That's about a third. So, remember, she's been taking chemo and we've been waiting to see if it's been effective on the cancer tumor. Since the CT scan usually follows the tumor markers, we're expecting a big improvement in the size of the tumor.
Supporting this hope is the fact that Marye is experiencing a lot less nausea and fatigue, although that is still a major issue. I guess the best way to describe it is to understand that the fatigue that you and I feel as healthy people is not the same as a cancer patient. Their fatigue is deep-seeded and profound. When a chemo recipient gets tired, it's like hitting a brick wall and there is just no coming back until the next day, at best. We can be walking through a grocery store, and I will literally see her start to slow down and her mind gets foggy. It's then that I know that she's done for the day and I will park her on a bench while I finish shopping. However, she's been doing a lot of laundry and other household duties, which makes her tired most evenings, even if we don't go out. Sometimes, when she's all spun up on the steroids, I think of taking her out to some stores to walk her around and wear her out, like you might take your dog to the park and throw a ball for an hour or so.
In any event, Dr. Riley was thrilled to see her yesterday and I'm happy to realize that she's looking much better than she was a month ago. So the CT scan is on the 17th of November. After that we'll know for sure if the chemo is working on the tumor. Her next chemo is on the 22nd of November, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. At least she'll be able to eat, even if she can't do much cooking. One negative side-effect she's having is the pain from the Neulasta shots that I give her after the chemo. If it weren't for that, the chemo would almost not be a negative experience, at all. But she takes Tylenol, and that seems to help. I'll post an update on that sometime next week.
The only other prolem she's having is some is some neuropathy, meaning her hands and feet are feeling a little numb and tingly. I've heard of this before, but I underestimated how bad it can me. Well, apparently it can turn into a pretty serious condion. The doctor told her to take some B-6 to counteract it, so we'll see how it works. Anyway, in short, Marye is feeling much better than she has in the past few months. The chemo is not kicking her ass like it could, and her blood tests are all indicating that she's doing well. The CT scan on the 17th should confirm that, and, of course, I'll let you all know.
