Wednesday, 30 June 10
An Avastin infusion today completes my treatment for this 3rd recurrent tumor, assuming the MRI scheduled for 09 July 10 is reviewed as clean.
Saturday, 26 June 10
Today is the real deal. Trim
three large Bradford Pear trees, mow the entire 1 acre yard, trim, edge and sweep the property. I ran out of time and energy before I got to the weeding. I am careful
to hydrate during these campaigns. Doing this type of heavy work is a rush, a nice change from sitting behind a computer all day at work.
Aric
and I went to a movie, and on our way back we passed two maroon 1978 Trans AMs driving in formation. I had thought about taking my silver 1976 Trans AM to the theater - I wish I had done so! Maybe we could have compared machines and celebrated our birds.
Wednesday, 23 June 10
The side effects of the Carbo
have faded significantly. I also received word that a test print of my book will be ready soon!
Saturday, 19 June 10
Maximum rest today, because it
is high tide for the Carbo tidal wave. Fatigue levels are high. My appetite is returning to normal.
Friday, 18 June 10
The final day of the anti-nausea
meds. Taking these pills, once per day, prolongs the side effects of the infusion, particularly constipation, but the benefits (good appetite and not
throwing up) are a fair trade off in my judgment.
Thursday, 17 June 10
I am ravenous today, hungry
like there is no tomorrow. This is a typical consequence of the Decadron pre-med I take before the chemo infusion to suppress nausea.
Wednesday, 16 June 10
Good platelet count today, so another Carbo and Avatin infusion was accomplished.
Friday, 11 June 10
My MRI today is clean! There is
one area that the radiologist and I studied and examined repeatedly. It looked mildly, faintly cloudy, as if something might be present, but the little
smudge was not seen in any side view or top view. The radiologist said "the spot is not" and indicated that at some point, you have to call a scan clean or question each and every dot you see, even blood vessels, even the validity of the scan itself. The mini-tumor that was discovered two months was an easy call, but nothing substantive is seen today.
I have noticed a dramatic decrease in the time required to perform a scan since 2004. Back then, about 45 minutes were needed to perform the MRI, and the machine used 4 or 5mm skips, so the entire brain was not covered. Today in 2010, the same procedure takes about 15 minutes or even less (a 66% reduction in time), and there are no unmapped regions! I am in and out in no time with better scans.
Sunday, 06 June 10
Allied troops hit the beaches of Normandy, France, 66 years ago this day in the furtherance of the campaign against Germany. Truly this was the greatest American generation. Next time you see a soldier in uniform, thank him or her for their service to our country. Shake the hand of war veterans, young and old.
Friday, 04 June 10
Surgery to remove
what turned out to be a high grade brain tumor was accomplished on this day 76 months ago. On 04 June 2007, the first recurrent tumor
appeared on the MRI film when I had just reached my 40th monthly surgical anniversary. The beast has made two more comebacks since then; one was defeated in 2009 and I am presently battling the 3rd mini-tumor. Three successively clean scans
are required to be able to declare victory over any given tumor. The first clean scan was received in June, and my next scan will be in
two weeks.
Wednesday, 02 June 10
My bi-weekly Avastin infusion was accomplished today without incident. CBC figures look good too.
Tuesday, 01 June 10
Memorial Day - a time to remember those who gave their lives in the defense of our country. I sometimes stop a person in uniform, shake their hand and extend my thanks for serving our nation. I look for opportunities to thank a soldier publically.
