Wednesday
Feb132013
Chemo Round 44 and The End of Radiation
Wednesday, February 13, 2013 at 9:51PM
I know you guys are big on results and I don’t want to leave you in suspense, so let me cut to the chase: since switching to my new treatment plan of FOLFOX and radiation (for the rogue lymph node in my chest area), my tumor markers are stable and even a tad down. That’s what we like to see. I’ll make sure I keep it up.
And now, without further ado, my thoughts on Chemo Round 44 and the end of my 10-day stint of radiation.
So chemo round 44 wasn’t as easy as most rounds have been. Pre-meds went well, Avastin was a breeze, but when it was Oxaliplatin time (the OX in FOLFOX), my body wasn’t feeling it. Almost immediately, I felt my ears get a little itchy, my face flush, and I knew what was happening: I was having an allergic reaction to the Oxali. It happens, and it happened to me way back during Chemo Round 8. Many patients develop an aversion to Oxaliplatin and need to pump up the Benadryl and slow down the Oxali drip, and some patients have to stop taking the drug entirely. This time around, we decided to hold the Oxali and try again next time. I’m hoping that I can keep keepin’ on with Oxaliplatin, but we’ll need to wait and see. Bottom line is I got most of my drugs on Monday and emerged from my Oxali-incident unscathed. And it’s Wednesday night and I think it’s safe to say that I’ve bounced back from chemo.
And now, radiation. Man, radiation was a breeze. 10 sessions in a row, with weekends off. No problem. I polished off my last session today and kept on rolling. This just goes to show you that chemo and radiation at the same time can be done, and you can keep things moving while doing it. That poor rogue lymph node is toast.
Finally, I’m happy to announce that all the work I’ve been doing with The Wunder Project is almost ready for all of you to see. The countdown is on. Six days until the public unveiling of the most ambitious, most exciting thing I’ll ever do in my life. And that’s saying something because you know I like to do ambitious and exciting things.
SIX DAYS!! Stay tuned, dear readers!!
So chemo round 44 wasn’t as easy as most rounds have been. Pre-meds went well, Avastin was a breeze, but when it was Oxaliplatin time (the OX in FOLFOX), my body wasn’t feeling it. Almost immediately, I felt my ears get a little itchy, my face flush, and I knew what was happening: I was having an allergic reaction to the Oxali. It happens, and it happened to me way back during Chemo Round 8. Many patients develop an aversion to Oxaliplatin and need to pump up the Benadryl and slow down the Oxali drip, and some patients have to stop taking the drug entirely. This time around, we decided to hold the Oxali and try again next time. I’m hoping that I can keep keepin’ on with Oxaliplatin, but we’ll need to wait and see. Bottom line is I got most of my drugs on Monday and emerged from my Oxali-incident unscathed. And it’s Wednesday night and I think it’s safe to say that I’ve bounced back from chemo.
And now, radiation. Man, radiation was a breeze. 10 sessions in a row, with weekends off. No problem. I polished off my last session today and kept on rolling. This just goes to show you that chemo and radiation at the same time can be done, and you can keep things moving while doing it. That poor rogue lymph node is toast.
Finally, I’m happy to announce that all the work I’ve been doing with The Wunder Project is almost ready for all of you to see. The countdown is on. Six days until the public unveiling of the most ambitious, most exciting thing I’ll ever do in my life. And that’s saying something because you know I like to do ambitious and exciting things.
SIX DAYS!! Stay tuned, dear readers!!
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