I am looking forward to a year of no seizures. We are still adjusting the anti-convulsant medication and the addition of Lamictal has helped. I had my last appointment with my neurooncologist for the year.
Avastin seemed to be a drug free of side effects, but that may not be the case. My blood pressure has been elevated the last couple of visits to the doctor's office and I am usually someone with textbook pressure - 120/80. I never have high blood pressure. I asked my chemo nurse whether any of the drugs I was taking can elevate blood pressure and she immediately replied "Avastin." I will now have to take my blood pressure a couple times a day for a couple weeks and see if this elevation is going to be a regular thing. If so, I could either continue taking Avastin and possibly take drugs to lower my blood pressure or stop taking Avastin.
My blood counts were all good. I have a five-day round of oral chemotherapy with Temodar to begin this evening. It's never fun, but it's not that painful either. I like to eat at night and you have to take Temodar on an empty stomach. It's only five days though.
Having no more seizures is one of my goals for the new year. It's not like I have control over it though.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Sunday, December 20, 2009
12.15.2009 - A Day in the Emergency Room
My wife and I spent all of 12.15.2009 in the emergency room. I woke up and had a partial seizure and then a migraine headache. I have been having more migraine headaches recently. My prescribed pain medication didn't do the trick. It had been two hours with no pain relief. My doctor wanted me to come to the emergency room as soon as possible. We found people to watch our children and my wife took me to the emergency room at the hospital that my doctor is affiliated with. We have a hospital only three miles away, but that isn't the one my doctor is affiliated with.
Service in the emergency room was SLOW. I guess only those people spurting blood out or who came in via ambulance get fast service. My migraine headache was finally gone after five hours had passed from the time I took the oral pain medication that morning. A MRI scan revealed that the tumor was stable and unchanged. We are trying to work on dealing with the seizures and adjusting medications until I don't have any more break through seizures.
Service in the emergency room was SLOW. I guess only those people spurting blood out or who came in via ambulance get fast service. My migraine headache was finally gone after five hours had passed from the time I took the oral pain medication that morning. A MRI scan revealed that the tumor was stable and unchanged. We are trying to work on dealing with the seizures and adjusting medications until I don't have any more break through seizures.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
11.11.2009 - Good Scan, Yet Had A Seizure
I had a MRI today and the scan went well. No new growth and things would seem to be going well, but I had a seizure recently and that set me back a bit. The doctor adjusted my medication in response to it and I now I can't drive for a while. It is very frustrating to be prevented from driving. This tumor is making me angry. I am sick and tired of problems from this. Why is this thing in my life anyway? What am I supposed to learn from this experience? I think it is time for someone else to take a turn with the evil tumor and give me a break from it for the remainder of my life.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
10.26.2009 - A Bad Night
Since stopping intravenous chemotherapy, I have still continued with oral chemotherapy consisting of Temodar for five nights every three weeks or so. The last of the five nights from this most recent round was Sunday night and it didn't go so well. Usually, I just experience discomfort from the constipation that Temodar causes and the inability to eat in the evening, which I often do. You are supposed to take Temodar on an empty stomach and wait a couple hours after eating before you take it.
Sunday night, I ate a decent size dinner and then a little later took my evening pills. I always take Levetiraceta (generic Keppra) each day to prevent seizures and I take my nightly dose with Ondansetron (generic Zofran) on the nights that I have to take Temodar to prevent nausea, which almost never happens (the nausea). I took the Temodar when I meant to take the other pills and then when it was time for bed and I probably would have had an empty stomach, I took the other pills.
At 0200 hours, I woke up and felt sick. I hoped it would pass, but it didn't. I went to the bathroom and perched myself over the toilet and vomited. I didn't think that this small error would cause that to happen. I am tired of all these drugs and perhaps it is time to stop taking Temodar. When I went to the doctor's office on Wednesday, 10.21.2009, and had IV Avastin and started nightly Temodar, my blood counts were lower than was expected but okay to proceed. The next visit will be a consult with the doctor an a MRI. How much more chemotherapy, even oral chemo, can my body take?
Sunday night, I ate a decent size dinner and then a little later took my evening pills. I always take Levetiraceta (generic Keppra) each day to prevent seizures and I take my nightly dose with Ondansetron (generic Zofran) on the nights that I have to take Temodar to prevent nausea, which almost never happens (the nausea). I took the Temodar when I meant to take the other pills and then when it was time for bed and I probably would have had an empty stomach, I took the other pills.
At 0200 hours, I woke up and felt sick. I hoped it would pass, but it didn't. I went to the bathroom and perched myself over the toilet and vomited. I didn't think that this small error would cause that to happen. I am tired of all these drugs and perhaps it is time to stop taking Temodar. When I went to the doctor's office on Wednesday, 10.21.2009, and had IV Avastin and started nightly Temodar, my blood counts were lower than was expected but okay to proceed. The next visit will be a consult with the doctor an a MRI. How much more chemotherapy, even oral chemo, can my body take?
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
09.09.2009 - The End of IV Chemo
Yes, it is real this time...it is the end of intravenous chemotherapy for me. I had a MRI scan of my brain this morning, as I usually do every eight weeks and the scan showed no new growth or activity in the residual tumor tissue. After I have the scan each time, I always see my neurooncologist and we discuss treatment and where to go from here.
He invited me to do eight more weeks of chemo to bring me to the end of October, but I declined. He invited me to try etopicide in oral form, but I declined. I said I was willing to continue taking temodar and he was perfectly alright with that. The present plan is to do my five-day temodar regimen every three weeks accompanied by one 30-minute avastin session at his office. Avastin is not chemotherapy. It doesn't make me sick, it doesn't make me drowsy, it just helps slow the growth of rapid growth cells.
I was doing five-day temodar sessions each time I had intravenous chemotherapy, which was usually every four to six weeks. Temodar is taken orally before bed. I will need to go into his office to have my blood counts checked every week and a half and we'll see if doing it at three-week intervals works out.
Both Carissa and I carefully considered this decision and prayed a lot about it and we feel it is the right decision. Haven't I done enough chemotherapy? I think so. I should miss less work, feel better, be able to grow my hair back, and spend less time with a needle in my arm.
He invited me to do eight more weeks of chemo to bring me to the end of October, but I declined. He invited me to try etopicide in oral form, but I declined. I said I was willing to continue taking temodar and he was perfectly alright with that. The present plan is to do my five-day temodar regimen every three weeks accompanied by one 30-minute avastin session at his office. Avastin is not chemotherapy. It doesn't make me sick, it doesn't make me drowsy, it just helps slow the growth of rapid growth cells.
I was doing five-day temodar sessions each time I had intravenous chemotherapy, which was usually every four to six weeks. Temodar is taken orally before bed. I will need to go into his office to have my blood counts checked every week and a half and we'll see if doing it at three-week intervals works out.
Both Carissa and I carefully considered this decision and prayed a lot about it and we feel it is the right decision. Haven't I done enough chemotherapy? I think so. I should miss less work, feel better, be able to grow my hair back, and spend less time with a needle in my arm.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
08.16.2009 - A Hard Week Post-Chemo
This recent round of chemotherapy came too close to the last one. This week, my hair has been falling out, which always happens with the Taxol, but it usually happens a week or two before the next round of chemo, not at the same time or after. I did okay at work the day after chemo, but on Wednesday, August 12, 2009, I stayed at work for two and a half hours and left to go home for the day. I have needed extra sleep all week long. It has been harder than usual after this round of chemo.
Monday, August 10, 2009
08.10.2009 - Yet Another Round of Chemo
On 08.10.2009, I had yet another round of chemotherapy. One of our relatives that lives in the area watched the kids for the morning and early afternoon while my wife took me to the doctor's office to have chemo. I like to compare chemo to lethal injection. If I had enough of it, I am sure it would kill me. If I were ever sentenced to death by lethal injection, I might just lay there and laugh because I was immune to the poison.
This round came pretty quick after the last one, less than four weeks since 07.16.2009. My blood counts were up high enough to permit it and the schedule generally is a round of chemo every four to six weeks. I am hoping that IV chemo will be eliminated at the two year mark, which would be October 2009. That is the goal that my neurooncologist was aiming for and I know I can make it until then. If he asks me to do more once we get to that point, I think I will decline the offer.
I don't feel too bad right now. I had etopicide, taxol, and avastin and the session went from 0900-1300 hours today. My hair is presently falling out, which always used to happen a couple weeks before getting a new round of taxol. Without BCNU in the program, my blood counts spring back faster. Getting a shot of Neulasta stimulates my bone marrow to produce more white blood cells and helps a lot. I will get that shot next week when I go in to have my blood counts checked.
This round came pretty quick after the last one, less than four weeks since 07.16.2009. My blood counts were up high enough to permit it and the schedule generally is a round of chemo every four to six weeks. I am hoping that IV chemo will be eliminated at the two year mark, which would be October 2009. That is the goal that my neurooncologist was aiming for and I know I can make it until then. If he asks me to do more once we get to that point, I think I will decline the offer.
I don't feel too bad right now. I had etopicide, taxol, and avastin and the session went from 0900-1300 hours today. My hair is presently falling out, which always used to happen a couple weeks before getting a new round of taxol. Without BCNU in the program, my blood counts spring back faster. Getting a shot of Neulasta stimulates my bone marrow to produce more white blood cells and helps a lot. I will get that shot next week when I go in to have my blood counts checked.
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