Finishing up Chemo #12

Hi Everyone -

Today is the last day of my 12th chemotherapy. Physically, this one was tough, but mentally it wasn't that bad. I think the fact that therapy is coming to a close makes each of these stays easier, regardless of the physical impact.

If all goes well the turnaround to the next treatment will be short. I have some blood draws and physical therapy over the next week, but could potentially be back in for number thirteen as early as May 7.I'm keeping my fingers crossed that ends up being the case.

I hope everyone has a nice week. Hopefully I'll be posting from the hospital next Wednesday to let you know how #13 is going. Until then, take care!

Alex

Chemo #11 is done

Good afternoon everyone, I hope you all are doing well. I returned from my latest session of chemo yesterday evening. Overall things went well, though they did keep me an extra day due to some concerns about higher than normal levels of creatinine. Essentially, elevated levels of creatinine indicate the kidneys are working harder than they should. Given that the chemo I'm being administered is hard on the kidneys, they felt it best to hydrate me for a day before moving forward. While it's not fun being in the hospital longer than expected, I would prefer the extra day to kidney problems. Luckily, all looked well when I left yesterday.

I'm hoping that all of the chemo treatments and my port-removal surgery will be wrapped up in about 10-11 weeks. That's probably a little optimistic given the larger hit my cell counts are taking from the chemo, which causes delays in the treatment. Still, I'll assume 11 weeks for now and extend the timeline only when necessary. I'm looking forward to getting back to a normal life.

Sam has been a great source of strength through all of this, and Domonick (my 16-year old) is handling the more physically taxing tasks around the house at the moment. They definitely deserve a nice vacation at some point.

The physical therapy I've been doing has done wonders for my left arm. Despite the missing scapula, I can do most of the things I want to at this point. There are still some points of frustration, but due to Sam and a couple of great physical therapists I've come a long way.

I hope you all have a great rest of the week and I will look forward to posting again soon. Until then, take care!

Alex

Chemo update

Hi Everyone -

I just noticed I forgot to post after my 10th chemo treatment was over, so my apologies for the delay. I was in the hospital today getting tested to see if my counts were high enough to start my 11th chemo; unfortunately, they were not. We are now waiting until next Monday to admit me for the chemo. Last week I was not feeling well, but I've been better this week. As such, I was hoping to get chemo out of the way, but we can't always get what we want.

Physical therapy continues to go well. My left arm is no longer hanging, but has a decent amount of strength (about ~70% of where it was before) and reasonable mobility apart from the "butterfly" (i.e., lifting to the side). I think that movement will always be a major issue, but overall I'm quite pleased with the amount I'm still able to do. 

I hope you all are doing well and I will plan on posting as soon as I hear more about my chemo. Take care everyone!

Alex

Chemo 9 down, 5 to go

Hi Everyone -

I apologize for the short length of this post, I've been feeling a little under the weather the last few days.  We finished up the ninth chemo treatment late Thursday, and things went as smoothly as we could have hoped.  Post chemo has been rough, but at least they are simply comfort issues and not health complications.  The next chemo is scheduled for late next week; we'll keep our fingers crossed that we hit that timeframe.

Until next time, take care!

Alex

Chemo Delayed

Hi Everyone -

My chemo, which was supposed to start yesterday, has been delayed until at least Monday due to low counts.  So, I'll likely be in the hospital Monday and Tuesday and will be released on Wednesday.  I'm a little disappointed, but at least the delay is not too long. 

I'll hopefully be posting about my release from the hospital next Wednesday.  Until then, take care everyone.

Alex

Preparing for the next chemo

Hello everyone -

It appears I will be in line to start my next round of chemo on time. My counts were very low Monday, especially my platelets, but things should be ready to go by this Friday. They sent me to the hospital for a transfusion to get the platelets back up, and the medication designed to kick-start my white cells is working well.

I had an Echo yesterday, which confirmed my heart is still fine. The chemo can have a detrimental effect, but so far no issues.  Physical therapy begins on Thursday (assuming my counts are in good shape), so I can finally start working to get some mobility and strength back in my arm and shoulder. Very excited about that.

I hope everyone is doing well. Take care and God bless.

Until next time,
Alex

Eight down, Six to go...

Hi Everyone -

Just checking in to let you all know that I'll be wrapping up my eighth chemo treatment today. I'm officially past the half-way point. Other than being stir-crazy, things have been going well. I've begun physical therapy on my left shoulder in an effort to increase it's strength and mobility. I won't ever have the strength and range of motion I had prior to losing my scapula, but through the PT I should be able to get some of it back.

With the temperature being a balmy 20 degrees today, I can say I'm looking forward to warmer weather.  While I often feel weak and tired on days off from the hospital, there are days when I'm relatively alert and would love nothing more than to get outside and walk, visit of hiking trail, or take Sean to a quiet park.  Hopefully this is our last cold front and we can start moving on to some relatively nice weather.

I hope everyone is doing well.  My next chemo next Friday if all goes well.  I hope to post before then, but if not, take care.

Alex