Chemo maintenance – end of cycle 6
This week marked the end of my sixth three-week cycle of medication following my bone marrow transplant. In general, all of the following is good news, and there were no surprises. Due to my continued good response and good cyto-genetics (a pick-up line I’m sure Tara uses on men at single’s bars: “Hey there, big fella. I’ll bet you’ve got great cyto-genetics”;-)
My reporting interval to Dr. J and his PA Tara has been extended again, to every three months or four chemo cycles.
I am still feeling great and living a very-near normal lifestyle with only a few restrictions. Still no foreign travel, still being real careful in large crowds, and some new restrictions this summer regarding outdoor activities and landscaping (for example, they don’t want me cutting my own lawn this summer for fear of the dust, pollens, and mold that may get kicked up from the lawn tractor).
The BIGGEST NEWS since my last blog posting is that I have retired. I have always said that I didn’t want to be that guy who works until his 65th birthday and then falls over dead the next day, and this seemed like the right point in my life to transition to being an official “old fart”. My last day with the Burton Group was March 31st. The other BIG NEWS is that Irene has also decided to retire, and her last day of work will be at the end of the school year, June 20th.
NEWS FROM MY CLINIC VISIT
My blood work this cycle shows all key areas to be within normal ranges, although my white cell counts have dropped a little bit. We’ll be watching them closely after each cycle to see if intervention is required.
MEDICATION CHANGES
Acting on recently published research and my complaint of a decline in vision (see Side Effects below) Dr. J decided to discontinue the steroid (dexamethasone) that I had been taking. This will probably improve my white cell count (reported as low in a previous paragraph), and help with the neuropathy and vision side effects.
SIDE EFFECTS
Neuropathy – Earlier medication adjustments substantially improved the neuropathy in my feet to the point where this is a minor issue. The most noticeable symptom of neuropathy is that, at times, it feels like my feet are swollen [when in fact they are not]. The best way to describe this feeling is that it’s like walking on a beach with shoes and socks on and getting sand in your shoes. Painful? No. Weird and a little uncomfortable? Yes.
Vision – This is the first time I am telling you about this side effect, but actually I had experienced it earlier near the end of my pre-transplant chemotherapy. My vision seemed to have gotten worse and my prescription glasses were a little blurry. The cheap reading glasses I used at the computer were no longer strong enough and I had to buy the next-higher optic number to see the screen clearly.
After my transplant and before resuming my drugs in chemo maintenance, my vision improved and things were clearer. The older cheap reading glasses were clear again and I set aside those newer, stronger lenses. But now, after 6 chemo maintenance cycles, the side effect has returned… things are getting blurry again and I find myself reaching for the stronger reading glasses rather than the weak ones. Dr. J thinks that this is caused by the steroid and the medication change mentioned above should correct this problem.
NEXT STEPS
As usual, I have lab/blood work scheduled every 3 weeks (each cycle) for the next few months. Sprinkled in the schedule every 6 -8 weeks are an infusion of bone strengthening drugs (pentamidine) and an anti-pneumonia respiratory treatment (pamidronate). I won’t see Dr. J and his PA Tara for another 10 weeks (July 23rd). So unless there are some dramatic changes [which I think are unlikely] my next blog posting won’t be until late July.
That’s the latest news from Hamburg.
-larry