Saturday, June 10, 2017

Happy 50th !

This week, I completed "Cycle 50" on my current chemo regime. That is 21 days per cycle with visits to Dana Farber on Days 1 & 8, chemo pills on  days 1 - 15 and then six break days. Apparently, I am the person who has lasted the longest on this regimen by a large margin. Lets hope I can keep it going.

There is nothing particularly new to report, but it has been a while since the last update and I have had a couple of people ask. And I can report that not much has changed - which is good. The worst side effect is that I still get pretty bad leg cramps - especially at night. And sometimes during the day, I get hand cramps and rib cramps. (Who ever heard of "rib cramps"?)

There is another side effect which delicacy prevents me from discussing, but I will say that I now carry Imodium with me.

Still, people that I run into tell me that I "look good". I can't help but notice that nobody ever tells me that I am "good looking".

All these side effects are quite tolerable. The thing that bothers me more than anything is that I now have some very minor pains in my back. I worry because these are rather new and that they could be signs of what I call "bone rot". Perhaps the doctors have some Latin name for this.

Since my last posting, I did complete my "Skeletal Survey". The report from the radiologist said that there is "minimal additional bone damage", whatever that means.  ("Bone Rot"?) The report also mentioned that there are "holes in my skull" which should not be a surprise to anyone. I do check my pillow every morning to be sure that nothing is leaking out.

Barbara and I did have a grand adventure in May. We went to Philadelphia to attend niece Carolyn's graduation from U Penn. We were very proud to share that special day with her. She has decided to tour around the world until October when she will start her life in the "real world". Life is tough, but I am all in favor of people having as many adventures as they can when they are young and healthy. Also, more time to savor the memories and (more importantly) to tell stories about the adventures.

We (and the cats) are now ensconced happily in New Hampshire waiting for Summer to start. In fact, with the weather we have been having lately, we will be happy for Spring to start. I am determined to get the boat into the water by July 4. Of course, I was determined to get it into the water by Memorial Day . . .