Health Diaries » Colon Cancer » Llama Farming with Colon Cancer

July 3, 2008

In a couple of weeks I'll see the 3rd anniversary of my cancer surgery. I should be real happy to be alive and functional, but that takes a back seat to starting a new round of chemotherapy. In a way, I'm no better off than I was 3 years ago. This new "recipe" has a new drug that I don't know the name of yet, and a variation of the 46 hour drug that makes me carry the infusion pump in that "damn" bag. Since I really was lucky last time when my body got used to the drugs, I am looking at the down side and figure this time I'm going to have problems, get sick, lose my hair and all the other bad things. The doctor was very friendly Wed., but brief for all that is going to happen. I did ask for another 2 weeks before starting which he agreed to with no hesitation. I need to gain some more weight. The appetite stimulant is working and I could eat all day, but I've only gained 6 lbs. I need to gain at least 4 more in the next 2 weeks. I can continue taking that even when the chemo starts, so hopefully that lack of appetite the drugs cause will be counteracted. I think if I can keep my weight up the drug effect will be lessened. I still get tired so easy. I have so much to get down outside and I get pooped real fast. It makes me mad and discouraged. Unfortunately, I get little help from anyone. I guess that's about all I can say right now. The chemo begins on July 22nd. Wish me luck and good health to all of you.

Posted by Robert at 11:46 PM | Comments (1)

June 12, 2008

Being a writer of sorts, it's strange that I'm having difficulty on how to write this. So, excuse me if I ramble a bit. Yesterday was the doctors visit and it got off to a bad start when I lost another pound. Then when the doctor came into the exam room, his body language was not good and he passed the stool he sits on and sat on a chair in the corner. I asked good or bad news and the answer was bad, but not real bad. The facts. Two months of the drugs and they basicaly did no good. The liver was ok, with a 1 mm shrink, but a new nodule was in the lungs and one other nodule in the lungs had grown 1 mm. So, I'm done with that set of drugs. I thought they were working as I had all the side effects as before. At least we held our own in most cases so I can't disagree with the decision to try these drugs again. To explain things and maybe to make me feel a little better, the doctor said that I was in no danger at this point as the liver is a rather large mass and my biggest nodule is like a thumbprint on it. He said I was safe for at least 12 weeks, although the lungs are starting to be a problem. The good news of this, maybe, is he gave me 3 weeks off to build my body back up. He is going to consult with the other oncology doctors to plan a new treatment program and one that would be sure to cover the lungs, as well as the liver. This was one of the best visits with the doctor I've had. He seemed really concerned about me and more than willing to sit there and answer any questions I had. I was tempted to ask the question about how long I would have a liveable life if I quit, but passed it up. I was getting along with these drugs so good, I'm afraid I won't be that lucky next time. I did get my prescription for the appetite stimulent and have taken 2 doses and have had no increase in appetite yet. It says it may take 2 weeks. Another $250 drug, but of course Humana gave me a generic for $4. Mentally, I have mixed feelings. I'm going to enjoy the time off again, but the new drugs do worry me. I know this is a long term thing as we've been through 3 years of this next month, but it can be depressing at times. I really get mad when I do the least bit of things outside and get pooped real fast. I don't know if I will ever recover the muscle mass that I have lost these past 3 months. I don't know what else to say at this point except to wish all of you good health, be happy with it, don't take it for granted and enjoy it.

Posted by Robert at 8:47 PM | Comments (0)

May 9, 2008

My second treatment went well as expected. I told the nurse I had good news and bad news. The good news, I feel fine. The bad news, I feel fine. Still a little concerned the drugs are working. I was surprised yesterday. I was cutting frozen green peppers and they "bit" me. A good sign the cold sensitive drug is working. I had handled ice cubes with no "bite" so maybe just not as bad as before. I'm having some bad constipation cramps and that seems to be a drug reaction/side effect this time. I guess it could be worse than that, but it's pretty uncomfortable to say the least. I had an unexpected problem with the pump. It started beeping before I even got out of the clinic. We silenced it and I stopped to check a couple of work questions at the hospital and it went off again and indicated air in line. I made some calls and found out how to stop and re-start. The bad is, it kept going off every 10 minutes or so after pumping 2ml. At home I fed the animals, planted my tomatoes and cut grass with it still beeping every 10 minutes. I thought wrong that it would clear itself. Now, at 9:30 I start making calls again. One nurse(?) tried to talk me through purging it but I was too dumb to do it. So, they sent a nurse out at 11:00 and in 3 minutes she had it working. I was trying to re-install the cartridge upside down. Dumb me. Chalk it up to an educational experience. If it happens again I know what to do now. Made my 46 hour pump last 48 hours. I'm pretty sure I will not get sick and if I can find a remedy for the constipation problem I should look forward to normal times. I also found out that part of the anti-nausea medicine is steroids. Interesting. Not helping my weight. I lost another 2 pounds. Guess that's an update for now. Good health to all of you.

Posted by Robert at 7:54 PM | Comments (1)

April 30, 2008

I promised an update after one week of resuming my chemotherapy. First, I should mention that I neglected to include Avastin in the drug "recipe". Since it had stopped working, I thought we would substitute something else, but they said it had something to do with my blood and had to be in the mix. I am happy to say that I have had no, almost, side effects so far. I did have 3 days of constipation, but I'm not sure if the drugs were the cause since it's opposite of what should have happened. Being a "worry wart" of sorts, now I have to wonder if the drugs are really working. For one, it seems the cold sensitive drug is not making me cold sensitive. I made what could have been a mistake when I reached in the freezer and grabbed the ice cube tray not thinking, but I had no sensation. I was eating ice cream by Thursday night. Is that meaningful? I got along pretty good with the 46 hour bag. It wasn't until 10 minutes before getting it disconnected that I forgot it was on the floor and I got up and walked away. The sudden jerk on your chest is a quick reminder. I feel really good and will start working weekends again this week. I'll have questions next week for treatment #2, but not sure I'll get any answers. I did take an anti-nausea pill Thursday and Friday nights just in case, but don't believe they were ever needed. They do work great on clearing sinus problems. That's it. Nice to write something positive and I hope that trend will continue. Until next time, good health to all of you and don't bet too much on the Kentucky Derby.

Posted by Robert at 9:25 PM | Comments (1)

April 23, 2008

As the old Gene Autry song said, "I'm back in the saddle again", except my saddle is another round of chemo and with the same "recipe" of drugs, less the experimental drug. So we have oxaliplatin, the one that makes you cold sensitive; fluorouracil that has the 46 hour pump you have to carry with you; and promethazine for nausea, It will be interesting to see how I react to these the second time as far as getting sick and if they will be as effective as the first time. I am happy to say that after 24 hours I feel fine, but my first real test will be about Friday as the dose of anti-nausea IV wears off and I rely on pills. By then, I can drink my room temperature "ice" tea with ice. A couple of surprises, I did eat a normal supper last night and of all things as I think about getting sick I'm dealing with being constipated. Figure that out. I still try to remain positive about this, if that is possible, but with us starting this at a low dose that I could tolerate last time I can have some hope. I know I have to eat regularly and with it being summer this time, getting out of the house and getting some exercise. That's about all I can say right now and will give another report in a week to see how things all going. Until then, good health to everyone.

Posted by Robert at 1:38 PM | Comments (0)