Wednesday, October 28, 2015

10-28-2015 Update

I was told that I had to do a complete dental exam and be cleared from the dentist before I could start the stem cell collection process. I met with my dentist and have to have 7 teeth extracted.

I've got a date set for 11-23-15 to remove the teeth and I'll get a followup date later to clear up any Gingivitis and mitigate the risk of infection.

After I finish up with treatment and recovery I'll concern myself with the cosmetic dental implants. right now its Eyes on The Prize, not how I look through all this.

- Anthony


Tuesday, October 20, 2015

10-20-2015 Update



10-20-2015
Let me take a step back and explain a little about the chemo drugs that I am receiving this time.

Rituximab 375MG IV
Etoposide 100 MG IV
Carboplatin AUC=5 IV
Hydrocortisone sodium Succinate 100MG IV
Ifosfamide 5000MG IV
Mesna 5000MG IV

During the first cycle while receiving the Rituximab about 2 hours in I started to feel pains in my chest. The pain just got worse and started to feel like my heart was going to explode.

They stopped the IV and ran an EKG which showed that everything was normal and nothing was wrong with my heart. Later when I met with my Oncologist before my second cycle he said that I started the first cycle pretty beaten up from the prior few weeks and was weak to begin with. 

When they started the IV again they stayed at a slow drip and it took 3 more hours for it to finish, but I wasn’t under any stress anymore. The rest of the treatment went fine with no hiccups.

The NP instructed me to take Claritin everyday while on Neulasta and it will help negate the pain. I’ll tell ya that I’m grateful because I didn’t feel a thing.

I had a follow up appt. with my Oncologist on 10-9-15 for blood work, consult and if everything was good with my blood work I’d be able to start cycle 2. My platelets we just under and we held off for another week.

Our friend Adosinda recommended that I make a juice of Red Bell Pepper, Quince fruit and Honey and drink it everyday because it’s good for Anemia and would help keep my bloods up. When I went back to the Oncologist on 10-16-15 my bloods were AWESOME!

The break at home went very well. No pain from the Neulasta. I was managing the constipation great, but I was pretty worn down. I mean that I was beat the $!%^ up! I could only whisper no matter how hard I tried for a couple of days. I was really tired and spent most of the days resting. By Friday I was starting to feel some of my strength come back, but I could feel my limits just walking up and down the stairs.

Saturday 10-10-15 I went to my Tong Ren class. I got one of Tom’s new Peizo Ionizer band to wear in my hat (which I am wearing now). The energy of the session was great and as long as I keep working on keeping my healing energy up, I’ll heal faster and better.

As my strength improved I was able to get some stuff done that had to get done. I helped France with a couple of her machines and hung the new smoke detectors in France’s mother’s house. I even worked for 2 weeks in the office and one week at home.

Being at work is great for me because I can safely walk to the different buildings that I have to work in without worry. If I walk around the neighborhood at home and fall or pass out nobody is going to do anything. They’ll drive on by like I was a drunk or something and leave me there. At work there is always someone around and help would be seconds away. Most days when I got home from work I was beat and would just lay down for an hour or so.

10-16-15 I had my Oncologist appt and got admitted to start cycle 2. This time there wasn’t any issues with the chemo drugs, IV drip or the speed. I did however develop a vein core swelling from leakage from the IV which will take about a month to heal.
During Sunday 10-18 my blood pressure was low enough that my RN wanted to run an EKG just to be on the safe side. The chemo drugs lower your blood pressure and they have me on blood pressure meds (Lisinopril 10mg). They suggested that I get a BP monitor for home. Today I bought a Omron BP786 for $79 which has Bluetooth to my iphone so I can send the results to my Oncologist.

I started to get a lot of acid reflux and burning that wasn’t comfortable. It’s not as bad as it was a couple of days ago and I’m hoping that it doesn’t interfere with my appetite. Prilosec is working for me.

I had remembered reading about this Honey called Manuka Honey that had medicinal values and contains very powerful antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antifungal properties. France found a 500 gram jar at whole foods, but it’s not medicinal rated and is blended with another honey.

There is another honey Tualang Honey that is equally high in the same, but also known for its cancer healing values. These honeys are expensive because of where they are located, how the honey is harvested and its purity.

Well now I’m waiting for 11-4 to take another PET Scan and review it with my Oncologist on 11-6. If all goes well I’ll start cycle 3 and get more info about my stem cell schedule.


Anthony