Surviving Two Cancers – Page 4 – Couldausedanotherday

Walking Again

I’ve been to the Oncologist for my “three month after the stem cell transplant” visit. The blood tests came back showing my M-Protein is now 0.2. That number has been as high as 1.8 in January, and down to 0.5 after Chemo treatments, before the transplant.

My Oncologist said she wants me to begin taking a daily low dose of Revlimid. She said cancer patients taking this maintenance dosage have longer periods of time between transplants. I asked how many transplants I might look forward to. “Just one more,” she said.

“Bone marrow won’t support more than two. But,” she continued encouragingly, “If you get two or three years from this transplant, and two or three more from the next, there may be new treatments available by that time.”

I found that due to the peripheral neuropathy in my feet, I sleep best with my feet hanging off the bed, toes pointing to the floor. There’s no perceived pressure from the blankets that way, and little discomfort.

I’ve started walking to work again. It hasn’t increased foot pain, so maybe overall it’s good. I’ve added three daily doses of L-Glutamine to my Multi B Complex for the neuropathy.

I’ve been taking it for a week or so, it might be helping a little. I will have a moment here or there when I realize that I have not been aware of pain in my feet for a full minute or more. That’s a (painless) step in the right direction!

*You can’t buy a duel altitude, multi-range color hair style like this!*

Closer to Normal

Summer 2013 in Oregon is circling the drain. I took the box fans out of the upstairs windows and put the electric blanket back on the bed.

My summer was a paradox, creeping along unbelievably slow, moment by drawn out moment in the hospital and in recovery, but then I looked up and suddenly the summer days are gone!

I’m feeling closer to normal and farther from death; although I know it could be waiting in the next crosswalk. But, it could be waiting for anyone there and has nothing to do with cancer.

*Working full time and ready for high water*

I just had my six month visit with my urologist. He said my PSA (indicator for prostate cancer) is non-existent, that’s great. He said I’m halfway through the danger zone….. If the prostate cancer doesn’t come back within five years, it’s highly unlikely it will come back.

I doubled the dosage of my B complex vitamins and it does seem to be helping with the chemo nerve damage / pain in my feet.

My oncologist said next visit, three months from the transplant, they will test for cancer indicators. I thought, with all these vials of blood you’ve taken – what have you been testing for?

We were clicking through TV stations the other night, looking for a reason to stay up ten more minutes, when I saw an eerily accurate representation of my new hair style: it was little Ralph Wiggum on the Simpson’s.

I’m afraid I won’t be able to identify with him for long because in the mirror I see little black seedlings sprouting among the wispy white survivor hairs clinging to my head. This could get interesting.

I remain, as always, thankful to God.

Another Step

After working a couple weeks of half days, my oncologist released me to work full time. I’ve put in a few 8 hour days now, and I believe I really do prefer half days, but it was time to take another step towards normal.

One of my co-workers asked, “Why don’t you just shave your head? Your hair cries I survived Chernobyl!” I pointed out that anyone can shave their head, but only a select few can enjoy the, “faint hovering mist” look.

I’ve come to realize that chemo goes in you like a bullet, carefully aimed to mortally wound the cancer. Piercing its target, it continues clanging and zinging back and forth through your body, messing with everything else until its energy is spent.

I think my chemo bullet rattled all the way down to my feet before expiring, resulting in this stubborn neuropathy.

*Last weekend, Diane and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary*
*at the Ohana Hawaiian Café in Portland*

I thought I had lost two good friends to cancer this year – Mountain Dew and Darigold Old Fashioned Chocolate Milk. I ran into them both recently, and they are as good as ever.

Inching My Way….

I’ve been out of the hospital about 4 weeks. I saw my oncologist yesterday and she agreed to let me start back to work part time, so I was officially on the clock this morning for the first time in over 40 days.

Half days are nice, they go fast. It was good to be back on the job and to have a few moments of actually feeling useful and productive.

My checklist of things to do while home bound remains unfinished. Some things will just have to wait until inching my way becomes bigger strides.