Oh ya, Charlie!
I have never ever had a Charlie Horse like this one. Man is my leg stiff today, not painful just stiff. I am sure it will be back by tomorrow just in time for Canada Day aka Dominion Day.
Happy July 1st all
enjoy the long weekend!
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Tuesday 28 June 2011
Bone Marrow Biopsy day is here
Well, I have not written too much about this because I really was not looking forward to it and kind of hoped that if I did not write about it they may cancel it. No such luck!
It was this morning and Ray & Dar came to pick me up and take me to the Jubilee to have my blood work done then the biopsy. We got there in what I thought was plenty of time only to discover the the lab was busier than normal and had recently had a software upgrade which was of course slowing things down even more as the staff had to learn the new system (rotten IT folks always changing things). Hey, only two viles of blood today that makes around 30 in a week my personal best to-date.
Next is the biopsy in a second lab and now instead of being 20 minutes early I am 20 minutes late, I hope this doesn't mean they'll skip the freezing to make up for time... no problem they are running a bit behind as well. I get called in and here is what happened next.
A very kind lab tech explained the process to me and asked me a few now common questions, do you have any allergies to any medications? latex products? Are you on any blood thinners? and a few more that elude me at this moment. After the tech was happy that I understood everything correctly and that I was at ease with the process she paged the doctor who came in a couple of minutes later.
The Doctor was also very pleasant and comforting and told me what was involved with the biopsy and then asked me similar questions, my answers did not change so I think I passed the test and this is what I got from the two of them telling me about the procedure.
I will lay on my left side with my shorts lowered just below my hips, the doctor will position me and place some towels and cushions to prop me in position. Next the area will be sanitised and a topical freezing will be applied, followed by a few additional freezings each a bit deeper until the area around the bone is frozen. This all takes place just above my hip joint on my right side. From here she will insert a small needle into the bone and extract a liquid sample of my marrow. I am told that this is the part that people find uncomfortable or unexpected; next she will use a slightly larger tool (about a pencil lead size) and get a solid marrow sample. Once they have confirmed the samples are good she will clean and dress the area, and I get to relax for fifteen minutes or so, in order for them to ensure the bleeding has stopped. There are no stitches to worry about since the incision is so small.
So that is what is I was told to expect... and it did happen pretty much as described. The doctor followed the above process all the while making small talk with me to make sure I was still OK and "comfortable", this was a pleasant distraction as we talked about running, work triathlons and food. The procedure was going very well until she said OK I am going in for the liquid sample now on the count of three you may feel that discomfort I told you about, 1, 2, 3. Wowzers discomfort? It felt like a tooth the size of my head with a sensitivity to cold had just been dipped into a bucket of ice cream, this only lasted for a few seconds and I didn't even cry or scream like a three year old (I am so proud). There she said that's the worst of it now to get the solid sample, I could feel her pressure on my hip and could sense the rotating movement she was making as the talk about sports and hobbies continued. She commented on the strength of my bones and how it had been expected due to my age and the sports I do, then she said she was just going to lower the table a bit. to which I said leverage? she gave a quick yes response and a moment later said she was through and going to start collecting the sample. This was uncomfortable but not really painful at all. The work was done and now to confirm the samples, OK. Clean and wrap the area. All done, now relax for fifteen minutes while laying on a tightly rolled towel to apply pressure and reduce bruising.
I felt pretty good afterwards so gave Lori a call to report in and then took Ray & Dar out for lunch. By the time lunch was done so was the freezing and I really appreciated its role in the entire procedure and am a bit less proud of my accomplishment of not crying so now can I go home a lay down?
Wow, is my hip sore! I am not tired but it hurts to move around so it is movie time... to the media cave.
Jim is taking Lori to her guitar lesson tonight (thanks Jimmy) and I am resting "comfortably"...
It was this morning and Ray & Dar came to pick me up and take me to the Jubilee to have my blood work done then the biopsy. We got there in what I thought was plenty of time only to discover the the lab was busier than normal and had recently had a software upgrade which was of course slowing things down even more as the staff had to learn the new system (rotten IT folks always changing things). Hey, only two viles of blood today that makes around 30 in a week my personal best to-date.
Next is the biopsy in a second lab and now instead of being 20 minutes early I am 20 minutes late, I hope this doesn't mean they'll skip the freezing to make up for time... no problem they are running a bit behind as well. I get called in and here is what happened next.
A very kind lab tech explained the process to me and asked me a few now common questions, do you have any allergies to any medications? latex products? Are you on any blood thinners? and a few more that elude me at this moment. After the tech was happy that I understood everything correctly and that I was at ease with the process she paged the doctor who came in a couple of minutes later.
The Doctor was also very pleasant and comforting and told me what was involved with the biopsy and then asked me similar questions, my answers did not change so I think I passed the test and this is what I got from the two of them telling me about the procedure.
I will lay on my left side with my shorts lowered just below my hips, the doctor will position me and place some towels and cushions to prop me in position. Next the area will be sanitised and a topical freezing will be applied, followed by a few additional freezings each a bit deeper until the area around the bone is frozen. This all takes place just above my hip joint on my right side. From here she will insert a small needle into the bone and extract a liquid sample of my marrow. I am told that this is the part that people find uncomfortable or unexpected; next she will use a slightly larger tool (about a pencil lead size) and get a solid marrow sample. Once they have confirmed the samples are good she will clean and dress the area, and I get to relax for fifteen minutes or so, in order for them to ensure the bleeding has stopped. There are no stitches to worry about since the incision is so small.
So that is what is I was told to expect... and it did happen pretty much as described. The doctor followed the above process all the while making small talk with me to make sure I was still OK and "comfortable", this was a pleasant distraction as we talked about running, work triathlons and food. The procedure was going very well until she said OK I am going in for the liquid sample now on the count of three you may feel that discomfort I told you about, 1, 2, 3. Wowzers discomfort? It felt like a tooth the size of my head with a sensitivity to cold had just been dipped into a bucket of ice cream, this only lasted for a few seconds and I didn't even cry or scream like a three year old (I am so proud). There she said that's the worst of it now to get the solid sample, I could feel her pressure on my hip and could sense the rotating movement she was making as the talk about sports and hobbies continued. She commented on the strength of my bones and how it had been expected due to my age and the sports I do, then she said she was just going to lower the table a bit. to which I said leverage? she gave a quick yes response and a moment later said she was through and going to start collecting the sample. This was uncomfortable but not really painful at all. The work was done and now to confirm the samples, OK. Clean and wrap the area. All done, now relax for fifteen minutes while laying on a tightly rolled towel to apply pressure and reduce bruising.
I felt pretty good afterwards so gave Lori a call to report in and then took Ray & Dar out for lunch. By the time lunch was done so was the freezing and I really appreciated its role in the entire procedure and am a bit less proud of my accomplishment of not crying so now can I go home a lay down?
Wow, is my hip sore! I am not tired but it hurts to move around so it is movie time... to the media cave.
Jim is taking Lori to her guitar lesson tonight (thanks Jimmy) and I am resting "comfortably"...
Research update
I have been searching other treatments, both "western" and "complimentary".
On the medical side of things all my research is telling me that the oncologist was correct, except for one potential newish form of treatment which suggests that certain anti-bodies may help me or even have a very slight chance of curing my lymphoma. Now before we get excited remember I said that this was new, and has had only a handful of early clinical trials and still lacks solid evidence of its worth (medically speaking); but, it is certainly worth bringing to the attention of the oncologist and having the discussion. Thanks to my sister-in-law I have a few articles to bring to the appointment to start the conversation.
On the complimentary side of things I have found some suggested practices I can include such as, meditation, exercise, yoga, message and therapeutic touch therapy. I have been told to initiate by my doctors to resume my active lifestyle so back to cycling and a bit of running. Check! I have also started a weekly touch therapy session with a neighbour and friend so check on that as well. Yoga, will have to wait until after my bone marrow biopsy is done but soon.
On the medical side of things all my research is telling me that the oncologist was correct, except for one potential newish form of treatment which suggests that certain anti-bodies may help me or even have a very slight chance of curing my lymphoma. Now before we get excited remember I said that this was new, and has had only a handful of early clinical trials and still lacks solid evidence of its worth (medically speaking); but, it is certainly worth bringing to the attention of the oncologist and having the discussion. Thanks to my sister-in-law I have a few articles to bring to the appointment to start the conversation.
On the complimentary side of things I have found some suggested practices I can include such as, meditation, exercise, yoga, message and therapeutic touch therapy. I have been told to initiate by my doctors to resume my active lifestyle so back to cycling and a bit of running. Check! I have also started a weekly touch therapy session with a neighbour and friend so check on that as well. Yoga, will have to wait until after my bone marrow biopsy is done but soon.
Catch-up time
So what has been going on? Well the day after my oncologist appointment I had a follow-up appointment with our GP, during this we discussed a number of things including my treatment "options" and we basically came up with the same options and rational. Chemo, too big of a hammer for this stage, radiation, may impact my aortic artery as one of the regions of impacted nodes is in the para aortic. watch and wait??? hmmmm I still don't like it much and will use my old friend the Internet to help me look for a fourth or fifth option to bring forward to the oncologist.
We also discussed the results of my many sessions of blood work, turns out that lymphoma sometimes involves hepatitis and I show no sign of exposure to this so he is recommending a Hep. A&B shot as a precaution (this will happen next week).
Then we discussed the conversation around my symptoms not being necessarily related to or as a result of my lymphoma (as this was suggested by the oncologist). GP sent me in for, you got it more blood work to test me for a thyroid issue. This is good news because if my symptoms are a result of thyroid then they are treatable and suddenly watching and waiting just got bearable...
We also discussed the option of getting a different oncologist and ruled this out as the one I have is VERY highly respected by his peer group and even higher by patients, a second opinion is not required as the cancer agency makes recommendations by committee and given the potential impacts of the ruled out treatments they are not something I wish to risk.
So perhaps a thyroid issue, we watch and wait plus research.
next steps and appointments are...
blood work to determine if there is a thyroid issue
blood work for the two clinical trials I have agreed to participate in
blood work for oncologist review
bone marrow biopsy to determine if the lymphoma is in my marrow
follow-up with oncologist
follow-up with GP
We also discussed the results of my many sessions of blood work, turns out that lymphoma sometimes involves hepatitis and I show no sign of exposure to this so he is recommending a Hep. A&B shot as a precaution (this will happen next week).
Then we discussed the conversation around my symptoms not being necessarily related to or as a result of my lymphoma (as this was suggested by the oncologist). GP sent me in for, you got it more blood work to test me for a thyroid issue. This is good news because if my symptoms are a result of thyroid then they are treatable and suddenly watching and waiting just got bearable...
We also discussed the option of getting a different oncologist and ruled this out as the one I have is VERY highly respected by his peer group and even higher by patients, a second opinion is not required as the cancer agency makes recommendations by committee and given the potential impacts of the ruled out treatments they are not something I wish to risk.
So perhaps a thyroid issue, we watch and wait plus research.
next steps and appointments are...
blood work to determine if there is a thyroid issue
blood work for the two clinical trials I have agreed to participate in
blood work for oncologist review
bone marrow biopsy to determine if the lymphoma is in my marrow
follow-up with oncologist
follow-up with GP
Wednesday 22 June 2011
Oncology visit
Well today I had my first appointment with the oncologist, after three months of waiting (only 6 weeks since diagnosis) today was finally here. The folks at the cancer agency were all very fabulous! Friendly and very respectful. First came some very basic work, filling out forms, blood pressure temperature etc... then a medical intern came in as expected and checked me for swollen lymph nodes took some notes on my condition and went to get the oncologist. He too gave me the once over and then started to let me know the options for treatment. There is a slight correction in my diagnosis what I have is as follows...
Follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma (no change there) here is the different part, I have grade 1 which has to do with the maturity level of the cancer cells, grade 1 being early in development. This was news to us; the next bit cleared up some questions I have been asking and have been asked by many of you. I thought you said stage 1 and that meant only one lymph region was impacted but you said the CT scan showed multiple areas??? Yes both are correct, I have a couple of lymph areas impacted by the cancer one in my right groin and a second region in my centre abdomen. So I have grade 1 stage 2 lymphoma with no strong symptoms and one more test coming next week that will confirm the phasing of the cancer, next week I get the pleasure of a bone marrow biopsy; yippee!!!
This test will let us know if my bone marrow also has been impacted, I am lead to expect a short uncomfortable procedure with about a minute of real strong discomfort; given my form of cancer there is a relatively strong chance that it will be there but either way it will not change the plan for treatment.
Speaking of treatment plan, here is how the discussion went (more or less) first option is chemo and at my current stage (2) and given my general health and fitness along with lifestyle the side effects are too severe for this to be a viable option at this time. Second option is radiation treatment, this is what I was expecting to be told was our go protocol; unfortunately, because of the second cluster of nodes down the centre of my abdomen again the side effects would not justify the outcome since this would not cure the cancer only minimise it and the damage to my abdomen could be permanent radiation is also out for the time being. So option three is my option. I call it the ticking bomb but officially it is called watch and wait... great I am tired of waiting and frustrated by the lack of any effective action. Don't get me wrong I do understand the reasoning behind the direction but will need some time to digest it and get my head around it.
So the plan is a GP appointment tomorrow with a marrow biopsy next week and a follow-up oncologist appointment the following week. To day the long-term plan is for regular quarterly follow-up appointments but not regular CT scans due to the radiation exposure so it will be regular blood work and monitoring how I feel (we all know how good I am with feelings). It could flare-up in a few weeks, a few months or even 30 years or more before I "need" treatment; this is a normal practise and I am told and have read that the results of waiting are not any different than if it were treated in the early stages with the exception of only having to go through the physical illness once.
So for now I can dust off the bike pick-up the shovel and get back to my normalish life, sorry Jim no regular western afternoons here :-(
We will watch and wait and wait...
More to come as this soaks in.
Thanks for watching
:-)
Follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma (no change there) here is the different part, I have grade 1 which has to do with the maturity level of the cancer cells, grade 1 being early in development. This was news to us; the next bit cleared up some questions I have been asking and have been asked by many of you. I thought you said stage 1 and that meant only one lymph region was impacted but you said the CT scan showed multiple areas??? Yes both are correct, I have a couple of lymph areas impacted by the cancer one in my right groin and a second region in my centre abdomen. So I have grade 1 stage 2 lymphoma with no strong symptoms and one more test coming next week that will confirm the phasing of the cancer, next week I get the pleasure of a bone marrow biopsy; yippee!!!
This test will let us know if my bone marrow also has been impacted, I am lead to expect a short uncomfortable procedure with about a minute of real strong discomfort; given my form of cancer there is a relatively strong chance that it will be there but either way it will not change the plan for treatment.
Speaking of treatment plan, here is how the discussion went (more or less) first option is chemo and at my current stage (2) and given my general health and fitness along with lifestyle the side effects are too severe for this to be a viable option at this time. Second option is radiation treatment, this is what I was expecting to be told was our go protocol; unfortunately, because of the second cluster of nodes down the centre of my abdomen again the side effects would not justify the outcome since this would not cure the cancer only minimise it and the damage to my abdomen could be permanent radiation is also out for the time being. So option three is my option. I call it the ticking bomb but officially it is called watch and wait... great I am tired of waiting and frustrated by the lack of any effective action. Don't get me wrong I do understand the reasoning behind the direction but will need some time to digest it and get my head around it.
So the plan is a GP appointment tomorrow with a marrow biopsy next week and a follow-up oncologist appointment the following week. To day the long-term plan is for regular quarterly follow-up appointments but not regular CT scans due to the radiation exposure so it will be regular blood work and monitoring how I feel (we all know how good I am with feelings). It could flare-up in a few weeks, a few months or even 30 years or more before I "need" treatment; this is a normal practise and I am told and have read that the results of waiting are not any different than if it were treated in the early stages with the exception of only having to go through the physical illness once.
So for now I can dust off the bike pick-up the shovel and get back to my normalish life, sorry Jim no regular western afternoons here :-(
We will watch and wait and wait...
More to come as this soaks in.
Thanks for watching
:-)
Thursday 16 June 2011
6 days and counting
So here we are, less than a week to go before our first appointment with the oncologist. This time next week I should have a pretty good idea of what the summer will hold for us. In the meantime I continue to feel pretty good most of the time with only short lived brain fog moments and some minor bloating but nothing preventing me from doing things around the place or going to work so all is good there!
It will be a huge relief to know what is next and although it seems like forever ago since this little blip in our lives appeared, the time between then and now has provided me the time I needed to wrap my head around the likely treatment options (I think), as well as making arrangements at work to ensure that I still get some money every other week and that my work load is still getting looked at. Knowing in better detail the near future will allow us to plan our lives a bit or at least stop us from saying no to doing things or committing to do things. Our friends have been very understanding about short notice cancellations or early departures and still invite us to events but it will be a great feeling not to have that worry...
Soon we hope.
I do ramble on at times so for now, all continues to be wellish and almost normal.
It will be a huge relief to know what is next and although it seems like forever ago since this little blip in our lives appeared, the time between then and now has provided me the time I needed to wrap my head around the likely treatment options (I think), as well as making arrangements at work to ensure that I still get some money every other week and that my work load is still getting looked at. Knowing in better detail the near future will allow us to plan our lives a bit or at least stop us from saying no to doing things or committing to do things. Our friends have been very understanding about short notice cancellations or early departures and still invite us to events but it will be a great feeling not to have that worry...
Soon we hope.
I do ramble on at times so for now, all continues to be wellish and almost normal.
Tuesday 14 June 2011
Back to Work
The rest of the weekend went well, as we did our usual Sunday things. It is very nice to do those usual things and perhaps we did get a bit more out of them than we have in the past. Monday was a bit of a tough day as one of our cats kept me awake most of the night and I was tired and perhaps a tad grumpy, but we still managed to have a pretty good day of plant shopping and driving through the country side. I snuck in a nap and enjoyed the hockey game. My neck is a bit sore and swollen near my jaw but I felt a 7 today and will sleep well tonight. I am still eating well most days and have not been losing much weight at all so this is very good.
Movie Comment
Great idea to make a movie about this blog; title choices "To There and Back Again" a story of a band of friends as they fight there way through the trials, tribulations and battles to conquer Follicular non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. or we could go on the lighter side of things and go with "Follicularly Challenged" a humour filled story about a man, and his friends fight to save his hair and and sanity during cancer treatment, will it become a story of loose ends??? In both versions I am told that Johnny Depp may be interested in the role but only if we can convince Cate Blanchette. This is still not a finalised thought but I think you can see where we are going here...
Thanks for the idea and let us know if any of you are interested in producing.
Thanks for the idea and let us know if any of you are interested in producing.
Sunday 12 June 2011
Stenello marathon goes international!
I wanted to take a quick moment to share with you the viewing numbers of the "Stenello Marathon"
So there you go we are now officially internationally viewed.
more yard work
yesterday (Saturday) after giving Lori a ride into work I had a coffee with Tom and Catherine. We chatted about a few things and it was good to see them, as the last time was Wednesday at Tom's award dinner and I was not feeling good and certainly I did not look well; today I looked good well for me anyway ( I am still no Colin!! lol)
Came back home and started to do some more work in the yard with Ray; I think this is the 8th or 9th weekend that Ray has come by and spent at least one entire day working his butt off for us, the only thing he ever wants in return is friendship. I am not supposed to say this but thanks Ray, the lunches and beer are just not enough but I think the working conditions are at least pretty good. We spent the day screening the rocks and glass out of the soil and top dressed where we were going to seed the lawn. This was a very satisfying day as we can now really see what the yard is going to look like (even better than it did before construction), Lori was very pleased to say the least when she came home from work.
Lori is out for her 90 minute run and she let me sleep in a bit today so that hopefully I don't need a nap as it is going to be another long day, heading out to Thetis for a swim with Amanda and then over to a friends place for dinner.
Still feeling pretty good and I would say yesterday was a 7/10 day for me.
Came back home and started to do some more work in the yard with Ray; I think this is the 8th or 9th weekend that Ray has come by and spent at least one entire day working his butt off for us, the only thing he ever wants in return is friendship. I am not supposed to say this but thanks Ray, the lunches and beer are just not enough but I think the working conditions are at least pretty good. We spent the day screening the rocks and glass out of the soil and top dressed where we were going to seed the lawn. This was a very satisfying day as we can now really see what the yard is going to look like (even better than it did before construction), Lori was very pleased to say the least when she came home from work.
Lori is out for her 90 minute run and she let me sleep in a bit today so that hopefully I don't need a nap as it is going to be another long day, heading out to Thetis for a swim with Amanda and then over to a friends place for dinner.
Still feeling pretty good and I would say yesterday was a 7/10 day for me.
Friday 10 June 2011
CT Scan complete
I am just back from getting my second CT Scan with the dreaded contrast. Everything went according to plan; I now have a warm feeling throughout my body and a very odd taste of metal and iodine in the back of my throat. The process to getting these is quite simple you head down to your local medical imaging centre and say that you have an appointment, they confirm details and ask you to wait a bit. In a few moments a kind worker will not only offer you a drink but will insist you have two large glasses of flat sugary tasting water (with who knows what in them) and both labelled with a large letter "T"; once you have drank these you are encouraged to sit in a waiting area for an hour or so while "who knows what" makes it way through your system. after the hour has gone by another kind worker will come by and ask you to remove your clothes and put on these gowns... how flattering. they then stick you with a drip line so that when the time is right they can inject some "contrast"into your bloodstream. It is that action that causes a wave of warmth and a feeling of nausea as the roof of your mouth begins to sweat that you have the warm fuzzies I am describing. The entire process of imaging takes only a few minutes but the lovely feeling and taste lasts for hours.
It is not all that bad just not all that good and it is really a small price to pay for an updated view of what is going on inside of me, once I get a copy of the images I will post one so you can all see for yourselves.
Well that is all for today I am now going to have a nap...
keep the comments and good vibes coming.
It is not all that bad just not all that good and it is really a small price to pay for an updated view of what is going on inside of me, once I get a copy of the images I will post one so you can all see for yourselves.
Well that is all for today I am now going to have a nap...
keep the comments and good vibes coming.
Thursday 9 June 2011
The Fog has Lifted
I am happy to say that after two days of progressively thicker fog of the brain that today it gradually lifted and I am now pretty much as clear headed as I have ever been, which I know is not really saying much but I do feel better anyway.
Yesterday was the first bad day in a while and one of only a very few days where I had to leave work early because I was not feeling well. After a long nap and a bit of food I was good for a while, we (Lori and I) went to government house to see our very good friend Tom receive the Lieutenant Governor's silver medal for excellence in public administration... WOW what an honour to be invited to such an event and I am very proud to call Tom my friend! Dinner afterwards was a bit rough on me as I was quickly getting tired and even considered making a quiet escape a couple of times through the dinner but managed to hold in and by the time dessert came I was feeling better, even thought the mystery of the missing medal was not solved it was a very pleasant night and I am glad to have stayed.
Today was much better and tomorrow I can have a nap during the CT scan...
I'll let you know how that goes and what the results are as soon as I can.
Yesterday was the first bad day in a while and one of only a very few days where I had to leave work early because I was not feeling well. After a long nap and a bit of food I was good for a while, we (Lori and I) went to government house to see our very good friend Tom receive the Lieutenant Governor's silver medal for excellence in public administration... WOW what an honour to be invited to such an event and I am very proud to call Tom my friend! Dinner afterwards was a bit rough on me as I was quickly getting tired and even considered making a quiet escape a couple of times through the dinner but managed to hold in and by the time dessert came I was feeling better, even thought the mystery of the missing medal was not solved it was a very pleasant night and I am glad to have stayed.
Today was much better and tomorrow I can have a nap during the CT scan...
I'll let you know how that goes and what the results are as soon as I can.
Wednesday 8 June 2011
Up Days and Down Days
Well I just finished letting you all know how good I have been feeling the last couple of weeks; now I need to add that the last two days I have been a bit off...
My brain seems to be about a foot outside my head, I seem to be light headed most of the day and on occasion I can't seem to find the correct ummm, ahhh come on what is it Ohh yah WORD when I am talking to people. It is in the least frustrating and at most embarrassing as I attempt to sound intelligent and fail miserably. The other issue I have been having since yesterday is really bad bloating and abdominal discomfort, to resolve this I am going to start a detailed food/beverage intake log to see if I can sort out a potential cause.
Still doing well aside from these minor complaints and yes I am still at work and still smiling...
My brain seems to be about a foot outside my head, I seem to be light headed most of the day and on occasion I can't seem to find the correct ummm, ahhh come on what is it Ohh yah WORD when I am talking to people. It is in the least frustrating and at most embarrassing as I attempt to sound intelligent and fail miserably. The other issue I have been having since yesterday is really bad bloating and abdominal discomfort, to resolve this I am going to start a detailed food/beverage intake log to see if I can sort out a potential cause.
Still doing well aside from these minor complaints and yes I am still at work and still smiling...
Monday 6 June 2011
Appointment Update
A coule of weeks ago I mentioned that the BC cancer Agency called to let me know about my appointment with the oncologist on June 22. They also told me at that time that they wanted me to have some more blood work done as well as a second CT scan with the dreaded contrast, (leaves me with a metalic taste for hours). Well we had the blood work done right away and as I have already reported they came back normal, good news. I spoke with the oncologists' office this morning and my CT scan is for this Friday so bottoms up as I get to drink the special blended sugar water and then taste metal for a few hours. A small price to pay for some updated images and a clearer picture of what is going on and how far the lymphoma has spread if it has at all.
a bit about how I am feeling
Over the past week or so I have been getting lots of questions around how I am feeling and what is my energy like. I guess as much as it has taken me to have this news sink in it has taken all of you some time to wrap your heads around this as well... so here goes.
For the past couple of weeks I have noticed my energy coming back to a more normal level and am finding that I can do more before I get tired and need a rest. Heck I haven't even had a nap in over a week now and I don't think I have been very grouchy (for me anyway), our good friend was over on Saturday helping in the yard and he asked me a great question, "on a 1-10 how are you energy wise? if 10 were before any symptoms." I told him I was at a nine this week and an 8 last week. Kind of like rate the meeting... (work joke sorry). On Sunday I bumped into another good friend while cheering the participants at the local tri, he had not heard about my lymphoma and was wondering why I was not in the event. Well when I told him I thought he would fall down; I began letting him know how I was currently feeling and summed it up like this "if I didn't know, I wouldn't know" meaning that as far as how I am feeling now I don't feel sick at all.
I am not sure if this is because the lymphoma is retreating? Is it because I am finally fully recovered from the biopsy surgery? Have I just had enough time to have the thought of having cancer sink in and now I am truly fighting it? it could be because the weather has finally broken in to something resembling nice or perhaps it is all of the support from friends, family and co-workers? Truth is I don't really care why, I am just happy to report that I am feeling almost normal!
No but really how am I feeling? That is a standard question and how I read it is how are you dealing with this? Well again I am really pretty good about the whole thing as is Lori, we have had plenty of time to think about it and to talk about it and bottom line is it is what it is. There is nothing I / we could have done to prevent this and nothing I did to cause it so it is here and we (all of us) need to deal with it and show it whose the boss.
I tell folks all the time that I have a lot of things on my side and it is these reminders that keep me strong;
I am young! average age of diagnosis is 62
I am fit!
I am healthy!
I live in Victoria, best treatment centre around!
I have a great doctor, very knowledgeable and very involved.
I have a great wife!!! Very caring and supportive.
I have great friends! also very caring and supportive.
I have fantastic co-workers and work at a great place.
I have stage 1 with no b symptoms!
I think I am well positioned to beat this thing.
OH, almost forgot I do still have a sense of humour and that is a big chunk of it too.
So how am I feeling?
If I didn't know I wouldn't know, except for all of the support and love coming from you!
Thank you
For the past couple of weeks I have noticed my energy coming back to a more normal level and am finding that I can do more before I get tired and need a rest. Heck I haven't even had a nap in over a week now and I don't think I have been very grouchy (for me anyway), our good friend was over on Saturday helping in the yard and he asked me a great question, "on a 1-10 how are you energy wise? if 10 were before any symptoms." I told him I was at a nine this week and an 8 last week. Kind of like rate the meeting... (work joke sorry). On Sunday I bumped into another good friend while cheering the participants at the local tri, he had not heard about my lymphoma and was wondering why I was not in the event. Well when I told him I thought he would fall down; I began letting him know how I was currently feeling and summed it up like this "if I didn't know, I wouldn't know" meaning that as far as how I am feeling now I don't feel sick at all.
I am not sure if this is because the lymphoma is retreating? Is it because I am finally fully recovered from the biopsy surgery? Have I just had enough time to have the thought of having cancer sink in and now I am truly fighting it? it could be because the weather has finally broken in to something resembling nice or perhaps it is all of the support from friends, family and co-workers? Truth is I don't really care why, I am just happy to report that I am feeling almost normal!
No but really how am I feeling? That is a standard question and how I read it is how are you dealing with this? Well again I am really pretty good about the whole thing as is Lori, we have had plenty of time to think about it and to talk about it and bottom line is it is what it is. There is nothing I / we could have done to prevent this and nothing I did to cause it so it is here and we (all of us) need to deal with it and show it whose the boss.
I tell folks all the time that I have a lot of things on my side and it is these reminders that keep me strong;
I am young! average age of diagnosis is 62
I am fit!
I am healthy!
I live in Victoria, best treatment centre around!
I have a great doctor, very knowledgeable and very involved.
I have a great wife!!! Very caring and supportive.
I have great friends! also very caring and supportive.
I have fantastic co-workers and work at a great place.
I have stage 1 with no b symptoms!
I think I am well positioned to beat this thing.
OH, almost forgot I do still have a sense of humour and that is a big chunk of it too.
So how am I feeling?
If I didn't know I wouldn't know, except for all of the support and love coming from you!
Thank you
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