Yesterday went pretty well, even though I did have to take a prednisone to help me tolerate the rituximab. There was a bit of trouble getting the IV in place and for the first time the nurses had to take multiple stabs at it, due to running into valves. On the fourth attempt we were good to go.
I was given Benadryl and some Tylenol prior to starting the drip and a couple of hours later our pal Jim was by to give me a lift home. I fell asleep in the chair this time which is also a first and for some reason I also crashed hard once I was at home as well. In all I got something like 14 hours sleep and feel well rested but a little groggy this morning.
Next maintenance is in September.
Saturday 29 June 2013
Thursday 27 June 2013
Maintence cycle 1
This week is the first of my "maintenance" treatments or chemo-lite as I call it; simply put I go in tomorrow and receive a few hours of Rituximab via IV along with a couple of meds to help me tolerate it. Rituximab is the newer anti-cancer drug that specifically targets the cancerous cells, this means that unlike the other drugs it does not have as many side-effects so I should be keeping all of my freshly grown hair and should be back up on my feet Saturday AM. The nicest part of maintenance for me is that there are no steroids involved! This makes me very happy as you may recall I did not much enjoy the Prednisone or the effects it had on me...
I had my blood-work done last week and it came back pretty much as expected, mostly normal but with two markers a bit lower than the norm, but climbing gradually back. Good news!
I also had a GP appointment yesterday to follow-up on the respirologist work done over the past few weeks; this was a tough appointment for me. The results of the bronchoscopy showed that I have an inter-cellular bacteria infection in my left lung; this is fairly common and not that big of a deal. I also have tested positive for an anti-body (in my blood) that indicates I have recently had "walking pneumonia) also not that big a deal as it is no longer there. The problem is that I still after three or four month have a persistent low grade cough that comes up when I am tired or when I exert myself, such as any hard training. The respirologist was on the fence for treating me with meds for this, but after my appointment yesterday we decided it would be best to treat this now; the treatment is simply a three week course of antibiotics. This would also mean toning down my training during this three weeks to allow my body to maintain itself; and this means I will not be competing in the Challenge Penticton this summer as I simply will not be in the condition I need to be in. This is a bit dis-appointing for me but the smart thing to do or in this case not to do, I now need to figure out a new goal and a new vacation plan for Lori and I this summer.
The new goal is to target the Victoria Marathon in October. There is lots of time for my training and a marathon is much easier on my system than an iron-distance tri is. I will still ride my bike and hit the gym but I won't need to do the heavy 7 hour rides or the intense speed work on the bike and I 'll be able to re-build my fitness base to a level that will make it possible to revisit the Challenge Penticton idea for next year.
Lori and I are still discussing vacation ideas...
This morning I am off to the oncologist for our discussion prior to tomorrow's chemo-lite; I'll let you know if anything changes but likely will not post until after tomorrow's drip.
Thanks again for reading.
I had my blood-work done last week and it came back pretty much as expected, mostly normal but with two markers a bit lower than the norm, but climbing gradually back. Good news!
I also had a GP appointment yesterday to follow-up on the respirologist work done over the past few weeks; this was a tough appointment for me. The results of the bronchoscopy showed that I have an inter-cellular bacteria infection in my left lung; this is fairly common and not that big of a deal. I also have tested positive for an anti-body (in my blood) that indicates I have recently had "walking pneumonia) also not that big a deal as it is no longer there. The problem is that I still after three or four month have a persistent low grade cough that comes up when I am tired or when I exert myself, such as any hard training. The respirologist was on the fence for treating me with meds for this, but after my appointment yesterday we decided it would be best to treat this now; the treatment is simply a three week course of antibiotics. This would also mean toning down my training during this three weeks to allow my body to maintain itself; and this means I will not be competing in the Challenge Penticton this summer as I simply will not be in the condition I need to be in. This is a bit dis-appointing for me but the smart thing to do or in this case not to do, I now need to figure out a new goal and a new vacation plan for Lori and I this summer.
The new goal is to target the Victoria Marathon in October. There is lots of time for my training and a marathon is much easier on my system than an iron-distance tri is. I will still ride my bike and hit the gym but I won't need to do the heavy 7 hour rides or the intense speed work on the bike and I 'll be able to re-build my fitness base to a level that will make it possible to revisit the Challenge Penticton idea for next year.
Lori and I are still discussing vacation ideas...
This morning I am off to the oncologist for our discussion prior to tomorrow's chemo-lite; I'll let you know if anything changes but likely will not post until after tomorrow's drip.
Thanks again for reading.
Tuesday 18 June 2013
Bronchoscopy results
Hey there, sorry for the lapse in my writing. I was waiting until I heard the results from the bronchoscopy and I just received them on Friday; after trying to cultivate/incubate some critters from the swabs they had no luck, good luck for me as this means that I am not growing anything new either. I can't recall if I mentioned that after the test they took some blood samples, well the blood work showed the presence of an anti-body (insert big Latin word) that is specific to something called walking pneumonia. This means that the time I had the big fever and few days of feeling really bad during my treatments was actually me fighting of this strain of pneumonia. The respirologist was impressed that my immune system was able to do this while being supressed by the chemo, I am just happy that it did not get too out of hand!
The last couple of weeks has had me training on the bike and the run in an effort to get ready in time for the event in late August, I am beginning to feel the stress but it is a good stress so don't worry. I am planning on getting to the start line and then crossing the finish in whatever time I cross the finish in I HAVE NO GOAL TIME for this one just to finish and remain healthy afterwards. training goes slowly as my coach cautiously adding time and effort into my schedule and I think my body is reacting well to this. So far I have been in the gym, on the bike and in my runners but I know the lake is just ahead of me and that will mean swimming! I do enjoy the swim and am really looking forward to the smaller numbers at Challenge this year and the staged start should mean that I can actually swim in a little bit of open water rather than the washing machine of the last couple years.
We have been having some fun as well; in fact, we just got back from a wonderful time in Vancouver visiting some friends and attending a gala dinner, we had a great time! Thanks guy's!! A very nice break and fantastic to catch-up with you.
Well off for a bike ride
thanks for reading.
The last couple of weeks has had me training on the bike and the run in an effort to get ready in time for the event in late August, I am beginning to feel the stress but it is a good stress so don't worry. I am planning on getting to the start line and then crossing the finish in whatever time I cross the finish in I HAVE NO GOAL TIME for this one just to finish and remain healthy afterwards. training goes slowly as my coach cautiously adding time and effort into my schedule and I think my body is reacting well to this. So far I have been in the gym, on the bike and in my runners but I know the lake is just ahead of me and that will mean swimming! I do enjoy the swim and am really looking forward to the smaller numbers at Challenge this year and the staged start should mean that I can actually swim in a little bit of open water rather than the washing machine of the last couple years.
We have been having some fun as well; in fact, we just got back from a wonderful time in Vancouver visiting some friends and attending a gala dinner, we had a great time! Thanks guy's!! A very nice break and fantastic to catch-up with you.
Well off for a bike ride
thanks for reading.
Tuesday 4 June 2013
Post Bronchoscopy
Friday night was a rough one, I recall them telling me that I may feel slightly flu-ish on Saturday, but Friday night just around supper-time I started to ache and within an hour I was shivering from being sooo cold. I bundled up in layers and under blankets and that helped for thirty minutes or so then I was cooking and sweating, then cold and shivering... repeat as required; I went to bed!
Saturday I awoke feeling pretty good, throat was a bit tender and I had a few aches but pretty good. I went for coffee with some friends, did some yard work and made then replaced a door on our shed before getting Lori and taking her over to said friend's for dinner. Back to normal?
Sunday was a long steady run, I ran around 15KM at a steady pace and felt pretty good no problem with my throat or any aches at all; things looked to be good to go. To celebrate I made pancakes and spent the day installing more baseboards in the house. Managed to get the hallway downstairs done as well as the small hall by the kitchen; progress and now I am out of material so 500 linear feet down a million to go or so it seems.
Monday, I am sore and achy; perhaps I over did it a bit on the baseboards? Oh well, no training today and I am at the office so no working around the house either. A rest day, physically anyway.
After a solid night's sleep I am up and getting ready for my run this morning and then work followed by Lori's guitar lesson then a bike ride tonight then pass out after some dinner...
It is so good to be training again!!!
Saturday I awoke feeling pretty good, throat was a bit tender and I had a few aches but pretty good. I went for coffee with some friends, did some yard work and made then replaced a door on our shed before getting Lori and taking her over to said friend's for dinner. Back to normal?
Sunday was a long steady run, I ran around 15KM at a steady pace and felt pretty good no problem with my throat or any aches at all; things looked to be good to go. To celebrate I made pancakes and spent the day installing more baseboards in the house. Managed to get the hallway downstairs done as well as the small hall by the kitchen; progress and now I am out of material so 500 linear feet down a million to go or so it seems.
Monday, I am sore and achy; perhaps I over did it a bit on the baseboards? Oh well, no training today and I am at the office so no working around the house either. A rest day, physically anyway.
After a solid night's sleep I am up and getting ready for my run this morning and then work followed by Lori's guitar lesson then a bike ride tonight then pass out after some dinner...
It is so good to be training again!!!
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