Another update

 It has been a few years since I have posted anything here but recent events have me feeling the need to do just that.

In 2022 at one of my regular check-ins with my oncologist we had a conversation on my future and my continued need for medical care, it has been more than 5 years since my treatments and my regular tests and examinations have all  been steadily improving. in fact, the past handful of results have been all in the normal range and my symptoms, such as they are, have all been improving to the point I only feel very mild fatigue a couple times a year and a short nap resolves that.

So the point?  Well my oncologist said that I am very unlikely to require his services related to my Follicular NHL so if I was comfortable with it they would keep me on their patient list but I cold get my tests and examinations done by my nurse practitioner.  Wow this was great news and hit me as hard as when I was first told of my diagnosis, I agreed and we close dour conversation and I started my walk home, called Lori to share the news and then let it sink in.  I began to cry a bit over the news as it was not something I expected to here, in fact, I was expecting them to tell me it was time for my 10,000 KM top up so back to chemo you go.

Good news indeed!  But how to celebrate?  Fast forward to today, Lori and I along with a few friends have decided to go dry this month and raise funds for the Canadian Cancer Society and participate in their DryFebruary campaign see dryfeb.ca for details, and if you are so inclined to donate go to www.dryfeb.ca/users/don-costello and donate what you are comfortable with. If you are reading this after February 2023 please just go to DryFeb.ca and donate on the main page.

thank you all for reading my blog and I hope some of you found a bit of inspiration and/or hope from my story and continued success as a cancer THRIVER.

Take care and be positive.

Me again

Hello there just a quick post to share a bit of good news!  I went to the agency last week for my regular check-up and for the first time in 7 years my blood tests all came back in the normal range!

A happy day for us.

thanks

Long time no post

It has been a very long time since we posted to our blog and that is simply because everything is going well!

I had my regular 6 month oncologist check-up at the agency last week and everything was a-OK blood counts were good and I am feeling fine. 

I ran the local half marathon and did close to a PB and felt sore but good afterwards.

All is well and thanks for coming back to check on me!

top-up number 6 of 8 done

I am back from treatment and feeling better than previous treatments; they took the Prednisone off the plan and replaced it with a more mild steroid which is good as I am not flushed and on edge, it added thirty minutes to the session but well worth it.

All is good and only two treatments left, Christmas and Easter...

August 2014 update

Just to let you all know that things are all going very well.  I am feeling great and my training for the local marathon in October is going well, I just ran a 32K run on Sunday and it felt good with no linger effects on me.

Next treatment is in a month or so and then there will only be two left and I can close the book on this for the time being.

So to wrap-up, I am feeling great, it has been a good summer here and my marathon training has gone well; things are normal!

Talk to you in September.

A funny thing happened as I left a meeting

First let me just say that everything is going great!  I am running 5 days a week getting ready for the local marathon in October and generally enjoying one of the nicer summers here in a few years.

I wanted to share something that happened to me yesterday as it made my day, I was leaving a work meeting and standing in front of the elevator when a woman approached and asked if my name was Don.  I said yes and she proceeded to tell me that her brother was diagnosed with lymphoma a while back and that a friend of hers suggested reading my blog, she did and she mentioned that it helped her get through things.  I was blown away and stammered something like good to hear that it made a difference and I was happy it did... the elevator arrived and she walked away.

When I started this blog it was mainly for Lori and I to communicate then it moved to me being able to document how I felt so that I did not have to hold on to the stuff.  I guess I have always hoped that it would be a positive place for people to visit but I never expected to meet anyone in person and have them relate to me how positive it was.

Thank you, it really did make my day!

a quick run

I am trying to stay on track with my training for the October marathon and balance that with my health and my treatments.  I skipped yesterday's workout so that I was not fatigued going in to treatment.  I had a great sleep last night and woke up feeling pretty chipper so decided that I would do an easy run as scheduled but likely cut it back by a bit and just run for 30 minutes or so rather than 40.  The run went well and I just stayed in a comfortable pace keeping an eye on my heart rate as I did not want to suffer today for the sake of an easy run; ran just over 5K on an easy flat route and felt great!

Enjoy the day.

5 down 3 to go

I am now back home from an uneventful cycle 5 of 8 maintenance treatment, got in 30 minutes later than scheduled but all ended well and I am feeling a bit groggy but good.

Onc visit summary

So as expected I am healthy enough to have my treatment tomorrow.  A couple of things were a bit unexpected; first my appointment was done on-time and it was not a rushed one!  Second and for me the positive one was that the onc (a new one for me) was happy to hear that I had taken on running the marathon and quite surprised when I told him my time and that it was a personal best, he commented on my strong and low heart rate and encouraged me to continue running and be physically active as he believed it to be one of the most under-rated pieces of western healthcare.  When the appointment was over and as I was getting ready to leave one of my regular onc's came to the room to congratulate me on the run and let me know that it is not very often they get to hear of such successes.

I was more than a little proud as I left and it set the tone for the remainder of the day, I would encourage you all to get just a little bit more physical exercise in your routine no matter what it is.

Thanks and talk to you tomorrow.

top-up number 5 of 8

I am soon off to see the Onc and have a quick review of how I am feeling etc. in order to see if I am healthy enough to have my treatment tomorrow.  I am. this is just a routine visit and I expect nothing out of the ordinary.  Tomorrow is the big drip day so as usual I will go for a run in the AM work from home and then head in for the Rituximab cocktail then as usual Jim will collect me and drop me home where I will sleep the remainder of the day and wake-up Saturday feeling pretty good and go for a short run ...

You know the usual post chemo stuff, I'll let you know how it goes.

Has it only been Three years?

I was a bit surprised the other day when I was looking back at my old blog entries and noticed that it has only been 3 years since this rollercoaster got started.

In the time since I started the blog there have been many ups and downs and it seems like a lifetime has passed.  We are very happy with where we are and how we came to be here; we have a lot of very good friends and family to thank for helping us find our way here!  Had you asked me at the start of this where I thought we/I would be today I would not have in my wildest dreams said that I would be doing so well or that I would be running long distance again let alone running personal bests doing it.  I also would not have said that I feel as good as I do these days or that chemo would have gone so well with so few side effects for me.  It is a wonder to me!

In the three years lots has happened, I have had two surgeries (both minor), walked around with pneumonia, had a bronchial wash to figure out it was pneumonia, gone through 2/3rds of my chemo protocol, lost my hair, grew my hair and cut my hair... Missed a few days of work, worked from home, helped a co-worker deal with breast cancer and found out my dad has brain cancer; realised I am pretty lucky!  I have also completed my third and best time Ironman distance tri, completed and done a PB half and full marathon as well as completing the Boston marathon, had lots of laughs a few tears and came to the realisation that the little things that make me smile are very important and the little things that annoy or frustrate me are not important at all.  I have come to realise that family, friends and an awesome medical team can help you cope with just about anything.

So it has been a fast but short three years and I am happy to report I am feeling great physically and mentally, I am just about to head out for a run with my wife and spend the day surrounded by friends; Life is good  GREAT.

Thanks as always for reading and I will continue to do my best to communicate how we are doing!

2014 Vancouver Marathon

Vancouver Marathon 2014 race report

It was a cool wet Vancouver day, May the 4^th AKA Star Wars day.  The rain looked for a while like it was going to just be a mist but it went back to rain again shortly after the start.  We stayed with our friends Frank & Caroline who treated us like celebrities, even before they saw the news coverage of Lori…

Lori and I keep warm in the rec centre prior to the race start

Got to the start line early and had lots of time to go through  my race plan; I typically run even splits and I had planned to run today between a 4:35/K and a 4:45 which would put me finishing around a 3:20 or so.  I was not sure how long I would be able to hold the pace but that was my goal.  I knew very little about the course as it has changed dramatically since I last ran Vancouver, all I knew was there was a significant hill around 10K into the run and the rest was flat to undulating and it finished downtown near Canada Place after a run along the sea-wall.  I was not expecting the incline immediately after the start line!  Not a long or steep incline but it sure woke the legs up in a hurry, I tried to control my pace and not get swept up with the rabbits running alongside of me, my first KM was at a slower than desired 4:51 but I was good with that and felt like it was the correct pace for that KM.  Very early in the run better to go a bit slow than too quick at this point.  The next few KM I tried to control my pace but it seemed to get away from me and I found I was running in the low 4:30’s for the first 8K; the pace felt comfortable and I was not feely any fatigue or soreness from it so I accepted this as my pace for the moment and figured time in the bank…plus I was encouraged by Jim & Sandi then again by Lori & the Pataky’s.  My pace was on track, I had the support of friends and the encouragement of the spectators who had braved the rain; what could go wrong?  Oh Oh, I had to ask… for the past couple of KM I had the feeling that I had to pee, it will go away right? Wrong it did not go away and I really did have to pee and that would take time.  I got lucky and found an empty port-a-potty at the 9K water stop which was just at the bottom of the big hill; I was in and out in short time and after a few minutes back in my stride.  The hill was not as long as I had expected but it still rose up for just over a KM and lots of folks were feeling it.  I had taken some gel at the 6 KM mark and figured I would take more at 18K and again at 30 which should get me to the finish before the sugar crash, at the top of the hill I felt the rush of energy from the gel and I crested then sped my way down.   

The next 10K went well and at 18K I was on track to achieve my goal, feeling pretty good physically and mentally and I was a 3^rd through the run.  Then came a surprise hill; not a big one but I was not expecting anything hill wise after the one at 10K so anything other than a slight incline was a surprise.  I crested the hill and on the way down took another dose of gel and kept going.

The half-way point was just ahead and I was feeling good and running well.  I had not been looking at my net time just my pacing so I really had no idea where I was at time wise; I was a bit shocked when I crossed the line at 1:37:39, which was only a minute more than my Comox 
half this year! Could I maintain this pace for another 21.1K?

I was expecting Lori and the Pataky’s at the 24K point to give me a fresh water bottle which was good because the one I had was empty; they were not there!  OK, I must have miss heard the KM point Caroline told me, not to worry they’ll be just around the next corner??? There they are (thank goodness for Lori’s Boston jacket, I can spot her a mile away), toss one empty bottle on the ground and Lori hands me a full one.  With a smile from her and a grimace from me I am off and fully stocked for the last section of the race.

The next 10K are a blur for me aside from a quick stop at KM 32 to get a cup of water, I decided that I would walk briskly to get the water in me.  This plan worked well until I started to run again, what a mistake my legs had started to cramp up as if I had signaled to them the race was over.  It took about 100m before they actually believed me that there was more to do.  No more walk breaks no matter what!  I was pushing myself harder than I have in the past and was sure I could finish this in my pacing window but it was going to take every bit of mental fortitude I had to keep my legs moving.  At some point I realised I was on the Sea-Wall but I was going the wrong way? The other runners were running in the same direction so I gathered that I was going the correct direction they must have changed the route.  It seemed like a cruel joke as there was a wicked head wind and for whatever reason I was thinking one step to the left and you could fall over, hey that would be a good excuse not to finish the last 8K.  8K? Really was I only 8K from the finish?  Well I’m not sure where the last 4K went to but I can run 8K, heck I do that most mornings.  All I needed to do was run my 4:45/K and I would be done in less than 40 minutes.  I told myself this as I reached each KM marker, I was looking for someone to pace off of as I was tending to lapse mentally and slow down.  I found a few people but they too were slowing down, then I noticed a woman just ahead of me with a long distinctive ponytail and she seemed to be running strong and pretty close to the pace I was looking for.  I caught up to her and stayed just behind her right shoulder, she was running a perfect pace for me and was not looking like she was going to fade, perfect!  Then she stopped at the water table and my pacer was gone, I just inhaled and dug deep to keep my pace going 4K to go, the wind was noticeable and blew a bit harder when I turned the corner.  I heard footsteps coming from behind me, they sounded familiar, and she was back!  Great news, she got ahead of me said something to me I said something along the line of thanks for pacing me in and we ran together until the last mile when she gradually picked up the pace and pulled away from me.  I only had a mile left and anyone can run a mile, right?  I was depleted!  My legs were screaming at me and my brain was telling me all sorts of things like you were too aggressive with your pace, you should take a short walk-break… then I heard someone yell out to me “Boston Strong”, Yes I am Boston Strong I thought and sucked up as much air as I could and put my head down and just ran. 1K to go Ok I was going to kick it up for the last K?  No I’m not my legs very quickly told me I was going to maintain but not surge to the line.  The line, I should be able to see that by now shouldn’t I? what a cruel joke, they have you climb a little knoll make a left turn then a slight downhill before a right turn then with only 400m to go I could see what I hoped to be the finish line.  I was absolutely spent I tried to pick it up but could not and by this time my hand and feet were tingling and I was feeling a little light headed, then I noticed off to the left the familiar orange of a Boston jacket, it was Lori!  I was there I was at the finish line!  Just run!  I looked at the clock and saw 3:17:?? I crossed and stumbled for a moment and one of the catchers approached me, “No, I’m OK” I told them.  They looked at me as if to ask are you sure?  Yes, I was sure I had just ran my first marathon in two years, my first after starting chemo treatments and I had managed to run a personal best time to boot. 

 I was more than OK, I was elated!  John Stanton was at the finish area placing medals on finishers and I went to him for mine, some water, juice and food now the challenge of finding Lori & the Pataky’s then to their place for a well-earned soak in the tub and some real food.  Frank found me wandering around the finish area and directed me through the maze, I was done and safe now to rest and plan for my next marathon.

Me just 100m or so from the finish line!

 

Yes I am that sick I was still reeling in pain walking like a zombie and already thinking of my next marathon, this autumn in Victoria I think…

Back from Boston...

Well after a very successful return to the Boston Marathon, we are now home.  Lori had a fantastic run in near ideal weather, it was a little warm for us west-coasters but still a great day.  The people of Boston really pulled together to support the run and the runners; Lori crossed the famed finish line and now has an official finishers medal and more importantly an official finishing time.

Next stop is Vancouver where I will run the Vancouver Marathon, here's hoping I do as well as Lori did.  This will be my first marathon since my treatments started and I am not sure what to expect. 

A quick report

Well the weather has changed, the mornings are brighter and the days are a little longer; it must be spring.  I am doing well, aside from the pollen and my training for the Vancouver marathon next month is going well.  Lori is all set for her marathon in Boston she has trained well for this one and should have a wonderful run!  We are all set for the trip and have arranged for some friends to house sit for us (thanks M&G).

I will send you an update from Boston and if you feel so inclined you can use the track a runner portion of www.baa.org to keep an eye on Lori's race April 21st, her bib number is 24756.

What happened in Comox?

As some of you may recall it was the Comox half marathon in 2011 where this story began for me; I was feeling fatigued near the 8 KM marker and afterwards I noticed the lumps...

I have not ran this race (or any other) in a little while and certainly not since my treatments have started, I was eager to give it a shot and set the bar for my Marathon in May.  Comox is a beautiful run, a true out and back with a gradual climb for most of the out and a gradual decent for most of the way back except for a flat straight section about 3KM from the finish that always seems to make me struggle a bit; I have not done much speed work and have been taking a cautious approach in my training to avoid injury so I had no idea of what I could do on the day.  My best at the distance is 1:29 and on this course a 1:31 in 2011 & and again in 2012, I decided I would shoot for a 1:45 or better if I could manage.  My plan was to go out at a 4:45 per KM for as long as I could hold it or until the half-way point then try to pick it up for the downhill return and if that went well I would see myself running 4:30's for the return. 

Each KM marker was a welcomed site as I did not feel all that confident at the start of the race and had no idea what the chemo from Friday had in-store for me, I was looking forward to the 8KM marker as that would indicate to me how the rest of the race would go, I reached the slope of the long hill and psyched myself for the climb, pushed up the hill and straight into the vacant port-a-potty at the top; no details here but a couple of minutes later I was back on the course and trying to hold the pace and stick to the plan.  I was able to pick it up slightly for the 9th and 10th KM and at the half way point I was there in 51:30 bang on target for my 1:45 finish, now let's see if I can pick it up at all.

The next few KM were downhill and I was able to get my legs going and they actually didn't seem to mind.  Soon I was running quickly and passing folks on the way.  It is always great on out-and-backs to see fellow runners heading towards you and spotting those you know to exchange a high-five or shout words of encouragement; today was no exception as I spotted Lori coming we did both, and she was looking strong and determined!

The rest of the race seemed to go fairly well and I focused on sticking to a pace that was near 4:30 and any time I felt like I was wavering in my pace I encouraged another runner and picked up my pace; if you want to run faster, you need to run faster.  The entire time I was thinking "imagine how good I would feel if I hadn't just had chemo!" and "take that cancer, I am back!"

The finish was just ahead and I was pretty much done I tapped into the little reserves I had left and made it across the line in a 1:37:01, only 6 minutes off of my course best so I am very happy!  Lori also came close to her course best and had a fantastic race as did our friends, so a great day of racing for all.

Lori came in 9th for her age group and I actually placed 10th in mine, a little icing on the cake!!

Here are the splits off my watch if you are interested...

Home Again

thanks to James I am home again and heading for a nap after a successful trip to the agency. 

Latter...

top'er up please

Today is my 4th of 8 maintenance treatments marking the mid-way point and only one more year before I am officially done with chemo.
Went to the agency for my usual pre-chemo appointment and everything went as expected and I am cleared for treatment this afternoon.  It will be the normal routine of some Prednisone this AM followed by Tylenol and an anti-histamine then a litre or so of IV Rituximab and then home for a nice nap before dinner followed by a good sleep until Saturday AM when I wake up feeling just fine and go for coffee.
I have signed up for a half marathon on Sunday and will let you know how that goes as well.  I will post when I am home from treatment this afternoon (4:30ish).

Thanks as always for reading.

February 2014

All is still well!  I have had no health issues since the gallbladder surgery and am starting to feel and act like my normal self again (sorry).

Training for the marathon is going well and on track, I ran 26K yesterday and other than tender legs last night all was well.

I am very happy to say I have not had much to type here for the last while and look forward to that trend continuing, thanks for reading.

A quick January update

Lori reminded me that it has been a while since I posted here; that is good news as it means I really have nothing to say on the topic...

I/we are doing well, Lori is running lots getting ready for Boston and I am building slowly to run/participate in the Vancouver marathon.  It is going well for both of us and aside from being much slower than I was a couple of years ago I feel great about getting back into things.  I am running 4 times a week hitting the gym in an attempt to build some strength 3 times a week and trying to ride my bike once or twice a week.

I am still trying to decide on my summer/fall goal and it seems to be a toss-up between the Penticton Challenge or a 100KM running race, one is some unfinished business and the other is a piece of un-started business, opinions are welcome on this.  The third option is to relax for the summer and do the local marathon in October...

All is well and aside from sore muscles on occasion I have no complaints.

Thanks as always for reading.

Sunday run

Well I managed to do a few hours worth of baseboards yesterday after having coffee with Tom & Catherine in the morning.  I felt pretty good but still had a little residual anxiousness which dissipated as the day went on.  It seem the Prednisone takes just over 24 hours to stop messing me up... I slept well last night.

This morning I was out for a 1 hour easy run and it felt pretty good although it was a tough mental run as I kept telling myself I should turn back and rest, my heart rate suggested I had rested long enough so I kept going and managed to complete 11KM in the hour, I am OK with that.

I'll do some more work on baseboards today and head over to a buddies to catch a game later on in the afternoon.

The next day

Well after a less than stellar sleep, I have the lingering Prednisone hangover this morning which puts me a bit on edge and jittery.  I am hoping that this is only because the appointment was moved to a later time than usual and that it will go away later in the day.  I am feeling fine aside from that and will be keeping to my usual Saturday activities; all is well and I am now topped up until near the end of March.

Home again...

Merry Christmas all, and of course Happy New Year.

I have been back from a very uneventful chemo appointment for an hour or so but was too tired to write until now.
It went as expected and our friend picked me up then we went to get Lori from work, back home and into bed for me as Lori made dinner, I am awake and doing just fine.  About to eat so will write more in the morning.

A change in plans

Went to see the Onc yesterday and all is well!  I was surprised on how much they knew about what I had been through since my last visit.  Typically for whatever reason what happens at a hospital or other physicians office takes time to get to the Onc if it gets there at all and most of the time when I tell them about it, it is the first they are hearing of it.  Yesterday they actually told me stuff and had actually seen the reports and scans!  They checked my gallbladder thoroughly and no sign of cancer there so very good news, they also checked on the CT that the respirologist ordered to confirm my lung infection had cleared and there was no sign of any cancer related growth in my nodes; more good news.

I am well enough to have my chemo, which was the point of yesterday's appointment; however, due to scheduling challenges I will not be in today I will go in next Friday instead.  So don't worry about it when I don't write how it went today because it is not happening today, instead I will tell you all about it next week.


Thanks again for reading and chat at you then.

Ooops, one more thing

I forgot to mention my recent visit to the respirologist, after the contrast free CT scan I met with her and am happy to report that there is no sign of the lung infection at all so I have been given a clean bill of health respiratory wise and no longer in need of her services!  Good news in time for the holidays.

man is it cold out there

Well it is for Victoria any way, it has dipped to below freezing here and we actually had a bit of snow!  not enough to shovel but a bit, the wind was a little bitter making it feel colder than it was.  This nonsense should end today as we head back into our regular single digit temperatures with our customary rain and drizzle.

Other than the cooler temps the week has been good, I have been at the gym a few times and running more than a few.  I am still running slow and steady but am gearing up for the marathon in May so I'll be gradually picking up the pace and carefully increasing the distances, it feels great to be back out there.  I sure did miss it!

I have also been doing more stuff around the house so everything is now back to our normal and we are both very happy abut that.  We are not wishing the time away but we would both like to be looking at 2013 through the rear-view mirror; what a year...