Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Knowing More Today Than Yesterday

Yesterday's platelet count was 67 (from 23 on Friday). That's a pretty decent spike upwards. I told the doctor that the platelet infusions bother me because I feel like I'm not responding well to the treatments. She confirmed that this recipe of chemo does affect the bone marrow and platelets more than the previous chemo recipe and that platelet infusions are normal with this recipe. Who thought "normal" could sound so good?

Today is the bone marrow biopsy. The purpose of it is to determine if there is any residual cancer in the bone marrow. Thursday and Friday will be the CT scans and PET scans. The CT scan is the one that requires the drinking of two "banana smoothies" and the PET scan is the one that requires the injection of a radioactive isotope. Both of them look for residual cancer in the body.

Yesterday when I spoke to the doctor, I asked her since the scans were scheduled so late in the week and since I was scheduled for chemo treatment on Tuesday, how would they know if the previous new recipe chemo treatments had done the job and if the next chemo treatment would be worth the time if the the previous ones hadn't succeeded. She said the bone marrow biopsy results should be back by the end of the week and the scan results would be ready by Tuesday before the chemo. She was scheduling an appt. with the Nurse Practitioner to review those with me before chemo. In the event the scans indicated that we needed to go to another treatment plan, we would know that before they administered chemo.

Her opinion, based on the results of the last set of scans showing there was minimal residual cancer as a result of my response to the initial chemo treatments, is that things will be on track to continue with the current treatments. She said, "I'm optimistic that things are heading in the way we want them to." I told her if she was optimistic, then so am I. I also told her that in no way would I expect her to guarantee anything. That's the way cancer works.

For more clarification, the whole point of this current treatment "recipe" is to put the cancer in remission before I go to MCV for the final portion of the treatment. At MCV, the treatment is to wipe it out (i.e. remove it entirely from my body...cure it). One of the anxieties I was having last week was not knowing when I would be going to MCV. In my mind, I had it scheduled in late June, but wasn't sure. The doctor confirmed that was a good tentative date to look at. Whew!

A friend of mine sent me an e-mail calling me "Mr. Crankypants." She was right. I had been cranky the past week. She calls it "PCC" (Pre chemo crankiness). I have other names for it, but the FCC and common decency won't let me type them in here.

Off to my trip down memory lane with the Nurse Practitioner. If you recall, the first time she and I met, she took a piece out of me. She said the other week that she didn't like to do bone marrow biopsies on anyone other than strangers. After my crankiness in front of her last Friday over having to get platelets, she may be looking forward to to doing the biopsy.

"I sat alone in the dark one night, tuning in by remote
I found a preacher who spoke of the light but there was brimstone in his throat
He'd show me the way according to him in return for my personal check
I flipped my channel back to CNN and I lit another cigarette

I take my chances, forgiveness doesn't come with a debt
I take my chances, I take my chances every chance I get

I've crossed lines of words and wire and both have cut me deep
I've been frozen out and I've been on fire and the tears are mine to weep
Now I can cry until I laugh and laugh until I cry
So cut the deck right in half, I'll play from either side

I take my chances, I pay my dollar and I place my bet
I take my chances, I take my chances every chance I get
I take my chances, I don't cling to remorse or regret
I take my chances, I take my chances every chance I get
I take my chances

I take my chances" - Mary Chapin Carpenter

2 comments:

Kathleen said...

Keeping you in my thoughts today.

erinnicole said...

GREAT song :) right on.