Background
I am undergoing
treatment for Stage 4 Mesothelomia Lung Cancer. The problem started
with chest pains on 2 January 2017 after I returned from my workout
at the gym. A trip to the emergency room resulted in a CT (computed
tomography) scan that revealed a mass in my right lung. A later
biopsy indicated it was mesothelioma; a sample was sent to the Mayo
Clinic for a second opinion; Mayo concurred in that diagnosis and I
was sent for a PET (positron emission tomography) scan at the Verde
Valley Medical Center clinic in Sedona, the nearest facility with a
PET machine. Following the PET scan I was referred to the Arizona
Oncology Center Sedona facility in the same building. I saw Dr
Anthony at the oncology center who discussed treatment options and
recommended chemotherapy consisting of the following two drugs:
Pemetrexed and Carboplatin, treatment I am now
undergoing.
Two
previous posts touch on this subject they are shown at:
and
Current
Status
I
underwent my fifth chemotherapy session on 17 May 2017. The doctor
was happy with the associated lab results.
The laboratory results are meaningless to me. However,
the most pertinent in my case (based on the doctor's emphasis) seems
to be my Hemoglobin level, so I looked that up online at the Mayo
Clinic website. Low hemoglobin results in anemia, a condition which
is somewhat normal for me.
The
specific parts of the test he seems most interested in are the HGB
(Hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying component within the red blood
cells) and the HCT (volume of red blood cells in a specific volume of
blood).
The lower HGB level for
continuing the treatment I am undergoing is 7 g/dl.
On
the 21 April test, my HGB reading was 9.9 g/dl, so I increased my
intake of blackstrap molasses (for iron) and Potato chips (for
sodium) and the 15 May test results showed an HGB level of 10.4
g/dl.
With the chemotherapy
port in place (installed at the time of the last treatment), the
treatment on 17 May went smoothly.
I have been having a
problem with my eyes watering recently. The doctor called it “easy
lacrimation” and suggested an antihistamine such as Benadryl. He
said that should also help me to sleep during the three-day period
surrounding chemotherapy treatments during which I take a steroid
(Dexamethasone).
I normally have a couple
of down days following chemo sessions, days on which I really don't
have any pain, but just feel listless. These listless days are
usually the second and third after treatment. This time was no
exception. The first day after treatment, I went for a 2.5-mile walk
and still felt good. The second day, still feeling good in the
morning, I walked 4.7 miles and that may have been a bit too much:
because by early afternoon I was really dragging. My listlessness
continued through another day.
This morning, 22 May, the
doctor's office called to tell me to start taking two iron tablets
each day. Hopefully that will help with the anemia. Later in the
morning, I got out and walked about a mile before spending most of
the rest of the day watching pre-recorded TV shows with daughter
Diana who is visiting for the week. I think that I am now ready for
some more substantial activity and Diana
and I have a 2.5-mile walk scheduled for tomorrow morning.
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