I’ve made a bit of progress on my dilemma on whether or not to go for the cranial/spinal radiation boost. This morning I ran across a study that ends like this:
“CONCLUSION: Primary chemotherapy based on high-dose MTX and ARA-C is highly efficient in PCNSL. Response rate and response duration in this series are comparable to [...]
We’re getting closer and closer to starting the stem-cell transplant conditioning. Last week we did an LP and an MRI to make sure my CSF was A-OK. Tests were negative, which is a positive sign.
Starting last Wednesday we’ve been visiting the SCCA every single weekday. Well, I had last Friday off. But every other single weekday!
One thing that was quickly clarified: we had in mind that the heart of the process would take 90 days. Bzzt! Wrong! That’s for allogeneic transplants, where the donor and the recipient are not the [...]
And as the first three methotrexate treatments went, so did the fourth. Once more I checked into the hospital on a Monday and then checked out on Thursday.
This time I wanted to do everything I could to avoid suffering through the joint pain on Saturday morning. My lizard brain considered trying to stay in the [...]
Here I am, coming to you live from Virginia Mason hospital on the second day of the third round of high-dose Methotrexate!
Last night we began the MTX infusion around 6:30 or 7pm. It finished near 11pm or midnight. I’ve had a bit more nausea this time around, but nothing so bad that we can’t stay [...]
The Friday after my first high-dose methotrexate was New Years Eve. We partied with some friends in Wallingford, and then the group walked to Gasworks Park to watch the fireworks at the Space Needle. My legs were absolutely exhausted by the walk to and back. They were not happy at all. The next morning the [...]
Last Friday was my second intrathecal dose on Depocyt, and yesterday I re-admitted to the hospital to start my second round of high-dose Methotrexate. The drip finished up around 11pm, so the rescue doses of Leucovorin antidote will start up around that time.
This morning I got to be a teaching aide, too! A program coordinator [...]
On Tuesday I wrote to Dr Norman to describe the litany of symptoms that have been ailing me for the last few weeks; that evening he responded that he would have some extra time Wednesday morning before his first patient, and that I should come by to see him.
His suspicion was that my correlating digestive [...]
The victory of the stem cell collection marked the end of needing to give myself the Neupogen shots each night, which is nice. But since then I’ve been dealing with a really annoying headache. Actually the headaches started during the week just before the collection; splitting headaches that couldn’t be extinguished laying down.
I tried taking [...]
To be ready to collect stem cells the CD34+ cell concentration in one’s blood is supposed to be above 8 * 10^6/ml. If the concentration is too low, collecting a viable transplant amount will take too many sessions. And at 4-5 hours a session, fewer is better!
Back on the 9th (a Monday) my CD34+ concentration [...]