Just a quick update. Several days ago I had my 5th infusion and now have only one more to go on September 15th. The side effects of this treatment are grinding me into the ground and I generally feel awful, but I do occasionally have good moments and I try to take advantage of them. The great news is that the most recent blood tests show that every single thing is moving in the right direction. There is a good chance of achieving remission.
I can’t say that I’m eager to have one more infusion, but I’m eager to put this whole thing behind me. Unfortunately I’ll have to go back to treating the prostate cancer when I’ve recovered sufficiently from the chemo. I had to interrupt the prostate treatment because it wasn’t possible to treat both cancers at the same time.
In the small world of sedentary life, mostly at home, things shrink. Small things become important. What comes in the mail today? This thing needs to be moved, or I don’t like how those books are piled up. When is yard waste day, this week or next week? And then there is the endless talk about managing side effects, which drugs do what, etc. We talk about travel and things we would like to do, but they’re pushed out to the indefinite future, and I’ve been grappling with the constant shortness of breath since 2018, when my right lung became non-functional. On the bright side, there is my amazing wife who has nursed me and stuck with me through every crisis and all things big and small. She is a super-hero. I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be alive to write this if it weren’t for her.
