Scan results:
CT - No movement up into my lungs (yay), no big difference in my primary tumor (yay) and it looks like there may be slight shrinkage of the a couple tumors in my liver (double yay!!). It also shows that my abdomen is filling up with fluid. Not only is this troubling from a liver function perspective, but it is pretty uncomfortable. If it continues we may have to look at draining it from time to time. Sounds like fun.
MRI - My brain hole is healthy and cancer free. Unfortunately there isn't a good explanation for my headaches yet so I'm getting a referral to an ENT Doc. Hopefully something tangible will come out of that meeting. They've been getting bad enough to keep me from driving at times.
Dr Update:
For the past week I've had a rash all over my body that has really impacted my sleep and just been a general pain in the ass. As of yet we have nothing to relate it back to so we are starting with the medications that I've had reactions to in the past. In this case the Doc focused on one of my chemo drugs...Zaltrap. We decided to skip the Zaltrap this treatment, which made me happy because I've had a bad reaction to it every time I get it. She also put me on a tapering dose of steroids to see if I could knock the rash down quickly. We'll see how those work.
The other issue that we brought up to the Doc was the reaction that I'm having to my blood thinner injections. My entire stomach is covered in erythema nodosum, which looks like a rash but isn't. It's under the skin and goes away in 3-6 weeks IF you stop doing what's causing it. Unfortunately I can't stop my injections so we have to start looking for a new place to do them. And since it won't be in a spot that I can reach, Tami is going to be picking up a new skill...giving injections. We will start in the arms in the next few days and see if the erythema shows up there as well.
My weight is continuing to stay even which is wonderful news. The challenge of finding and choosing food that I can actually eat still plagues me on a daily basis. Friday afternoon, I wanted pizza so we stopped and picked up a couple of pies. I had one slice and immediately almost lost it to the sink. I became very nauseous for the rest of the day and finally gave up my dinner just before bedtime. So much for picking the right food that day. :( But last night we had success. (I attribute some of this win to the steroids that I'm on.) I wanted wings for some reason, so we ordered wings (garlic parm and mild original...because I'm a heat wussy now) and I ate them! I haven't had an order of wings since before I was diagnosed. It's the little things.
So, most of the news this weekend has been positive. Now to the not so hot news. My CEA numbers are on the rise again. I had dropped to 89.1 and was looking for another drop from there. Instead I was greeted with a rise to 112.8. That's higher than the last 2 measurements and is a real hit to the momentum. My liver numbers are also on the rise, which isn't the best sign. Nothing dangerous yet, but it does point to something not going quite right. So these are the things that we need to watch.
Take some time this week to really focus on something or someone you love. And don't forget to tell the people that you care about how much you appreciate them.
I appreciate everyone who follows this blog and sends their thoughts and prayers our way. We sure do need them.
Jake
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