I had a scan a week ago Friday, some strange and new pain throughout the week, no fluid drain from my lung on Thursday and finally an appointment with my oncologist on Friday so here is what we learned!
The Good. The Enhurtu treatment is working. The cancer that had reared its ugly head in March is better or stable. In addition to the cancer responding well to the treatment, we also don't see any additional damage to my lungs or heart from the treatment itself. This is not just good news, this is great news. We will continue with this treatment, which in the world of Stage 4 cancer is really the best news you can get. Victory #1.
The Bad. As you all might remember what led us all to know the cancer was active was the buildup fluid in my left lung that made it difficult for me to breath. While the fluid levels have dropped dramatically, there is still fluid. I have a drain in my lung that we access once a week to drain excess fluid. A week ago I was able to get 300ml out -- this week -- despite trying twice -- no fluid. Seems like that would have been a good thing but to go from 300 to 0 seemed suspicious. In addition, after my drain a week ago I started to have sharp pains in my ribs, my back and sometimes my shoulder when I would take deep breaths, cough, sneeze, or burp. Last Tuesday the pain was so bad we decided to go to the ER. Well after 2.5 hours of not being seen and the lady next to me telling me she had been there for five hours we threw in the towel and came home. Luckily the pain got better and in hindsight it was probably better not to have the ER docs try to figure out what was going on. The Dr showed us my scan Friday and he said the fluid had started to pocket itself off in the lungs where the drain can't get to it - building walls around itself so it doesn't go the bottom of the lung where the drain is. We could see the fluid along the side of the lung clearly in the CT. The problem with this is that when this happens the fluid can become infected, and it can cause pain. So at least the mystery pain symptoms were solved. The plan now is a referral to a thoracic surgeon for a consultation to see if he wants to do a surgery called a Pleurodesis which will remove the space where the fluid is building up (I think). He may also recommend putting in a chest tube where they could put clot busting meds into the lungs to try and break up the walls around the fluid. We are hoping to have the consultation next week and proceed with whatever resolution he recommends as soon as possible. While I put this in the bad category, since there is a resolution, it isn't all bad -- just bad for now.
The Ugh. This is the category for the random annoyances that come along with cancer and cancer treatment. I am slightly anemic...so really need to work on making sure I am getting enough protein in my diet. With all the moving we have been doing I am lucky to be remembering to eat. let alone eat protein. We are pretty settled in the new house so time to have eggs and sausgae for breafkast instead of a handful of grapes and a bag of Cheez its. Cheez its are still a main stay in my diet but I need to supplement them with a few more nutritious items. My blood pressure was low on Friday -- I have always had very good blood pressure. The Dr thinks this is mostly like due to dehydration. I live in a constant state of dehydration. I honestly don't like water...I know that is weird. So now I have to be even more conscious of taking in enough water. This is especially true given how hard I have been working physically and how hot it has been here in Texas. The last 3 weeks it has been so hot and at least 95 degrees when I play tennis at 7pm at night. The good news is the Dr is all in favor of me continuing to play tennis! The annoyance list I am sure will continue to grow but for now everything is manageable.
I will plan to do another blog after we meet with surgeon and have the next steps in place! In the meantime will continue to get settled into the new house!
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