Catching Up Part 1

Since I’ve been away for soooo long I’ve got A LOT to say. None of it is very exciting. There is nothing “new” and no major decisions or changes looming, but I started to write and the next thing I knew, I had 5 pages…Since that would make for a very unwieldy blog entry, I decided to split it up into several parts. So without further ado here is Part 1.

I had my 6 month CT scan and bloodwork done in November and it showed no changes since the last scan and blood markers remained stable. Dr. Lange and I spent more time talking about where I might find clothes to fit me than the results of my tests. He did voice some concern over the weight issue and I agreed that it was a problem for me as well. I told him that I was working with a gastroenterologist at Brigham and that so far nothing we had tried had much effect. He suggested I try to find out what the first astronauts diet was and perhaps that might be good for me. At first I was like, huh? Astronaut diet – don’t they eat freeze dried food and MRE’s?? But then I realized he meant the diet they eat prior to the mission. in the early days of space travel bathroom facilities were difficult if not near impossible to use not to mention the problems the space suits posed, so they (the astronauts) would eat a diet that would bulk them up and constipate them. Though the NASA website is quite interesting and interactive, I haven’t yet found what I need, but being a librarian I will persevere.

The only other point of interest that we discussed was Panitumumab (Vectibix) which is the newest monoclonal antibody that obtained FDA approval for use with colo-rectal cancers. We had talked about this drug last year when it was in trials and re-visited the topic this time. Basically it’s a fully human version of Erbitux (which as many of you may remember was part mouse antibodies). The results thus far show that it causes fewer side effects. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: “Oh yea, I heard Panitumumab got FDA approval and is now available.”
Dr. L: “ MmmmHmmm.”
Me: “What are your thoughts about it?”
Dr. L: “What do YOU think about it?”
Me: “Not interested – Erbitux didn’t seem to work, and don’t feel like suffering through all those minor side effects again.”
Dr. L: “I agree, I wasn’t going to suggest it. You need a break and I don’t have confidence that it would be effective given your reaction to Erbitux.”
Me: “Great, glad we are on the same page”
Dr. L:” Have I mentioned lately how amazing and strong you are?”
Me: blush, blush…

So the decision is to “Stay the course” and not try the newest drug. I mentioned that I haven’t felt “good” in over 3 years and I would just like to have a little bit of time where I am healed from surgery and not suffering through any form of treatment. We all agree that this is probably the best medicine for me. So, for now I will keep in touch with a few people I know who are doing the Panitumumbab thing and see how they do. I was glad Dr. Lange and I talked about it and that we agreed on the current plan of “scan, wait and see”. I know that if I change my mind, all I have to do is say the word and we’ll give it a try. That’s Reason # 1,000,385 that I love my medical team.

November and December were busy months. Pat was traveling pretty much every other week and in early November I made my first work related trip in over a year. It was 4 days of intercompany meetings in Toronto. I figured it would be a good test of my stamina to see if I was ready to hit the road again. I left Boston on a Sunday afternoon (at least that was what my ticket said - after a cancellation, weather delay and overbooking it was early Monday morning before I arrive at my hotel…)and spent the next 4 days running ragged. My days began at 7 (or earlier) and went until 10 or 11pm. I took breaks when I could sneak them, but I knew I had to push myself to get the most out of the trip. I arrived back home on Friday afternoon and didn’t get out of bed until Monday. I realized it was too much too soon. But I did survive, I didn’t embarrass myself and at least I tried. I decided to back off a little and continue with my “no travel” attitude for the time being. Pat is enjoying all of his travel and is getting to know the ins and outs south of Market in San Francisco.

As we have done for the past several years, we decided to stay home for Thanksgiving and spend the day with our friends who are our extended family. We got a fresh bird from the local turkey farm, Pat studied the latest issues of Cooks Illustrated and we all enjoyed a juicy turkey with all the trimmings. I am finally willing to admit: A) There is no comparison between fresh and frozen turkey AND B) Brining, brining, brining. I am so lucky that Pat loves to cook (and clean up!) and while he enjoys experimenting with new dishes, he realizes there are some traditions that should not be broken (canned cranberry sauce anyone??). And to make the weekend even more perfect there was enough leftover turkey, stuffing, and cranberry for my day after sandwich. Yum!

The month of December was quickly upon us and we had a great time getting our new home ready for the holidays. As anyone on our Christmas card list knows, we had some fun with the decorating (of home and shed) and are now planning on making this an annual tradition. We’ve got some thoughts brewing about next years holiday card pose. Suggestions are welcome.

December 15, 2006 marked the 7 year anniversary of my first surgery and technically my initial diagnosis (though I didn’t hear the c-word until that following January). I celebrated by attending nephew Keagan’s 2nd birthday party. It was the best medicine for me – spending a few hours with a bunch of 2 year olds and their older siblings, all hyped up on sugar. I plan to repeat the tradition next year.

The holidays were nice, a bit hectic at times but all good. Pat and I agreed it was one of our best Christmases ever. Some of this was because of the big changes in our lives (the house, Pat’s job, my beating the estimates and getting use of my leg back months before the docs estimated) but we agreed that our overall attitude changed because we’ve finally accepted this path we have been given to follow instead of trying to find a way off. We are going to wait and see where it leads us. We know that we can get around any hurdle that is tossed in our way; the past 7 years have more than proved that. So we decided to embrace our newfound calm and enjoy each other – surrounding ourselves with family and friends.

Pat managed to sneak in a few hours of skiing before Christmas after which we returned to RI where we gorged ourselves on the traditional 7 shellfish Christmas Eve dinner before going home to spend the night. It was the first time in 9 years that I got to wake up in my own bed on Christmas morning . Then it was back to RI to spend the day with the family – with 4 nieces and nephews under the age of 7 you can imagine the excitement. Though we weren’t with them first thing Christmas morning we did spend much of the day with them and all their new toys.

We rang in the New Year in the company of old friends, hosted a New Years Day brunch for a dozen of Pat’s college friends and their families including one of our adorable goddaughters and her parents. It was nice to have the space to have guests, to host a party and parking for all! And then the holidays were over and it was back to work and the usual distractions and activities.

Pat and I were both grateful to put 2006 behind us and start fresh in 2007. No resolutions for us, just lots of plans to make the most of each and every day.

To be continued....

Posted by jean at January 31, 2007 04:04 PM