MRI last week has shown the tumor has grown 10-15% compared to MRI 8 weeks ago.It's smashing into the left ventricle (cavity that holds spinal fluid for the brain) . you can see the ventricle as the black areas in the pictures in a previous post:
https://edslas.blogspot.com/2018/09/recurrence-three.html
The ventricle by the new tumor now is almost smashed closed. I guess I'm kinda lucky it smashed into fluid filled cavity, smashing into brain tissue would lead to further neurological problems. Currently, my left leg is getting more week and has loss of sensation. A couple days ago while trying to change shoes, I tried to put on my new left shoe before taking off the old one and could not figure out why it would not go on. I walked away with two shoes on my left foot.
I am meeting with a radiation oncologist on Monday to talk about the possibility of proton therapy. I was told back in 2010 that this was not an option because my tumor was too big for the very precise proton therapy. Now I have a bigger tumor, it'll be interesting to hear what they have to say. I am also concerned if insurance would cover it. I've read stories of people paying for it out of pocket.
It will be an interesting couple months.
Saturday, December 1, 2018
Monday, November 19, 2018
Breathing Problems
Ever since I started the Avastin/Steriods a couple months ago I have experienced shortness of breath and chest pain when I take a deep breath. The deep breath pain happens even at rest, the shortness of breath after mild activity, such as getting dressed. In my typical fashion, I decided to wait and see if it goes away. Well it didn't, and oncologist said to go see my PCP.
My PCP prescribed:
Omeprazole(Prilosec) 40 mg capsule / 1x/day
a proton pump inhibitor that decreases the amount of acid produced in the stomach.
Montelukast (Singulair) 10 mg tablet / 1x/day
Montelukast is used to prevent asthma attacks and also used to prevent exercise-induced bronchospasm
He told me that if I don't feel better in three or four days to get a ultrasound of my abdomen to see if there is a buildup of fluid and a Pulmonary function test to see if my lungs are working right. He added that if I do feel better to keep taking this medication for 30 days. I'm at day two taking these meds.
On a happier note, I have not had any of those terrible leg cramps since I stopped the steroids.
I've had 5 Avistan infusions so far. Next MRI/ oncologist visit is at the end of November.
My PCP prescribed:
Omeprazole(Prilosec) 40 mg capsule / 1x/day
a proton pump inhibitor that decreases the amount of acid produced in the stomach.
Montelukast (Singulair) 10 mg tablet / 1x/day
Montelukast is used to prevent asthma attacks and also used to prevent exercise-induced bronchospasm
He told me that if I don't feel better in three or four days to get a ultrasound of my abdomen to see if there is a buildup of fluid and a Pulmonary function test to see if my lungs are working right. He added that if I do feel better to keep taking this medication for 30 days. I'm at day two taking these meds.
On a happier note, I have not had any of those terrible leg cramps since I stopped the steroids.
I've had 5 Avistan infusions so far. Next MRI/ oncologist visit is at the end of November.
Thursday, October 25, 2018
Dramatic Weight Gain
I have put on 20 lbs over the past 6 weeks! -this is the time frame I have been on Decadron and Avastin. My appetite has been out of control, and I have been eating a lot more than usual, but geese I wouldn't think one could pack 20 lbs this fast. My gut is so large that I have a real hard time bending over to put my socks on. Most of my pants don't fit anymore. My weight last year before the PC-V chemo was steady around 185. Loss of appetite and lack of exercise while on chemo for 9 months dropped me down 15 lbs to 170.I have a call into the doctor to make sure this is not a sign of a bad reaction to the medications. Tomorrow is my last day of weaning off the decadron, my appetite has receded some - hopefully I can get back to 170.
I'm still having the severe leg and hand cramps, but not as frequent. I have learned some triggers and avoid them vehemently. One trigger was the curling of my foot needed to put on shoes. Now a wiggle to get the shoe as aligned up as possible and only press strait down. The other odd thing I caught onto was the attacks would usually happen shortly after I woke up, sometimes waking me up.Now I'm careful to not get out of bed immediately and give myself a couple of minutes of gently wiggling my toes. Even with these adjustments the leg cramps are happening a couple times a week and injure my legs so bad I hobble around for days in pain. My hands cramp up a lot when I do any fine motor control like using a pen or going to pick up small objects.These are just as painful as the leg cramps, but don't last as long and have no lingering pain after they subside. The doctor did some blood tests (Calcium and Magnesium levels, I think), but they came back normal. I'll push the issue with the doctor if this continues past the Decadron and Avastin. Enjoy my mug shots 6 weeks apart.
The past week or so I have been having pressure headaches and have been generally out of it. My left eye hurts too. I came up with a catch phrase for this "out of it" state of mind..."observation mode". Its a state of mind where I can see and hear everything around me, but do not have the sense I can process,store and react to any of it. Then when people press me for a response, I don't have a grasp of what was said or what I saw and I end up saying something like "what?, I don't know what you are talking about". How often during the day I drop into this observation mode depends on how my head feels.
I'm tired of writing, so I'll sign off.
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| October '18( 190lbs) |
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| July '18 (170lbs) |
Friday, October 5, 2018
Avistan Working
I had a MRI and appointment with the oncologist this week. The MRI showed a lot less swelling and blood products around the new growth. The growth did not change in size, which is awesome news. I was gravely concerned that seeing the rate at which this came on that it would be taking half up my brain by now. The doctor attributed this improvement and stability to the Avistan. With that, we are going to wean off the decadron steroid - good grief, this makes me so hungry I literally put on 10 lbs in the past month. Eating so much makes my digestive system very uncomfortable. My poop shooter is happy with with a 2 or 3 small meals a day. I've been eating 4,5,6 times a day.
My worries have been fueled by my ongoing muscle spasms in my legs, and have recently started happening in my hands. I have such bad episodes that I could not stand/walk for a day following. The doctor sort of ruled out that these are seizures because they are happening on both sides of my body. With the tumor on the right, he would only expect these types of problems on the left. We're looking into deficiencies in my blood work to explain this. I suspect some of the problem is rooted in the extreme stress of the whole situation. I need to put some meditation into my daily routine to calm my inner self.
Going forward I'll be getting the Avistan every 2 weeks and an MRI every 8. It was discussed when we started the Avistan that there is no prescribed number of cycles similar to chemo. This will continue as long as it's "effective" in holding the growth back.
My worries have been fueled by my ongoing muscle spasms in my legs, and have recently started happening in my hands. I have such bad episodes that I could not stand/walk for a day following. The doctor sort of ruled out that these are seizures because they are happening on both sides of my body. With the tumor on the right, he would only expect these types of problems on the left. We're looking into deficiencies in my blood work to explain this. I suspect some of the problem is rooted in the extreme stress of the whole situation. I need to put some meditation into my daily routine to calm my inner self.
Going forward I'll be getting the Avistan every 2 weeks and an MRI every 8. It was discussed when we started the Avistan that there is no prescribed number of cycles similar to chemo. This will continue as long as it's "effective" in holding the growth back.
Saturday, September 15, 2018
First Avastin Infusion, problems with Leg
Had my first Avistan infusion this week. Easy breezy, no side effects during the process or in the days following. These are now scheduled for every two weeks with a MRI/NO appointment every month. I have also been taking decadron steroid for the brain swelling. This makes me hungry, I then eat too much and get indigestion.
I have been doing financial planning on how to handle the insurance money, making sure all the accounts and passwords are written down, etc. The estate planning process is complicated with all the different types of wills and trusts, then when I see it after a lawyer write it down it I have little idea that it meets my intention. The proceeds are to support Holly through her retirement. Our marriage has been the classic Breadwinner/Bacon Cook. I want to keep that commitment in which she has few worries about money.
Physically, I have been having some serious problems in my left leg. About 6 months ago I started getting charlie horses in my calf. These would be so violent I would walk gingerly for a week afterwards from the pulled muscles. Now they are triggered from the simplest foot movement. I fear pointing my toes even when doing so to put my shoes on. Sometimes it starts just out of the blue. Yesterday it spread up my leg, lasted about 10 minutes and left me with a disoriented feeling afterword for a couple hours. Not sure this relates to the tumor, but sure is suspicious.
Ready for pumpkin spice?
I have been doing financial planning on how to handle the insurance money, making sure all the accounts and passwords are written down, etc. The estate planning process is complicated with all the different types of wills and trusts, then when I see it after a lawyer write it down it I have little idea that it meets my intention. The proceeds are to support Holly through her retirement. Our marriage has been the classic Breadwinner/Bacon Cook. I want to keep that commitment in which she has few worries about money.
Physically, I have been having some serious problems in my left leg. About 6 months ago I started getting charlie horses in my calf. These would be so violent I would walk gingerly for a week afterwards from the pulled muscles. Now they are triggered from the simplest foot movement. I fear pointing my toes even when doing so to put my shoes on. Sometimes it starts just out of the blue. Yesterday it spread up my leg, lasted about 10 minutes and left me with a disoriented feeling afterword for a couple hours. Not sure this relates to the tumor, but sure is suspicious.
Ready for pumpkin spice?
Monday, September 3, 2018
Recurrence Three
Back in July, the 18th to be specific, My Contrast MRI revealed a spot my neuro-oncologist was worried about. We scheduled a follow up MRI in 6 weeks, and are shocked to see the rate and scale of the progression
This is the MRI 6 weeks later, 8/28/2018 - Spot turned into a ~1.5" blob
I'm feeling 'normal' right now and in a good mood. I had some noted physical changes about 3-4 months ago. I stopped driving because I did not feel safe because my vision was getting confused - had hard time keeping between the lines and unsure navigating traffic. Not blurry or double vision, I just lost the understanding of what I was seeing and thus distorted ability to react to it. I can read just fine, and still have been keeping my mind busy with learning new software systems. I'm almost done writing a mobile app that will send a text message to a loved one if my phone does not move in several hours, or moves excessively like what would happen in a fall or seizure.. assuming I had my phone with me. In conjunction with this my left side started having some new problems. I have a hard time making a fist with my hand. My left leg started 'giving out' while I was walking. After my last surgery it would give me this type of problem when I got up from sitting, now its happening while I am in stride. In the last couple weeks my left leg would occasionally not cooperate with walking causing me to stumble. It would fail to lift off the ground and swing forward in coordinated manner with the other leg causing me to do do a little spin with my foot stuck to the ground. No falls yet, but I catch myself on nearby counters and the like a couple times a day. A couple times over the past few weeks I would drop into a daze - that kind of feeling I get when my mind detaches from my body. Oddly, this would happen when I was eating flavorful/spicy foods. I would stop chewing and sit there with an almost blank mind for 10 sec or so, wake up and continue normally.
My family and I decided to treat this with a relatively new approach with a cancer medicine 'Avastin' as opposed to the conventional treatment of surgery/radiation/chemotherapy - which has not worked two times now in 2010 and 2016. The doctors tell me that surgery gets more risky with each one with further dangers in lack of healing and causing more deficiencies with each swipe of the scalpel. My NO has seen Avastin both reduce swelling and tumor size in cases like mine with few side effects. He added that any improvements are temporary. Stopping these episodes of re-growth is out of reach for this disease. A similar risk exists with surgery, they can't get it all, and whatever tumor is left probably spawn and grow. The doctor said that the Avastin treatments can continue as long as they are working. It's yet to be seen if the insurance will pay for it seeing that its a new brain tumor treatment approach.
I seem to be embarking on the next phase of my journey. Nobody knows where it will take me or the timeline, but rest assured I will try keep a smile on my face along the way.
-Ed
This is the MRI 6 weeks later, 8/28/2018 - Spot turned into a ~1.5" blob
I'm feeling 'normal' right now and in a good mood. I had some noted physical changes about 3-4 months ago. I stopped driving because I did not feel safe because my vision was getting confused - had hard time keeping between the lines and unsure navigating traffic. Not blurry or double vision, I just lost the understanding of what I was seeing and thus distorted ability to react to it. I can read just fine, and still have been keeping my mind busy with learning new software systems. I'm almost done writing a mobile app that will send a text message to a loved one if my phone does not move in several hours, or moves excessively like what would happen in a fall or seizure.. assuming I had my phone with me. In conjunction with this my left side started having some new problems. I have a hard time making a fist with my hand. My left leg started 'giving out' while I was walking. After my last surgery it would give me this type of problem when I got up from sitting, now its happening while I am in stride. In the last couple weeks my left leg would occasionally not cooperate with walking causing me to stumble. It would fail to lift off the ground and swing forward in coordinated manner with the other leg causing me to do do a little spin with my foot stuck to the ground. No falls yet, but I catch myself on nearby counters and the like a couple times a day. A couple times over the past few weeks I would drop into a daze - that kind of feeling I get when my mind detaches from my body. Oddly, this would happen when I was eating flavorful/spicy foods. I would stop chewing and sit there with an almost blank mind for 10 sec or so, wake up and continue normally.
My family and I decided to treat this with a relatively new approach with a cancer medicine 'Avastin' as opposed to the conventional treatment of surgery/radiation/chemotherapy - which has not worked two times now in 2010 and 2016. The doctors tell me that surgery gets more risky with each one with further dangers in lack of healing and causing more deficiencies with each swipe of the scalpel. My NO has seen Avastin both reduce swelling and tumor size in cases like mine with few side effects. He added that any improvements are temporary. Stopping these episodes of re-growth is out of reach for this disease. A similar risk exists with surgery, they can't get it all, and whatever tumor is left probably spawn and grow. The doctor said that the Avastin treatments can continue as long as they are working. It's yet to be seen if the insurance will pay for it seeing that its a new brain tumor treatment approach.
I seem to be embarking on the next phase of my journey. Nobody knows where it will take me or the timeline, but rest assured I will try keep a smile on my face along the way.
-Ed
Sunday, June 10, 2018
New Normal
Greetings,
My last MRI in April was 'unremarkable', which is a good thing in radiologist-speak. I find it interesting that these every 3 months serial readings are usually only compared to the last MRI. Both times I had a re-occurrence The radiologist said, well we went back a year and there were remarkable changes... The images are so much different after the surgery it is difficult to compare earlier than that. So far, so good. Don't ask, don't tell and everyone is happy.
My blood counts are still low. My oncologist suggested that my immune system may have been permanently damaged, but I am not getting sick (infections) - so no need to worry. Well I did any way and had a battery of tests done to make sure that there was not some other explanation for the low counts and my general daily exhaustion. Nothing turned up, so I'm accepting that this is my 'new normal'. Don't Worry, Be Happy.
For the most part I have been feeling pretty good. I still get these major spells where I can't operate for days. During these spells, my left eye socket feels as if is missing, the inside of my head feels as if it is warping or being twisted. I can't comprehend reading material - I can read the words, but can't grasp what the sequence of them means. I am aware that this is happening and will usually spend most of the day in bed. Laying there, my body feels as if detaches from my mind. Its an odd state where if I want to move, like say roll over, I don't know how because I'm not aware of my body. No muscles to tell what to do. I can eventually talk myself into bringing the awareness back so I can get up. Again, these are spells. They last a couple days, then I am back to my new Normal. The thought of one day getting stuck in this state is very frightening and saddening. I teared up yesterday thinking about this as I just came off a spell.
I have still been keeping my mind busy with investigation into new (to me) technology in software. I probably spend too much time doing this mental exercise, but I can't just sit idle - that's not in my DNA. I guess I am also still holding on to a thread of hope I will be able to go back to work someday. My physical exercise is coming from cooking, cleaning and some yard work. I need to do something more substantial.
Next MRI in July after my 51st Birthday. Come November, this will be 8 years living/fighting with this Brain Tumor.
Have a nice Summer,
Ed
My last MRI in April was 'unremarkable', which is a good thing in radiologist-speak. I find it interesting that these every 3 months serial readings are usually only compared to the last MRI. Both times I had a re-occurrence The radiologist said, well we went back a year and there were remarkable changes... The images are so much different after the surgery it is difficult to compare earlier than that. So far, so good. Don't ask, don't tell and everyone is happy.
My blood counts are still low. My oncologist suggested that my immune system may have been permanently damaged, but I am not getting sick (infections) - so no need to worry. Well I did any way and had a battery of tests done to make sure that there was not some other explanation for the low counts and my general daily exhaustion. Nothing turned up, so I'm accepting that this is my 'new normal'. Don't Worry, Be Happy.
For the most part I have been feeling pretty good. I still get these major spells where I can't operate for days. During these spells, my left eye socket feels as if is missing, the inside of my head feels as if it is warping or being twisted. I can't comprehend reading material - I can read the words, but can't grasp what the sequence of them means. I am aware that this is happening and will usually spend most of the day in bed. Laying there, my body feels as if detaches from my mind. Its an odd state where if I want to move, like say roll over, I don't know how because I'm not aware of my body. No muscles to tell what to do. I can eventually talk myself into bringing the awareness back so I can get up. Again, these are spells. They last a couple days, then I am back to my new Normal. The thought of one day getting stuck in this state is very frightening and saddening. I teared up yesterday thinking about this as I just came off a spell.
I have still been keeping my mind busy with investigation into new (to me) technology in software. I probably spend too much time doing this mental exercise, but I can't just sit idle - that's not in my DNA. I guess I am also still holding on to a thread of hope I will be able to go back to work someday. My physical exercise is coming from cooking, cleaning and some yard work. I need to do something more substantial.
Next MRI in July after my 51st Birthday. Come November, this will be 8 years living/fighting with this Brain Tumor.
Have a nice Summer,
Ed
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