Emergency

Things have been going along smoothly and you just know that something will happen. Well, it did.

I know you are thinking that I got a major set back or some new strange disease. Well, that is not true. I do have it confirmed that I have a mild case of Hand/Foot Syndrome. I am treating it by using Udderly Smooth cream three or four times a day. But that is not the emergency.

The technician gave me a Finding Nemo bandaid instead of a Snoopy bandaid when I did my blood tests yesterday, but I have survived that.'

The emergency is that the research manager came home this afternoon to find two inches of water in our master bathroom and water running through the carpet in the bedroom, in the cupboards and into the kitchen. The cause was a broken supply line to the toilet and it has resulted in several hours of working at removing water, having the plumber fix the supply line and finally having the water restoration people come to start the drying out process. I think they will be here till midnight and will leave all manner of equipment to run for four or five days. I guess that the guest bedroom beckons us tonight.

The hand foot thing has garnered a little attention. The research manager said that part of my toes looked as white as the sheet. I figured that I could solve that by using flesh colored sheets, but apparently the cream is a better solution.

When I quietly mentioned it to the blood technician, but that I wasn't going to tell anyone, she said that I just did and made me go to see the nurse. She watched to make sure that I went there rather than ducking out.

The nurse asked if she could look at my foot. I complied by holding up my right foot still clad with a sock and a shoe. She told me that she did not have X-ray vision and that I would have to take the shoe off. She felt that all was under control and to continue to use the cream.

Finally, two medical breakthroughs. The research manager has been complaining about snoring, mine, not hers. By coincidence, she also observed that I had been slacking off on my vitamin C. I have resumed that part of my 40 odd pills and liquids a day and, mirabile dictu, my snoring has stopped.

The second is that my friend Mike, from Canada, sent me some samples of Biotene Gel. I have been using the Biotene rinse and the Biotene spray, but not the gel. It works great and it has reduced my dry mouth issues and decreased the number of times that I wake up during the night.

I think that is enough for tonight. I will be watching Cash Cab or Jimmy Fallon until the water restoration guys are finished.

Fun at Publix

Developments on many fronts.

First, my blood tests showed significant improvement yesterday. White blood cells were up and other measures were decent. The doctor seemed happy.

My blood pressure was excellent  116/73, a number that I have not seen in a long time.

It is a good thing that they check my blood pressure before they prick my finger for my blood work because the bandaid that they used after the needle prick was a Snoopy Christmas bandaid. I was so excited that I am sure my blood pressure rose significantly.

I got my every third week infusion of Avastin. Even though the center was so full that I had trouble finding a chair, it went very quickly, much better than three weeks ago. Why this is particularly noteworthy is that, being old and forgetful, I arrived 90 minutes before my appointment time. I signed in as Al Exion and suddenly realized that I was early, but they took me anyway.

The research manager has determined that my mouth sores/dryness is in part due to the fact that I had not been taking my lypo-spheric vitamin C. She also claims that it has stopped my snoring.

My neuropathy is significant. I actually suspect that it may be a mild case of hand/foot syndrome, but it is so mild that I do not think about it. As long as I can play tennis, I will not talk about it. Ooops, I just did.

A lot of activity occurred at our local Publix store this week.

First, I was sitting in my car studying the shopping list when a woman came up to my driver's side door and her friend opened the passenger side door. I offered to drive them home, but apparently they had a white SUV also and got confused. I am glad that others are so inflicted.

A few days later, I stopped at Publix for a quick visit and as I backed out of my spot noticed that the research manager's car was right next to mine. I parked the car and went back into Publix and asked the clerk on what aisle they had wives. I found the research manager and was able to help carry out her purchases.

As we left, a man commented on what a great shirt I was wearing. That is ironic because it was one of the shirts that I wear when I get an infusion in my port. Because of the connection with the chemo infusions, I am not particularly fond of any shirt that has full buttons. I thanked him though.

That's about it for this week. Except to say that I continue to get hugs from Kim at the Hydro-colontherapy clinic. I think she is still trying to make amends for calling someone else "sweetheart." Besides that, she seems to like getting mentioned in this blog.

Hot and Cold

Wow. Lot's to report this week.

My blood numbers were not so hot yesterday. White blood cell count, red blood cell count, ANC, Platelets and Hemoglobin were all down. There was nothing to make me feel better as they took blood from my arm which meant a larger bandage and so no Finding Nemo bandaid.

However, I have big news to report! I received two packages of Snoopy bandaids. One was from Ann Onimus and the other was from Hugh Noes. My heart soared when I got them and I look forward to my next finger prick so that I can proudly sport a Snoopy bandaid.

I am back taking Xeloda as of last night. The interesting thing is that symptoms have varied during the off week. My mouth sore is gone and yet, my dry mouth is slightly worse. It happens at night, but disappears during the day. The neuropathy is slightly worse. What is interesting is that often my fingers are cold as I mentioned last week and yet when I wake up in the morning, they are warm. So, the night time adversely affects my mouth dryness and the daytime adversely affects my neuropathy.

For some of this past week, my tennis has been cold, but today, I was hot. Let's hope that it keeps up.

Finally, last week's sweetheart issue is getting slightly better. I got a hug from the Hydrocolontherapy receptionist last Thursday and she called me sweetheart yesterday. So, my self confidence is returning gradually.

I find it hot that so many people think that I look great. I think that many snowbirds were wondering what they would find when they got here. I am glad that they are pleasantly surprised.

Let's not call them Sweetheart

A kind of interesting week.

As the week of Xeloda came to an end, three side effects took center stage.

A mouth sore has reappeared. I definitely have dry mouth, including dryness in my lips. As a result, I have wakened at least one morning with blood on my pillow.

Also, neuropathy has gotten a little worse on my fingers and toes. As a result, my fingers are often cold.

Talking about fingers, I have jokingly asked at the cancer center if I could have a Snoopy bandaid when I have my finger pricked for blood tests. They have not ever been able to supply even one. As a result, I went to the store and purchased the next best thing......Finding Nemo bandaids. As a result, yesterday I was the first patient to walk out of the cancer center with a specialty bandaid on my finger. I am still on the lookout for Snoopy bandaids if anyone can help. The technicians at the center think that Snoopy bandaids are not so popular with kids these days and got into a lengthly discussion about all the characters from Peanuts. I gave my impression of the teacher. Wah, Wah, Wah, Wah, Wah.

Now, the side effects are not good but are  partially offset by joy of the bandaids. However, I was devastated this week. The receptionist at the place I go for Far Infra-red Sauna has repeatedly asserted that I was her favorite customer. However, I entered the facility on Monday to overhear her on the phone calling someone else "Sweetheart!"

You cannot imagine my disappointment. I may never recover.

Dr. Gill

A sort of interesting week.

I continue to feel good and many have said that I look good. Usually, they say that I look better than the last time they saw me. Hmmm.

I met with Dr. Patel yesterday and he seems happy with what is happening. Stability is the goal. Of course, it is hard to tell until the next pet scan that will be in early December. If things continue as he hopes, I can likely take Xeloda for 3 or 4 years.

As soon as I stopped taking Xeloda last week, my tennis declined slightly, but I went back on it last night and played a little more decently this morning. I would note that I played four sets last Saturday. Of course, that was the coolest day in a long time.

Last Saturday, I went to the Flea Market and in attempting a slick maneuver in my car, I got stuck in the mud. Boy, was the car dirty. People even commented on it as they walked by it. I was able to get out of the mud and off to the car wash without extreme humiliation.

But two humiliating things have happened.

The first is that I got a call from an antiques dealer looking for antiques. I realized that he might be talking about me, but apparently I did not qualify.

Secondly, the research manager insists on accompanying me when I get infusions, which I did yesterday (Avastin for a supposed 1/2 hour). However, she decided to stay home to wait for a visit from the air conditioning repair man. I can only assume that the air conditioner is more important.

I did learn patience, however, as the 1/2 hour Avastin infusion ended up taking almost 3 hours. There were many contributing factors. If I had been required to show even more patience, they would have had to start calling me Dr. Gill.

Off to bed soon. In the non-air conditioned bedroom! We are now waiting for a quote on the work required. More patience! I may make the research manager my nurse practitioner.

The Mexican Open

It has been a good week overall.

I am feeling good. My blood numbers are decent and my CEA has dropped from 3.8 to 3.1. The research manager credits Beta-Glucan, AHCC and Black Seed Oil.

I still have neuropathy in my fingers and toes, but there is no sign of hand/foot syndrome.

While I have dry mouth, the research manager has determined that my "mouth sores" are more likely caused by a sharp edge on a tooth than by the Xeloda. So, I am back to using Biotene rather than the Magic Mouth Wash.

I have determined that Xeloda does have some unusual side effects. My tennis has improved and I am looking good.

Here are the details.

I have been told by many that I look good, but on the weekend, I was told that I was handsome and the person making the comment said she would marry me if she wasn't already married.

The receptionist at the colon-hydrotherapy place declined my making a payment for my next ten sessions last week as she had already shut down her computer. I joked that I was surprised that she would not let me push her buttons that day. She told me I could push her buttons the next time I had a treatment.  She told me that she likes the way I goof around.

Now the big news. I have been told by many that my tennis has improved big time. I have played with one person fairly frequently lately and we virtually always win. I tell everyone that we are practicing for the Australian Open. Last Saturday, I was told that I was a wall on the tennis court. Hmmm.....maybe we are preparing for the Mexican Open!

We have survived Hurricane Michael with the possible exception that we could not play tennis this morning.

All in all, a good week. Thanks for your interest, prayers and support.

Seeds, sunscreen and a spiralizer.

It has been an eventful week.

I was off Xeloda until yesterday (Tuesday). Over the week, I experienced the following:

Some fatigue
Neuropathy in my fingers and slightly in my toes
Dry mouth
A mouth sore

However, in the last three nights, I have been able to sleep through the night for two nights, a rare feat!

My blood tests have been encouraging. Good blood pressure, a pulse of 59, increased white blood cell count and hemoglobin. My platelets are still low though. All in all, a good report. What is more, people say that I look healthy. I feel healthy.

The colonoscopy went well. I survived prep day with not too much difficulty. I actually looked forward to a sleep while on the table. Alas, it was all too short.

I awoke to be greeted by a friendly, caring research manager and shortly thereafter, a rather miffed GI doctor. Apparently my consumption of Dave's Powerseed bread caused several seeds to remain in my colon and they gummed up his scope three times, he noted gruffly. So, if you want to annoy your GI. eat seeds before your colonoscopy! There was one small polyp, but he did not seem concerned about that. Of course, would you be concerned about anything other that your clogged scope?

You may recall that to avoid skin issues while taking Xeloda I use sunscreen. The research manager found a list of acceptable sun screens and I purchased one of them which is a lotion. The only problem is that the zinc oxide kind of sticks on the skin, causing my arms to look white. I was asked what was wrong with my arms at the colonoscopy center and I told them it was leprosy! They soon figured out the truth.

The research manager has a new toy......a spiralizer......which she can use to make spaghetti-like spiral of things like zucchini. She tried it the first day and then used a recipe that night for dinner. I found it very hot (as in spicy hot) and was struggling. I went through 40 ounces of water just trying to get through dinner. When I said that it was hot, the research manager admitted that she found it hot also. I think she used half a cup of red pepper flakes instead of the half a teaspoon that the recipe probably called for. She promised to cut back next time and maybe even not put any in my half of the dinner. Since I find the spiralized zucchini pretty good, I look forward to that.

It is time for an epsom salt soak. I will pretend to read my book (Being Mortal - an interesting read), while listening to the baseball game.

Thanks for listening.