Chemo #13, and a puzzle!

Husband suffered from the Erbitux and we had high hopes that the CEA would go down from that drug... but we were horribly disappointed when we turned up at the hospital on Friday morning, got the blood test results from the previous day, and found that the CEA had gone UP again - to 338. We were both so despondent when we saw that, and Husband's first reaction was "I want to stop chemo, I don't want to keep throwing good money after bad and not getting any results." This, as you can imagine, did NOT go down too well with me, as I do NOT want Husband giving up the fight. What adds to the frustration is that ALL other test results were PERFECT!! There is absolutely NO indication, other than the CEA, that there is anything wrong with Husband at all!

The blood test results obviously got the oncologist puzzled too, as the first thing Husband was told was "GO DO ANOTHER CT SCAN", and they gave us the relevant forms, etc. So, off we went - to Radiology, where Husband suffered through another CT Scan. And when I say "suffered", I really do mean it - the injection of whatever dye they use, goes through an IV via a vein on the back of his hand. And his veins are VERY VERY fragile and thin, and if the IV is too fast, the pain is AGONISING! Anyway, scan done, we had to wait about 1 hour 15 minutes to get the scan and the report - and, guess what, the report said "NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES"! Everything is very very stable - the same tiny lesions in the liver , the same scarring on the spine, the same lymph nodes affected, lungs clean, kidneys clean, chest clean, abdomen and pelvic areas both clean, no tumours, no growths - in other words, ABSOLUTELY NO CHANGE, NO SPREAD, NO NOTHING!!! So that is even more puzzling that the CEA is going up!

Anyway, the oncologist has reminded us that the CEA is only a hint of what is happening, not the be all and end all. He has also taken Husband off the Erbitux and put him back on the original chemo drugs that we started with (Oxaliplatin) and it's related daily medication. Husband is still suffering from the side effects of Erbitux, as it will still take a few days for the Erbitux to get out of Husband's system. I CAN see that it is reducing - as the rash on his back, and the spots on his poor nose are disappearing - but it WILL take a few more days! Also, in addition to the reversion to the original chemo drugs, he also wants Husband to go for ONE targetted blast of radiotherapy, focusing on the lower back (sacrum, coccyx), as he feels that a lot of the pain that Husband is feeling in that area could be from the cancer that was mainly in that area of the spine.... and he says that the targetted radiotherapy should help to reduce the pain as well. The radiotherapy machine at the hospital is out of commission (with no firm date of when it will be fixed), so he has given us a letter to an oncologist in our usual KL hospital, to get the radiotherapy done in KL instead. I will make the arrangements on Monday (today being a public holiday in Malaysia, for Deepavali - the Indian Festival of Lights), and hopefully the radiotherapy can be arranged asap this coming week.

We are back in KL now, of course, taking it easy, and hoping that Husband recovers quick from the "Erbitux after effects".

That's the updates on chemo #13... and we have no idea how long this puzzle is going to last, but please continue to keep Husband in your thoughts and prayers!

And to ALL MY HINDU FRIENDS - HAPPY AND BLESSED DEEPAVALI!

Till next time, stay safe, stay HEALTHY!