November is here and the clocks are turned back. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees and the sun sets way too early. It's fireplace and electric blanket time. Creeping up on coats and scarves weather. Quite the difference from my last post, when it was all sun and sand.
Since that last post, I've had another PET scan. No, it did not involve scanning our dogs, or being scanned by our dogs, or any other domesticated creatures. PET stands for positron emission tomography, a scan that uses radioactive tracers to illustrate diseases in the body and show how organs and such are working. According to my oncologist, the scan seems to indicate that there has been some reduction or quieting of activity in my neck lymph node and that everything else seems to not be getting any worse, not necessarily better, but not worse...I'm not sure I'd say "stabilized", but it's kind of quiet right now? Not getting worse is a good thing! It's still there, the cancer, but it's not growing or spreading. As far as any reduction in the masses, I'll know more on Friday, when I go in for my chemo treatment. My oncologist was going to call down to the radiologist in Virginia to get an "apples to apples" comparison and see if there's been any change in the numbers. But for now, not getting worse is good.
It's been great not having that feeding tube in my stomach. I've been eating better and maybe putting on a little more weight? I'm most likely not going to get back to what I was, but I'm also no longer wasting away. Still have my hair and grew that beard (which I've since trimmed down a bit; it was getting out of control).
The oncologist told me that for now, our plan will be to continue the chemo treatments every three weeks, and the daily pills. At some point, we'll have to stop the oxaliplatin (chemo drug) because it can cause permanent nerve damage (like cold sensitivity, tingly fingers, etc). I'm not sure what happens then. Is there another drug? Does it just become immunotherapy and fingers crossed? More uncertainty. Always uncertainty.
But, we're not at that crossroad yet. I'm writing and creating and trying to make the most of each day. Jess and I have been enjoying nice autumn walks with the dogs, bike rides, and she just took me to see Back to the Future on Broadway! So much fun. There's not much else to report, but I wanted to share the PET scan results and check in with y'all. Talk to you soon!
Oh...and if you get a chance, watch Weird: The Al Yankovic Story. It was fun!
- j