I joined the TEAM!!

In the many emails I have received expressing prayers and support people have also been asking me how they can donate to the Team Mentschen effort and its participation in the LiveStrong Challenge events for the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

Well I just took the steps to make that a very easy thing to do. I joined the TEAM!

No, I don’t expect to be able to participate to any great extent in either the Philadelphia or Austin events but I will ride as I’m able to and will certainly be providing sag support as the mileage for training rides gets longer.

I have, however, setup a personal page where donations can be made online. Please note that for those that aren’t into eCommerce there is a link under the fundraising thermometer where you can print a hardcopy form and mail your donation.

Here’s the link to my fundraising page… http://philly08.livestrong.org/jmintz

GO TEAM MENTSCHEN!

Because I am feeling much better and because the weather report for Sunday is looking promising I'm hoping to squeeze in a much needed bike ride. Nothing more then 15 miles or so but with treatment #2 looming it's this weekend or another 2-3 week wait until the next window of opportunity.

Essence of Dr. Richards

As expected, my visit with Dr. Richards yesterday was a short one. My blood count was checked and everything remained in normal range so that was uneventful. As a parting note Dr. Richards told me that since I handled things so well with the first treatment that he’s going to “kick it up a notch” for the next one (can you tell that Food Network is big in our house?). Gee, I can hardly wait for treatment #2.

I’m now also starting the official hair watch countdown clock. We’re at T minus 7 days since hair loss is supposedly very predictable to occur at 17-18 days from the start of treatment. Yes, yes, yes, I’ll be sure to post some pics on the blog if/when that occurs. I’m sure you’re all curious to see where I might fit on the broad spectrum of bald men. LOL.

Monday 2/25 recap

Hello everyone. As of tomorrow it will have been a full week since my first round of chemo was completed. While I’m still dealing with some of the side affects, for the most part I’m back to being myself again. Suffice it to say that I have a new appreciation for just how functional our tongue really is (OK, no comments from the peanut gallery…).

I visit Dr. Richards this afternoon for what I expect to be a quick follow-up. My visit to him last Thursday went well. Although my blood counts were all in normal range he still gave me the Neulasta injection to boost my immune system. And I had only lost a few pounds through the first treatment so he was happy about that. My appetite has been pretty good so I’m hoping to more then make up those few pounds before my next treatment.

Leaving the house yesterday to accompany Amy on some errands and for grocery shopping was a real treat. Don’t laugh, I’m being serious. However, it did require a 2 and a half hour nap to recover. No joke.

I’ve had some people asking questions about the picture I had on the blog of me with Sasha, Bailey, and Erin. Based on that interest I just put up a better picture. You don’t have to ask me twice to show off my beautiful daughters. Unfortunately Amy is not one for picture taking so I don’t have a really good one that includes her.

Oh, and some people have been asking me about my work situation. Once the IV pump was removed last week I was slowly able to start checking in with and spending more time connected to work. The beauty of a job in corporate IT is that I can work seamlessly from home. And my management at JPMorgan Chase has been extremely accommodating. My hope is to be able to continue in this way and to avoid, if at all possible, going into a disability situation.

On that note… I have to run so that I can wrap up some things before heading to Dr. Richards.

Quick note

Just a quick note this morning since I have heard that there are some blog readers out there that get a little anxious when I don’t make an entry on a given day.

While the past week or so has certainly been a bit “action packed” please note that there are going to be days, and even multiple days, where there’s not a whole lot worth saying via the blog. This will become more common going forward so I encourage anyone that wants to touch base with me directly to simply send me an email. I’m generally able to reply to email very promptly but, of course, all bets are off during actual treatment.

Perspective

Lana, my nurse, arrived very promptly yesterday afternoon and disconnected the chemo pump from my mediport. While this was very liberating both physically and mentally it also served to complete what has been a whirlwind 7 days. The past week has definitely given me a new perspective for what I'll be experiencing over the next several months.

It was just one week ago today that I was in St. Peter’s for my mediport. I’m now truly on the downhill side of treatment #1 but, most importantly, I now have a more realistic view of what the treatment process will be like. I have experienced how chemo affects every aspect of your body, top to bottom, inside and out. As someone that has handled physical challenges with competitive running and 100-mile cycling events I guess it was natural for me to expect to be able to handle chemo in stride. But I now know how truly naïve I was. Hopefully I’m now better prepared.

So… is this going to be easy? Not at all.
Will I be able to deal with this? No question.
I’m now more focused in reality, and as many of you have told me, this is going to be one more slow grind up the 9-mile climb to Spooner summit (sorry, couldn’t help but to slip in a Lake Tahoe reference).

I’m beginning my two-week recovery period and with each passing hour I seem to be feeling a bit better. Lana told me that these next two days may reach new heights of fatigue and so far that’s only close to true. Unfortunately I’m still a bit more focused on some other side affects. LOL. I visit Dr. Richards tomorrow for a white blood cell boost and possibly also for some IV fluids to re-hydrate.

Lastly, and I know that I’ve become a bit repetitious on this, but the outpouring of support for the LiveStrong Mintz’s Mentschen effort has been nothing short of incredible. Watching the TEAM continue to grow on a daily basis has been a lot of fun. Of course, the real magic is the fundraising dollars and it’s been exciting to see some of those numbers changing from zeroes to “crooked numbers”. I have read some of your personalized fundraising web pages and please know that I feel the love and support. I’ve absolutely run out of words to express my heartfelt thanks. For those of you training in the NY/NJ area I'll best be able to say thank-you with a smorgasbord of sag support.

Almost done?... A dose of reality

Sorry for the couple of days of silence as I know that I’ve attracted some loyal readers to this blog. But after a non-eventful start to my chemo treatment where I was feeling generally “OK” the past day and a half has been a bit different. Basic bodily functions decided to take a vacation and the impact this had on my sleep knocked me for a loop.

With that said, I did manage to have a good night of sleep last night and I’m feeling much better today. Amy helped me with the gyrations required to keep the mediport area dry and I managed to take a shower this morning. As you might imagine that was not only a benefit to me but to everyone else around me… LOL.

Another key is that I managed to eat a decent breakfast today. Trying to find an appetite and to eat against what has been an ongoing low-grade nausea has been tough. But I’m hanging in as tough as I can and please know that I appreciate all of the emails, blog comments, and phone calls very much.

To be continued….

First round…. almost done

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone.

My first round of treatment went well today. It was a very long day, 8:15am to nearly 4pm, but it was uneventful and so I’m going to consider this a glowing success. It seemed like an endless succession of bag after bag of drugs and each one took approximately an hour to run in. The best part is that the dreaded bouts of nausea and vomiting have not surfaced and with a little luck maybe they never will. Other then feeling a bit droopy I’m doing OK right now.

The “almost done” part has to do with the fact that the 3rd chemo drug, 5FU, is something that I get to take home and infuse via pump over 5 days. Yep, 5 days. So I have a new personal appendage through next Tuesday afternoon. It’ll be a challenge but an easy one. A nurse will come to the house on Tuesday and detach the pump from my mediport.

I also have a quick update on the status of the Mintz’s Mentschen cycling TEAM. There are currently 5 people signed up for the Aug. 24th event in Philadelphia and 7 for the Oct. 25th Austin event. And believe it or not donations are already being collected! While I wish that I wasn’t the honoree for this effort I can’t possibly be any more humbled and genuinely excited about this. I can’t wait to ride with and/or provide sag support for the TEAM as the weather warms up and training begins. That the name of this team directly includes “Mentschen” couldn’t possibly be more appropriate.

OK, let’s get ‘er done

The mediport procedure went well this morning although it wasn’t nearly as fun as having a knee scoped. LOL. Actually it wasn’t fun at all. I’m glad it’s over but at the same time I’m very glad to have the port as I know it will make chemotherapy much more tolerable.

Once the procedure was done and I was back in the recovery area they gave me something to eat. This allowed me to begin taking the recipe of anti-nausea drugs in advance of the first chemo treatment tomorrow.

Time to get ‘er done!

Excuse me, how many?

Our visit with the nurse practitioner went well today. Lucianna was very nice and we reviewed lots of practical information specific to the chemo process, its potential side affects, and how to manage those side affects. There wasn't very much new information for us with that discussion.

However, as someone who has trouble remembering to take a multi-vitamin everyday the rude awakening for me came when we discussed not one, not two, but THREE different drugs that I have to take to manage nausea and vomiting. These will be taken starting the day before every treatment and ending 2 days after.

Because my first treatment is scheduled for Thursday we had to stop at the drug store on the way home because I need to start taking these pills tomorrow. This enabled me to pick up some tickets for tonight’s Mega-million drawing. C’mon, who can resist a chance at $150 million? LOL

Here we go

I spoke with Dr. Richards several times today and now know that the selected chemo protocol is DCF (Docetaxel (aka Taxotere), Cisplatin, and 5FU). The first treatment is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, 2/14 and I should get confirmation of that tomorrow.

The treatments will be every 3 weeks and we'll go 3-4 cycles before using a CT scan to gauge progress. The 3 week interval doesn't sound so bad except the 5FU component of the protocol actually is infused over 5 days. I assume that I'll learn all of the details of how that works tomorrow.

There was also a minor schedule change today as well. My chemo tutorial was re-scheduled until tomorrow afternoon.

A little bit of magic

My good friend Kathy Jaensch sent me a motivational email this morning. I had not told her yet about my situation so the total coincidence of receiving her email today seems kind of magical to me. And the message itself is far too appropriate not to share it here.

In the living
+++++++++++++++++++


The beauty of life is in the living of it. And the living of life is now.

It is fine to make grand, wonderful plans and to then bring those plans to life through your efforts. Yet do not ignore the quiet, stunningly beautiful treasures in each ordinary moment.

Happiness is not in some distant place of perfection and pleasure.
Happiness is waiting for you to give it life in this moment.

If all of your dreams were to suddenly come true, you would have no use for them. For the real essence of their joy is in the journey you take to reach those dreams.

It is in working your way through each day, one moment after another, that you connect with the value of life. Every flavor of experience adds to the richness in one way or another.

Do not put a lot of effort into judging whether today is good or bad, happy or sad. Just go ahead and live it with a thankful heart and you will surely experience this day's own special value.

And so we begin

Amy and I met with an oncologist, Dr. David Richards, yesterday and the process of beginning treatment via chemotherapy is underway. I think we lucked out big time because he's not only a good doctor but even more important is that he seems like a terrific person. He spent a lot of time with us, introduced us to many of his staff, and gave us a tour of his office. Dr. Richards was comprehensive, compassionate, to the point, and provided us with all of the practical information we could absorb for how the chemo process works and what to expect.

Dr. Richards actually tried to reach the doctors at MSKCC to consult regarding the selection of chemo drugs right as we sat there. I was impressed by his sense of urgency to get this going. Unfortunately he didn’t connect with them right away and will follow-up today.

The chemotherapy treatments are done right there in his office and the best part is that it's close to home. It's in Somerset which is only about 20-25 minutes from our house and they have another office that's actually closer that I may also be able to take treatment at. The treatments will be approximately every 2 weeks for an undetermined amount of time. Periodic CT and PET scans will be used to gauge the success of the treatments.

On Monday, 2/11 I have to go for a chemo tutorial and on Wednesday, 2/13 I’ll be having a mediport inserted in my chest at Saint Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick. I don't know how long they have to wait after that to begin the first treatment.

By the way, the comments on this blog are greatly appreciated and have been very very humbling. I truly feel the love and support. Hey! I’m even a recipient of healing vibes from the Allman Brothers Band "Peach'o'Gram" newsletter.

Just in case anyone wants to email me directly ==> jhm100@gmail.com

On to plan B.....

So, we spent a couple of hours at MSKCC this morning and the outcome is that we’re moving to plan B. Initially we had hoped for the cancer to be localized enough for surgery but unfortunately that’s not the case and mission #1 now shifts to killing cancer cells. The diagnosis is metastatic stage 4.

I have an appointment at an oncologist tomorrow and my expectation is that chemotherapy will begin early next week.

Everyone should know that this new news doesn't change things much for me. I continue to feel generally "good" and, therefore, remain very positive.

To be continued…

Cycling for a cause

Since this blog is just getting underway I haven't had that many opportunities yet to mention my "cycling buddies". This is a group of people that are collectively the most caring, compassionate, and alive people I have ever met. We've shared lots of good karma for the past seven years while raising money and training other cyclists in support of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Recently some of the group had also participated in events to raise money in support of the Lance Armstrong Foundation through his LiveStrong Challenge program. We have been talking for the past couple of months trying to decide what our 2008 calendar of events is going to be.

Obviously my personal situation has me unable to commit to any kind of serious training just yet but Dan Nies, a mensch in his own rite, has started the ball rolling to bring together a group of people to train and to participate in a LiveStrong Challenge event. Below is the bulk of Dan's email from this morning. Hopefully I'll be able to get myself back on the road soon so that I can ride in Austin in October with the TEAM. Maybe you can join us as well? Even if you've never done any kind of serious (or semi-serious) cycling before we can help to train you! Dan and his fellow coaches have done some amazing things. It will be an experience that you'll never forget.

You can reach Dan via email at dnies3@comcast.net


Gang,

I took the liberty of getting the ball rolling. I have set up a team for the LiveStrong Challenge in Austin, TX October 25-26. I realize there is one in Philly in August. However, several of us weren’t available for that one, so we decided to go to Austin. If you can’t do Austin, I encourage you to sign up for Philly.

I set up a team with the name Mintz’s Mentschen. We can always change the name, but I needed one to set up a team when I registered. In Tahoe last year we gave Jack a special Southern NJ Tomato Head Award the “True Meaning of a Mensch Award” (Mensch in Yiddish means "a good person." A "mensch" is a particularly good person, like "a stand-up guy," a person with the qualities one would hope for in a dear friend or trusted colleague. Mentschen is the plural).

You can use the following link to sign up. When you do, please select the option to join a team and choose Mintz’s Mentschen.
http://austin08.livestrong.org/faf/home/waiver.asp?ievent=262612&lis=0&kntae262612=9EB3093EB819413C831997A4CD7778A6

I will also start looking at hotels and flights etc. this week. We can also start talking about training as a group – getting Jersey’s etc.

Pass this onto others. Let’s see if we can’t raise a ton of money!

Thank you Mr. Niles

On a day where it would have been a crime to not get out and ride Dan was able to come over and accompany me on another great ride. We did have to alter the route a bit as I ran out of gas a bit earlier then expected. It's been tough for me lately to get enough calories down so we had to settle for a 24-mile ride but it was great to get out to clear my head and to stretch my legs a bit. Other then feeling a bit weak it was a thoroughly enjoyable ride.

Thanks Dan.

Speaking of enjoyable.... how about those Giant's?!?!
Sorry Perry.

Final testing before MSKCC

The results from my CT scan on January 22nd prompted the need for a PET scan which I had yesterday. I expect results early next week and my first visit to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in NYC is scheduled for Wednesday, 2/6. At this point I'm very anxious to complete the diagnosis process and move into treatment. Although I'm feeling generally "not great" I've been well enough to continue cycling on weekends. The weather has cooperated enough and I've been doing some cold weather 30-mile rides with my cycling buddies. I hope to get in one more of those before the Super Bowl festivities tomorrow and before I visit MSKCC next week.