The countdown begins...

With only 1 week remaining before my final chemo treatment I suppose it’s OK that we start an official countdown. I was actually at Dr. Richards office today for a check-up and the nurses were teasing me about whether this next treatment was the last one. I quickly confirmed for them that, yes, next Thursday is it.

Some of you will appreciate this so I’ll mention it… I find it very fitting that next Thursday, July 16^th, also marks the 28^th anniversary of the death of one of my personal heroes, Harry Chapin. So while I sit there in the treatment room I’ll be thinking about Harry and as I have my personal Chapin music marathon playing on my Ipod I’ll meditate on his “do something” attitude as well as his lyric “it’s got to be the going, not the getting there that’s good….”.

There really isn’t much more to say on the medical front. Aside from extreme fatigue in the week immediately following treatment I’ve been OK. Oh, and of course the tingling and aversion to cold but that too only lasts for 5 days or so. I’ve been managing to get into the office when I’m feeling well and not at high risk for exposure to the outside world. I’ve also managed to get some much needed bicycling in as well.

I’m sure that the start of the Tour de France on Saturday had something to do with it but this past Sunday morning I enjoyed a very inspired and emotional 30-mile ride. Considering my current fitness level I really had no business trying to ride quite that far but it worked out just fine and needless to say it was simply heavenly. Since my objective is to ride the 45-mile distance at the LiveSTRONG event on August 23^rd this is all very meaningful riding for preparation. I hope to get in another ride with the Mintz’s Mentschen team this Saturday.

Which brings me to a segue opportunity… the LiveSTRONG event is only 6 weeks from this Sunday. Our Mintz’s Mentschen team that is riding in the Philadelphia event is much smaller this year so the hope of exceeding the $53,100 we raised last year in support of the Lance Armstrong Foundation just isn’t going to happen. However, we’re making a big push over these remaining weeks to try and raise as much as possible. If there’s any way that you can consider a small donation I’d appreciate it very much. Please go to my LiveSTRONG fundraising website by clicking here. If you’d rather send a paper check there is a form that can be printed from that same web page so that you know where to send it and so that your donation gets logged to me and the Mintz’s Mentschen.

Stay tuned for more updates as I go through my final treatment, the LiveSTRONG event, and quarterly PET scans which should actually begin in August given that my last one was in May.

Treatment #7 today

It's 7pm on treatment day and I've already had a 3 hour nap upon getting back home. As usual the treatment itself was non-eventful although the tingles are back already and physical issues with regard to cold drink/food is also back. In the big scheme of things, as I've said numerous times, those should be my worst problems!
In 4-5 days those side affects will dissipate and I'll be looking ahead to the final treatment, #8.

Recent weeks have been great as even with the constant rain I've been able to sneak in at least one bike ride over the weekend. My last one with Bailey on the tandem was 24-miles and it was great. I look forward to getting back into a regular biking/exercise routine as I really do need to drop about 20 pounds. It's so funny to even say that since it's the polar opposite of the issues from last year where I had lost 45 pounds due to chemo.

MUGA follow-up

It’s been a crazy week so I’m sorry for this belated follow-up to my visit with Dr. Richards on Monday.

As is the normal routine for each of these regular visits to Dr. Richards I had some blood taken and the counts were checked. Given that I didn’t have a neulasta injection with this treatment cycle I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. But all was fine with my white blood cell count at the bottom of the normal range and my hemoglobin and platelets also good.

We then changed gears and focused on the MUGA scan results as well as discussion about the remaining chemo treatments. Dr. Richards pointed out that the number reported by this latest MUGA was identical to the results from the MUGA in early February. Since I hadn’t seen a copy of this latest report I wasn’t aware of this and I’m obviously thrilled to now know that the epirubicin hasn’t had a negative impact on my heart. The down side of these positive results is that Dr. Richards wants to bring the epirubicin back into play for the remaining two chemo treatments. I attempted to lobby against this but when it came right down to it I realized I was being wimpy and given that there hasn’t been a physical impact to this point I know I need to suck it up and focus on kicking some cancer cell butt for just two more treatments.

Work has been crazy busy lately. That coupled with the excitement leading up to Sasha’s prom, which is tomorrow, and graduation, which is Friday June 19th, means that we’ve had little time to even think about chemo and it’s side affects. This is all goodness and really I haven’t been feeling that bad. Mostly just tired. Therefore, I was able to get out on the tandem with Bailey last weekend for a 21-mile ride. I felt just fine physically and mentally the ride was HUGE! I may even join the Mentschen for the first 20-25 miles of their scheduled 40-45 mile training ride this Sunday.

MUGA update

I received a call yesterday afternoon from Dr. Richards. He told me that the MUGA scan results came back in the "normal" range.

That's very much what I expected but given how much this chemo protocol has impacted my ability to do anything that is at all physical these results do provide some peace of mind.

So... the discussion regarding go-forward chemo plans, etc. will continue when I see Dr. Richards on Monday for my regular 10-day checkup.

50th birthday picture.... as promised

The Mintz family birthday tradition requires the hat....

Treatment #6 and a birthday

Treatment day +2 and I’m doing pretty well. I’m a bit tingly and tired but that’s about it. As advertised we skipped the epirubicin for this treatment and possibly for treatments #7 and #8 as well. But that decision will be driven by the results of the MUGA scan I’ll be having this Monday morning at 10am.

One small surprise that came in conjunction with omission of the epirubicin is that Dr. Richards felt a neulasta injection wouldn’t be needed with this cycle. I’m going to be sure to stay home this entire next week until my blood counts are checked at my next office visit on Monday, June 8th.

Other then that background I guess the only other bit of news is that yesterday was my 50th birthday. I’m one of those that views age as just a number but there’s definitely something about this one that feels a bit different. Considering the convergence of major life events such as my miracle #2, Sasha’s high school graduation, and then the birthday does justify a bit of pause.

I’ll be posting some b’day pics that I’m sure you’ll all get a kick out of.

Miracle #2.... "complete treatment response"

For those of you that haven’t already heard, the PET/CT results came back as “complete treatment response”. Chalk up miracle #2!! I know that I’m pushing my luck with asking but how many of these do we get? LOL.

As far as other details are concerned, Dr. Richards wants to do 1-3 more treatments before we shut down the treatments altogether. On one hand while I’m both mentally and physically past needing these treatments to be over I also know that I’ll get peace of mind by knowing we went the extra mile to drive every last cancer cell into remission.

One twist to the treatments, however, is that we’ll be proceeding with only 2 of the 3 chemo drugs. The epirubicin will be omitted going forward. This is because one of the potential side affects of epirubicin is heart damage. I’m trusting that the other two drugs will be able to finish the job just fine and I’m glad to be able to have the epirubicin stopped at this point. I’m scheduled for a MUGA scan on June 1st and that will shed some light on any affects that the epirubicin may have had on my heart.

Finally, and as I’ve said several times before on this blog, thank-you to each and every one of you for all of your prayer and words of encouragement and support that came via email, text message, cards, letters, Facebook comments, etc. There is no doubt whatsoever that I am a very blessed and wealthy man.

I will continue to post information here through these next few treatments and I look forward to keeping you all informed as I transition to trying to get my girlish figure back while actively cycling with the Mintz’s Mentschen.

BIG day

Tomorrow is a BIG day. I’m trying to not say VERY big (for obvious jinx reasons…) but this particular PET scan has taken it’s time in getting here.

As is the case with chemo it has a cumulative affect. And with that said things have been noticeably different in recent weeks. No, not ugly as the weight loss was for me last year but some of the side affects of this EOX protocol have definitely become a bit more pronounced. The Hand-and-Foot syndrome from Xeloda with it’s constant tingling, and even mild swelling, has been a bit uncomfortable. And this protocol is also taking a lot out of me. I typically pass out on the couch after dinner and/or go to sleep for the night by 9pm.

So, after battling to get the insurance pre-certifications this week I was finally able to call and schedule the PET. When Betsy (yes, I’m on a first name basis with even the staff at Princeton Radiology) asked me when I wanted the PET scheduled I quickly responded with “as soon as possible!”. I was shocked when she offered first thing tomorrow.

So 8:15am it is. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have high hopes. But either way, at least we’ll know where we stand once we have these results.

Thanks for all of the prayers and words of support.

Pre-treatment hello

Well tomorrow is treatment #5.
I’m raring to go but admittedly hoping that this treatment is either the last one or very close to it. We’ll be starting the process tomorrow to schedule the PET/CT scan and I expect that it will fall sometime the week of May 18th.

Aside from that there isn’t too much new to report on the medical front.
As far as family goes there’s a lot happening. Bailey finished her spring semester at Indiana Univ. today and will be home next week. And as you can imagine Sasha is counting the days to high school graduation, summer vacation, and her adventure at Colorado State come late August. She registered for her classes last Friday and is all set to go. The only big decision that is pending for her is whether or not she gives the CSU RAM marching band a go.

And as for Erin... well, she's still living in Fairfax, VA and working at the Canadian Embassy just a stone's throw from the White House.

Tough for Amy and I to get our heads around the fact that Erin is 23, Bailey is 20, and Sasha is 17. We're going to be empty nesters in a few short months! OMG.

It’s been a little while since I posted a picture so below is one that Gary Vencius was able to take of the small Mintz’s Mentschen crew before we started on our ride and before I totally bonked to the point of having to call Gary to come rescue me. There actually was a good side to the sag and that was having the chance to chat with Gary and Joanne’s incredibly cute sons.

To be continued…..

Joanne Vencius, me, Doreen Dunnigan, Dan Nies, and Dan Gerstenhaber all Jacked Up!

Humbled but still living STRONG

Today was an important day.

Although I remain as positive as ever, and try to live each day with the best LiveSTRONG spirit I can muster, today I endured a very humbling experience. It was an experience that dealt me a heavy dose of reality. As a realist I see this as a good thing but it made me feel badly for my Mintz’s Mentschen friends that had to care for me instead of being able to enjoy a bike ride in glorious summer-like weather.

All of my faithful blog readers know that I’ve generally been feeling “well” and that when the weather and treatment timing has aligned that I’ve been able to sneak in bike rides in the 20-25 mile range. And that is exactly what was planned for today; a 25-mile ride out of Washington’s Crossing. The one significant wrinkle though, and one that I truly was very conscious of before the ride, was the near 90-degree temperature and cloudless sun-filled skies.

I think you all can guess the punch line at this point. I got to the 5.4 mile mark and was completely done for the day. Even after a rest in the shade there was no way that I could consider getting back on the bike.

So for as “good” as I feel I need to remember that I’m still on chemo and not quite to the finish line yet. A treatment on May 7th will be closely followed by a PET/CT scan. I don’t want to jinx things but at this point I can’t hide that I’m really hoping this scan is the beginning of the end to treatment. It’s really starting to cramp my style…. LOL.

Sunday, April 19th

The weather this weekend was very much a tease as I wanted to get on my bike so badly.  But, I opted for the group hug option yesterday morning when Amy and I stopped at Washington's Crossing State Park to say hello to the two Mentschen that were riding yesterday.  It was nice to see Dan Nies and Stephanie Tobler but I know that my decision to not ride was the right one.  The one side affect that hits me pretty firmly with each treatment cycle is the tingling in my hands/feet and that is accompanied with general muscle tightness in my calves.   This makes even walking a bit of a chore for the first 3-4 days of each cycle.

But I did get out yesterday for a walk to the post office and the fresh air and sunshine felt terrific.

Friday, April 17th

Well, treatment #4 is underway.  The dosage was increased yet again and I wasn't feeling all that great last night but after a good nights sleep I'm actually feeling "OK" this morning.

I get my neulasta injection this afternoon so let's hope that things remain status quo.  I will be trying to fight through this so that I can take advantage of the good weather and the Mintz's Mentschen group on a short 25-mile ride out of Washington's Crossing TOMORROW.  If it turns out that I can't do the ride I promised to be there for a group hug.  LOL.

Tuesday, April 7th

For those of you that may be wondering how things are going have no fear. Things remain status quo and I’m actually feeling quite well.

The side affects from Oxaliplatin that are related to touching/drinking/breathing cold have been interesting for the first week of each treatment cycle but these are far from anything that is debilitating. And my eating has been affected only slightly so I’ve not lost any weight. My battle is actually with trying to keep from GAINING weight at this point.

I had a check-up with Dr. Richards yesterday and the Neulasta shot I had just over a week ago has done its job. My white blood cell count is at 7.3, well inside the normal range, and my hemoglobin and platelet counts are also normal. Tomorrow is the two week mark for this treatment cycle and the last day I’ll be taking Xeloda. Then a whole week without pills! What a treat.

That’s about it for now. It had been a while since I last posted a blog entry so mostly I wanted to let you know that all is well.

Treatment #3 underway

Treatment #3 yesterday definitely left me with the feeling of, “OK, we’re not in Kansas anymore…”. But other then feeling totally washed out and a bit loopy I’m generally feeling OK. It hasn’t affected my eating yet and nausea is under control thanks to both Emend and Zofran.

I have an appointment for 2:30 this afternoon to get a Neulasta shot that will hopefully keep my white blood cell count from going into the dumper. It worked with the last treatment so hopefully even with the increased chemo dosage we’ll see positive results.

More to follow as events occur.

Thanks to all for the emails and texts. They mean more then you know.