So 8 in the morning we arrive for my CT scan. At around 8:30 we get a lady that comes out to explain the procedure to us. She's carrying two bottles of Barium Sulfate, which is an oral contrast used to light up your digestive tract for the scanner. I've had to do this before, but not recently and I've never had two bottles. I was told to drink the first one quickly, but the second could be sipped on. It would take about an hour for the contrast to work it's magic so I wouldn't get scanned until then. In the meantime, I was also given two Benadryl for my possible reaction to the IV contrast (which is unconfirmed, but they'd rather be safe than sorry). The scans took all of about 15 minutes.
We had a small break before my blood tests and doctor visit, so I got a small bite to eat for breakfast. Got my blood taken about 15 minutes later and then settled in for the wait to see the doc. We ended up waiting 90 minutes past our appt. time because he got called to an emergency at the hospital and even then we only got to see the NP. This isn't a complaint, since she is very nice and knowledgeable about my case.
So let's hit you with the good news. My tumors have shrunk. A definite number is difficult to make an assumption with, since my scans have all been read by different radiologists so there is a disparity between the readings somewhat. The main thing to focus on is that there has been a decrease of roughly 50% from the size they were in June. Since all my tests came back positive I was given the go ahead for the infusion (which was scheduled at 12 noon, but was obviously pushed back). The hope is the tumors are in a weakened state now from the Vem and the decrease is caused by a mix of the natural programmed cell death the cancer cells should be going through and my immune system properly disposing of them. This next part of the trial with the infusion is designed to boost my immune system to attack the tumors in their weakened state. I will elaborate more on the drug in my next post.
Now came the long haul. We checked in at the infusion center and waited a good 45 minutes before being called back. We have come in to this knowing the infusion is given over 90 minutes. They spread it out so your body has time to accept it. It's too potent to just give you an injection and be done with it. But when we were led back to the infusion chair, we were given the "bad" news. The medicine still needed to be mixed, since it has a short shelf life. They don't start mixing it until they have the go ahead from the infusion center that I am ready for it. On top of this, we were also told after the 90 minute infusion they needed me to wait around for another 90 minutes so they could draw a blood sample. So what was going to be 90 minutes turned into double that and then some.
They told me they saw no need to pre-med me for any possible side effects, but I had heard from different stories on the internet that people sometimes experience nausea during the infusion process. For me, it went pretty smoothly. They had to take vitals every 30 minutes and nothing was bad or elevated. Even today I feel ok, maybe a little tired. Of course that might just be because of the long day and the lack of sleep the previous night. But we will see how it goes over the next few weeks.
I'll make my next post detailing the actual drug itself and what we hope to expect from it. Until then, here is a picture of me in a warm comfy blanket.
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| Does this come in green? |
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