Rocking and Rolling!

Good morning, today is Wednesday the 25^th; I’ve had a rough time of it these last two weeks. Just sitting here in my old rocker!

This cold really put me down and out on my back. The dizziness and light headed feelings were at an all time high, many times I felt as if I would certainly faint and have a bad fall. My heavy cough scared away even the bravest and surliest of the other cart pushers at the grocery store (not a complaint, I view this as an advantage to secure a quick and favorable position in any checkout line!). This past Monday we visited with my doctor he decided to remove one of my 3 chemotherapy drugs to see if it was responsible for my side effects, the dizziness and light headedness was becoming a concern.

We then met with a nurse from the transplant group to review the details of each step leading up to my stem cell transplant and subsequent hospitalization.  Before we start I have to have a complete dental check up to repair or replace any fillings, cavities or teeth that could pose a problem or befome infected during my hospital stay.

The process will begin on Thursday July 7^th with a mobilization Cytoxan chemo treatment. This will be followed by 9 days of Neupogen injections (given to me by my own NP, Theresa!) all this will lead to my 1^st stay in the hospital on Monday & Tuesday July 18 & 19^th in order to harvest and store my stem cells.

They have targeted Monday July 25^th for my sten cell implant  i'll be admitted to the transplant unit at the Brigham for 18-days until Thursday August 11^th. During this stay my immune system will be knocked down to 0% in order to kill off any and all remaining cancer cells. My contact with visitors is encouraged from 1pm to 9pm, however, this will be limited to 1 at a time and they will be required to wear a mask and gloves.  Anyone who has cold or other symptoms of an illness or who has been near anyone who is sick will not be admitted due to the danger of my contracting any illness, even a common cold could prove fatal when I’m in this state.  All my food will be specially prepared and sterilized in the basement (without windows) in the gulag of the Brigham, not exactly Wolfgang Pucks restaurant; all condiments have to be in sealed pouches.  I suspect this rules out anything from Bertucchi’s or the Napa/Sonoma Valley area!

This will all be followed by a 100-day Roman Feast, starting with my 10-favorite pizza’s, then featuring lobsters, clams and mussels from the un-sterilized ocean!!!  Detail to follow....

Cheers………..Chemo Ken



Looking for a Sign!

Hello everyone, I’ve been a little behind this week in updating my blog. I have this week off from Chemotherapy in order to regain my strength for the 4^th cycle starting next Monday 5/23.

Unfortunately, my immune system has been declining with each successive treatment cycle.  I caught a cold last week which has felt more like the plague!  I’ve been pretty sick now for over a week with a never ending cough and just overall body aches and pains.  I’m on my 3^rd box of Kleenex and my ears are ringing like the bells in Saint Mary’s Church tower!  Today is the 1^st day I’m starting to feel a bit better, I can see signs my health is slowly improving. It’s been 7 days now since my last chemo infusion, I’m usually back to my old self by now, perhaps the next cycle will be a bit better than this one.

That’s all for now, rain has finally stopped, yesterday we saw a large wooden boat go by with 2 of every animal in it, wow that was some rain storm last night!

Cheers… Chemo Ken & the Red Dogs

Finish Line in Sight!

Hello and welcome to Friday the 13^th, for all those who are superstitious … I don’t believe in all that hooey; oopss...just a minute, let’s see 1^st, I have to lower my left leg over the side of the bed and tap it three times...there... oh... now I have to light a white candle in the North window of the house..And... Then…walk backwards to the south window and tap my left foot two times…there done for this 13^th now I'll have good luck!!

Yesterday I finished my 3^rd round of Chemotherapy.  All my test numbers look very good and as a result, my Doctor will administer only 1 more Chemo cycle and then it will be time to prepare for my stem cell transplant!

The finish line is finally in sight! Next week I’m off for a week of much needed rest.  I start back on Monday May 23^rd with my 4^th cycle. I’ll keep everyone posted as my test results continue to come in.  After the 4^th cycle I’ll have 3 or more weeks of rest and then they’ll harvest my stem cells and make plans for my implant. Should be sometime in early to mid July, definitive dates still TBD. Will require a 2 to 3 week stay in the hospital...but…the...good news...It will be at the Brigham! I can sneak out to see all my friend there!  Ha ha, they will probably have me handcuffed to the bed! Oh, well...then you can sneak me in a pizza...I’ll trade you for a green Jell-O!

All of my side effects are now under control with the one exception being the light headedness and dizzy feeling I get when standing up quickly or walking up a flight of stairs. My Doctor suspects it’s a side effect of one of the Chemo drugs. Right now I’m feeling a little tired out due to a bad cold, looking forward to next week to rest up.

That’s all for now…

Chemo Ken and the Red Dogs….

Kleenex and Clouds!

Hello to all….today is Sunday afternoon and I’d love to tell you the sun is shining and everything is flowers, chirpy birds and music! But, after two days of constipation, a night of rain, and now a scratchy throat, runny nose and an ever deepening cough…..there just is now way around it, I feel like “Crap”.

But tomorrow’s another day! Off to chemo early in the morning, I’ll be finishing my 3^rd cycle next week.  If my results continue to improve, I could be completely finished with my Chemotherapy as early as the week of June 2^nd!  Next Wednesday we are meeting the Stem Cell transplant team for the 1^st time so we can start to prepare for my transplant sometime around the end of June or the beginning of July.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and Happy Mother’s Day!

Chemo Ken and the red dogs…

All's well in Mudville!

Just wanted to check in with everyone to let you know everything is status quo for now.  I completed my two Chemo infusions on Monday and today, I’m off until next Monday. Side effects still persist; however, my sleep is improving with use of med’s. 

My laboratory tests continue to show my body is responding well to the chemotherapy as my test results improve with every infusion cycle. This gives me an optimistic outlook for my recovery and remission.  Next Wednesday will be my 1^st introduction and meeting with the stem cell transplant team.  If I continue to progress at the current pace then I should be able to undergo my stem cell transplant by the end of the summer.

That’s all for now….Happy Mother’s Day to all you Mom’s out there!

Chemo Ken & the red dogs!

Tippy canoe and Ambien too!

Hello to all my friends, today is Sunday May 1^st my last day of rest before heading back to Dana-Farber tomorrow morning to start my 3^rd cycle of Chemotherapy.  After spending a week off in Florida, I feel rested and ready to resume my treatments.

Currently my health situation is as follows; 1^st and foremost, my taste buds came back over the past 2-weeks (Not sure just where they went?) Once I realized this, the 1^st thing I did was to run to the kitchen and make a Pepperoni, sausage and garlic pizza with gobs of cheese! Ah...to taste the finer things in life!

I'm experiencing three persistent side effects:

The 1^st side effect still is an unpredictable lower GI problem, while not cleared up completely, I’m now able to at least control my discomfort (my going and not going, that is) with the use of Colace and Metamucil, this is to help my train and all my packages arrive at the station On-Time! And Imodium for when I arrive at the station 10 times a day and each time I’m early (oh, and in a rush to unload all my packages! Get my drift…. If this continues you may want to consider buying some stock in Charmin.

The 2^nd is Insomnia; for this I’m recruiting the assistance of Dr Ambien and Mr. Lorazepam! The Ambien  knocks me out in about 15-20 minutes, and I sleep till 3-4am then in comes the Lorazepam and that carries me over till 6-7 am.

The 3^rd item, which seens to get worse every week, is the Neurologic side effects.  Just can’t shake this or get thru the day without experiencing these effects. I’m getting more light headed and dizzy every week. Whenever I get out of the car, walk briskly up a flight of stairs or stand up from a seated position quickly it takes all my strength not to faint/pass out and fall flat on my face. Everything goes gray, my head starts to spin my vision blurs my legs get wobbly and down I go, head down on the table and unable to get back up for 10-15 minutes.

Summary:  AKA…things I’ve learned…

·         You probably don’t want to be in the same bathroom line, before or after me! Buy Charmin stock!

·         No more Caffeinated coffee, tea or soda. But…Pizza and Italian foods are back! Red wine and alcohol are out, a glass of wine doesn't mix well with my medications.

Note: Although you can get a “DECAFFINATED” Venti, White Chocolate Cappuccino at Starbucks, it tastes like Milk of Magnesia...yuck…. Try Pepto-OhBismal with a shot of Jack Daniels.

I’ll end now with one last note, I want to thank Tony and Michelle for their hospitality and a wonderful traditional Italian dinner down in Sarasota Florida, we had a great time.

Well summer is almost here and I look forward to the day I can play golf again…hmm…  let me rephrase that (Too many of you know me), I'm looking forward to the day when I can learn how to actually "PLAY" Golf!  

So long for now…Chemo Ken!