It's hard to believe that it's already a full week into December, Christmas will be here before we know it! Christmas is one of our favorite holiday's and I was worried that with everything going this one would be hard. However, even though we've been busy we've both been able to take time to relax and recover at night and squeeze in some Christmas activities. With the help of John our house is nicely decorated. For the first time in several years, we have a Christmas tree up, lights outside and festive decorations inside. Seeing our stocking holders spelling "Joy" on the mantle has been a good reminder for me to to seek it. It's been fairly easy, and we've been very touched by the thoughtfulness of others as gifts have been arriving secretly on our doorstep. We've both been very touched by the support of others this month and it's helped bring joy to our lives. The results of Chris's biopsy last week to check for Amlyoidosis came back. From my research I had learned these amyloid proteins can build up in different organs (heart, kidney's, liver, intestines, nervous system) causing many complications. A positive results could also cause problems with doing a bone marrow transplant, exclude him from clinical trials and shorten his life expectancy. The worry about his results was lifted yesterday when we found out his was negative. Approximately 10-15% of myeloma patients will have symptoms of amlyoidosis during the course of their disease, so it's something we may have to battle in the future, but for now we are grateful for the negative result.
This week was the second week of only 2 dialysis treatments. The dialysis center last week was concerned about his creatinine levels being higher and wanted to change back to 3 times a week, but we insisted that they "compare apples to apples" and use two tests of being off dialysis. This week his creatinine was lower than two weeks ago and headed again in the right direction and over a point lower than 4.27 it was when he was originally caught in October. It's a good sign that his kidney's may have been spared by starting the chemo when we did.
The good news of both tests results is a huge blessing because Chemo is really starting to take it's toll. We were told originally that he wouldn't lose his hair, but it's been falling out pretty consistently the past week or so. Apparently a side effect because he is on such a high dose. The chemo is also making him weak and tired, but he often has a hard time sleeping. Neuropathy is also a side effect and he's starting to have numbness in his fingers. It was one of the side affects were were warned about, and our doctor isn't too concerned. It's hard for me to see him suffer, and he strives so hard to put a smile on his face, but some days the pain and anguish can't be hidden. But sometimes I'm able to offer relief with the gentle touch of a hot (or cold) rag and am rewarded with a smile that melts my heart. Today while our good friend Logan was bringing him home from dialysis we received texts from his family in Washington and Montana which was so much more than just a picture, but instead the immense feeling of love and support. It's almost as if they were here giving us a hug and it brought both of us to tears. They have made shirts that say:
Team Chris
Our Iron Man doesn't fight alone...
Cancer Cannot Silence Courage
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