NOT SO GOOD NEWS

My CT scan yesterday showed a worsening of my condition. Other tests showed thar my oxygen absorption rate has fallen to 80 which is very low. So, the doctor put me on oxegen.It is a bit of a pain to haul around, but does make me feel better. It has not however alleviated the severe shortness of breath we have been experiencing the last few days. The Tarceva was obviously doing no good so we are stopping that. Since that drug causes shortness of breath I am hoping that condition will improve. I have a couple of choices now. Give chemo another try or do nothing and let nature take its course. I'll let you know what I decide.

NOT MUCH NEW TO REPORT

The political scene has been interesting so that has kept me occupied. I think I am becoming a news wonk. Like everyone else I suspect I view everything through my own narrow lens, but I think it is interesting to watch people supposedly intelligent enough to be called experts differ completely on their analysis depending on whether they have a D or an R behind their name. The subject doesn't seem to make any difference. If the Ds say one thing the Rs will take the opposite point of view and vice versa. It makes you think that there is very little independent thought going on these days. It will probably come as a surprise to no one that I am supporting the Obama/Biden ticket. I truly believe we need a fresh approach to things and I believe those two will give us that. I wish everyone would join me in that choice, but then, I guess that is just my narrow point of view. I have been having a lot of trouble with fatigue the last couple of days. Of couse Afib, lung cancer, amiodarone and tarceva all have fatigue as side effects so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I have another CTscan next Wednesday so will let you know how that goes.

UPDATE

My visit to the doctor today was uneventful. We did a blood test, but the results weren't back yet so we didn't learn anything from that. The main purpose of the visit was to assess how I am doing with Tarceva. So far I am having very minor side effects. So the next question is whether the medicine is doing any good. We will have another CTscan on Oct. 8 to see if the medicine is working. If it is we will continue to take it. I will keep you posted.

GOOD NEWS

Our visit to the doctor today was quite encouraging. The cancer continues to show no sign of growth. In fact the doc says it has actually reduced to a small degee. He is recommending that I start on a drug called Tarceva. It is a once a day pill that is designed to keep the cancer from growing. So we will give it a try. There are some potential side effects, but the doc doesn't think they will be too severe. If that turns out to be true we will keep taking it. If not we can stop taking it. I'll be seeing the doc again in two weeks to assess results. I'll keep you informed.

PROGRESS

comes slowly, but we are making progress. Physically
I am doing quite well, gaining strength and walking a mile a day. My hands are still a problem, but they are getting better. I am just impatient and want it to be quicker. I am sure that I will recover fully from the effects of the stroke. The wild card in all of this is the cancer. We will find out more about that tomorrow as I am scheduled for another CTScan. Our hope is that the cancer will still be showing no sign of progression. I will post again tomorrow and let you know where we stand.

Home Sweet Home

Sorry for the absence of posts lately, but my hands are still not working very well so this will be short. Being home is really nice and I think I am making good progress with my rehabilitation. Both a physical and occupational therapist are coming to the house once a week. They have given me a rigorous regimen of exercises and my caregiver sees to it that I stick to the schedule. I also walk every day and am up a quarter of a mile. I use a cane while walking and occasionally use my walker in the house, but I am doing more and more unaided. Well that's all I can handle for now, but will try to do better as things progress.

More Adventures

Much has happened since my last post. I am in the hospital in San Francisco having come here to have a nice vacation with my grandson and my granddaughter. Good plans don't always work out and in this case I had a stroke sometime Saturday night and have been pretty much unable to do much of anything since. However, we are fighting the good fight, we're in rehab, and I think some progress is being made.
I'm hoping to be able to go home early next week and to continue rehab in Seattle since all of my doctors are there. My personal belief is you always heal better at home and I've got to believe I will be more comfortable around things with which I am familiar, so we will see how it all goes and we'll try to keep you posted.
This post is being sent to you thanks to the services of my granddaughter, Sarah, as it's impossible for me at this point to type. So, we'll be in touch.