Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Highest Tumor marker results since diagnosed

I have just been back to see Dr K to go over the results of my blood tests and CT scans which were taken prior to my first cycle of Chemo two weeks ago. It takes this long to get all the results through. The main reason for the tests is it gives us a benchmark to work off now I have started chemo again. I knew they would not be good as the last set of results were high obviously due to having no treatment for a long period of time. Not good is an understatement and I could see in Dr K's demeanor he was surprised at the results as well. My cancer cell count is at just over 5800, which compared to when I was first diagnosed at 5500. Remembering it should be between 0 and 5! So back to square one from two years ago. Should I have had the SIRT Sphere treatment in June??? I still believe it was the right decision at the time so no regrets. I got the markers down to a low of 20 over the past two years, and I will be focusing on doing the same again. Dr K is more conservative than this. As he explained in our meeting I am now a lot weaker and my internal organs have been through hell and back with all the treatment and drugs over the last two years, so he told me not to expect the same results again. They gave me 6 to 12 months when my markers were at 5500 so what is the prognosis now??? Of course I asked the question. Dr K sat back in his chair and had a sly grin on his face and said, "David you are not going to catch me out again, you have proven me wrong to date and I now have no idea on your time frame". He did say he could give me the spiel on the average length of life for my current state etc, but I was not interested in this info as it has proven to be all wrong so far. At least the results confirm why i have been so tired with this much action rushing around in my body and what white blood cells I have left trying to combat the dreaded cancer cells, it is no wonder I run out of energy by 2 o'clock every day. Cycle 2 of chemo today, and we will have all the tests again in another 4 weeks so will have at least 3 cycles under my belt and hopefully we will see some positive results. With all this happening I again sit back and reflect on what has happened and what may happen and when in the future. All i can do is keep fighting and making sure I enjoy every minute of every day. Chemo does definitely affect my lifestyle as the first week after the treatment is hell and then I come good and the rollercoaster keeps going. I think this is a timely reminder to everyone who reads my blog; think about the last time you stressed or got upset over something and tell me was it really that bad!!!!! Forget it and move on and remember each day is precious and you will never get it back again. Keep well everyone and thank you all for your continued support, I really appreciate it.