It’s Always Something!

Every trip is different!

Immunotherapy treatment #3 started off like the first two.  It was a long day of tests and appointments leading up to the infusion at the end of the day.  By now Diane and I were comfortable with the procedure and the hour it takes to infuse, followed by the hour of observation.  So, when the nurse started the drip Diane left right away to get a cup of coffee and the nurse went back to her station.

Within one minute I felt a gut bomb in my abdomen followed by instant nausea and my head started stinging like little needles.  I immediately pushed the nurse button and texted Diane to come back.  The nurse paused the treatment and I went into uncontrollable shivers.  Diane comforted me with blankets and the nurse gave me Benidril which eventually ended the shivers and got me to relax.  

The next few hours were spent running a few bags of saline and consulting with my doctor.  Eventually, the decision was made to resume the treatment but at half speed (2 hours).  Surprisingly, the nausea was gone and the remainder of the infusion went off without a hitch!  

During the observation hour the nurse came back to our room and informed us that the EKG that followed the infusion showed irregularities that prompted him to alert the doctors.  They took us straight to the ER for further attention.  By now, it was about 9:00 pm (we’d been there since 8:00 am).  Things were a little hectic and it took them a while to finally explain what the concerns were.  Apparently the EKG had some indication that I might have had a heart attack and my blood work showed my hemoglobin went down significantly following the incident.  

So, to make a long story shorter, after an echocardiogram and chest x-rays the cardiology team ruled out a heart attack and said my heart is fine.  However, the internal medicine doctor had us stay two nights in the hospital to wait on the blood issues.

There is always good news…I had zero side affects following this treatment and I have been feeling better everyday.  Diane and I are back on the pickleball court and today I practiced with my softball team for the first time since April.  

Here’s some pictures from the girl visit we had since my last blog.

Diane and Cheryl touring the Japanese Gardens in central Phoenix

My harem for the week!

The cooking crew!

Rachel, Laura and Emily worked so hard taking the cooking duties off Diane and trying to fatten me up.  They are very creative in the kitchen and it was a joy to have the house filled with love.  

We leave again this weekend for #4 so let’s pray for a seamless session!  We are sort of excited because this trip they will be conducting the first CT scan to see if the tumors have changed size.  We are hoping to see shrinkage!  However, my research nurse told us not to get too excited for the first scan.  For the duration of the clinical trial we will have a CT scan every four treatments.  

As always, thank you for sticking with us in this journey.