Due to various distractions it has taken a while but here is my first real blog post. The second week of actual treatment has now ended. Wednesdays are the long day when I have both radiotherapy and immunotherapy. I never gave cancer treatment much thought but it is full of interesting twists and turns. There are various things one should or should not do to gain the best outcome. There are a variety of things to be done or not done to mitigate side effects. Putting these all together and coordinating them is almost like coming out of retirement and going back to work.
The actual treatment regimen is at least on a pretty regular schedule. The preliminaries to treatment such as PET scan, CAT scan, MRI, gastrotomy tube installation, biopsies, consultations, etc were rather more disruptive and wearing. I have to say I'm finding the whole experience rather interesting. My view of reality has always revolved around seeing interacting systems. Experiencing a very concrete instance of the various systems that constitute "me" interact with each other and with the systems that are "not me" is illuminating.
Thus far significant side effects are mostly confined to my Cetuximab rash and gradually increasing radiation induced throat pain with subsequent swallowing difficulties. The rash and its' acne like appearance is about as bad as it will get. The discomfort of it is well handled with appropriate lotions The acne like appearance has given me a second adolescence in addition to my second childhood. The throat and swallowing difficulties are predicted to increase cumulatively as the seven weeks of radiation continue and for two weeks after that. So far the throat, dry mouth, etc radiation difficulties are manageable so I'm not complaining. I expect to adjust and accommodate as things progress.
Next post I'll try to focus more on my state of mind and less on clinical details. I don't expect to post more than about once a week, most likely on the weekend.
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