September 2015 Update

Back on March 6, I wrote that Jana was no longer taking Gleevec for her CML, and subsequently the minor problems that seemed to be associated with Gleevec and/or CML have disappeared.  On May 20 and again on September 16, she had the blood tests that looked for evidence of CML, and both showed no sign of the disease.  The disease has been undetectable two years, and seven months of that time has been without taking Gleevec.  We have to wonder if she is cured, or will the aberrant cells pop up again?  At any rate, we are extremely happy with the good news and hopeful of a long-term prognosis or even a cure.

Then in April, I wrote about how it seemed that my chemotherapy (pemeterxed) was taking a toll on my body and causing increasingly greater fatigue and many premature ventricular contractions (PVCs).  On May 6 I started another three cycle dose of pemetrexed and found that the beta blocker for the PVCs had helped, but I was still very glad when that cycle ended.  After a very good recovery period from late June until mid-September, I faced the question of whether or not to go back on chemo.  I have a belief (scientific or not) that stress lowers one’s ability to fight disease, and I am afraid that the stress associated with chemo is counteracting the chemo’s benefits.  My CTs show that my tumors have not changed significantly in a year and a half which makes me wonder if that is because the chemo is not effective or because stress has worked against it?  Also my physical condition is poor which I think makes me more prone to fatigue and the PVCs.  I talked the question over with my oncologist and decided to forego chemo until December and use the time to work on getting healthier.

Last weekend I went to a cancer health and wellness conference sponsored by the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado Hospital primarily to hear my oncologist give the keynote address; however, I also learned of a personalized exercise program for cancer patients run by the center.  I signed up for the three month program which should put me in better shape to resume chemo in December.  Will being fitter mean that my tumors are also fitter and able to grow faster or that my immune system will be better able to hold them in check or neither?  We’ll have to see.  Another experiment with an N of 1 in the Doss cancer story.

David