Skip to main content

Upping the dosage

Well, it doesn't look like the 50 mg of Thalidomide per day, coupled with 40 mg of Dexamethasome per week did any good. Not that we really expected it to do much, but one can always hope. 50 mg was just a starter to get Edie used to the drug.

So last Wednesday, Edie's oncologist increased the dosage to 100 mg.

Hopefully we'll start to see some change in the progression of the disease, and not just an increase in side effects from the Thalidomide, which seem to be only slight so far.

Of course an increase in side effects may actually be a good thing, since it is a signal the drug is working.

I liken it to graft vs host disease (GVHD) after a stem cell transplant. In that case, GVHD is a good thing, since it is an indication the transplant is taking hold. Of course, the GVHD must be controlled, or it could destroy all the healthy organs as well, which could have severe consequences.

It's a tough road to follow, when the thing you fear the most, GVHD, is exactly the same thing you need, to have any chance for a cure.

Edie has a blood test in two weeks, and another appointment at the end of the month. By then we should see if there are any changes.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

History IS repeating itself

I didn't grow up during the rise and fall of Hitler and Nazi Germany, so for me to claim it feels like those are the times we are living in now, must be taken with a grain of salt. But I have seen enough movies, and read enough history to know, if the times we're living in now are not akin to the rise of a Nazism and Facism in Europe in the 1930's and 1940's, then we're not far off. If you can't see the parallels with Nazi Germany, then you must be living in a different country than me. Republicans and other right wing extremists will stop at nothing to subvert the will of the majority, forcing their beliefs, that they are the superior race and have been appointed by God, to impose their will on America, while they blame all our problems on immigrants, blacks and Jews. As I speak, Mitch McConnell, and his minions are raising roadblocks to all legislation designed to help average Americans under the guise of fiscal responsibility. They condone violent and verba...
Post a Comment
Read more

My concerns reaffirmed today

When I was first diagnosed with MCL, I pretty much read just about everything I could get my hands on, I attended various conferences, and I talked to anyone who would listen. One of the most important lessons I learned, and which I've mentioned numerous times before was No one cares more about you than you. But in addition to that, I learned to fear the drug Doxorubicin , AKA Adriamycin, Doxil, Hydroxydoxorubicin, or more affectionately the Red Devil. Besides being a deadly chemical, as is the case with most chemotherapy drugs, it is one of the few chemotherapy drugs known to cause permanent heart damage. I even heard Dr. Sandra Horning , a noted Stanford lymphoma specialist, state at the first lymphoma conference I attended in LA, there was no evidence Doxorubicin provided any added benefit to chemotherapy protocols. This was music to my ears, since Doxorubicin is very common in most lymphoma treatment protocols. And even though Dr. Horning has since changed her tune [which my sk...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pet Peeves

Since it's raining today, I didn't have much to do [I couldn't ride my bike], so I thought I'd complain about some of the little things that bug me. I know I'm not supposed to sweat the little things, which I don't [for the most part], but these are so minuscule, I figure they don't really count. One of my biggest complaints are walnuts, or any kind of nuts, in chocolate chip cookies. Nuts have no business in chocolate chip cookies. Chocolate chip cookies are sweet. They're a dessert, and nuts provide an unwanted texture, and flavor that takes away from that. Nuts don't belong in chocolate chip cookies. And come to think about it, nuts don't belong in brownies either, but I don't usually eat brownies (I don't particularly like them), so I don't really care. Still they don't belong. They're OK in Snickers, but that's about it. Another complaint is with people who buy [or rent] a convertible, and then drive around in it with...
3 comments
Read more