I'm back fairly quickly this time... :) Firstly, because I really want to make it a point to blog, BUT more importantly, because by God's grace the 4th treatment cycle got over without any major hurdles. I have some tooth trouble this time, but it's being treated with anti-biotics. As I mentioned earlier, I started the 4th cycle on 22nd June and finished in time for 30th June. Got back home on Tuesday night itself... Wednesday was a bit tiring and it's taken a couple of days to feel normal :)
Really need to thank the nurses who take care of me and so many others. Doctors and consultants too are really helpful. It's because they do their work diligently that we are able to lead normal lives. I continue to pray for them - all the health care people around the world... May God continue to guide them and lead them and work miracles through them. Amen!
Nothing much to write today, so maybe I'll give some more details about the RAvVA treatment. As mentioned on the last post, its a different type of low dose chemo, less intensive. The initial trial is of 6 cycles (1 month each), and they assess how effective the medicine has been, and if it would be beneficial to continue, or wait and watch. For this RAvVA trial, you get randomized to have just the subcut injections OR subcut injections+oral chemo capsules. Again, as mentioned, traditional chemotherapy kills all cancerous cells, but at the same time kills good cells too. With this trial treatment, few good cells are lost, but the main aim is to try and curb the growth of cancerous cells and thus make more room for normal cells to grow.
The subcut injections are called Azacitidine - subcut meaning injections given into fatty issue. Like the stomach, back of your upper arm, thighs. The first 2-3 cycles this was a big problem for me, as I had no fat... :) The injections sting a lot and the pain remains for few days. :( so more the fat, the better. Azacitidine has been approved for used with Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) patients and it's being trialed for AML now.
And then I got randomized to having the oral chemo too, which is a drug called Vorinostat - I need to have 3capsules morning and night time (12hrs apart) for 9 days. I start taking it on day 3 and it completes along with the 7 injections (because the injections are not given over weekends, got it?).
Apart from chemo, I have to take Septrin (anti-viral) and Voriconazole (anti-fungal) for the chest infection I had in April/May. Along with these, there are the usual prophylactic meds (Aciclovir, Ciprofloxin, Lanzoprezole) and nausea meds too. This time I was on 3 different nausea/vomiting drugs, so just vomited twice in the whole cycle, which is a really big thing for me, as vomiting is the main side effect I have. The prophylactic meds are continuous - they say Aciclovir is for life and the other 2 can stop when counts improve. Nausea meds I have only while the injections are on (maybe a day or two after incase not keeping well). Septrin and Voriconazole will continue for sometime, as the chest infection was pretty severe.
So that sums all the meds that I am on... :) I need lots of water unlike some who can take a small sip and have their meds. So I get full drinking water while taking these tablets! With all these meds which are meant to help me, if you start reading about possible side effects, it's all God's grace...! I seldom look at the side effects and Ancy does not look at them at all. Why worry she says... I don't get worried, but I can't be bothered. It's all in His mighty hands and I take each day as it comes...
I'm back to work too btw, inbetween treatment cycles, and the team is very co-operative. So I don't get any urgent time bound stuff to do. But that does mean I get stuff that no one wants to do... hehe... :) Cisco folk (especially my colleagues), no offense ok... I really appreciate all the help, patience and support. It helps keep my mind active and I don't forget things... And doing these odd tasks means I get to work on various different products/protocols, which only enhances my overall knowledge. In the last few weeks, I got back to SNMP stuff after years, installed and configured an Oracle DB for the first time and got vSphere Update manager (VUM) integrated with the DB (refreshed ODBC stuff) - so all good... Cisco rocks!
Anyhoo... this was supposed to be a short blog, and look what I've done...! If interested in the RAvVA trial, there is loads on google and you can read more here, about the positive signs...!
Keep praying for me and all those who need complete healing...
God bless!
Really need to thank the nurses who take care of me and so many others. Doctors and consultants too are really helpful. It's because they do their work diligently that we are able to lead normal lives. I continue to pray for them - all the health care people around the world... May God continue to guide them and lead them and work miracles through them. Amen!
Nothing much to write today, so maybe I'll give some more details about the RAvVA treatment. As mentioned on the last post, its a different type of low dose chemo, less intensive. The initial trial is of 6 cycles (1 month each), and they assess how effective the medicine has been, and if it would be beneficial to continue, or wait and watch. For this RAvVA trial, you get randomized to have just the subcut injections OR subcut injections+oral chemo capsules. Again, as mentioned, traditional chemotherapy kills all cancerous cells, but at the same time kills good cells too. With this trial treatment, few good cells are lost, but the main aim is to try and curb the growth of cancerous cells and thus make more room for normal cells to grow.
The subcut injections are called Azacitidine - subcut meaning injections given into fatty issue. Like the stomach, back of your upper arm, thighs. The first 2-3 cycles this was a big problem for me, as I had no fat... :) The injections sting a lot and the pain remains for few days. :( so more the fat, the better. Azacitidine has been approved for used with Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) patients and it's being trialed for AML now.
And then I got randomized to having the oral chemo too, which is a drug called Vorinostat - I need to have 3capsules morning and night time (12hrs apart) for 9 days. I start taking it on day 3 and it completes along with the 7 injections (because the injections are not given over weekends, got it?).
Apart from chemo, I have to take Septrin (anti-viral) and Voriconazole (anti-fungal) for the chest infection I had in April/May. Along with these, there are the usual prophylactic meds (Aciclovir, Ciprofloxin, Lanzoprezole) and nausea meds too. This time I was on 3 different nausea/vomiting drugs, so just vomited twice in the whole cycle, which is a really big thing for me, as vomiting is the main side effect I have. The prophylactic meds are continuous - they say Aciclovir is for life and the other 2 can stop when counts improve. Nausea meds I have only while the injections are on (maybe a day or two after incase not keeping well). Septrin and Voriconazole will continue for sometime, as the chest infection was pretty severe.
So that sums all the meds that I am on... :) I need lots of water unlike some who can take a small sip and have their meds. So I get full drinking water while taking these tablets! With all these meds which are meant to help me, if you start reading about possible side effects, it's all God's grace...! I seldom look at the side effects and Ancy does not look at them at all. Why worry she says... I don't get worried, but I can't be bothered. It's all in His mighty hands and I take each day as it comes...
I'm back to work too btw, inbetween treatment cycles, and the team is very co-operative. So I don't get any urgent time bound stuff to do. But that does mean I get stuff that no one wants to do... hehe... :) Cisco folk (especially my colleagues), no offense ok... I really appreciate all the help, patience and support. It helps keep my mind active and I don't forget things... And doing these odd tasks means I get to work on various different products/protocols, which only enhances my overall knowledge. In the last few weeks, I got back to SNMP stuff after years, installed and configured an Oracle DB for the first time and got vSphere Update manager (VUM) integrated with the DB (refreshed ODBC stuff) - so all good... Cisco rocks!
Anyhoo... this was supposed to be a short blog, and look what I've done...! If interested in the RAvVA trial, there is loads on google and you can read more here, about the positive signs...!
Keep praying for me and all those who need complete healing...
God bless!
No comments:
Post a Comment