Third Anniversary.

Three years ago today I learned that I had cancer. Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia to be exact. I am so thankful for my current good health.

The lovely Dr. Vinod takes excellent care of me. During my last visit he said the CML is completely under control and if I continue taking my medication there is no chance it will worsen.

Dr. Vinod is one of the most beautiful people I know. He is soft spoken, compassionate and caring. He is also brilliant, one of the heart specialist I saw said Dr. Vinod makes him feel like a country bumpkin because he is so intelligent and his behavior is incredibly well mannered and correct.

The nurses and office staff also love Vinod and the other doctors at the Hematology and Transplant Center. One of the nurses said working at the Center was like working with family because all the doctors insist on being addressed by their first names.

About eight years ago another brilliant doctor invented the drug that changed the life expectancy of CML patients from 3 to 5 years to an almost normal life expectancy. He is Dr. Brian Druker.

He has been featured on 60 Minutes and many other TV shows. He is 'the man' in the search for a cure for cancer. He researched the molecular and cellular changes CML caused and invented a drug to stop those changes, hence stopped the cancer from multiplying out of control. The drug he invented has saved thousands of lives and has been called the next best thing to a cure for cancer. The drug stops the effects of CML but doesn't get rid of it, so if I were to stop taking the chemo drug the CML would quickly take over again.

Dr. Druker is also a humble and lovely man. About 6 months after my diagnosis I sent him an email because the drug was not working as well as it should have for me and in addition to CML I have three other blood disorders. I asked if he could consult with Dr. Vinod about my case. He replied to my email! He asked that Dr. Vinod fax my records to him and together they went over my treatment. Dr. Druker said Dr. Vinod's decision to double my dosage was correct. I was never sent a bill for his help. He actually sees many patients in addition to his important research.

Why are people like Madonna or Brittany Spears idolized and make millions of dollars while brilliant doctors like mine go through life in relative obscurity? Something is very skewed in our society. OK, end of sermon.

Three years after my initial diagnosis words cannot sufficiently express how thankful I am for the blessings I have been given.

Sorry about that - cancer update

In my header I said I wasn't going to post my every ache and pain. In my last post I referenced :

• Bladder Infection
• Sweating like a pot boiling over on a stove
• Swollen Abdomen
• Tender Tummy
• Being Tired
• Unexplained Weight Loss (Like that is a PROBLEM???)
• Fibromyalgia
• Waaa, Waaa, Waaa
  

Long story short, I had Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML). Normal white blood cell counts are 7,000 to 9,000. Mine was 189,000. Hospitalized for 4 days, went on a wonder drug called Gleevec.

This drug was FDA approved in 2001. Before this drug the life expectancy for people with CML was 3-5 miserable years. With Gleevec many people can live a normal life-span.

Gleevec usually has few side effects. Not so for me. I will not go into detail. I try to keep my promises. Lucky for me there are a couple of second generation drugs after Gleevec. I started on the one called Sprycel about 5 months ago. It is wonderful. CML is under control and the side effects are a lot better. There is a risk of developing drug resistance or the CML could mutate. But for now life is good. We do regular blood tests to monitor the blood counts, once a year we do a bone marrow check.

Interesting fact - Sprycel costs over $7,000/MONTH! Thank goodness for Blue Cross/Blue Shield. I can't believe that much has to be paid out each month to keep me alive. Actually it's a LOT more than that with all my tests and Dr. bills. Scary.

6 months after the CML, I had a chunk of skin cancer removed from my back. Dr. thinks she got it all. Have a skin check once a year. All is well.

7 months after CML, gall bladder removed.

8 months after CML, diagnosed with blood clotting disorders, Essential Thrombocythemia and JAK2 and another I don't know the name of. For now I take a baby aspirin every morning, we're good to go. ET is actually a form of cancer, my paternal grandmother had it, my maternal aunt has it. Dr.'s say it is NOT hereditary. My Oncologist/Hematologist tells me this is more of a threat to me than the CML is at this point.

Did I mention that we sold the farm during this time. I was responsible for all the packing and moving! Including farm machinery, tools and everything you accumulate living on a farm for 15 years! The Big Guy was working his usual 16 to 18 hours/day in the trucking business we had just started. We built a house, I was responsible for all decisions! Thank goodness for family.

I CAN NEVER THANK MY FAMILY ENOUGH FOR ALL THE HELP THEY GAVE, AND GAVE, AND GAVE, AND GAVE AND GAVE AND GAVE AND GAVE.

Long story even shorter: Turning 40 sucked.

Jan. 29, 2006, I think it's going to be bad news.

It was a Sunday night. The Big Guy and I were sitting across from each other at the kitchen table. I told him I was going to our Doctor in the morning because I was developing a bladder infection. I warned him that I thought I had more wrong than just an infection, "I think I am going to hear bad news tomorrow so be prepared."

I had been losing a lot of weight, which was great, but my abdomen was getting larger and it was tender. When the boys and I would wrestle and rough-house, I would find myself protecting my tummy.

The night sweats were incredibly drenching and had started happening during the day as well. On Christmas day at the in-laws, I remember standing in the kitchen and sweat was coming off my head in a steady stream. I felt like a pot of water boiling over onto the stove. I stood outside to cool off. It didn't help, and believe me, Iowa in Dec. is COLD!

And I was so incredibly tired. It's hard to describe the bone deep kind of tired I had been feeling for the last couple of years.

When I look back now I am thinking, "How blind were you? You had every sign of cancer there is! Of course you were going to have bad news you loser!" But at the time I could almost explain everything away, the tiredness was due to my fibromyalgia, sweats were probably perimenopause, (I was 40 you know!), weight loss was because I was working hard outside with the cattle. The swollen abdomen was a little harder to explain. I thought it was probably a gastro-intestinal tumor.

Have you ever thought about what kind of cancer you would choose if you had to have cancer? I always thought I'd prefer to have some type of tumor. Cut the sucker out and get rid of it man! You can't get rid of your blood, I knew I didn't want that kind of cancer.

The next morning I went to our family Doc..... To be continued.