After another long day spent in Birmingham, we are finally home in Auburn. We had to be at UAB around 8 AM this morning so we headed to Bham last night and spent the night so we wouldn't have to get up early and drive. Carrie had infusion therapy scheduled at 8:30 this morning. After she had blood work done, her blood counts were pretty good. Her kidney function had actually increased quite a bit since last week and her doctor attributed that to the stent she had put in last week. Carrie was scheduled to meet with her oncologist at 12:40, but infusion was taking longer than expected so her doctor actually met with us while she was completing her treatment. There really wasn't any new information. As long as Carrie's counts are good next friday, she will get the 3rd round of chemo, then take the following week off. She will then start again the following week for 3 more weekly rounds (so basically she'll be getting chemo 3 out of every 4 weeks for now). They plan on doing another CT scan about 8 weeks after the last one, then depending on those results, re-evaluate the infusion schedule. Regarding the Mitotane, Carrie is to increase to 6 pills this weekend and if she tolerates that okay, increase it by another pill by next weekend. She is scheduled to meet with her oncologist in 2 weeks, on July 1st.
Carrie also met with the staff at Palliative Care about her pain management. She is still considering a fair amount of pain/discomfort in her lower abdomen and pelvic area. The pelvic pain is more than likely attributed to the stent surgery so hopefully that will subside as she continues to heal from that. The biggest concern with the abdomen pain is the fact that it interferes with her eating and appetite. She feels bloated and full all the time, which gets worse when she eats. She's been on the pain patches, which are supposed to provide continuous relief, but she's still taking supplemental pain pills pretty much around the clock. This led them to think the pain patches are really working that well for Carrie. They've decided to discontinue the patches for now and try a low dose of morphine in a pill form that she will initially take at bedtime. She can still take the other pain pills she's been taking throughout the day. In addition, they've prescribed Reglan, which is basically used to regulate the gastrointestinal system. Based on the scans, it appears that one of the tumors is pressing up against her stomach, which could be the cause for all the discomfort. The hope is that the Reglan will help her GI flow naturally and hopefully relieve some of that pressure. The doctors said if that's the case, she should notice a difference within a few days. The only other thing they addressed is her fatigue and lack of energy. Even though some of the meds Carrie is on cause drowsiness and fatigue, they've decided to try her on Ritalin. It's typically used for children with ADD, but can also serve as a stimulant in adults to make them more alert and increase energy levels, which is our hope for Carrie. Unless something happens or changes between now and than, Carrie will follow up with Palliative Care the first week of July.
I will be headed to Orland this upcoming Sunday through Friday for a conference for work so Carrie's mom will be headed to Auburn to stay with her while I'm away and accompany her to UAB next friday for round 3 of treatment. My parents will then pick Carrie up from treatment friday and drive her to Brewton, where I will meet them on my way home to spend the weekend with my parents. Unless something happens between now and then, we will let everyone know how round 3 goes next friday. Until then, thank you all for your support and prayers. We love you all!!
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