Blog Entries

Now We’re Talkin’

Posted on by Rob

Tonight I was transferred to the IU Simon Cancer Center (IUSCC).  Methodist did a great job taking care of me, but IUSCC is on a whole ‘nother level.

Have you ever been to a gas station where they pump the gas for you?  The Methodist Onc unit is like one of those stations where one guy comes out, takes your card, pumps your gas and wished you a good day. Basically you get great service and what you came for.   IUSCC is like one of the full service stations from the 50’s where 10 guys in white uniforms jump out and check your oil, clean your windows, air up your tires, and pump your gas all while whistling a happy tune.  You can tell the building and the staff are catered towards cancer treatment and it is a big step in the right direction.
I didn’t end up getting my bone marrow results back and they may not be back until Monday.  Not exactly the Assurance Dan Evans was promising, but I’m sure once they get the Look of Assurance rolled out, they can start working on path results of assurance too.
All in all it has been a good day, but the best day will be when I walk out of this place as a survivor.  I’m ready for the next step in this process and hope to get some form a treatment started this weekend.  Thank you all for your well wishes, prayers, and offers to help.  Your kind words mean more than you could know and reading them really helps.

Hurry Up and Wait

Posted on by Rob

Today was supposed to bring more news than it has.  So far I’ve had my ultrasound and I’ve learned that my liver enzymes have come down a bit (good) but my platelets are also dropping (bad, but expected).  They’ve cancelled the procedure to add my port today.  They are working on transferring me to the IU Simon Cancer Center, so they didn’t want to put the port in yet.  I also haven’t gotten the bone marrow results yet.  I’m very comfortable and Lindsey has been with me all day long.  I guess I’ll just get my rest and wait to know the next steps.

Simon Says Don’t Breathe

Posted on by Rob

I had my ultrasound this morning and we played a fun little game.  It wasn’t exactly Simon Says since the ultrasound tech never said “simon says…” but I did have 3 specific instructions to follow.  They were:

Deep Breath and Hold
Breathe Normal
Don’t Breathe
This all seems easy enough, but it was the combination of instructions that made it a bit rough.  For instance, I would be told to take a deep breath and hold it.  20 seconds or so later I was told to breath normal.  However not but 2 seconds later I got a “Don’t Breathe.”  So basically I only had time to exhale and never had time to inhale.  Eventually I would get a “Breathe Normal” reprieve, but they always seemed a bit short.  This went on for about 25 minutes with many more “Breath and Holds” and “Don’t breathes” than the breathe normals.
My ever adaptable ultrasound tech did eventually catch on that my twitching meant I needed a bit of a break.  Or perhaps my face was turning blue.  Who knows.