Increasing Xeloda and Gemzar Slightly

Robert took me to Grand Junction for chemo today. I got to attend my support group as well where we discussed what we would do if we found out an asteroid would destroy the earth six months from now. I would like to travel, spend more time with family & friends, let someone else save the world, and get one more kitten.

My tumor marker from last week's blood test was down again to 2060. My platelets are back up the normal range - I've been telling them to get back up there plus I visualized my mother hugging me which I think helped. (When I play big band music on my oldies radio show, I tell my listeners that this is for my parents to dance to up in heaven.) My red blood cells were still down so the doctor ordered a shot of Araness (sp?). We increased the Gemzar up to 85% of normal. My liver enzymes creeped up a wee bit this week, so I'm increasing my Xeloda dosage to 75% of normal instead of 50%.

We are still looking into clinical trials for AZD2171, but the only one that I think that will take cholangiocarcinoma (CC) patients is in England which I'm not opposed to - after all, I do want to travel. I also found a clinical trial for Avastin and Tarceva. I know both a CC and a pancreatic cancer patient who have done well with Tarceva. This trial is in Denmark. That'd be cool. If I have to go off all chemo for a month before the trials, we're not so sure that would work - that I can afford that much time off the chemo.

We ordered a headstone for our plot at the cemetery in Ouray County and they are setting it tomorrow. It's actually a bench. We'll have a great view from our spot. We're both going to be cremated and they'll put our ashes in the legs of the bench. I told Robert if he remarried and died before his new wife, to ask her if I could have some of his ashes over in my plot. Hope she won't mind.

The aspen leaves are just beginning to turn, while other trees in town are getting quite yellow. The kids started back to school today and we passed groups of them walking to school as we headed out of town to Grand Junction. We have lots of mule deer that hang out on our street in Ouray and the fawns are losing their white spots. I'll try to get a picture on this blog.

Just up here in Colorado enjoying the last days of summer and talking to my body - the tumors, the chemo, the red blood cells and platelets. I think it helps.

Sincerely, Caroline