Women Support Movember

Since you ladies can't grow a moustache, some smart person on YouTube came up with a way that you can show your support for dudes growing facial fuzz. It's brilliant and supportive and fun. You can check out the video here if you haven't seen it already.

I'm at the hospital now getting round number who-knows-what of chemo. I feel pretty good but I know I have a couple of crappy days ahead. I met a dude here who has a similar cancer and path as my friend Daryl. It's a shame how easy it is to talk with him about his prognosis, picking out a hospice and the impact it has on family. It's hard to really think about but the words come out so easily. It's funny how the human psyche works.

Penny is in Phoenix with her ball team enjoying some well deserved rest and retail therapy. Hopefully she gets some of the Xmas shopping done too!

Pat Burns Dies of Colon Cancer

Pat Burns, the celebrated NHL coach, passed away today from colon cancer. He was diagnosed in 2004 and battled valiantly for 6 years. The cancer (like mine) spread to his liver and eventually his lungs. He was 58. You can read the whole story here.

That's not a bad looking moustache Pat, not bad at all.

Movember - Half Way

Well here is my half way picture for Movember. It could be better but it could also be much much worse. At least the only time I have to see it is when I look in the mirror. I feel sorry for Penny and the kids, they have to look at my facial rodent all day. Don't forget, if you want to make fun of me and my 'stache at least donate a couple of bucks first.

Things are good despite the lack of posts this past week. I did get a spot of strep throat on the weekend but my standing order of antibiotics at the pharmacy seems to have made short work of that. The extra chemo sucks but it's manageable. I long for the day that I can have a real break from the stuff. We're looking into some naturopathic stuff too. I'll let you know how that goes when it happens. That's all for now.

CT Results

Well, it's not really any surprise that my CT showed that I still have cancer. My wildest fantasy would be to have one of these scans and really puzzle the doctors by having no visible tumours. This time it didn't happen but there will be more of these scans in my future so I'll keep hoping that someday my fantasy will come true.

Last week's scan showed, as I suspected, that the tumours in my lungs had grown. They range in size from 1-7mm and affect all lobes of both lungs. The radiologist who reviewed the scan did not comment on the number of tumours in my lungs or their specific locations or the relative growth of individual tumours relative to my last scan in May. I believe the scan then showed multiple tumours ranging in size from 1-5mm. If I put my post secondary math skills into action I can arrive at the conclusion that the largest tumour grew by 2mm between scans.

The real question, for which there is no clear answer at this point, is this: Is the chemo working? One might infer from the growth of the spots that the chemo is ineffective but I don't believe you could draw that conclusion yet. Since my last scan in May I did no chemo in June, one round in July and one round in August. For September and October I was on chemo full time. So did the tumours grow in June, July and August when I was doing little or no chemo and then stay stagnant while I was on chemo in September and October? Did they grow for June, July and August and then shrink in September and October? Or is my cancer slow growing and has been growing slowly and steadily since my scan in May regardless of the fact I've been on chemo? The answer to those questions is not really clear at this point.

So, looking ahead there are 4 options.

1) Stop chemo altogether.

2) Stay the course and continue my modified FolFiri + bevicizumab protocol (no IV pump)

3) Go back to an unmodified FolFiri+bevacizumab protocol (with IV pump)

4) Take part in a phase 1 clinical trial.

Option 1 is appealing in the short term but may not yield the best results.

The main difference between option 2 and 3 is that right now I don't have to wear an IV pump home for two days after I get the rest of my chemo. This IV pump is set up to deliver a steady dose of chemo (5Fu) for 46 hours. The oncologist I visited at the Mayo clinic said I didn't need the 5Fu and that I could cut it out of my treatment here. I was game for that since having the extra chemo infused for two extra days prolongs the length of the side effects I have. The side effects aren't terrible but still, that's 2 days of my life I'll never get back. The problem with cutting the 5Fu out is that at the beginning of my treatment 2 years ago I did 5 weeks straight of radiation and 5Fu. I wore that damn bottle for what felt like an eternity and it made me feel like crap. When they did my liver resection my surgeon said he could see that the spots in my liver had been partially killed somehow (I forget the exact words he used). Since the radiation I had was focused on my colon (yup, it's as fun as it sounds) and not my liver, the only thing that could have messed up my liver tumours would be the 5Fu. So with that in mind, perhaps going back to the full dose of 5Fu might be worthwhile.

The 4th option is for me to take part in a phase one clinical trial. The first phase of a clinical trial is one step (small) removed from animal trials. This particular trial is for a drug that was designed for use in patients with advanced stage cancers that can't be treated with other protocols. It is non cancer specific, meaning they don't know exactly which cancers it will be effective in treating. While it might be exciting to be part of a trial, I'm not keen on abandoning ship on my FolFiri treatments just yet. Dr Lupichuck also hinted that there is another clinical trial coming to the Tom Baker Centre that is specific for colon cancer patients. She said it's a couple months away from being started and would likely be better suited to my cancer than the current clinical trial.

In the end we decided to go with option 3. This option means wearing the IV pump home for two days after treatment and possibly feeling a little more crapped out than my treatments over the past few months. So the plan is do option 3 for two months and get another CT scan. That scan should give a more conclusive answer as to whether or not this chemo protocol is working for me.

I forgot to mention the good part about my CT results today. The scan showed no visible cancer anywhere else in my body (yipee!). It also showed that my abscess (the one with the drain) has not enlarged over the past 5 or so months. This means the drain is doing its job and keeping the fluid from accumulating down there and causing an infection.

If you were me what would you do? Feel free to leave a comment.

The Birthday Dance Party

Monday is Carly's 5th birthday. This year we decided to try something different for the party. A local multi-use space called Brite Studios opened up this September near our house offers hip-hop dance themed birthday parties so the thought we'd give it a try. Carly goes there for a dance class once a week and we knew her teacher (a U of C dance student and director of dance at this location) would put on a good party. The facility is used during the week as a preschool that provides before and after school care as well as other activities like dance and karate. The multi-use rooms can be rented out at night and on the weekends for other activities as well. So we rented the place for two hours for the party and that included the instructor, a room for dance and a room for food/cake/games. It was a great set-up and the party went really well. Having twelve kids over to the house for a party would have been stressful but having the party at this facility made it super easy for Penny and I to plan and execute.

Instead of gifts this year we asked all the kids to bring 10 dollars. We thought Carly could have half the money to buy one gift for herself that she really wanted and then the other half she could donate to a charity of her choice. It was the first time we had really explained to her what a charity was and that there are people out there that can't afford a place to live or food to eat. The charity she chose was the Ronald McDonald house at the Children's Hospital. We've had friends that have had to rely on the Ronald McDonald house in the past and it is one of a few places in Calgary where Carly could really understand what her money will be used for and who it will help. We plan to make a trip up there to show her around which will hopefully enhance her understanding of why its important to give to others. I'll let you know how it all goes.

Congratulations Levi!

Exactly a year to the day before I was diagnosed with cancer, Levi (the son of my friends Ashley and Dave in Comox) was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Following his diagnosis in Victoria he was flown to the Vancouver Children's Hospital where he stayed for a month and underwent a barrage of tests. After that month he was able to return to Victoria where he received 6 months of horribly debilitating chemotherapy (his doctors told him the chemo was so strong that it would kill an adult!). At one point he was so weak he couldn't even walk. That spring he was moved onto a lower dose of chemo. For that he got IV meds once per month and took daily chemo pills for two and a half years. His progress was tracked with quarterly lumbar punctures that tested for the disease in his spinal fluid. But now, after more than three years of treatment Levi is FINISHED HIS CHEMO! While the side effects could take up to six months to subside he is looking at getting back into the normal life of a ten year-old. In fact it's been so long since he's been "normal" he says finishing chemo is a little anti-climatic.

The way that Levi has dealt with his disease speaks to his easy-going nature. He has also exhibited patience and positivity typical of someone much older and is an example of how adaptable youngsters are. He seems to have an innate ability to, all at once completely forget his disease yet be fully aware when his next appointment was and if he was getting an LP or not during that visit. This is an ability that I try constantly to copy in my own battle. I think it is this ability that allowed him to adapt so well to his "new normal" and function largely as a normal kid. He's been playing soccer, lacrosse and other sports and, while he does get tired occasionally, he still exudes the demeanour of a happy, healthy 10 year-old.

Sick or not, he is a pleasure to be around and the world is richer with him in it. Congratulations on your last round Levi. You are a great inspiration. And also hats off to Dave and Ashley, I can't imagine how hard this has been for you both.

Back To Work!

Today I ventured back to work for the first time in over two years. In the summer Penny and I decided that it was time to take back what we can of our life from that controlling bitch, cancer. Since I enjoyed my job, we thought that going back to work would be good for our mental health. It would give me something to focus on besides cancer and would give Penny and the kids an opportunity to get back into an at-home routine without me around ALL the time to cramp their style.

I was lucky enough to have Scott and Rick put together a project for me that is flexible, challenging and interesting. I will start out working 3 half days per week but that will increase as long as I can handle whatever fatigue and stress happen to come my way. The project is also flexible enough that I can work from home should the need arise. The bottom line is I'm thrilled to be back at EnCana in a great group with a great project and can't wait to get started. Thanks to everyone involved who has made this happen!

Russell Peters

Vicky and I went to see Russell Peters at Costco tonight. He was signing copies of his new book "Call Me Russell". We had to wait for about an hour to see him but he was polite and goofy and signed our books. Hopefully his writing is as funny as his stand-up.

My CT scan today went fine. The techs are always impressed and the other patients jealous when I remember to bring a pack of Crystal Light to add some flavor to my telebrix (a GI coating CT contrast drink). I almost enjoyed the 2 hours of sitting at the hospital listening to music, surfing the web and sipping on my field berry cocktail.

It's Movember!

Movember (formerly the month known as November) challenges men to change their appearance and the face of mens health by growing a Mo (moustache). The rules are simple. Start November 1st clean shaven and let that soup strainer grow for a month. The moustache becomes the ribbon for men’s health, the means by which awareness and funds are raised for prostate cancer. You can register at movember.com to create your own page and track the growth of your facial fur and donations. This November I'm growing a 'stache in memory of my grandfather who died of prostate cancer and in support of Doug, who is currently (and pretty successfully I might ad) battling the disease. Bring on the mo!

You can visit my MoSpace page here to donate or to register to become a participant yourself.

BC Cancer Agency / Comox

Wood Arch, originally uploaded by DPC Tutt.

This past weekend I took a little trip to the BC Cancer Agency in Victoria. I had set up through my oncologist here in Calgary to meet up with an oncologist there to discuss the possibility of having future chemo treatments there. The idea being that I would be able to spread some of the "feeling crappy" out a bit. Up until now Penny and the kids have had to deal with the brunt of my sickness and discomfortude following chemo. I thought it might be good to rely on my parents (who live in Victoria) for a little care following some of my future treatments.

The oncologist I met up with there (Dr Weinerman) was pleasant, laid back, polite, easy to talk to and ON TIME! The BC cancer board offices at the Jubilee Hospital are clean and bright and not nearly as busy as the Tom Baker Centre here in Calgary. After a mild amount of disbelief on his part at my "crappy luck" he said he would be happy to help out in any way that he can. He said he would be able to set up treatments there in Victoria with a little notice. He seemed to think there would be no problem with paperwork or funding given my history of treatment in Calgary. Overall it was a positive meeting. Hopefully I never need to go there for treatment but just in case, its good to know the option is there.

Following my Victoria appointment I hitched a ride to Comox with my cousin Josephine and my brother Matt. It was a fun trip up and was great to spend a little time with the bro and the cuz. In Comox I spent time as usual with the Daves and Ashely and Katie. I wish I could go more often...

On the schedule for tomorrow is a visit to the Foothills for a CT scan. This one should show if the chemo I'm on is effective at kicking cancer ass. I won't get the results for a week and I'll be sure to report them here as soon as I get them. Fingers crossed everyone!