My cancer journey

customsawyer · April 23, 2024, 05:33:05 AM

Bricklayer1, nothing but respect for your decision. Tough on you and your loved ones. Make the most of it, and stick a spur in that SOB

doc henderson · April 23, 2024, 08:27:06 AM

Bricklayer, you are in my thoughts.

SwampDonkey · April 23, 2024, 02:56:51 PM

Bricklayer1, my uncle went out the same way. He had pancreatic cancer and decided to not be an experiment. Make the best of your remaining days.

Ed_K · April 23, 2024, 05:08:38 PM

Bricklayer 51, this pains me so much I know we have to go at some point but there's got to be some fight left.

I've been fighting a painful left shoulder for a couple of months now. I finally got to see my doctor at the VA, told him that I thought I might have a bone spur or the Myeloma had grown a tumor in it. He sent me for an x-ray but hasn't called me with the answer. The cytokine has started to bring my light chains down, they've brought it down from 496.4 to 383.1 Kappa light chain. It was hovering around 147.8 - 292.8 so I hope it keep going down. Yesterday I called my cancer Doctor to order some Tramadol and got a call back from his nurse that deals' with the pain meds. She wanted to know why I was ordering them before the time stamp the gov puts on pain meds. I explained that by the time the order get to my Doctor sent to the VA for them to take the time to fill it, it been 4 days and if they sent them to me thru the mail that's another 10-14 day's and I've been out for 15 days. She finally figured that out, so I told her I don't take anymore than what the prescription says. Then I told her about my shoulder hurting past the 1 to 10 count they always ask me. When you get to 10 there's another scale that starts with burning and sometimes get worse. If you ever picked up a piece of welded metal before you realized what you have done, then you know that burn past 10

hurt. I think I've gone far enough.

Y'all have a great day.

Peter Drouin · April 24, 2024, 06:52:53 AM

Bricklayer 51 My Ann did the same thing, the cancer was too much to fix.

Ed_K · June 25, 2024, 09:42:54 AM

Back in April I went to the VA dermatologist for an itchy spot in my ear. She took a patch of skin and sent it off to the big lab. 2 weeks later she sends me a message that the spot is cancer and makes me an appointment with an outside dermatologist, I got an appointment with a NP who said I need it cut out. Well by the time I saw her it had started growing and what she saw was a bubble about a 1/4 high. I then get an appointment for July 12 for operation now it's 1/2 high and 1/2 around. I'm a little perturbed to have to wait until July 12th to get this cut of. I'm thinking they will have to cut the whole top of my ear off.
I just can't win, I knew that Multiple Myeloma causes other cancers but between the tumors and now this skin cancer it's getting to me.

Y'all have a great day.

thecfarm · June 25, 2024, 05:40:47 PM

Good luck, I'm thinking of you.

Ed_K · July 07, 2024, 09:43:15 AM

Thing's are getting weird, the June 5th Darzelex shot plus the 10 Cyclophosphamide pills decided to give me side effects of feeling dizzy and I started to lose my balance. Thought it'd go away. Well July 3 meds are doing it and now I've added another pill to the mix Meclizine, and I didn't even have to go on a fishing trip

.

Y'all have a great day.

Ed_K · July 23, 2024, 03:20:41 PM

Finally got the skin cancer on my ear cut out, it hurt as soon as the Novocain wore off, And it hurt for a week after. Took a lot of pain meds, tyelonal up 6k mg a day a long with regular pain meds.

The dr.s decided to take me off of a drug called Duloxetine it's for neuropathy cause it wasn't working. We found out as they started weening me off of it, it started making me light headed enough to make me almost fall over. Plus I got weird zings in my head and white yellow lights in my eyes. I'm now back to taking it.

So if a Dr prescribes a med look at the side effects real close.

By the way acupuncture works on the neuropathy really well on my hands and feet.

Y'all have a great day.

Magicman · July 23, 2024, 08:32:24 PM

Thank You for keeping on keeping on Ed, and also thanks for the updates.

SwampDonkey · July 24, 2024, 02:35:47 AM

I don't think evidence is yet conclusive on this, but I believe the synthetic version of B1 (thiamine) is being studied as part of treatment for neuropathy in diabetics. Benfotiamine is what it's called. It's not something that gives instant relief, it's just a supplement.

thecfarm · July 24, 2024, 05:52:29 AM

Good luck with all that you are going through.

Ed_K · July 24, 2024, 09:44:32 AM

S.D. please keep me informed of this, I have a nephew who has diabetes and maybe it would help me.

Ed_K · July 24, 2024, 09:53:44 AM

The zing zing is why I bowed out of coming to Jeff's party, I restarted the med hoping maybe it would get me back to almost normal, but this morning I have the the zing zings still. I really dislike this it makes me off-balance an sick to my stomach.

Y'all have a great day.

SwampDonkey · July 24, 2024, 10:28:32 AM

Is the zing tinnitus or perhaps vertigo?

Ed_K · July 26, 2024, 06:38:48 AM

S.D. , I will say it's vertigo, as I start to fall and catch myself. At times I get sick to my stomach also. I have a med for the sick feeling but try not to use them, they have a side effect of their own.

Y'all have a great day.

SwampDonkey · July 26, 2024, 11:22:01 AM

Mom takes a vertigo med once in awhile, bottle says 2, she takes 1 or half one even.

Ed_K · August 15, 2024, 08:40:51 AM

I just found out that Bricklayer 51 passed away on July 27th. I now know why he wanted to stop the meds and give up, I have a real good friend she lives at the end of my driveway and is in the hospital decided time to let go. The two of them make me feel sad.

Y'all have a great day.

Ed_K · August 15, 2024, 09:07:49 AM

I've looked around the forum and haven't found any post about Bricklayer, I got a pm about his passing so I'm not sure if I should post any where on the Forum about this. What do you think?

doc henderson · August 15, 2024, 11:10:39 AM

Ed, I would think that is up to you. here is as good as anyplace. Sorry to hear that.

chet · August 15, 2024, 12:28:39 PM

https://www.thealpenanews.com/obituaries/2024/08/randy-allen-reinholz/

May you rest in peace Randy.

Magicman · August 15, 2024, 03:22:08 PM

Randy and I had corresponded several times with PM's and I knew about his decision to stop the treatments. This is sad news to read.

Rest in Peace my Forestry Forum Friend.

SwampDonkey · August 15, 2024, 04:11:05 PM

I think Randy shared his decision a few weeks back, either in here or on another such thread. RIP now Randy.

WhitePineJunky · August 15, 2024, 04:25:03 PM

Quote from: SwampDonkey on August 15, 2024, 04:11:05 PMI think Randy shared his decision a few weeks back, either in here or on another such thread. RIP now Randy.

Comment 744 of this thread, page 30

RIP Bricklayer51