My latest M-protein results are up slightly from the previous month:
We cut back the dose of the chemo drug a bit, so it's no surprise that the M-protein number continues to rise slightly. Hopefully it will stabilize soon.
Unfortunately, a bigger immediate problem is that my white blood count has been steadily dropping and is now well below where it should be:
Since August, my WBC has dropped from around 4.0 to 2.0. Obviously that's not good, though it doesn't present any immediate problems. It's just a bad trend.
Both of these results are from last week, and I'll get new labs done this week. There's a sort of dance here where we try to get the best combination of good cancer fighting without wrecking my immune system. Depending on what the new labs show, we might experiment with different dosages or different chemo cycles to see what works best. And if that doesn't do the job, it will be time to switch chemo meds.
It's lotsa fun being a human guinea pig.
Best of luck, Kevin
Hoping that your medical professionals find the perfect Tx & that your numbers bounce back.
I wish you all the best. I know what it is like to have a hard-to-treat disease.
Thank you for sharing your journey.
and may your journey be fun and full of playful cats for many years to come...
Good luck. Hope you find the best landing zone quickly. Being a guinea pig may not be fun - been there - but I would argue that it's better than the alternatives. And I'm sure your cat overlords are all praying for your safety and staying power!
I've learned a lot from reading your updates. Thanks for being willing to share and explain. And while I'm at it, thanks for your writing about lead levels and violence. I share that info on a weekly basis, at least, to show my friends that the world isn't nearly as bad as they think.
Best wishes for finding the sweet spot for your meds!
Conservatives will tell you the best way to perk up your immune system is to give yourself a horrible disease.
Fight fire with fire.
Surprised controlled burn theories haven't been more popular in Plandemic responses from the Alexjonesian Right.
By god that is it, we should just burn them all!
A chiliastic cleansing, every diagnosed person, everyone with the sniffles, from coast to coast!
(and their cats and dogs, and the rats they attract, they've given covid to deer now, deer and mooses, and it's breeding in the sewers, how can we sit still, how can we wait? Burn them all!)
You should sell movie rights (The Guinea Pig), see if Jeff Goldblum can play you.
Hang in there Kevin. You have some great health care looking after you. Sending positive thoughts.
Good luck to you.
What those of us who are also in vulnerable demographics (if less vulnerable than yours) would like to know is, how much more are you isolating from the covid than other prepared people? What do you think of California's impending drop of the mask mandate?
we need you so no dippin out (heart shape emoji)
Gosh, hang in there, I hope more and better drugs keep getting invented for you and others.
Just take care of yourself, mr. Drum.
You should try ivermectin.
Nothing but immense respect for Kevin's sharing what for most people is a very private and challenging situation.
Good luck Kevin. There are a lot of options for treatment. Your numbers are decent even if the trend hints at a change.
I’ve come to the end of my time with Dara/Rev/ Dex. Up next is KPd. Fingers crossed 🤞.
goodbloodbadblood.com