Heart Healthy -- almost

Yesterday we went to Salida for Doug's appointment with the Cardiologist. We saw a different doc this time -- Dr. Cole, who we liked. This cardiology group comes from Colorado Springs to Salida once a week. We hope we can see Dr. Cole on a regular basis and not have a different doc each time. Anyway, the 30 minute drive to Salida sure beats going over the mountains to Denver.
Before seeing the doc, Doug had a repeat Echocardiogram (cardiac ultrasound). When Dr. Cole came to see Doug, he had the report: Doug's heart is "almost back to normal". Sounds good to us!
Since Doug is still getting dizzy when he bends over, and the transplant oncologist thought the dizzness might be due to the Coreg (beta-blocker heart drug), we asked if Doug could stop the Coreg. Dr. Cole said he thinks the Coreg is still necessary. It lowers the blood pressure, which is a good thing for Doug's heart, to help it pump more easily. Doug is also on Lisinopril which is another heart drug. So although he has to stay on both drugs, Dr. Cole did stop the diuretic Aldactone. One less pill to take! Dr. Cole says he wants to see Doug in three months and will re-evaluate then, possibly reducing the dose of Coreg. "One thing at a time." Yesterday Doug's blood pressure was 90/68. Dr. Cole thought that was pretty good.

Dr. Cole also decided to do another EKG. That showed that the pacemaker is firing. Kind of surprising news to us, since the Denver cardiologist didn't think the pacer would be used. Cole said that at some point it might be a good idea to put in a different kind of pacemaker, one with the usual two wires. At the time the pacemaker was put in, Doug's atrium did not have the electrical activity for a wire (aka lead), so the primitive one-lead was used. He said the EKG showed that the heart "has not completely recovered from the heart block".

So we got kind of a mixed message, but overall it was a good report. Considering that seven months ago Doug's heart was severly compromised and barely functioning, and he was close to death's door, we are happy! Praise the Lord.

We took our truck camper to Denver a couple of weeks ago and had a nice visit with family. We look forward to many more trips -- there is much of Colorado we have not seen yet.

Today we are having snow -- the world outside is all white and very beautiful. Especially when we don't have to go anywhere!
Life is good!

Love to all.

Six month post transplant!

Yesterday we went to Denver for Doug's six month visit with Dr. Jeff Matous, his transplant doc. The official report on the bone marrow biopsy is "Persistent Plasma Cell Myeloma" -- that is because the marrow still has some plasma cells, but it is down to 4% now (was 7% at the three month mark). The good news is that there is NO evidence of any myeloma in the blood! Dr. Matous said that he doesn't know why the marrow still shows plasma cells but that "they are not doing anything", so that is good. So technically Doug is not in complete remission but is "very close". We think this is pretty good news.
Doug doesn't have to go back to the transplant center until the one year mark which will be next April. Meanwhile he will have blood work done every two months, and continue getting the Zometa bone-strengthener drug.

The blood counts did show a rise in Doug's creatinine, up to 1.7 which is too high. Not good news for the kidneys. Dr. Matous feels that this could be due to the heart meds which Doug is taking. We see the cardiologist next month and hope he will lower the dosage. The Zometa can also be hard on the kidneys. Meanwhile Doug is supposed to drink at least two quarts of fluids a day to help protect the kidneys. He is like a desert rat and doesn't like to drink water so I have to remind him often.

We both know that this disease comes back at some point -- some people get a long remission; ten years is the longest that we've heard of. If/when it does, most people go back on some form of chemo. We look forward to a long chemo-free time. We are very glad and thankful for Doug's health now. The heart-stopping horror of the transplant has faded and once again life is good.
Doug is feeling good and now has the go-ahead to mow the grass and do regular yard work -- yippee!

We had a good time visiting the Great Sand Dunes National Park a few days ago. I took pictures but for some unknown reason can't get them uploaded to the computer. The area has a kind of stark beauty and tons of natural history; we thought it was very worthwhile to see. Our truck camper worked well on the trip; putting a positive spin on it -- it was very cozy.

Love to all.

Repeat bone marrow biopsy

Yesterday we went to Rocky Mountain Cancer Center clinic in Denver for Doug's repeat bone marrow biopsy. The last one was three months ago and although good, wasn't quite the result Dr. Matous wanted. So hopefully this one will be better. They also drew six vials of blood for tests.
As usual, Doug had the "conscious sedation" -- fentanyl and versed via IV. This was his fourth time. The nurse practitioner did a good job. I could tell he experienced some pain (I watch for the curling of toes) but due to the medication, he remembers none of it. Today he is only a bit sore and taking Tylenol. Didn't hurt enough to prevent him from helping me dig up and separate some daylillies.
We go back next Thursday to get the results from Dr. Matous.

Meanwhile, we will be taking our maiden trip with the truck camper. We leave Sunday after church for the Great Sand Dunes national monument about three hours south of Buena Vista. We have never been there before. We will stay at a nearby state park campground.

Our grandsons came to see us over Labor Day; their mother Julie brought them out, also the boy's half sister Arianna who is 4. Ryan will turn 17 next week; Sean is 15 and Brendan is 13. They are good kids. Doug and I slept in the truck camper which is parked behind the house, leaving our small house for Julie and the kids. That arrangement worked pretty well. We had a great time -- we went hiking (Doug stayed home), and played board games at home. Luckily the boys still enjoy playing board games. We played 'Apples to Apples' and 'Big Boggle' and had lots of laughs.

Hope everyone has a good weekend!

One year since diagnosis; all is well

Five months post transplant and all is well. Doug's energy level has come back -- he even changed the oil in the truck the other day. His beard is getting long enough to trim now; it is a lovely gray. Doug has discovered that he likes his hair short so will probably keep it that way, at least for now. His body temperature has regulated itself so that he is not cold all the time.

Summer in Buena Vista has been busy. We enjoyed visitors: Gary and Jan from Omaha stayed just two days; my sister Carol and her husband Roger stayed a week in their 5th wheel, and our friend Shari Haywood stayed a month in her 5th wheel. Shari, Carol and Roger stayed at the same campground where we were all last summer -- Valley RV. They were not all here at the same time.

BV has lots of summer activity for the tourists. We had a wonderful old fashioned 4th of July parade and fireworks in the evening, free concerts in the park every week, farmer's market, music festival, rodeo, a huge rock and gem show (I got some jewelry making supplies). Quite a few events are within walking distance of our house, and the vendor's tents are in the park just a block away.

We have been riding our recumbent trikes more and walking more. Our summer weather has been delightful for the most part, although dry. The highest temp was 89 (with low humidity). It feels quite warm in the sun, but at this altitude when clouds come out it feels 15 degrees cooler immediately. We have planted more periennials in the big flower garden (that was a big vegetable garden the previous owner had). I have two tomato plants but I don't think we will get them to ripen. The nights are already getting into the 40's here. Not the greatest climate for tomatoes but we love it.

We have our big 5th wheel RV up for sale. Our full-time RV traveling adventure lasted just one year, instead of the five years we had planned. It was fun while it lasted, but we have to move on in this different phase of life. Although we have put down roots, we still plan on some traveling. We now have a small slide-in truck camper! We found a used 2002 Lance that is in wonderful condition. It is quite a change from a big 34 ft 5th wheel to a 11.5 ft truck camper, but it has all the necessities: queen bed, bathroom with shower, kitchen with stove and small microwave, dinette, and on-board generator. I will miss all the storage that the 5th wheel had, but we won't need to take as much stuff. There are so many smaller camping sites that we now can access including forest service campgrounds. The truck is in for service now, but when we get it back we are looking forward to exploring Colorado. And we plan on making a trip back to Nebraska after Doug's next visit to the oncologist in September.

It is one year tomorrow since Doug was diagnosed with cancer and our lives changed. I wouldn't wish the past year on anyone -- but we are so blessed. We realize the power of prayer, and we cherish our good friends and family.

Life is good. Praise God!

3 month post transplant -- good new

Yesterday we went to Denver for Doug's three month visit with the transplant doctor, Jeff Matous. We got good news -- Doug is in "very good partial remission". Dr. Matous said that Doug is very close to a complete remission. No evidence of the cancer in the blood work! The results of the bone marrow biopsy showed 7% plasma cells. (It was 30% at diagnosis.) If the plasma cells had been 5% or lower, technically it would be called complete remission. So we are very happy.

Dr. Matous wants to repeat the bone marrow biopsy in another three months -- he is hoping that it is a "sampling error" and he hopes to see the percentage go lower.

For those of you who understand the MM lingo, here are the other details:
IgA is now 44 (was 2300 at diagnosis)
M-spike is 0! That is excellent news.
Lambda light chain is 7, again excellent.

Dr. Matous feels that the occasional dizzy spells are the result of the heart meds, so nothing to worry about. Doug goes back to the cardiologist in August for a repeat echocardiogram.

Doug drove all the way to Denver, and we enjoyed a Chinese buffet lunch with our son Kelly and his wife Jamee. Sarah and Taylor, both 13, were able to join us for lunch but we didn't get to see the boys.
This was Doug's first buffet since the transplant -- he is now off all his dietary restrictions. And gaining weight -- he's up to 166, which is a good place to stop.

We are realistic -- we know that Multiple Myeloma comes back at some point after a transplant. But we have every reason to expect a lengthy remission during which Doug is off chemo! Life is very good and we are enjoying it.

Doug worked on our pond today and got it running. We walked on the path by the river this morning. We are trying to increase our distance slowly. The weather was lovely and we saw several rafts full of people having fun bouncing along on the whitewater.

"For you shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands."
Isaiah 55:12

Peace and love to all.

Day + 90 -- Bone marrow biopsy

We went to Denver yesterday for Doug's three month bone marrow biopsy and blood tests. We will get the results next Tuesday when we go for the doctor visit. We are anticipating good news but there are no guarantees. We should find out if Doug is in a complete remission or not.

Doug had "conscious sedation" for the biopsy so remembers nothing of the procedure, although he is a bit sore at the puncture site in his hip today. The tech drew six tubes of blood for various tests.

Doug drove halfway to Denver; I drove all the way back. We heard that some areas had severe weather but we had good driving.

Doug continues to have some dizzy spells but otherwise is doing great.
We enjoyed a visit with "old" friends Gary and Jan Stephan when they came to Buena Vista a couple of weeks ago. Since Doug's dining restrictions are lifted now, we made up for lost time and ate out.
My sister and brother in law are coming from Tennessee to BV July 1; they will stay a week at a nearby campground. We are really looking forward to seeing them.

I have been doing quite a bit of yard work and planting flowers. I didn't really want a yard to maintain but I confess that I am enjoying the flowers. We have lots of things blooming now -- yellow climbing roses, iris, poppies, lupines, columbines, and gobs of cute volunteer pansies. Today I planted some pink yarrow. Doug sits and watches - I know he'd rather be helping but he's still restricted from yard work.

We continue to be very thankful for all our blessings.

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."
Phillipians 4:6-7

Love to all.

Day + 70 -- semi-normal

Doug is doing well; he has even gained a couple of pounds. He still has occasional dizzy spells and tires easily but by now that is just part of our semi-normal life. We have had friends over, and Doug even shook hands (and used his hand sanitizer afterward). That sounds funny, but the warnings we got from the transplant team are enough to make one almost paranoid. He is talking about maybe going to church this Sunday despite being advised to avoid crowds. At some point common sense has to take over -- I think if we are careful it will be okay.

We went out riding today on our recumbent trikes. They are so easy and require no balance; if Doug gets a dizzy spell he can just sit there until it passes. When we got them a few years ago it was because of my poor balance -- who knew that it would be good exercise for Doug's recovery! Riding them feels like a cross between a bigwheel and a go-kart. Buena Vista's mostly level streets are a perfect place to ride, and the weather was wonderful this afternoon.

I thought I'd better get a photo of the bald and beardless Doug without a hat while he is still hairless. He now has a slight mustache and a few beard hairs that would make a seventh grade boy proud.

We consider Doug's ongoing recovery a miracle. We continue to be so thankful for God's healing and all the support and prayers from friends and family.

Love to all.