Tomorrow, as I do every four weeks, I meet with my oncologist. Rather than speculating about lab results, I like to cycle over to the University the previous day for a blood draw. Results then trickle in to an app on my phone over the next two hours.
Category: Health
Boxed In
Nursing a cold, I didn’t stray far from a box of Kleenex.
Paying the Price of Travel
Downsides of long-haul travel are jet-lag, possibly layered on a cold or worse. Today I failed a COVID test, which is some consolation.
View from Ford Bridge
After oncology appointments scheduled around our upcoming trip to England, I continued my bike ride. At Ford Bridge, I’m looking at the remnants of a Ford Motor Company plant: Ford Hydroelectric Plant and Ford Steam Plant. Up on the bluffs, a new brownfield development is underway, featuring most of the elements of a 15-minute community,… Continue reading View from Ford Bridge
8 Weeks On, 8 Weeks Off
The clinical trial I’m participating in alternates between two treatments, 8 weeks at a time. Seville oranges are discouraged during one of the treatments, one of two ingredients in my go-to marmalade. For the next 8 weeks I can enjoy marmalade and I won’t have to make potentially misunderstood inquiries about the formulation of the… Continue reading 8 Weeks On, 8 Weeks Off
Turning the Tables on Tumor
Came home from a medical appointment with a two-month supply of Enzalutamide costing about the same as a small Tesla. I’d never buy a Tesla, so the comparison is moot; besides, the study is paying. I alternate between this for two months then the study drug for two months — rinse, repeat. So far, the… Continue reading Turning the Tables on Tumor
I’m Being Watched: But It’s Okay (It’s For Science)
Enrolled in a study at the university that tracks my daily activities through a location-aware phone app. The researchers are interested in understanding the time cancer patients dedicate to cancer-care related tasks compared to everyday living. I feel a bit of a fraud because all I have to do is show up at appointments. I’m… Continue reading I’m Being Watched: But It’s Okay (It’s For Science)
Once More Unto the Breach
Kicked off my clinical trial participation with a hefty dose of testosterone. The tumor feeds on it, so the counterintuitive idea is to overload the tumor and cause it to shrink. That was the easy part of my day. Now I’m diving into the historical and political motivations of Shakespeare’s Henry V as preparation for… Continue reading Once More Unto the Breach
Real Enough
Dentist did a great job preparing a tooth for a crown. On the way home, stopped at Moto-i for comfort food: bibimbap. I felt grateful for modern dentistry and temporarily forgot I had a temporary crown. For my parents’ generation in Scotland in the 1930’s, a pair of “falsies” (dentures) was a 21st birthday rite of… Continue reading Real Enough
Perspective
Bill Charlap Trio at the Dakota this evening. American Songbook, Gershwin, Sondheim, … . Perspective for earlier in the day when the focus was on being randomized into a clinical study.