I just realized that it has been a very very long time since
I’ve written on the blog. I have been
busy enjoying life and this beautiful summer but I shouldn't have forgotten about you, my wonderful friends.
So – here is my update on the past couple of months….
The girls got home from cancer camp (Camp Kesem). They had a FABULOUS time. What a wonderful place. They are already looking forward to next
year. Following the camp, they were
asked to participate in the Livestrong bike race (based out of Davis) to ride
on the back of a pedi-bike and wave at the crowd. They loved it! While there, they got to meet Lance
Armstrong’s Chief of Staff and talk with him about Prop 29. What a thrill! Morgan invited us to go down to Austin to
meet with the team at Livestrong…..so stay tuned for that adventure.
As for the latest on my health stuff – we are in a holding
pattern right now, waiting to see if I get to be part of the study that I had
referenced earlier (PDL-1). Dr. Fisher (George) very
much wants me to be one of the 13 people to participate, but now it’s up to
Genentech. Since my initial discussion
with George about the study, Genentech threw a curve ball at us – they realized
that there are certain tumor types that do better with this new protocol. Therefore, in an attempt to get the best
possible results, they are only going to accept patients whose tumors are
tested and they deem eligible. This new
requirement then created a back and forth between Stanford and Genentech as to
who would do the testing – but that seems to be cleared up now and Genentech
has my tissue samples in hand. I am on
pins and needles to see if I’ll be eligible.
As of this morning, still no word….
So – if I’m in and things go smoothly (I was told by
Stanford that they are testing the whole system out on me), I will begin the
PDL-1 protocol in about 6 weeks. I still
don’t know what it will entail, but it’s supposed to be MUCH easier than
chemo. How great is that??!!
If I don’t get to be a part of the study, George also
outlined 3 other potential studies that may be coming down the pike that we
will look at (although they’re not yet ready for prime time like PDL-1). One
of the 3 potential studies is CD-47.
When I heard this, I told George that this was the study that was going
to cure me since my lucky number is 47 (Pomona College grads will appreciate
this). George then told me that since
CD-47 has only been tested on 3 monkeys that it will be awhile until I get to
try it and we should focus on a trial that is a little more ready to go….
In the meantime, I’m still on my Avastin/Xeloda chemo
protocol. The good news is that my CEA
(tumor marker) continues to go down.
Just a week ago it dropped from 3.7 to 3.2. This is a very good sign that chemo continues
to beat down the cancer. Dr. Smith (Garrett) told me
that with most patients, there’s about a 50% chance that the chemo will
actually decrease the tumors, but with me our batting average has been
100%. Each time I go on chemo, it
decreases my tumor activity. The cancer
seems to come back each time that I’m off of chemo. The good news is that we believe that with
chemo we can keep the tumors in check for a long long time while we wait for
scientists to make more discoveries.
Hurry up scientists!
Many of you are aware,that I decided to take some time off of work to focus on healing while the legislature is out of session. So over the past few weeks, we took the
girls to Hawaii (which was a spectacular experience) and following our Hawaii vacation I have spent the
past couple of weeks doing all of the projects that I had put off for
months. Now it’s time for healing. I’ve started my yoga practice and even tried
to meditate (although I fell asleep, so I have a long ways to go).
I will be returning to work on August 13th. In the next two weeks I will continue to
focus on efforts to heal my body and soul.
My goal is to set up healthy practices that I can continue once I get
back into the grind of work. Studies
have shown that stress only contributes to cancer growth, so I will be doing
everything possible to manage my stress going forward.
One final note – although we all thought that the fight for
Prop 29 was over, you may have noticed that there has been a recount going on
in LA County. Today we will find out
the results of that recount. So – my
fingers and toes are crossed that we may see an upset. Of course, should that be the case, I have no
doubt that Big Tobacco will fight it.
But – it would be fun to watch them sweat…
Please keep me in your prayers. And, not to be too greedy, but if you could
direct your prayers to getting me in the PDL-1 study, I would most appreciate
it…
