Health Update Dec 16 2025

 It's been busy since my last update.  I had undergone surgery to remove a tumor on my pituitary gland, which went well, though left behind some cancerous bits that we then radiated. That particular radiation session has happened (in late October) and went well other than the usual fatigue that always seems to accompany any radiation treatment. After that radiation treatment, I had a PET scan on the rest of me, which I was really hoping would be clear. It was not. I had another spot of active cancer on my sacrum, and another spot on my liver. So in late November, just before Thanksgiving, I had radiation treatments to my sacrum, and then at the start of December I had microwave ablation done to the spot on my liver. For those of you that are curious, this involved a long needle with a microwave emitter on the end of it that was pushed through my abdomen and liver until the tip was at the lesion, and then the lesion was burned off. That part seemed to go fine (anesthesia was involved, so I have no memories of the procedure), though we won't know for sure until January when we look at my head and abdomen again, after the affected areas have had a chance to heal up. The real drag to the ablation procedure was managing my adrenal insufficiency, which is a result of the pituitary tumor and is still affecting me. My body does not make sufficient quantities of cortisol, so I have to take daily doses of hydrocortisone to replace what is missing. Then, whenever I undergo any kind of stress (illness, strenuous exercise, procedures), I have to increase the dose of my hydrocortisone, since my body does not yet make its own cortisol, and may never do so again. We did that after the ablation procedure, but it wasn't high enough or long enough, so I had a period of feeling sick again, though not quite as sick as I was prior to the surgery to remove the tumor from my pituitary. I'm on a higher dose now, and feeling much better, though still tired. So that's the latest news here, with more to come in January. Still here, still beating the odds, but with my wolf maybe circling a little closer.

On a cute and positive note, Kirsten fosters through Animal Humane NM, and right now we have a group of adorable puppies with their mama that will be ready for adoption very very soon. Here's a couple pics of Mama:

 

And here's some of the puppies:

 

Health Update September 22, 2025

 The eventful times continue.  Here's what's been happening with me since my last update.

 I had an MRI in July that showed a small tumor on my pituitary gland.  At the time it was about 9 mm in diameter.  That finding explained the symptoms I had been experiencing before that, which were eventually diagnosed as hyponatremia (low sodium), hypothyroidism (low thyroid hormone), and adrenal insufficiency (low cortisol).  These three together combined for some miserable months for me where I was weak and nauseated, and barely able to function.  At my worst I was basically unable to walk more than 100 feet without being exhausted.  Getting on the right meds has helped tremendously, and on September 17 I had transsphenoidal surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible.  In between July and the surgery, it had grown to about 12 mm, so getting it out quick was good.  Unfortunately, a small piece was attached to my carotid artery, so I will also be having radiation therapy (yet to be scheduled) on that area.  Preliminary biopsy shows it is malignant, so my doctors, my family, and I are all glad we moved quickly to get it taken out.  Recovering from that surgery has gone better than I expected, and despite having a small hole drilled into my skull 5 days ago I am only on ibuprofen and acetaminophen for pain control.  I'm more mobile than I was two to three weeks prior, and generally I am feeling much better, other than my sinuses being very stuffy and still healing.   This little section of fun isn't over yet, as I have follow ups with my surgeon and my oncologist for next steps and deciding if we need to make any treatment changes other than the radiation I know is coming.  I suspect PET/CT scans and MRIs will be in my immediate future as well.

 Here's Kirsten and I out for a little walk on the 21st, just 4 days after my surgery.

On a little different note, I want to take a moment to thank all the caretakers in the world, who have a very tough job caring for the sick people they love while also trying to take care of themselves, all while grieving the decline and the (eventual) end of their caretaking responsibilities.  It is not easy, in fact I think I can safely say it is very stressful and demanding, with patients who are feeling terrible, can be demanding and very cranky, and who despite their best intentions may not be able to adequately express their gratitude.  Being sick and weak and in pain puts us in vulnerable positions that we don't want to be in, and makes the smallest things seem insurmountably difficult sometimes.

So I would like to personally thank profusely Kirsten, who bears the brunt of my caretaking during my bad periods and recovery from various treatments.  She has been so wonderful through what has been the most stressful thing either of us has ever gone through, and I love her wholly and completely.  Dylan, my son, has also been of great help.  My daughter Maya is living on her own, trying to establish her adult life, but has been a great help as well when she is here.

I would also like to thank my father, Lloyd, who took care of my mother Nancy while she was going through her breast cancer treatments before she passed back in 2012, and my aunt Sharon who took care of my uncle Bruce during his own fight with lung cancer before he passed in 2023.  What they did was not easy, and I appreciate everything they did for two people who meant a great deal to me before they passed.  I would also like to thank my step mother Beth, who took care of my Dad during his own battle with head and neck cancer 6 or so years ago, and now with his (thankfully) stage 1 lung cancer.  My dad is fortunately still around, and having his own live in nurse (Beth was a nurse in her professional life) has been enormously helpful for him.

 So if you know someone who is a caretaker, please take the time to check in with them to see how they are doing, and to see if they need help or are struggling under what can be a very heavy burden.

  

Thank you caretakers.

Health Update May 16, 2025

 It's been a somewhat eventful few months for me, so here's the breakdown:

Had radiation to my T10 vertebra in February of this year.

April 27, 2025 marked 4 years since I was officially diagnosed with cancer.  Strange thing to celebrate I suppose, but still being here after 4 years of Stage IV lung cancer feels pretty remarkable.

Had a scan May 8.  It shows a couple of spots, one of which is unambiguously cancer, so we will be radiating that spot in the next few weeks.  I have a planning session on May 21st, after which we will schedule the radiation treatments.  The second spot is more ambiguous, so we are in the "watch and wait" stage.  We will do another scan in about 6 weeks to see if it goes away (if so, it wasn't cancer), stays the same size, or grows.  In the latter two cases, that would mean it is cancer, and we'll come up with a treatment plan for it at that time.

Overall, my health is OK.  The side effects from Tagrisso + Tabrecta are more than Tagrisso alone, and I definitely am feeling those effects.  Less energy, more issues with eating and nausea, frequent headaches.  But nothing compared to the round of chemo I endured last May.  So overall I am doing alright, and looking forward to celebrating a few milestones with my family in the coming year.

Health Update January 30, 2025

 Another short update.  So as I mentioned in my last blog, Spring & Summer 2024 were rough.  But in June I started on a new medication and that new medication (Tabrecta) in combination with Tagrisso is working to keep everything under control again.  I did have a spot growing on my L5 vertebra that we hit with radiation, and that spot is now gone.  However, I have another spot, this one on my T10 vertebra, so I will do some more radiation to take care of it.  Otherwise I am clean and doing fairly well.  Some side effects but nothing like chemo would bring.  So I will do the radiation and then we'll scan again in about 3 months time.