Today was a downer

The CT scan showed nothing new. But the bone scan showed new activity on the upper spine. I think. Your mind kind of closes down when you see the scan showing a new "lit up" area. The PSA went up from 3.72 to 7.46.

However, Dr. Flaig says that the PSA does "bounce" a bit in some men. He is concerned about all of this, but he says we shouldn't immediately jump to the worst conclusions. He wants us to come back in 4 weeks and get lab work done (especially the PSA) and then 2 weeks after that he wants Marshall to have all of these scans over again. (UGH) If the universe is aligned, these tests will show the PSA has gone back down and that the spot on the bone scan is an anomaly. But at any rate, at that point we should have a handle on what's going on.

But then Dr. Flaig kind of eased us into what the next steps could be. There is another drug called Xtandi. If the Zytiga that Marshall is taking is truly failing, then we will probably try Xtandi. There is one more drug that might be approved very soon for prostate cancer patients called Xofigo, but it's not approved yet.

We asked about chemotherapy and Dr. Flaig said that sometimes three sessions of chemotherapy, each session three weeks apart, kind of "resets" the body into a place where the hormone therapy will work again. He said that's something to discuss in the future.

We went back to the hotel and had a mini-meltdown, crying a little and hugging. Now we are home and it feels good to hug the animals after being gone four days.

In the meantime, here's a picture of Marshall at the dentist yesterday Dentistry has come a long way. This dentist is treating this like artwork. Very impressive.



Sent from Marilyn's iPad


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One day down, two to go

Today was the CT scan and the bone scan, so we were at the hospital from about 10:00 to 2:00. Marshall's stress level was much lower than it's been in the past, which was a huge relief for me. And today we were able to avoid the awful side effects of him drinking the contrast medium (a dose of Immodium right before drinking the stuff!).

And because of the chest pain Marshall had on Monday, the oncologist added a little extra bone scan time to the chest area.

We stopped for lunch and came back to the room and relaxed for the evening. Tomorrow is just dentist and psychologist.  And then dinner with Marshall's nephew.

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Special messages:
      To Bill Dowell -- I've lost your email address somehow and Marshall and I want to wish you a belated happy birthday.
      To my cousin Tom in Minnesota who has been battling non-Hodgkins lymphoma for five years and is still battling -- thinking of you all the time.  Cancer sure sucks.


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We are at cancer center

This evening, we checked into our hotel across the street from the hospital and we are actually relaxing, which is unusual for Marshall on these days.

This morning before we left the house he had some severe chest pains and I was ready to dial 911 when the pain stopped. Now his chest is just sore, so we think it's just maybe a muscle spasm. I sent the oncologist a message and we'll talk to him about this in more detail on Thursday.

Tomorrow is the CT scan and the bone scan. Wednesday is dentist and psychologist. Thursday we see the oncologist to get test results.

Stay tuned for an update.


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Back from a fun trip

We are back in Colorado after a great trip to Ohio. Marshall's 50th class reunion was fun. Then we spent Sunday at his sister's house and the whole family showed up (lots of nieces and nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews, etc). Good food and lots of laughs. His great-niece Tammy is like a stand-up comedian. It was great.
I'm not good at family trees, but I believe all of these youngsters (above) are Marshall's great-great-nieces and nephews.

And these (above) are the great nieces and nephews (along with sister Audrey). Tammy is on the left in the front row. I could listen to her stories all day.
And these (above) are the nieces and nephews.

And then there's me and Marshall and Audrey.

When we got back to Colorado we spent the night in Denver so Marshall could see the dentist at the University Hospital. Things sure have changed since Marshall got his first dentures 15 years ago. Back then, they took an impression and then boom, you came back and got the dentures.

This dentist is going to take 5 visits to perfect the impression and then he gets the dentures. We have high hopes that this will work.

Today Marshall saw his primary care doctor at his new offices in Florence, Colorado, so we are back on track with him, thank goodness. Marshall's oxygen levels have been good so for now all he needs is oxygen at night like he's been doing.

And between yesterday and today we have seen 3 scorpions in the house. I will be sleeping with the lights on for a while..... I have read that spreading food grade diatomaceous earth around the house inside and out will get rid of them. I have ordered a 50-pound bag of the stuff.



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We made it to Ohio

We came to Ohio for Marshall's 50th class reunion and to visit his sister and to have a small family reunion.

It was a great test of how well we will get through the airport with him in a wheelchair and with all of his medications. The wheelchair thing worked great -- he got taken to the head of every line and I got to ride on his coattails. So we got through security very quickly.  The girl pushing the wheelchair just kept calling out, "Wheelchair coming through, wheelchair coming through...."

However, my carryon bag got picked out for a thorough check -- I thought it was because it was full of medications, but instead it was because I brought along a can of hairspray and that is a no-no. So we threw that away and were allowed to move on.

I hate to fly, but today's flight was uneventful, smooth and on time. Very little stress.

We got to Detroit, got a rental car and now we are in Ohio all settled in. Tomorrow is the class reunion. Sunday is the family get-together. Monday is a day of rest and Tuesday we go back to Colorado where we will get a hotel in Denver and spend the night so Marshall can see the dentist at the University Hospital on Wednesday. Then we head home.


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We have a new neighbor

Well, the thing I dreaded has happened. Someone bought the parcel of land that borders ours, which means that after living a hermit life out here for the past 10 years, we now have a neighbor who will be almost as close as houses are on a city block. He stopped and introduced himself today and he seems like a very nice young man, but that doesn't help.

He owns a coffee shop in Denver called The Amsterdam. I Googled it and it looks like a cool coffee shop. He has purple hair and he travels with two cats (being an animal lover is a plus, I guess).

We live at the very end of a half mile road and that means there is never any traffic up here. But now there will be.

On the plus side, if we ever do have to move for health reasons, it will be much easier to accept.


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Wedding Anniversary

Today was our wedding anniversary (24 years married, 27 years together), so we went out tonight and had a perfect romantic dinner. The weather was really nice so the doors were open, there was live music (a duet playing some nice background music), and the food was incredible.. We had a great evening.

He had a little nausea just as we got to the restaurant but a nausea pill took care of that. I hated to see that happen because he's gone about five days now without any nausea (and very little coughing) ever since I started giving him his pills in the wee hours of the morning so he can go back to sleep while they settle in.


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