Good News

Good News – I have completed the chemotherapy and all the tests from my last biopsy came back cancer free!!! So now I will get tested periodically over the next few years to see if it returns. Hopefully, it’s had enough of me.

I may have to have a surgical procedure to remove a Fatty Necroses from my abdomen. The Necroses (dead tissue) is from a tumor that died from the chemo or lack of blood supply.

Fatty Necroses is going to be the name of my new band. When you see the musicians, you'll understand. The title for the first album will be Reanimation.

I want to thank everybody for their support and humor as I went through this journey. It feels good to feel good.
Rick

Light at the End of the Chemo Tunnel

Just got the results of my PET Scan and there is significant improvement! My doctor says we are on track for complete resolution by the end of the 6th treatment which occurs mid-September. We are hopeful that Cancer Boy can retire soon.

The concert we had at our house was tremendous. It could not have been more perfect. It was uplifting for me mentally and spiritually. I once again would like to thank my great friends, Fred Hamilton, Mike Brubaugh, Corey Christiansen, John Benitez, Ali Bello, Pete Grimaldi and Frank Catalano. As a matter of fact, the guys want to keep playing so I am going to line up a few gigs and a recording in the near future. We have a lot of original music and great energy with this band. I also want to thank my wife Betsey and my kids Patrick and Elizabeth for all the work they put into making the concert and hosting a success. At one point we had more than 20 people staying at our house.

Recordings of the songs we played have been posted on Facebook. Sign into your Facebook page and type in Drummstock in the search box. That will take you to the Drummstock page and then click on the music tab and click on the song.

Thanks again for all your comments (no really) as I made this little journey through Cancerville.

Chemo in Concert

Apparently, when one starts a blog that people read, the audience expects an ongoing flow of information. That would explain the phone calls and emails I have been receiving asking if I was still kicking. Most seemed happy when I answered.

Cycle 2 of the chemo went smoother than the first cycle. The side effects have been reduced and I am able to work daily, exercise, play golf and the drums. I completed Cycle 3 July 9 & 10 and feel good so far. Cycle 4 is July 30 & 31 and I will have another PET Scan two weeks later to determine the progress of the treatment. Perhaps the reemergence of Cancer Boy!!!

On a serious note, I recently lost a good friend, Craig Oakley to brain cancer. Craig and I served in the military together with the NORAD Band. We stayed in touch over the past 34 years, occasionally getting together and playing. Craig’s brain cancer had a very quick impact on him physically which prevented him from doing many of the things he loved including playng his drums.

Although my prognosis is very different than Craig’s, who knows what the future holds for any of us. Therefore, I have decided to reach out to a few musicians that I have enjoyed playing with at different times throughout my career and will have a concert at our house on July 25. Please feel free to come by. We will be playing between the hours of 3pm – 7pm, maybe a little later. We are going to do a Pot Luck and I mean food!!!!

I am honored to be playing with following musicians:

Fred Hamilton – guitar instructor from University of North Texas – Fred and I played together in the NORAD Band.
Corey Christiansen – guitar instructor from Utah State University and Indiana University
Mike Brumbaugh – trombone – Mike and I played together in the NORAD Band.
Frank Catalano – sax – Frank and I play together now when he tours the east coast.
John Benitez – bass – John plays with trumpet player Chris Botti
Pete Grimaldi – trumpet – Pete and I have played together since we were kids in the Youth Band.

Bob's Wig Suggestions

You can now link to Bob's wig suggestions. Bob was a classmate at Babson College. He went on to become director of planning and analysis for CVS/Caremark. I think their bottom line would be better if he stayed out of the pharmacy.


http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/JXvc-QWNSqfGJf-vmOkOuQ?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/ZY3PGopHTbxEy06oQxCILg?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DhTHux435hn4DXkhmoSn3w?feat=directlink

Two Week Period - So to Speak.......

Well it’s been two weeks since my first chemo treatment. Let’s just say that when you replace fine single malt scotch with chemo poison cocktails, funny things begin to happen to your body. I have experienced a few of the side effects predicted. The worst being what seemed to be never ending constipation, bloating and a constant headache. For a week Betsey and I had something in common…..

The hair started to go so I got it shaved off today. I posted a photo so all my supportive cousins and friends can have fresh material for commentary.

My next chemo session is June 18 & 19 and we start the process all over again. This time with feeling. Wahoo!!!

On the Menu Today - Chemotherapy

Good news!! My bone marrow biopsy was clean of any cancer. I also learned that my lymphoma is Stage 3 which means I have growths in two or more lymph node regions above and below the diaphragm. In my case I have growths in three regions. It is intermediary/aggressive which bodes well for a better chance of a full cure.

I started chemotherapy on May 28 and 29. Day one was a six hour injection of what I will call the neutron bomb. It just targets the bad cells. I just had one slight side effect which they corrected immediately. I came home and practiced the drums and ran a couple of miles. Day two was a two hour session with multiple injections of what I call the atomic bomb. They just kill everything. That’s the stuff that will cause me to lose my hair and hopefully other body parts don’t fall off. Worse side effect of the second day was the prednisone made me hiccup all day long - so far, not so bad.

The nurses in the oncology center are angels. I sit in a large recliner and they are constantly checking on my status. I feel like I’m in first class minus the scotch. These chemicals cannot replace a nice single malt scotch but they will keep me alive.
I have had the opportunity to speak to a few people that have gone through the process now and all have said don’t be fooled by how easy the first session goes. It gets progressively more difficult with each cycle.

I have done a lot of reading on exercise and chemo and found that moderate exercise can dramatically reduce the fatigue and also improve mental state. So I will keep running and playing the drums. Hopefully that will help with the more difficult cycles. I have five more cycles to go through which are each 21 days apart. I should be completed by mid-September. Maybe my hair will be home for Christmas.

Thanks again for all the comments. I have had a number of comments from people outside of my family and friends that are reading the blog. They think that you are a weird and wonderful support group.

Cancer Super Hero?

It’s interesting to see how people respond when I share the fact that I have cancer. Many offer prayers, some offer humor (my family and close friends), some share the impact of cancer on them and their families and others say nothing. One former colleague and friend David sent me an email that shared the impact of cancer on his family as well as one possible role for me.

David is very smart and gave me the lowdown on PET scans and his take on how I could be a “Super Hero” which I would like to share with you.

PET scans are very cool.

When the isotope decays it produces a positron which is antimatter. That's the same stuff that makes the warp drive on the Enterprise work. The positron tears along until it hits its normal matter twin, an electron. They totally annihilate into a pair of gamma rays. These are what the detector actually records to compute the image. So for a while after the scan you are glowing in the gamma ray portion of the spectrum. This can have consequences. Not long ago in New Hampshire a cop was parked on the side of the interstate playing with his new toy from Homeland Security which was a radiation detector. A car went by that lit up the device and he pulled the car over figuring that he had foiled a terrorist plot. Turns out the driver had just had a PET scan. So if you don't want to get water-boarded I wouldn't be driving around New York City for a while after a scan. The amount of radiation is enough that very conservative doctors recommend that you stay away from close contact with other people for 12 to18 hours (can't remember precisely) after a test. This would be the only situation I can think of where cancer actually is contagious.

For a while after a test you are a legitimate super hero. You should call yourself Cancerboy. Since you are glowing with ionizing radiation you could snuggle up nice and close with the bad guys and statistically increase their chances of getting cancer too. Perhaps you could form a posse with the other PET scan patients and by taking turns getting close to the bad guys you could really jack up their odds. Just a thought. A new career? Perhaps.....

A couple of days ago I had a MUGA scan. It also uses the radioactive isotopes to give the doctors a baseline of my heart so they can monitor the impact of chemotherapy on it. After the test I received a card from my MUGA scan technician to give to the police in the event that I set off radioactive equipment after my MUGA scan. It was addressed to Cancerboy........