Turning a corner, hopefully!

 I had my last CyberKnife X-ray session on Thursday 11/13 to kill the 20 tumors that they discovered in my brain on the last CT scan.  

I have also tapered down to 1mg/day of the steroid Dexamethasone and have experienced no side effects. In fact, I'm getting more mobile and the swallowing issues I had (inability to swallow moderate to large pills, choking on food with different consistencies) is gone, and my voice has returned to normal (it was hoarse and slow). These are signs that my brain inflammation is decreasing!

This week is a big one for me and could represent a big positive change. On Tuesday I have two infusions 

  • my 2nd dose of Keytruda (Pembrolizumab) which is an immunotherapy drug that can allow my immune system to directly attack and kill the lung cancer cells anywhere in my body, including my brain as it passes the Blood Brain Barrier
  • my 1st dose of Avastin (Bevacizumab) which is another anti-cancer drug that cuts off the blood supply to tumors. It is an angiogenesis inhibitor and blocks the development of new blood vessels anywhere in the body, and in particular in new tumors.
I have a lot of lung cancer metastases, in my brain (but hopefully the Xrays killed most of them), in my lungs (at least two large ones), in my liver, in my right adrenal gland, and in my pelvis. But there is a good chance, that I can be cancer free in a few months if my body tolerates these two drugs! 

To celebrate this milestone, and also just to continue my goal of enjoying everything that life has to offer me, one day at a time, we went to a vocal Jam Session at the Mad Monkfish in Central Square Cambridge and listened to my wonderful wife, Yas, and several other vocalists sing Jazz songs from the Great American Songbook.  It was a wonderful time and I had a delicious Thai seafood dish while listening to amazingly beautiful and romantic songs.



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