Current Update

Thank you for everyone's concerns. A little update on current symptoms and status.

Right now, I am in between treatment protocols. Doctor Leming prefers to keep me out of therapy for as long as possible. He debates whether he should give me Rotuxan, an antibody treatment that targets CD-20 cells, on an ongoing basis between treatment protocols. I don't think he has decided that issue.

Between treatment protocols, I lose weight. (That is a good thing, not a bad thing. I tend to gain weight during treatment, because one of the drugs I take is a steroid called Prednisone. It doesn't affect me as badly as it does some others, though.) Between protocols, I make it a point to work out and get stronger. I walk, lift weights and try to be active around the house and farm. I also work on playing with the kids more rowdily.

By the way, I have also changed my diet completely. Red meat and chicken are off the diet (unless I'm going into the deep woods camping and need preserved foods.) So, I eat fruits, vegetables and fish. Basically, I will eat only high quality foods and high quality proteins. It helps make me stronger and (I don't know if this helps or not) makes me feel as if I'm strengthening my immune system so as to slow any cancer growth.

As far as current symptoms: I get tired more easily than I should and sleep longer hours, I have trouble swallowing sometimes and food often gets lodged (I'll spare you the details.) I have itches, especially across the chest, but it doesn't drive me crazy. As the disease grows, I find that these symptoms get worse. I also tend to have increasingly worse headaches. So, thank heavens for ibuprofen.

I have noticed that people with Hodgkin's Disease begin to get dark circles under their eyes. I call them Hodgkin's Circles. I had them before my diagnosis in April of 2006 and was just unaware of what they were. You can see them in my photographs from that period of time (even the ones on this web page). My mother saw them and expressed concern over them and other issues before my diagnosis in 2006. Increasingly dark circles is one of the symptoms that I especially watch out for.

Altogether, my health is pretty good right now, as is my strength.

I enjoy this time between treatment protocols. My life is normal and I get to catch up on a lot of things that become increasingly difficult when I am under treatment.

I am grateful that this form of HD grows more slowly than some of the other variants of HD and gives us the option of pursuing this course of treatment.

Thank you for your ongoing thoughts and prayers. I am grateful for the support that each of you give me.

Be Blessed.

JDS