I just had Folfiri treatment #10 yesterday. The lower dose has definitely helped with side effects. Nausea yesterday but no puking and today is starting to get better. Mostly just fatigue and low appetite now. I've spent most of today on the recliner, covered in blankets and cats.[...]

Well, there may still be tumors in the rest of my body but it looks like I've got a clear head.  :)  Reviewed last week's MRI with Dr. Huie today and everything looks good up there.  MRI impression was "no evidence of metastatic recurrence."[...]

Wow...I can't believe it's been two full treatments since I've posted...sorry about that.

Last week marked FOLFIRI treatment #7 and although the nausea was much better this time, the fatigue and other side effects have started to take a toll on my body.  I'm finding myself tired but not always able to sleep well.  My stomach hurts.  Food still tastes funny sometimes.  I'm all phlegmy.  Just the usual side effects of this chemo, but if it is working, I say bring it on.[...]

TREATMENT #5
Folfiri treatment #5 went pretty well. My appetite came back on Thursday and I’ve been eating a few extra meals each day since. Di and I went to Chicago this weekend to see Dirty Dancing on stage at the Cadillac Palace Theatre and spend an afternoon at Ikea. Ahhh…retail therapy. :) We had planned that the trip would fall on the end of my recovery week so I’d have lots of energy but my bonus week after treatment #4 kind of messed up the timing a bit. Even with my lack of energy, we had a great time and the show was lots of fun! Di said that my energy lasted a lot longer than she expected it to last. We even made it out for a late night frozen yogurt run.[...]

Yesterday was supposed to be Folfiri round #5 but a low neutrophil count indicated otherwise.  The low-end of a "normal" neutrophil count would be 1600 and they will usually give chemo unless you're under 1000.  I was just over 1000 before my last treatment and yesterday's labs were down to 165.  Know what that means?  BONUS WEEK!  We ended up going out for lunch and frozen yogurt instead of chemo.[...]

I've started exiting the funk zone from Folfiri #4 and am feeling better today.  No rash from the panitumumab so far.  :)  My appetite is back today and next week's job will be to gain back the weight I lost on this round.  We enjoyed a nice meal tonight, grilling out burgers, awesomely fresh sweet corn and green beans.  It felt good to grill![...]

I'm sitting here covered in a nice warm blanket and receiving my fourth FOLFIRI treatment. We've decided to add Panitumumab back into the mix to see if we get a better response using it along with the FOLFIRI compared to what we got using it alone...Not looking forward to the almost certain rash that will accompany this new addition but if it works I'll deal with it. We finally made it out for our first camping trip of the summer! Yellowstone Lake state park was our home for this past weekend and the weather was perfect. Di built awesome campfires the entire weekend. The kids and I went paddle boating on the lake. We all played lots of games in between swimming, eating s'mores and exploring the abandoned playground that the kids discovered down a path from our campsite. Uno, Flux, Sorry, Clue, you name it...I got my butt kicked at every game we played. All in all, a pretty great weekend. I expect this week to be similar to my last treatment. The current mix of anti-nausea meds seems to be working. I'll most likely feel lousy and out of it until Wednesday but should start feeling better (and hungry) on Thursday. Happy Monday! Korbin

I had my second round of Folfiri this past Monday and am just starting to feel better today. I'd have to say that this round was both better and worse than the first one was. I didn't puke at all this time (yeah!) but the overall feeling of nausea and weakness was worse for a longer time than I was expecting. This was probably caused by the new cocktail of anti nausea meds that we tried on Monday. I ended up needing a bag of fluids at disconnect on Wednesday and started getting my appetite back on Friday. Either way, today seems to be the day that I'm starting to exit the funk zone from this round. I'll be back at work on Monday for the whole week and then am looking forward to a bonus recovery week this time around as we will be in Michigan for 'Cation in only 7 days. Looking very forward to some "feeling normal" time even if it is just for an extra week! Tailbone pain seems to be almost completely gone. Thank you radiation! :) Thanks for checking in! Korbin

Radiation is done! Today marked the 15th and final treatment on my tailbone. Right now, I still have the annoying paIn in the butt. Dr. Howard thinks the pain will be gone in another week or two as the radiation continues to do its work and the side effects subside. Until then, my donut pillow/cushion continues to be my best friend. We will do follow up imaging in another 2-3 months to see how everything looks. This was a good week. I was able to go back to work part time for the first time since my surgery in April. I'll have another FOLFIRI treatment on Monday and with any luck we will do a better job managing the nausea this time. Happy Friday! Korbin

I'm slowly starting to get past the nausea caused by Monday's treatment.  When we went to have my chemo pump disconnected yesterday afternoon, my nurse took one look at my zombie-like face and decided to give me a bag of fluids and some more anti-nausea meds via IV.  So far, no puking since...Just fatigue and a continual "blah" feeling in my stomach.  I was able to eat a hard boiled egg for breakfast this morning and so far it hasn't come back to visit. :)[...]