Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Chemo - Part Deux

Last week I had a new round of tumor markers taken and the news wasn't good. Both markers continue to rise. My CEA went up from 6.6 to 8.2 (range is between 0 - 2.5) and the CA 19-9 went up from 76 to 82 (range is between 0 - 35).

After my consultations, and CT scans, it still seems that the tumor is slow growing, but something is definitely there. After consulting with my oncologist, and using the advice from Dr. Loggie, I will be starting a new round of chemo.

The good thing is, I will be taking Xeloda, which is a an oral form of 5FU. I had taken this before and it wasn't too harsh on my system. The bad thing is, it's still chemo, and it still means the cancer is back. And in the words of Bart Simpson, "I didn't think it was physically possible, but that both blows and sucks."

All prayers for this next round are greatly appreciated.

Kevin