Yesterday was Mayo day. Richard managed to get around just fine with his trusty cane.
But the news is not good. Positive
CMV last time; no one bothered to tell us, but only 3500 copies which is very low.
Hgb 9.3%, WBC 1.9, platelets 162. Low counts are most likely from the radiation treatment which ended Friday.
The really bad news: m-spike 1.9 and IgG 2500. Not really a surprise considering the huge
plasmacytoma that appeared in his spine and ilium.
So now what to do?
The plan is to wait a week and then start a regimen of
Velcade,
melphalan, and prednisone and hope for a response. The basis for this regimen is a 2006 study of "elderly", previously untreated patients...not exactly Richard's profile, but the response rate was great and duration was about 16 months on the average. You can find the study
here if you're interested in such things.
Dr. Lacy's theory is that the myeloma becomes more responsive to treatment after an allo transplant which we did see with the great response Richard had to Revlimid. Hope it's the same for Velcade which did absolutely nothing for him the first time he had it.
My immediate hope is that the back pain gets resolved and we can have another summer...we've got plans!
But the news is not good. Positive CMV last time; no one bothered to tell us, but only 3500 copies which is very low.
Hgb 9.3%, WBC 1.9, platelets 162. Low counts are most likely from the radiation treatment which ended Friday.
The really bad news: m-spike 1.9 and IgG 2500. Not really a surprise considering the huge plasmacytoma that appeared in his spine and ilium.
So now what to do?
The plan is to wait a week and then start a regimen of Velcade, melphalan, and prednisone and hope for a response. The basis for this regimen is a 2006 study of "elderly", previously untreated patients...not exactly Richard's profile, but the response rate was great and duration was about 16 months on the average. You can find the study here if you're interested in such things.
Dr. Lacy's theory is that the myeloma becomes more responsive to treatment after an allo transplant which we did see with the great response Richard had to Revlimid. Hope it's the same for Velcade which did absolutely nothing for him the first time he had it.
My immediate hope is that the back pain gets resolved and we can have another summer...we've got plans!