More tests scheduled for next month

I usually have a rather sleepless night on the first day of a maintenance cycle (and also on the 15th day) and last night was no exception, but that was partly my fault. Instead of taking the Ambien when I went to bed I read in bed until I got sleepy, turned out the light at 11:40 and didn't wake up until 1:47, but then before going back to bed I took only half of an Ambien pill and was still awake at 2:30 so I got up and took the other half and slept fitfully until about 4:00 when I up got again and took 2 Benadryl capsules and shortly after fell asleep and didn't wake until 7:15. I think taking the Ambien after awaking like I did last night is a good idea but I should remember to take the 10 mg pill and then when I awake again continue with the Benadryl.

When I went to the BMT clinic on January 28 Elliot Rudisill, secretary to the patient coordinator, came in and told me that they want to schedule more tests for the second week of the next maintenance cycle and he would e-mail the schedule to me. I had forgotten about this when I posted the blog for that visit (and I hadn't received the e-mail), but will do so now. I am to go in on March 17th taking with me a 24-hour urine collection, for Labs, an EKG, a PET/CT scan and another Bone Marrow biopsy. After which I will meet with Dr. Trico on March 22, which should be the first day of the next maintenance cycle, but he has been known to change the schedule and my medication so I am not planning any travel until after that meeting.

My visit to the clinic on Monday was quite routine; Blood was drawn and then I waited nearly an hour for results of the bloodwork before they gave me a Velcade shot. I have asked about the wait before the shot and have been told it is for them to see whether any of my blood components have changed significantly and they don't seem to do so because they always give me the shot and then give me a shot on Thursdays without any waiting around. I did not need any prescriptions filled so I was able to leave just before 10:00 AM.

Yesterday's visit was just as routine. The only difference was that all of the nurses and Jolyn, a medical assistant pictured on September 24 blog, who does my vital signs, wanted to know how my wife is doing and a couple of them even remembered her name. She is doing very well, not even using the cane to go up and down the stairs anymore. She has been telling me for sometime that I need to go to a barber shop to have my hair trimmed around my ears and back of my neck.

I had some errands to run this morning so I went back to the same barber I have used for many years and had not seen him since around the first of June when I knew I had cancer, but before any treatment. I told him at that time that he wouldn't see me for awhile because of the cancer treatment and he told me that his wife had been treated for cancer 4 years ago and that he had cut her hair off very short prior to the chemo and suggested that I might want to do the same. I didn't have him do it and instead waited until we went to Colorado in July when Judy did the job on me. Today Clyde, the barber, asked me how I am doing and, after I told him, he told me that his wife's cancer, variety Lymphoma, had come back and she has just learned that she also has colon cancer and has not yet resumed treatment for either. Sounds grim to me. He would not let me pay him for the cut because he said he didn't do much and he enjoyed talking to me.