Appointment with Dr. Tricot and visit with surgeon

We arrived at the BMT clinic at 8:30 this morning as requested 30 minutes early for the 9:00 AM appointment with Dr. Tricot, but waited until about 9:45 before he came into the room. We included Emma and 2 of our daughters; Karen on a visit from Schaumburg, Illinois, and Nancy who lives nearby; the third daughter, Judy who lives in Lafayette Colo., will be here tomorrow for a few day visit. Dr. Tricot always begins by asking me how my current feelings compare to earlier visits and commonly wants a percentage comparison, which is hard for me to estimate. I told him that I have 30 to 40 percent of the stamina that I had prior to being diagnosed with Multiple Mialoma, but if compared to the period right after the stem cell transplant then I am much stronger maybe 60 percent. He reviewed the tests of this week and said that he wants to continue the same schedule and medication regime until November or December and then expects he may take me off all chemo drugs for a month or so to see how my body responds.


I actually feel quite good today and have more energy than I have had for some time, which I believe is because I have had no chemo this week meaning none since June 6 and no thalidomide since Monday when I ran out and could not get the prescription refilled. I told the substitute nurse this morning about the problem getting the prescription refilled and he said he would see to it being taken care of today, and it was but still required nearly an hours wait at Pharmacy. I am not to start taking the thalidomide until next Wednesday at which time the chemo drug regime will resume. So instead of last Monday being Day One of the current cycle the cycle will not start until next Monday. Dr. Tricot said in his dictation that he is pleased with my progress.


Today was the first time that Emma had accompnied me to the clinic in 3 months or so and all the nurses she encountered wanted to know how her leg was behaving and how she felt. We had been to see Dr. Curtis, the surgeon who operated on her broken leg, Wednesday afternoon and after seeing fresh x-rays he told her that the break had healed and that the pain she has been experiencing may be due to tendinitis and prescribed some medication that he said was much more efective than the Aleve that I had been taking for the pain in my back. She takes one pill a day with her main meal and almost immediately feels relief.