Health Update
I saw my oncologist yesterday to go over several issues:
1. Tingling in my left leg, from the top of the foot up through the ankle to mid-shin.
2. A bruise below my right knee, with a small bump beneath it.
3. Shortness of breath and persistent cough with tightness in my throat.
1. The tingling essentially goes up to the spot where I had some tissue removed two years ago for a biopsy. It came back negative (after several tests), but has always been a tender area, and always shows up as a slight hot spot on the subsequent PET scans. However the remaining hard bump has never gotten any bigger, and the hot spot remains essentially small and unchanged. My oncologist thinks the tingling I'm experiencing now may be a combination of the muscle work-out from exercising, along with the possibility that a nerve was pinched or damaged in that spot during the initial biopsy. I'll probably just have to live with it, but as she doesn't think it's a sign of returning cancer, that's perfectly fine with me. It's just a periodic irritant and doesn't really affect me in any way.
2. The bruise mark near my knee has diminished, but there's still a tender bump beneath it. My oncologist said she didn't think it was lymphoma, but instead just a small piece of fatty tissue. In short, she didn't think I was showing any signs of restaging cancer, and was fine with going another six months, barring any significant changes, before I see her again. In March we'll decide if it's necessary to schedule any additional tests, like a PET scan, but if nothing changes between now and then, we probably won't do anything. This is a pretty big deal as I've now essentially reached the 3-year post-transplant milestone and am cruising toward the 5-year mark. I feel like I may have passed a critical point, so yay!
She did take blood for a lab work-up, which she'll compare to a similar sample in six months. The results came in on my computer a few hours after the blood was drawn, and all but two tests are in the correct range. My creatinine (a measure of kidney function) is a bit high. Two of the last four tests taken in the last year have been in range, and two have been slightly out of range on the high side. This reading was high for the first two years post-transplant, but is slowly but surely working its way into range. My doc isn't worried about it, at any rate.
The second number on the high side is my glucose reading, at 120 (the range goes from 85-106, and usually I'm in the mid-90's). This is a number that should be watched for early signs of diabetes, which runs in my family. When my dad was diagnosed with diabetes in his 30's, the high end of the range was nearer to 120, but they've tightened in up in the last few decades. Strangely enough, despite my weight problems, I've always had a low glucose reading, and no other signs of diabetes, except for the neuropathy in my feet (and now along the front of my lower left shin). The neuropathy quite clearly originated with the chemo treatments, though, and have not, so far, been related to any signs of diabetes. With this one high reading I will definitely be keeping an eye on this, especially during the March labwork. One thing may explain the high reading yesterday, and that is that the labwork wasn't prescheduled, so I didn't fast before it, which is generally required for an accurate glucose test. I was literally drinking a mug of coffee with creamer in it as I went to the docs, so that could have played a part in my reading. I'll still be watching it though.
3. As updated earlier, I saw my primary care doc a week ago, and she thought the respiratory/cough issues were related to bronchitis and allergies. I've read a few comments about some extreme cases of bronchitis and early season colds recently, so I'm hopeful that explains item number 3. It's been severe enough to essentially curtail all but a couple days of exercise this month, since I have trouble with sufficient lung power, especially when swimming laps. I'm afraid this month is a loss for me in terms of my exercise program, but after a week of treatment (nasal irrigation, topical nasal steroid, allergy pills and albuterol/ProAir inhalent) along with a climate shift to cooler, less humid conditions, the symptoms are slowly but surely diminishing. Hopefully October will be a much better month for me. The first freeze may spell the end of ragweed season, so fingers crossed for that!. This does remind me to schedule a flu shot in early Oct. during my next INR reading, though, as I already feel like I've gone through almost three weeks of a very bad cold and/or flu. The cough is so persistent and hard that I've strained some muscles along my back, and my throat is raw. It's been a very uncomfortable couple of weeks, and I am so looking forward to this going away!
The good news, though, is that my oncologist doesn't think this is anything to be concerned about from a cancer standpoint, and is having me continue to work with my primary care doc on it. I just hope I can get back on track with my exercise by October!
I'm going to put up another post today or tomorrow on nasal irrigation, as promised, so keep an eye peeled for it. Also, if you're able to do it, and have no philosophical opposition to it, it's time to schedule your annual flu shot!
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