I got a 4.0!!!!

Happy weekend all! So, some context: If this was 20….errrrr 30 years ago, that headline would have been amazing. Full disclosure-I never got anywhere near a 4.0 in school, and I am certainly not in school now. This number this in fact the test results from my ONCO test (the one that is sent to Greece to count my circulating tumor cells, which are the marker of both health and progress in this treatment protocol) and it came back with a 4.0. The number when I started in March was 4.4, so this was an expected result. The simple fact that it is going down shows progress, which, when fighting a formidable enemy like this is a win!

We were certainly hoping for a much lower number, but it takes time. This is not the same as watching and measuring as a tumor continues to shrink down after treatments. This is on a much deeper level than that, and if successful, will have more lasting results. I think of it like this…when they removed my 23cm tumor (including what used to be my left kidney), appendix, intestinal lining, and some other bits an pieces that monster was touching, the surgeon told me he got all of the cancer that he could see. I liken that to this situation. You can’t always see cancer (even when I am opened up and filet’d on the table) and he indeed said that at the time. The circulating tumor cell count shows you what you can’t see, which is why it is so important and why I believe this is the best way too go.

The next step is an MRI, which I will have in the next couple of weeks. This isn’t really crucial in the protocol for the doctors, as they go by the circulating tumor cell count as the definitive marker, but it will show if the tumor has shrunk, grown, etc. so I am looking forward to that, mostly for myself.

After that, I am going to be doing a follow up called treatment over the next 12 months called the SOT. The quick dumbed down version (that’s how I need things told to me) is this–they take your blood (same people in Greece) and create a vaccine that is able to fight cancer (again…dumbed down) 24/7! This lasts 4 months and is only able to be used by the individual alone as it is exclusive to their blood, DNA, etc. It’s a custom cancer fighting vaccine from Greece…..I might write a movie script here….Anyway, I will receive this via IV infusions once every 4 months for a year and I with that, I will have an around the clock cancer crushing cocktail cleaning up the mess. This is not chemo or anything else I have done to this point–totally different ballgame. The doctor says that this will push that CTC number lower over time and he says there is a 77% success rate for remission after doing this so, of course, I’m in!

77% of anything is a hall of fame percentage so why not this, right?

So that’s the update–all good, slow and low, but progressing. I feel great and am having no side effects or any issues, so I am super thankful about that. I am enjoying the summer, running, spending time with the fam (I attached some pics of the Cubs/Giants series we went to a couple of weeks ago) and trying to stay cool as it is Africa hot here right now. I will be back with updates about the MRI, SOT, and any other relevant acronyms that I come across soon. I will also try to get a little better explanation about the SOT if needed, but for now-I’m out!

Talk soon!