A week ago, Derek had his Hickman central line placed. The procedure went exactly as planned with no complications. Thanks for your prayers for this surgery. We did have a little scare later in the week when an EKG showed
an inverted T wave. They were afraid the line may have shifted too close to the heart, but subsequent tests and an X-Ray showed that everything was fine.
They released Derek from the hospital on Wednesday afternoon, and we spent our first night at the Ronald McDonald House (RMH). Our room has one double bed and a small dresser with three drawers and just enough floor space to get to those pieces of furniture. The room also has a small closet, a bathroom, and high ceilings. Derek joked that the room would be bigger if they turned it on its side, and he is right. But we were out of the hospital! We actually both slept for five straight hours without being awakened. It was wonderful!
We returned to the clinic on Thursday to find that Derek's electrolytes were off, so we spent most of the rest of the day getting potassium and sodium infusions in the day hospital. He also received the fourth dose of the study drug Selinexor. This is the cause of the low electrolytes.
Friday, Vince and Kristen drove up for the weekend and arrived about 10:30 a.m. They crowded into our very tiny room at the RMH. With a little re-arranging, we managed to fit two futons on the floor which took up all the floor space except a 3'x3' square in front of the bathroom door. It was so good to be together and CLOSE!
Around noon, some good friends stopped by on their way back south on a road trip. It was so good to see them, too. Derek had to get another sodium drip, so we spent the afternoon at the day hospital again. Sabbath morning, I took Derek for labs to check his electrolytes again. His sodium was just a point below normal, so they sent us on our way with instructions to take extra salt tablets during the
day. With that, we headed down to Monterey Bay for the afternoon to meet up with friends. Derek had very little energy, but he managed to walk down to the beach and sit in a chair while Kristen and I looked for shells and sand dollars.
Sunday we drove up to San Fransisco to do a little sight seeing. We drove over the Bay Bridge and Richmond Bridge, stopped at the Marin Headlands and Marine Mammal Center, drove over the Golden Gate Bridge, and down Lombard St. before heading back to Stanford. It was so nice to be all together as a family.
Early Monday morning, we said our sad good-byes as Vince and Kristen left for home, and Derek and I headed back to the hospital. Derek had labs drawn, a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy with sedation, and a PET scan to check for progress. It was a full day that ended with admission to the hospital for five days of high dose chemo this week. The scan showed some progress especially on the right side of his neck and in his face, but not so much on the left. Derek is now able to focus both eyes together, and the numbness on the right side of his face is no mostly isolated to his upper lip. The doctor was pleased though, that with just four doses of Selinexor there has been as much progress as there was. We will have to wait a few days for the MRD report on the bone marrow. Yesterday, Derek started five days of high dose Cytarabine and Fludarabine. This will likely wipe out his immune system, so we don't know how long he will be admitted this time. So far he has tolerated the chemo well without the expected nausea and fevers. We welcome your prayers on his behalf as he continues this treatment.
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