And we are off!
We have had a very busy few days but the long awaited day of surgery has finally arrived.
To review the past week: Keith was formally accepted into the UCLA trial last Friday and began taking the first study drug (Tarceva) Saturday morning. He has had no adverse side effects to date - great news. We were advised to expect a mild rash around the 5th day - and right on schedule Keith developed a mild version of teenage acne. Yesterday afternoon we spent several hours at UCLA's new hospital where Keith was given the second study drug (Temsirolimus) by IV. He took one more dose of Tarceva this morning right before he was escorted up to pre-op. A few weeks after surgery he will resume the chemo protocol - 7 days of Tarceva and 1 day per week of the Temsirolimus drip.
We also had a nice surprise yesterday. The UCLA study coordinator let us know that in the one week since we entered the trial, it seems that Temsirolimus has been given FDA approval - it is now "official". Keith felt greatly encouraged by this news - it filled him with hope as the approval means that there has been enough success with the drug to allow it onto the market.
All in all, the week passed faster than we expected. We were kept quite busy in and out of Kaiser with tests and prep work for the surgery. As expected, Keith was very, very tired - partly a result of the high doses of anti-seizure drugs - and partly a result of the tumor. The steroids have made him ravenous - we spent much of the time catering to many odd food cravings. Thankfully, the time passed and we had no adverse events.
Now for today: This morning we got up at 4:45 am; Keith showered and shampooed his hair for the last time for a few weeks. (Yikes, acne AND dirty hair!) We arrived at Kaiser Sunset Hospital around 5:30 and he was taken up to pre-op around 6:30. Tzara, Sam and I settled into the waiting room where we will stay posted for the long day.
Our dear friend Mimi McCracken popped in around 7:00 and managed to sneak us into the pre-op area (thank you Mimi!). Keith was alert and looked great - tubes coming out from all sides. Dr. Pikul had already been in to talk with him and all of the study vials for the various samples to be collected during surgery were at the ready. We also got to meet Keith's anesthetist and his nurse - it's nice to put a face to the team. Even better, we were able to administer one more round of hugs and kisses.
Surgery got rolling around 8:30. (There was an emergency surgery in our operating theater overnight so our start was slightly delayed.) We anticipate that the procedure will take 6 hours or so - I will post updates as we have them.
To review the past week: Keith was formally accepted into the UCLA trial last Friday and began taking the first study drug (Tarceva) Saturday morning. He has had no adverse side effects to date - great news. We were advised to expect a mild rash around the 5th day - and right on schedule Keith developed a mild version of teenage acne. Yesterday afternoon we spent several hours at UCLA's new hospital where Keith was given the second study drug (Temsirolimus) by IV. He took one more dose of Tarceva this morning right before he was escorted up to pre-op. A few weeks after surgery he will resume the chemo protocol - 7 days of Tarceva and 1 day per week of the Temsirolimus drip.
We also had a nice surprise yesterday. The UCLA study coordinator let us know that in the one week since we entered the trial, it seems that Temsirolimus has been given FDA approval - it is now "official". Keith felt greatly encouraged by this news - it filled him with hope as the approval means that there has been enough success with the drug to allow it onto the market.
All in all, the week passed faster than we expected. We were kept quite busy in and out of Kaiser with tests and prep work for the surgery. As expected, Keith was very, very tired - partly a result of the high doses of anti-seizure drugs - and partly a result of the tumor. The steroids have made him ravenous - we spent much of the time catering to many odd food cravings. Thankfully, the time passed and we had no adverse events.
Now for today: This morning we got up at 4:45 am; Keith showered and shampooed his hair for the last time for a few weeks. (Yikes, acne AND dirty hair!) We arrived at Kaiser Sunset Hospital around 5:30 and he was taken up to pre-op around 6:30. Tzara, Sam and I settled into the waiting room where we will stay posted for the long day.
Our dear friend Mimi McCracken popped in around 7:00 and managed to sneak us into the pre-op area (thank you Mimi!). Keith was alert and looked great - tubes coming out from all sides. Dr. Pikul had already been in to talk with him and all of the study vials for the various samples to be collected during surgery were at the ready. We also got to meet Keith's anesthetist and his nurse - it's nice to put a face to the team. Even better, we were able to administer one more round of hugs and kisses.
Surgery got rolling around 8:30. (There was an emergency surgery in our operating theater overnight so our start was slightly delayed.) We anticipate that the procedure will take 6 hours or so - I will post updates as we have them.
Labels: brain tumor, GBM, GBM Tarceva, Glioblastoma, Temsirolimus
posted by Keith and Kathy | 8:17 PM
1 Comments:
Hello Keith and kathy,
We heard of your new challenge through Michael.
We are thinking of you a lot, sending you wishes for a sucessful surgery and also much success with the new chemo.
Can we do anything to help?
We live in your neighborhood!
Food, drives, ANYTHING, just call or e.mail or post on this blog what you need.
Peace,
Laetitia and Michael
323 663 7235
ldelagasnerie@sbcglobal.net
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