Progression

As I enter the final day of cycle two of my chemotherapy with a week off to come it is good to see progression in different areas. 

1. My foot for so long bloated, swelling is finally beginning to look more normal.
2. The itching on my back a feature two weeks ago has gone.
3. My shoulder is so much less tender, though remains stiff – importantly it does not hurt most of the time. 
4. The urge to go to the loo – especially at night has reduced significantly and this even though I am still drinking approx 3 – 4 L of water each day. 
5. The potassium levels on all recent measurements have been normal.

Of course there are still things which need to be watched. 

1. I am running a very slightly elevated  temperature at times just above 37°C and have had some raised glands as I endure a low level sore throat (viral infection). I am continuing to measure my temperature at least four times a day. 
2. My GFR (kidney function) is still a very low  12 out of an expected 90. It will be measured later today, hopefully there will continue to be improvements here too. 
3. I am slightly anaemic, a feature of Myeloma, and whilst I remain on the low potassium diet it is also more difficult to get the iron from green vegetables and nuts which also have higher potassium levels.
4. The steroid treatments have put weight on me and disrupted my sleep patterns but it is a small price to pay for the overall treatment. A steroid free week next week will help.

I am not naive enough to assume the path will always be uniformly upward – there will be dips to come I am sure but I remain realistically positive in the early morning light of a late Spring Morning.