To all who are following the progress of my illness, here is an update. My regular doctor, Dr Macdonald was away, but I saw one of his associates, Dr Bainbridge.
The results of the scan I had last Wednesday were as good as could be expected: there was no growth of the small area that they have been following. Dr Bainbridge said that this small spot would likely always be there and that it is difficult to tell whether it is scarring from the operation or something similar, but the fact that it is not growing is as good news as can be had at this time.
My bloodwork is in good order, and since I have been tapering off the steroids I had been on, some of their side effects (insomnia, weakness in my legs, facial swelling and weight gain) are starting to disappear as well. The reason for the steroids (pressure on the optic nerve of my eyes) has been alleviated and the ophthalmologist I saw says everything is in good order with my eyes now.
The plan is for me to stay on the study drug for the next 11 months, every three weeks instead of every two weeks, with regular M.R.I. scans every Nine weeks. As I am writing this I am sitting at home having had a bout with some stomach ailment and hoping to be over it by tomorrow so I can go back to work.
I would once again like to thank everyone for their prayers and other forms of support such as emails and best wishes. It means a lot!
Here are some pictures of some projects I am undertaking. The picture above shows some acrylic panels I hope to install on the roof of the horse barn as the existing panels shown below leak badly.
I am also working on strengthening the beams supporting the roof.
As one can see, the snow tires are still on our vehicles, which is good since we had snow and were driving through slush Monday morning when we went for our medical appointment. We are looking forward to spring in Southern Ontario!
