The vinorelbine they were giving via a PICC line didn’t really help. Some parts stayed as they were, some parts got worse. Oddly enough I argued to get the PICC line removed so that I could go hiking in the Sierras. Catching the line while putting on or taking off a backpack sounded risky, and more importantly, I wanted to be able to jump into the glacial lakes at the spots we’d be hiking to. An appointment this week will let me know what my Kaiser oncologist recommends as a next step.
Looking into other options, I just returned from Houston. Many who heard I was going asked “MD Anderson?” but no… Burzynski. A renegade who might have found a great way to fight cancer, but who is not well-known, not well-represented on the internet, and not well supported by the government because, well, because the government cares too much about money and power? Maybe. Please… anybody who has friends in other countries… do some research and tell me what you find, because this Dr B guy is offering something elsewhere that the US will not allow.
Here’s what I do know about what he offers: a drug involving things called antineoplastons that he claims fight cancer cells. That get people to go from their own doctors line of “Get your affairs in order” to being cancer free. But people like me don’t have enough so the cancer just gets worse. He’ll treat me with these antineoplastons if I join his trial and pay lots of money and promise to only get treatment from him. Sounds odd, I know, but can you imagine the challenge of deciding if it’s worth it?
He could make my cancer go away.
Or he could just make loads of cash go away.
While mulling his option over, I’m also looking into places like UCSD Moore’s Cancer Institute who treat people based on a test of their individual genetic make up and look for specific genes that have been mutated by the cancer. That’s a treatment that Burzynski also follows, but that Kaiser doesn’t. Maybe that’s all I really need, is some treatment plan made specifically for me. And if I go that route, maybe I can get insurance to cover it if I switch from Kaiser to a PPO in November.
Geez, I feel like I’m being asked to make a huge decision and I hardly have any info at all. So I’ll think, I’ll share with you, I’ll take suggestions, I’ll find peace intermittently in my backyard that is becoming my new haven (thanks to what my sister has started), and eventually I’ll feel like I’ve made a decision and can move forward. For now, I’m sort of in limbo.
Guess I should go mix a fancy drink and play me some Chubby Checkers.