No real news here, just an update... Yesterday was chemo infusion 5 of 6. Now the "aftermath," as we refer to it. Hubby is tolerating chemo pretty well--the second round was rough (considerable nausea) but at the third round the Doc added Emend which has helped a lot. Hubby is also learning how to eat to try to keep things more settled: very small meals, mostly white rice, skinless chicken breasts, good whole grain bread with a little butter, etc. He gets pretty hungry but it helps him to have a not-very full stomach until after the worst of it (usually days 3-7 after infusion).
PSA came down slightly between infusion 3 & 4 but is back up to near 300 (rising steadily for a year). ALP is better news: it has been trending down since infusion #3 and is at 170 from a high of 265 (the lowest it's been since June). Doc recommends staying the course on Docetaxel as ALP seems to indicate some progress. Hubby feels pretty good once he's through the first week after infusion. Pain is still manageable but never diminishes, only increases.
Scans are a bit problematic since he changed providers last year and no one seems to be able to retrieve the scans from the other hospital to compare with recent ones. It's frustrating--weren't we sold the idea of electronic medical records so this sort of thing didn't happen? But what we got instead are incompatible, proprietary systems that make it very hard to transfer information. Hopefully someone will eventually push a magic button and we can get someone to compare scans and see what's been happening (tho we have a pretty good idea already).
We're not really looking too far into the future at this point. Hubby progressed on both Zytiga and Xtandi so there aren't any more options for hormone blockade. We are looking forward to the end of chemo, a few weeks to recover & get some energy back, and planning the spring garden. After 4 1/2 years we both know that all this time is pure gravy.
It will be a quiet Christmas, of course--no family and no friends, just us. There are days I confess I wish it were all over but then I remember that HEY! We only get ONE SHOT at this life! Take the good with the bad, one day at a time, and always, always count our blessings.
Blessing to all of you, and may your winter holidays be peaceful. Soon the light begins its return 🌟