I was having bloodwork and vital signs before 7:30 am. My oncologist took me in early and reported that my blood counts were great, and that the tight skin on my arms seemed softer. This must be due to the tacrolimus ointment I've been rubbing on them. He cut me back .5mg/day on prednisone, added Activel for my liver, and gave me a script for Gleevec, a drug used by CML patients,but now showing positive results for cgvh like mine. No drug is without side effects. Gleevec can make you tired and affect your blood counts in a negative way because it suppresses the immune system.
After I saw my doctor, I had a pulmonary function test, an EKG and an echo-cardiagram. These were baseline tests since I'm with a new set of doctors.
One doctor I'm staying with is my ophthalmologist. I saw him yesterday. I'll have cataract surgery on my right eye July 25, with the left eye to follow 1-2 months later.
My final appointment of the day was with my physical therapist, Linda, who has helped me tremendously in just 2 sessions. My former onc. said nothing could be done about the tendon/muscle tightness in my arms. But she was WRONG. My PT says most of my tightness is due to scar tissue building up where my catheter had been inserted for photopheresis. It was in for a long time. I'm using special scar bandages and Linda is working on my pectoral muscles to stretch them and try to break up the scar tissue. She's also noticed that my clavicle and ribs don't move as well as they should. My left side is also affected by these bone issues.
Somehow, I managed to go to yoga this morning. The iced coffee is delicious and typing doesn't tire me much.
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2 comments:
Glad you got that coffee!
I'm so relieved and happy that you've hooked up with your new team! Sounds like you had some excellent visits.
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