Chemo Day 56 - I've got to believe it's getting better

Although Sir Paul and John never had chemo they expressed how I feel on this latest climb out of the third round ("I've got to admit it's getting better, a little better all the time.")  I'm feeling better each day as I put more distance between me and Round 3.  I'm looking forward to two weeks off until Round 4.  That, plus combined with the promise of a vacation next week, makes me feel as giddy as Red when he said, "I find I'm so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope."

Ok, quoting the Beatles and the Shawshank Redemption in one paragraph is a bit over the top.  But I'm just happy to be feeling better.  The past two weeks were not that easy from a mental and emotional standpoint.  

Today I did lab work and met with Dr. A-C.  She probed my abdomen to determine the source of a recurring pain that I've had since mid-January, soon after the second TURBT, and before I started chemo.  It ebbs and throbs on my left side.  I may go for days and not notice it, then I might wake up in the middle of the night with a throbbing pain, which slowly will dissipate over several days before popping up again.  The pain has nothing to do with my bowels and no correlation with my chemo schedule.  It feels like a pulled muscle, although I've been diligent in avoiding anything that could reasonably be called exercise.  She guessed that it likely is either an issue with an abdominal muscle, or perhaps a nerve, that might have been triggered by the second TURBT.  She suggested that I take an Aleve twice a day for a few days, and pay close attention to whether that does anything to diminish the pain.  I also have resolved to be even more inert, if that is possible.  Perhaps more Thin Mints would help. 

We also spoke about the recent studies in the Lancet suggesting that a daily dose of baby aspirin could reduce the risk of the spread of cancer by up to 55%.  She had read the studies and said that they confirmed earlier, smaller studies that had suggested at such an association.  She noted that there were risks to such a therapy, but said that, in my case, it made sense to start taking aspirin, although she would keep a close eye on my platelet count, since aspirin inhibited platelet creation.  She also noted that I would have to stop while I had my surgery, and I should not restart until approved by those doctors.  

Chelsea was impressed that my doctor was so quick to adopt the latest studies.  Her exposure to doctors is that too many are slow to adapt to the latest developments, instead sticking to established patters, even though developments suggest a different treatment.