Today is my last Opdivo infusion in 2020. This second round
of nivolumab therapy has lasted for 28 months, with a total of 30 infusions. As
of today I’ll be on surveillance, with CT scans of my neck, chest, abdomen, and
pelvis every 12 weeks. The consensus opinion of my medical team is that, since
I’ve had no evidence of disease for a year, and since I continue to show
evidence of dermal toxicity and increased sensitivity in my GI system, the
risks of side effects outweigh the justification for continuing therapy. So I’m
back into the game of watchful waiting, knowing that my metastatic cancer
likely will return at some point. Having ridden the cancer roller coaster for 9
years, I’ve accepted this fate. I’m no longer living life from scan to scan,
fearful of what the future might hold. Instead, I’m living life one day at a
time, trying to do the next right thing.
Before my infusion, I had another full set of CT scans. Lindsey
(the PA who works with Dr. Maughan) said that they looked to be unremarkable,
but we’ll wait for the radiologist’s results to be sure. I’ve lost count of exactly
how many scans I’ve had, but I’m pretty sure it’s over 40. Years ago I remember
wondering if the radiation exposure from all of those scans would give me
cancer. Now I’m past all of that. The benefit of the scans clearly outweighs
the risks.
Summer has been arriving in fits and starts. We had 80
degree weather in mid-March – enough to persuade me to get out the Harley –
then had two months of cold. By mid-May the weather had warmed enough to de-winterize
the boat and take the grandkids out on Pineview reservoir. Then last weekend we
had snow down to 6000 feet. I think that was winter’s last gasp, and now we’re barreling
into summer heat with a vengeance.
The Coronavirus pandemic is slowing down for the summer.
Utah is gradually reopening, but it will be some time before things get back to
normal. Church and other large public gatherings are still banned. Wearing
facemasks in public is strongly encouraged. I still can’t visit Jennifer at
Layton Park. I expect that people will gradually be less socially distant until
Fall, when there likely will be a second wave of infections that will sweep the
Northern Hemisphere. I wonder when it will be safe to fly again. And I’m still slightly
amazed that I can even think about the possibility of flying.
