About 2 months ago, Ian got a fever and had been feeling different than normal. He had been having more nose crusties and was feeling more lethargic. So when the fever hit and it would come and go, it looked a lot the start of what happened in the very beginning. The doctors recommended going to the ER, which he did. They took all day to test for a bunch of things, but did NOT admit him this time!! Yay! They did, however, decide to treat him as though he were having a flare. So starting 3 weeks ago, Ian has been going in on Fridays to get Rituxan infusions. He is scheduled to have an infusion every Friday for four consecutive Fridays. The first time he went in at 9:30 and told the nurses he didn't need any Solemedrol because he had already taken 20mg of Prednisone that morning. They didn't give it to him and as a result started to have a reaction to the Rituxan. His airway was constricting. This delayed the process. They had to wait an hour for meds to clear his system then they administered the Solemedrol which is the equivalent to 120mg of prednisone. YIKES. He was fine and continued on with the rest of his infusion. He was tired afterwards and didn't feel good. But he was in that predicament from 9:30 to 4:30pm.. The second Friday he went in, he started at 10 and finished up by 3:30, without any complications. The third infusion was Friday the 13th and he drove himself there and back home (to Kaiser, Hayward). He went in at 11 and was done by 3:30 again. All the meds make him tired, but he can't go to sleep at bedtime. So he stays up to about 4am. He started getting "moon face" only a few days after the first treatment. It's not so much around his eyes this time as it is around his neck/chin zone. Ian comes home tired on Friday, stays resting on Saturday, but feels a lot better by Sunday. By Monday he's pretty much back to "normal".
This specialist that Ian sees (one of them) is trying to get Ian completely off Predinsone and his other medications. Her plan is to do ONE Rituxan treatment every 6 months as a way to keep Ian in remission and that way we won't have to face possible flares. We're looking at a positive thing with this new treatment plan.
I love my Ian! Here's a song I found that fits. "I Could Get Used to This", by Treva Blomquist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_miyp1jPFU
No comments:
Post a Comment