Depressing

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  • Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 Member Posts: 3,812 Member
    #22
    unknown said:

    Oh yes ....

    My oncologist recommended Rituxan monotherapy because when diagnosed I had no bulky tumors - only swollen glands and bone marrow involvement. I have known all along that if I relapse he will have no choice but to bring out the big guns.

    Will Ask

    GKH,

    I see my onc next week, and will ask what my dose of rituxan was. I am just curious. I will share what I learn, but can say now that I am a small guy, 5'5".  I read that chemo drug doses are routinely changed "with every 15% change in weight," but am not sure.  I do know that docs, in severe cases, will somewhat "pour on" the medicine, if they feel it will help. Interestingly, some folks with exactly my same strain of HL got ritux only every other infusion, and some did not get it at all (rituxan is somewhat new by chemo drug standards at least, and abvd used to always be minus any ritux).  I am thankful for whatever good it did , killing those CD-20 cells.  As I said, I felt like I always had the flu, with muscle pain being fairly severe. I had to take Loritab routinely; no lesser pain med would touch it.

    The "big guns":  Yes, avoid them if it is at all possible !

    May you never need them,

    Max

  • allmost60
    allmost60 Member Posts: 3,178 Member
    #23
    unknown said:

    Thanks Max

    Rituxan dose is computed on body size. Standard dose is 375 ml for each square meter of skin area. In actuality they don't measure you but pull the dose the dose is taken from a chart based on height and weight. I am 6'3" and 195 pounds so I get 800 ml per dose.

    I am very thankful for Rituxan. All the other options are less desirable.

    Rituxan

    Hi,

    I finally remembered to ask what my Rituxan mg was at my last infusion. 600mg. My weight fluctuates between 126 to 130 and has for years. Summer I weigh less...winter I put on a couple of pounds. My chemo nurse told me I have been getting 600mg since day one. The worst part of all of my treatments was when I had to take the 5 days of prednisone at 60mg per day. That stuff made me crazy!. The Rituxan is totally doable for me. Best wishes...Sue  (FNHL-2-3a-6/10-age 62)

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #24
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 said:

    Like Joe Friday: "Just the facts, Mam."

    JP,

    I have found your posts interesting during your time here. My undergrad major was Philosophy, and I focused then in the areas of logic and scientific methedology. I would say that, in most arenas, there is no such thing as "just facts," although of course there is empirically verified material, and other things that are (almost) purely speculative.  I like your slogans, which have a very "Marine Corps" sort of spirit about them.   My earlier career was as a fast-attack weapons systems supervisor in the Navy, and we delivered incredible sorts of "special people" to their destinations.  Somehow you remind me of the Seals and such I have met, perhaps unfairly.  

    Calm can help one go months without daylight or a news report; it helped me go 16 days unable to breath on a ventilator after being run over by a car years ago, and 23 days with no food, "eating" through an NG tube. It allowed me to take a chest tube stabbed into my chest cavity by a surgeon through 13 rib fractures, after he warned me by saying, "I do not have time to deaden this area." (I remember it going through on the third thrust.)  I was awake once in ICU, and heard myself be Coded over the PA. It helped me through that, too.  It helped when an RN told me that he had found my kneecap in the pants leg that he was cutting off.

    As I have mentioned in my bio, a favorite of mine  (a "mantra", if you will) is "While I Breath, I Hope."  To test whether a person can breath spontaneously, the respritory techs come in and turn off the ventilator, and watch to see if the patient can breath, although they try to limit this "test" to periods when the patient is asleep.  Sort of a "sink or swim" technique, although it is something that they must do.   I hope your treatment is all fully successful.

    Still breathing,

    max

    .

    Very insightful

    Thanks.

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #25
    Pappa Don said:

    Depression
    Hi GKH :
    I think it is ok to be depressed sometimes. It is certainly understandable that one such as us can be.
    I am taking Paxil for it. And I don' t know if it helps or not. I don't know if anything helps anymore.
    I do know one thing I seem to be better off not resisting anything any more. I try to just go along with what is happening
    And in a day or two things seem to be better or I am able to handle them better. Of course most of the time they are not
    better. I just keep hoping. I do not know any thing else to do so I try to just hope and trust. I believe our stories have a happy ending.
    This to will pass.
    PEACE be with you
    PD

    Thanks Papa Don

    Helpful. Its difficult for me as inthe past I had met few foes I could not bet or at least make a deal with. This is a whole new game.

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #26
    veedub said:

    one of the best mantras i

    one of the best mantras i know: "when life gets hard, you must have leveled up."

    also " keep calm and carry on."

    i had both of those put on tee shirts, just to remind myself.

     

    best,

     

    v

    I like it

    The "keep calm and carry on" is a great mantra. Thanks for sharing it.

  • Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 Member Posts: 3,812 Member
    #27
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 said:

    Will Ask

    GKH,

    I see my onc next week, and will ask what my dose of rituxan was. I am just curious. I will share what I learn, but can say now that I am a small guy, 5'5".  I read that chemo drug doses are routinely changed "with every 15% change in weight," but am not sure.  I do know that docs, in severe cases, will somewhat "pour on" the medicine, if they feel it will help. Interestingly, some folks with exactly my same strain of HL got ritux only every other infusion, and some did not get it at all (rituxan is somewhat new by chemo drug standards at least, and abvd used to always be minus any ritux).  I am thankful for whatever good it did , killing those CD-20 cells.  As I said, I felt like I always had the flu, with muscle pain being fairly severe. I had to take Loritab routinely; no lesser pain med would touch it.

    The "big guns":  Yes, avoid them if it is at all possible !

    May you never need them,

    Max

    Dose

    I asked my onc last week what my rituxan dose had been, but he just told me the formula for calculating. He was busy sorting out what to do about my iron issue, and I understand that he was busy scheduling numerous appointments for me, and saw the question as a bit of a distraction. Anyway, I got whatever my body weight would multiply out as at the time.

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #28
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 said:

    Like Joe Friday: "Just the facts, Mam."

    JP,

    I have found your posts interesting during your time here. My undergrad major was Philosophy, and I focused then in the areas of logic and scientific methedology. I would say that, in most arenas, there is no such thing as "just facts," although of course there is empirically verified material, and other things that are (almost) purely speculative.  I like your slogans, which have a very "Marine Corps" sort of spirit about them.   My earlier career was as a fast-attack weapons systems supervisor in the Navy, and we delivered incredible sorts of "special people" to their destinations.  Somehow you remind me of the Seals and such I have met, perhaps unfairly.  

    Calm can help one go months without daylight or a news report; it helped me go 16 days unable to breath on a ventilator after being run over by a car years ago, and 23 days with no food, "eating" through an NG tube. It allowed me to take a chest tube stabbed into my chest cavity by a surgeon through 13 rib fractures, after he warned me by saying, "I do not have time to deaden this area." (I remember it going through on the third thrust.)  I was awake once in ICU, and heard myself be Coded over the PA. It helped me through that, too.  It helped when an RN told me that he had found my kneecap in the pants leg that he was cutting off.

    As I have mentioned in my bio, a favorite of mine  (a "mantra", if you will) is "While I Breath, I Hope."  To test whether a person can breath spontaneously, the respritory techs come in and turn off the ventilator, and watch to see if the patient can breath, although they try to limit this "test" to periods when the patient is asleep.  Sort of a "sink or swim" technique, although it is something that they must do.   I hope your treatment is all fully successful.

    Still breathing,

    max

    .

    Your story

    Is amazing. Reminds of some grisly days in Viet Nam. Your courage and will to win is inspiring. Sometimes I think winning is just getting it over. Then I undertand and remember hat you went through and seems you have a very intact sense of humor and care about others. Thanks again Max.

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