BOB JK My diary of kidney cancer (to be continued)
FormerMember
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Hi, My name is Bob and I live in Cambridgeshire. I am married with an 8 yr old daughter and three older step sons. Up untill the end of last year everything was tickety boo having recently moved to a new house which we love. Work was busy but enjoyable. I am Manager of an electrical companys maintenance department and my Wife, Linda was enjoying her job as a Nurse. The three boys are buying there own house nearby and all work locally. In November I went to my Doctors with a small "cyst" on my chest. After a couple of referals and many Xrays, pet scans, bone scans and CT scans I was told the news everybody dreads. My lump on the chest was a secondary cancer of which the primary was in my left Kidney. I was fast tracked to the Royal Brompton, under the expert care of Mr Laddas who informed a long and complicated operation would need to be carried out to remove the bone tumor and surrounding bone which involved two ribs,my collar bone and chest bone. I did not have time to panic, the operation was carried out the next day over 10 hrs. After nearly two weeks in the Brompton I am recovering well from this op but I have since been told that the Cancer is in both kidneys as well as small mets in both lungs. It seems at the moment further ops are out the question and i have been put on the drug Sutent. I am one week into this and so far so good. I do not know what the future holds but I have to remain positive.
Yeah im ok. We are getting ready fot the long drive to London to hear all the details of my results and also to ask lots of questions. Hopefully we will lunch while we are out. I hope you also have a good day and I will hopefully update diary again tonight if not to knackered.
Been away for a few days and I have just got caught up on your thread. What fantastic news! I'm so pleased! Been following this thread from day one. Love to all.
Well it was a good trip to London and Proffesor Gore confirned what we allready knew, both tumors have shrunk. He is happy with my progress and wants to keep me on sutent until he can be sure that the tumors are as small as possible. Then he will decide wether or not to operate. Reading between the lines it seems that one year is the normal time for sutent to take Sutent.After this time it stops working. So I need Sutent to work its miracle in the next 10 months. Im sure it will. I drove to London and home again which was really good and apart from suffering during the night because we ate late and also it was rather heavy (mixed grill, huge it was) I feel ok so far this morning. We are off to pick up Kate who has been at a friends house for a sleepover,then to relax is the order of the day (for me)
Best nights sleep ive had in weeks. Only woke once in the night and that was when Mollie our labrador, who sleeps in our bedroom, Had one of her "chasing rabbits" dreams and was yelping and kicking like a good one. Tom and katie are over today and are cooking lunch for us which is very sweet. Also when they arrived yesterday they had bought myself and Linda a pair of tickets to a concert in the Ely Cathredal. I feel pretty good so far today.When I looked in mirror this morning I nearly didn't recognise myself. At the end of the Sutent cycle my face swells and dosn't look to good but what the heck.Such a small price to pay.
How do you know its not actually an improvement Bob - lol - only joking.
Good morning and nice to have someone coming over to cook for you, lucky dog. At this moment I would kill for a good nights sleep, any secrets to share for me?
Glad you are getting in a better place with all of this and I hope to join you soon. Should re-start sutent next week and really looking foward to getting back to the "real" fight so to speak and see if I can replicate your amazing results.
Actually Andy, my sister says I look younger because all the stretch marks disapear. I have no remedy to a good nights sleep. I am always better on the second week off the sutent and just make the most of it. Have you found a pattern yet? Good luck on your next cycle and have a good day.
I have found absolutley no pattern whatsoever, some nights i can sleep for a ciuple of hours at a time and then some nights no sleep at all before dawn and then drop off through the day whenever my eyes shut. I have fallen asleep in restaurants and in the taxi - good job not driving at the moment - lol.
Actually its getting a bit better and last couple of nights last week I did manage around 4-5 hours in total I suppose its just another of those things you have to get adjusted to and then get on with it as best you can.
Bets of luck and hope it carries on getting good for you,
Ive had a really good day today and felt much better. My eldest sister Krysia came round this afternoon along with Joanne my niece and we have booked a long weekend away to Poland for myself Linda Kate and Krysia We will stay at a really posh hotel in Warsaw and spend the weekend sightseeing and also revisit the house where my father spent his childhood. Tom and katie cooked us a great meal which went down really well (lets hope it stays down). Tonight we are relaxing in front of the TV
Hi Andy, I have just read your message to Bob regarding your sleepless nights, i was put on mild sleeping tablets and they help me sleep right through the night as appose to waking up through the night and then have those wandering thoughts. I never really wanted to go on these tablets but as i always feel better the day after, at the end of the day it boils down to a good quality of life. I am interested to know how other people are feeling generally on Sutent and with kidney cancer, as i feel fine as long as im sat down its only when i stand up to do anything like lethargy and i have really weak legs, so im unable to walk very far. regards Sweetiepie. ie Fay.
