Prepping for radiation

January 19, 2017

Hi, Tracy.
Today I had an MRI scan and an X-ray to determine whether everything is in place for my radiation treatments to start. I visit Mazatlan next week with friends, and the radiation begins when I return at the first of February. At this point I understand my treatments will be each weekday for eight weeks.

To calibrate my body with the gold beads that were placed in my prostate and the tatoos on my tummy and hips, I had to prepare with an empty bowel and a full bladder. Filling the bladder proved to be a challenge. I drained it, and then drank about a pint of water ahead of time, wondering whether my kidneys could act that fast to refill the bladder. When they ran me through the MRI tube they said my bladder wasn't full enough, so I had to drink more water.  The explanation: I appeared to be dehydrated. My guess is that the night sweats from the bicalutimide have been drying me out. I need to drink a lot more than I have been.

That's all for now. The grand adventure begins in less than two weeks.

Love,
Dad

Night sweats

January 17, 2017

Tracy,
This note is a short one. Two months ago I talked about fevers as a result of taking bicalutimide. The night sweats continue, accompanied by day sweats. I wake up several times a night drenched. I've started sleeping with a towel under my head so that the pillow doesn't get soaked. I frequently have to throw off the covers, after when I have to find them again as I chill down. The interesting part is that after I get out of bed I dry off pretty fast; you'd never know I was experiencing night sweats.

At the same time, I'm able to urinate with greater ease. But then, the drug may cause more urination at night. When you read details on the outcome of taking this drug, you don't know whether you're describing side effects or old age.

If I'm cold at my desk, I turn on the space heater. This tips my thermostat and then I get hot. So I turn on the fan, and that seems to tip things the other way and I get chills. My personal thermostat seems to have a hair trigger that send me roasting or freezing. I am particularly sensitive to cold weather, and I think more so than I used to be.

I've also noticed that it's harder to get down on the ground, and that my knees are weaker for getting back up.

On Thursday, January 29, I go in for an x-ray and MRI to recalibrate the radiation machines with those gold beads in my prostate. The following week I spend in Mazatlan, and sometime after I return the radiation treatments begin.

It's been interesting deciding whether to tell others about this. I've explained to friends why I have to sit down occasionally and why I'm sweating. When they hear the word, "cancer," they seize up a little bit, and I have to assure them that this is manageable and most likely curable--that eight weeks of radiation will likely eliminate all cancer. OK, but will my prostate continue to grow and will my PSA increase independent of the cancern? And how soon can I stop taking bicalutamide, and after that, how long will it take to stop affecting my system? There's always more questions to ask.

Love,
Dad