September 3, 2024

Today was the beginning of the next phase of cancer treatment. I went in for a new PET scan, and then a visit with the medical oncologist to discuss the results and what they lead to. The only new thing in the scan was an area that lit up "moderately" in a lymph node near my right ear. That means a probable recent spread of melanoma there. That really only means I'll be on two immune therapy drugs instead of the one they originally planned. The treatments are done by IV infusion. My first will be on Friday of next week. I'll go in once every three weeks for a total of four treatments, then have another PET scan to see how well they're working. Then the treatments proceed with adjustment based on the results. The entire course of treatments is basically open ended and depends on what they see in scans. It will be at least a year, but probably more.

My transplant meds are getting adjusted to help protect my kidney. My nephrologist is having me do labs to monitor, including a specific one that checks for traces of foreign DNA in my bloodstream, on which a positive result means the immune system is attacking the kidney.

The immune therapy drugs are supposedly very effective, and previous biopsies came back showing my cancer should be very susceptible to it. So my main concern now is what happens to my transplanted kidney. It's pretty much 50/50 on whether or not anything will happen to it. If it does, then I'll be doing dialysis, which I never had to do before, and I'd rather not start now.

As for the previous phase... the radiation symptoms have peaked and are starting to resolve. My burns are improving pretty quickly now. I am past ready for them to heal. I want off the pain meds so I can drive and go do shit. The parts of my beard that fell out are just starting to grow again. Still waiting for my sense of taste to start coming back.