Life is normal

I guess I should blog more...  But I guess that I have become comfortable on where I'm at with the smoldering myeloma.  My numbers are slowing growing but at this rate it is going to be a very long time until anything needs to be done.  My job now is to stay healthy and enjoy my life...  I'm doing both.

Only challenge is with my local oncologists.  They keep changing so I have opted to have my local primary care doctor order my testing and I will review and call UCSF if I have any questions.  My Dr. is on board with this as is Dr. Martin at UCSF.  He will get a copy and will call me if he sees something that I miss.  All in all, Life is good and I'm happy and blessed.


The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Fast update

My Oncologist called and because I'm in good physical shape, weight under control, strong positive attitude and most important, no damage done by the cancer, I can hold off on Chemo.  An answer to prayer for sure.  I'm hoping for a couple more years just doing what I'm doing now.  Keeping in shape and fighting the fight without chemo for now.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Bone Marrow Biopsy done

The results are in and I'm no longer in smoldering, I have switched to full blown Myeloma and I'm being set up to start treatment.  I don't know much more at this point as Dr. Martin needs to set up a treatment plan.

They talked a lot about Valcade and the differences in how they give it now and worried about my
PN and that the Valcade might make it worse. So I'm thinking Valcade will be the first bullet to be shot at the Myeloma.

I'm hoping to hold off starting treatment until October when I get back from our cruise.  A new phase
of my life with Myeloma.

I will keep you posted when I learn more.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

An update

It has been a while but what can I say... Things are going well.

I got my test results back today and my cancer #'s are up but not too bad.  I have put on some weight so I will be hammering at that starting NOW !!  That has historically lowered those #'s and I'm can't see why it won't again.

Dr. was pleased but not enough to let me go more than 3 months before the next checkup.

I have struggled with numbness and weakness mostly on my left side off and on.  I had a flair-up starting yesterday at 1:00 where my left foot and lower leg made the decision to just go to sleep, they didn't ask me first.  Then my left arm decided to join the party and what the hey, why not the left side of my face! It happens and I know that this too shall pass.

So.... I'm been avoiding going to the neurologist for a couple of years now and it has come time to give in, Jenni my wife was ready to tie me up and take me by force.  It is always written down at the end of my oncologist visit that they recommend I see one.  I will see him in April right after they scan my brain.  I'm sure not much will be found there but a big void.

Just because MS runs in my family everyone seem to point me in that direction.  Well, I have "multiple myeloma" why not "multiple sclerosis"  I will keep things "multiple".   This is not to say that I have MS, I don't think I do.  I will at least get a reprieve from everyone worrying about it and will get back to just being me.


The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

A normal life

Just a quick note...

All is well here.  No bone growth yet.  Next visit in December.  My GP said there is a good chance that the bones won't grow back together.  Age and a non-weight bearing bone sometimes means it never grows back together.  Not a big problem, it really doesn't hurt. 

The weather here was fantastic the last couple of weeks. So I had a long talk with my primary care person and Dr. Steven gave me permission to get back on the bike.  First weekend 53 miles in 2 days.  Last weekend 42 miles.  Dr. me is easy to work with !

California has everything. Last Monday heading off on a business trip to Merced Ca.  & driving by Elk Grove just south of Sacramento and I saw the following:

That is a tornado forming.  Watched it for a couple of min.  Fun,  Did some minor damage but no injuries or homes lost.

That's about all that's going on here for now.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

The fight is over... But not the life..

A blog friend of mine Dan Patterson died of MM today.  I have never met this man in person or heard his voice on the phone.  However, I can't stopped crying.  He was one of the first people who reached out to me when I was first diagnosed with MM. Both of the first 2  supporters of me, when I was scared and knew nothing about what I was facing, have now passed on.

I'm truly grateful for all their support and kindness to a person they never knew,  They took time out of their lives and gave support to me.  They didn't have to do that but the people they were inside came out and shined through.

I hope that I can give back just a little of what they gave.  They were truly special people.

I think it is really important for me right now to do two things.

First, to thank the three people who became friends during the toughest times of their lives.

Karen, the first to help.. Rest and be there when I arrive. You showed me I could live with this and still live a happy and full life.

Dan,  a rock when I really needed one. He showed me how to fight and not feel sorry for myself. He always had a kind word and support when I really needed it.

Susie, who showed me the importance and value of care givers.  She showed me the importance of thanking, as often as I can, my wife, for the care and love she gives me through this!

Second, to thank the people who are supporting me now.

EZ and Linda... WOW.. what can I say.. Great brother and sister in the Lord who have made a difference time and time again in the last 2 years.  I can't tell you how much joy I get in reading your blog each day!  A fantastic man and a great wife who is helping him through this.  Add to that a great family and I have a fantastic picture of what is possible, even with the struggle of a crazy cancer like MM.  Linda, you also show me the blessing that I have in Jenni.  You and Jenni would be such good friends.  True women of God!

Nick, who showed me the true meaning of how to fight.  Prayers to you and keep showing me and others the reality of what it means to not give in.

Roobeedoo, Keep reminding me that it isn't just me going through this and to thank my care giver, Jenni my wife, as much as I can!  You're a rock but at the same time you show the true side of this cancer and what it does to families. Keep posting...

I know that I'm emotional and rambling but I don't care.  It is how I can deal with the sorrow of this great loss, to his family, to his friends, and in a special way, in my life.  It will be a little harder now to face some of the little things I complain about.  I won't be able to run to the computer to see a post from Dan bring me back to a reasonable perspective about my situation,  God speed to you Dan and thank you for all you have done for me.

From my perspective... You were a great man who can not be replaced!

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Update

Hey everyone...

It has been a while since I have posted.  Waiting for things to move forward but they seem to stay the same on multiple fronts.

First:  My Myeloma... They did a test and my PN isn't related to it.  That means that my myeloma is asymptomatic.  That's good news.  They want me to go to a neurologist to do more testing.  If I have what they suspect, I just would rather not know, so I will stay on my PN meds and tough out the bad days and rejoice on the good days.

Second:  My Clavicle and the three broken ribs.  It mostly doesn't hurt.  Mildly aches from time to time.  I'm over 2 months out since the accident and I still have no bone growth,  My Ortho surgeon just smiled and said " you are over 50" !  Thanks for that ... I go back the end of September to check it again.  I do expect bone growth then based on how well I feel.  No bike riding until the Spring of 2013 :-(.

Last:  My job is still great.  Hard to believe I landed such a great job.  God smiled down on me with this one.

So....  All in all things are going well.  I continue to pray for all my Myeloma blog friends and work hard to be thankful for the blessings God has chosen to send my way.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Healing

Ya....  Today I got the sling off...  Dr. set me up for physical therapy but I don't think I will need much.  After working with the arm most of the day I have a range of motion equal to my right arm.  It is still a little puffy and sore but that is expected as  I haven't used it in a month.  It will be sore but I can work through that.


Dr. said still not much bone growth yet but normal for my age.  I'm right where he expect me to be.  Only 2 restrictions,  first: 10lb max on lifting,  second: no exercise that carries with it a chance of falling and re-injuring the clavicle.  He said it is stable but not strong until I get strong bone growth.  I will hit the gym but leave the bike in the garage for another month.


The Tour De Tahoe is September 9th.  I'm still focused on doing it but I'm also a realist and I know I won't match last years time.


On the myeloma front, they are ordering a new test to see if I have amyloidosis.  He will let me know what the test shows a few days later.  Not too worried about that.  I have moved from a 6 month watch list back to a 3 month watch list.  Things are moving but all in all a lot to be thankful for and nothing to be over worried about.


So... The arm is healing and the myeloma is behaving itself.  Life is good!


The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Crash....

I crashed my bike.  After 30 years riding my bike I finally went down. Broken clavicle, 3 ribs and a lot of general soreness.  The reason I crashed is a mystery.  I blacked out just before an intersection.  Came to when I was going through and then crashed.

They haven't set my clavicle because I have to see a surgeon to do that.  Feels creepy with the bone rubbing and generally unstable.

More after the visit.

Update:

Went to the Dr. and I have a "Z" fracture of my left clavicle.  So that means surgery to put a plate in and put it all back together again.

Update:

I will stop the blow by blow commentary on the injury soon.  I know this because I got a great nights sleep.  My recliner works good to sleep in with my 3 broken ribs!  All in all I feel really good this morning.  Pain controlled, arm getting better every day and I'm already able to withdraw from some of my meds.  I'm truly blessed with great family, friends and Facebook-blog friends!

 The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Strange Blood Work

I got my full blood tests back today.  It was a total mix bag of good and bad news.  How can my M-spike go way down.  My IgG go down but my Kappa/Lambda numbers go crazy !  I'm up a full 1% in the ratio in 6 months.  Plus my RBC is now 3.83 and my HGB is 12.7.  I'm noticing that my bike rides are harder climbing hills... Is there a connection?  I just don't know.

So I had an appointment with my Oncologist but it had to be cancelled at the last min. due to her being called to the hospital.  No problem with that as I'm sure that the person there was much more in need that I am.  I totally expect her to tell me that all is OK and to stop worrying.  I've done this before, worried about #'s that are no big deal.  Because I have almost 2 weeks until I can see her again I called the IMF hotline.   She called me back but I was gone.  She gave me her direct line and I will call her tomorrow. 

So... I will relax and be glad I feel good and keep riding my bike.  When all else fails go out do a quick 26+ mile and kill those little buggers!

I will post when I have more info... Still thankful that I feel this good and pray that all the readers of this blog are doing as good as I am.

 The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Great Job !!

Ok, my last post I had just got a new job.  I waited to post again, when I was sure that it was as good a job as it appeared to be when I took it, well, it is!  I really love this new job.  I'm busy and get to go visit with some great school employees.  From school secretaries, business managers, clear up to superintendents.

It is nice to go on a visit and have people really happy to see you!  God blessed me with this one and I'm truly thankful.

I go for my next MM check up at the end of May.  I don't expect that I will have changed.  Nothing more is going on with me.  I still have the PN and that's about all.  It isn't getting worse and is well controlled by my new medication.  So again; I don't expect that my numbers will be anything other than stable. I will post the results when I get them.

Bike riding season is well under way and I'm starting to get some good mileage in.  Jenni has jumped on the band wagon and has signed up for the Tour De Tahoe with me in September.  It will be her first time and is training every day the weather permits!  She also made the decision to get a kayak. It is a double Hobie Cat Mirage.  A friend had two and he sold her one.  She got a great deal on it and our first trip to the lake is this Sunday evening.  Kayaking and a picnic.  I guess I have a second hobby.  The good news is this kayak has peddle drive so it will help us stay in shape for bike riding.  It will keep us training when the temps get in the 100's+.

That's about all that going on.  My cancer numbers are stable, my job is great and we are having fun. What else could a person ask for?

 The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

NEW JOB !!

This is an answer to prayer for a long time.  The job I have now wasn't a good fit and because of that very stressful.  However; it was there when I needed it and an answer to prayer when I got it.

I'm sure less stress will help me keep the myeloma in check.

Now I'm going to be doing something that really fits me.  Not commission sales !!

My new job is working with school districts helping them manage their state mandated programs.

I start on March 5th.  looking forward to a more normal work life that has less stress and that fits my personality. 

 The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Our Caribbean Cruise

We just got back from our 5 day Caribbean Cruise.  It was a great time.  We went with my sister and brother in law.  Weather was great and the seas were fantastic. Here are some pictures...

My Sister and Brother in Law, Leslie and Fred Braun.

 

Our Ship, Liberty of the Seas, Royal Caribbean

Me in the kayak in Belize...

My wife, Jenni gave it a try, but didn't make it very long... The wind and waves were just to scary.

The pink Dune Buggy was ours in Cozumel Mexico.

The Light house in Cozumel, I was crazy enough to "run" up the 145 steps to the top.  It was fun but the steps get shorter and the roof gets lower so right at the top I bonked my head and walked the last 3 steps.

We even made a friend in Cozumel.

So a good time was had until .....   The last evening at sea Fred got really sick.. Then on the way home I only made it to Phoenix before I got it and had to spend the night before being well enough to fly home.  A BIG thank you to Southwest airline ground staff for helping Jenni and I get our baggage, change flights, get a hotel and generally make sure we were taken care of because of the issue.  They went way and above what we could have expected.

Bottom line is we had a great vacation and even with a bad ending we have a lot of good memories.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Me and my family

I follow a Myeloma Friends blog, Walking with the BIG EZ, with LOTS of pictures of him and his family.  It is a highlight of my week when they post new pictures.  I'm not that good at doing it on a blog.  In fact, Jenni my wife, set up the blog page you see.  She is MUCH better than I am at this stuff.  So here goes...

This is me and a friend Gary.   I'm on the red bike....

This is me and my Bicycle... Getting a clue??? I like anything on 2 wheels..

 This is me (the blue bike) finishing the 70+ miles around Lake Tahoe last September 11th.

Jenni and I at Crater Lake in Oregon last summer.

A picture of Jenni and I with "4 of 5" of our grand children.

My 3 Grand Daughters... Rylee, Allyson, and Emily

Here is my youngest Grand Son, Nate ... Yes; my wife made the cake..

My daughter Jamie and her husband mike.

My Son, Josh

Joshua's Son and my Grandson, Devon..

So that's it... My family... Thanks for browsing the pictures...

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

My birthday today...

Another year has come and gone..  Got the text from my son this morning wishing the "old man" a happy 54th birthday.  This year has been a good one and I'm looking forward to my next year being 54.  A lot of crazy things happened last year. So I thought I would take a moment and remember how blessed I am to be here still and the blessings of family, friends and the new friends I have in the Blogispher & Facebook.

The year started out kinda rough.  My PN hit me hard.  I was unable to exercise because I kept falling and I started falling just getting out of my car.  I started walking funny , like I was 90 !!  Really scary but I soon found out it was just a reaction to my medication.  I went off it and BAM I was mostly back to normal.

The spring was wet so I got behind on my training and I missed 2 rides that I had signed up for.  I kept going at the gym and as soon as the weather cleared I was back out riding my bike and loving life.  I had a great year riding, 3489 miles on the bike and 50+ hours in the gym.    It all came down to me doing the Tour De Tahoe.  It was a great day to ride it and I had a great time.  I finished it much faster than I expected !! 

I had a second round of cancer testing late October early November and everything came out great.  My numbers have stayed fairly stable and so I'm not moving any closer to needing treatment yet!  Having Smoldering Multiple Myeloma is a crazy place to be.  Yes, you have cancer, and no they don't do anything for it!  That is where the diet and exercise comes in.  No real research on the "true" benefit of it but I know this... My first 9 months with it, my cancer numbers were climbing every time they were checked.  After the weight loss and exercise kicked in, the numbers started to fall and now have leveled off.  I feel better than I have in years and that is enough for me right now!

The year has ended up with Shingles.. NO FUN AT ALL.. but I got to get to know a blog friend better because of them, so I guess there are blessings in everything God puts in front of us!!!  The Big EZ helped me figure out what I had and then walked me through the tough time... Thanks Big...  Now I have a cold but the body is doing a good job handling it.

Not the best ending of the year but I got to spend a lot of time with family and the celebration of my Lord's birth is always a great time at the Ritter household.

So...  Here is how I sum up 53 years old.  Full of ups and downs but as long as I stayed out of treatment it was a great year... 

Now on to a treatment free 54....

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Shingles !!!

All was well and I was doing great. The minor problems that I have really don't hurt so I'm good with them. In fact, my Dr. and Oncologist always knew my response when asked how I was doing. It was always "Great, and what I do have doesn't hurt so I'm good". Well I really can't say that now.

It all started this last Tuesday at the gym. I use a heart rate monitor with a chest strap sending unit. I noticed that the skin under my strap really itched and hurt. My thought at the time was I needed a good cleaning of the strap. The next morning I got up and my skin continued to hurt. Wednesday afternoon my skin hurt more and I noticed a rash starting. I was still thinking that it was because of the dirty HRM strap. About an hour before bed on Wednesday I started having right lung pain. I took some Ibuprofen but it didn't even touch the pain. To get some sleep I took some codeine. I also noticed my rash was growing and starting to really bother me more. Thursday morning I got up and noticed my rash was growing all along my chest back to my spine in a mostly straight line. The codeine seemed to keep the lung pain under control and I didn't have a fever or a cough so I was just going to Marine up and wait until my Dr. visit the next Tuesday.

Well, a blog friend of mine, Big EZ, also has MM and blogged the fact that he had shingles. The more I read the more I kept saying to myself... Yes - I have that, Yes - I have that, etc.. So I emailed him and he encouraged me to call my Dr. right away and get in. I did that and his nurse said I would be in the office that evening. By the time I got there my chest hurt so much that I could barely take a breath. My Dr. looked for about 2 seconds and agreed it was shingles... Now with an anti-viral and a big bottle of codeine I'm on my way to getting better. The rash is still in the growing phase but my pain is under control. I went ahead and took a sick day from work so that will give me 3 whole days to get back on my feet.

A BIG thank you goes out to The BIG EZ.. for his help and support. Blog friends can get a great source of knowledge and support and I'm truly thankful for all my blog friends. The next 3 weeks won't be much fun but all in all I'm doing great. A small set back but it doesn't really change the larger picture.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

All Clear for the next 6 months

Final visit to my local Oncologist today. That after my Free Light chain test and Bone scan. She said I was doing great and they will continue to watch me.

Not sure if my bone scan was clear because I forgot to ask, but she didn't say anything about it, so no news is good news. I will get a written request from the imaging clinic so I will know for sure then.

My Free light chain was about the same:

My kappa is high 23.42 (normal is 3.30 - 19.40)
My lambda is low 3.96 (normal is 5.71 - 26.30)
My ratio is: 5.91
My last kappa - lambda ratio was: 4.1

So it is up a bit, but nothing she was worried about.

I'll just relax for the next 6 month and enjoy life.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

Stable

The visit to UCSF is over and all my numbers are good. The cancer hasn't started to run crazy yet so that is good. The only issue is my peripheral neuropathy. Dr. Martin had a lot of questions about that. Because I'm smoldering I shouldn't have any peripheral neuropathy. Well I do, and I went over it and that was that. Until last night at about 6:30 Dr. Martin called me at home to go over it again. I think the basic feeling is that the peripheral neuropathy isn't myeloma related. He is going to have my local oncologist refer me to a neurological specialist to run some tests.

One thing that is new to me is having so many doctors. I have spent my whole life just working with one, my GP. Yes, there was the occasional referral to get something specific done, but it was go there, get it done and move on. Now I have 3 Dr's that I see fairly regular. I just can't see adding another. Plus, they all want time lines on when it started, and that gets very confusing because the MM diagnosis and all that happened after that. I just get things mixed up, forget important parts.. well you know the story.

The cost thing set aside, I really don't know which way to turn. If, it isn't the myeloma then I wonder how important it is to really figure out what is causing it. I'm fairly well controlled on the medication my GP has me on. I can live and exercise almost normally. If it is the myeloma then I'm not sure a referral will help.

So, I guess I will go to my local oncologist the end of the month and ask some very direct questions about this. I hope that this gets settled quickly and finally.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

It's Over

Just a short note to let everyone know I made it through my bone marrow biopsy. To say "I made it through" isn't really correct, it wasn't really that big a deal. They are real pro's at UCSF and everyone I came in touch with did every thing they could to make me comfortable. Bone Marrow Biopsy's aren't pleasant but compared to a lot of things they really aren't that bad either.

Hip is a little sore but I was able to ride 16 miles on Friday, the day after my biopsy, and 38.5 today. So I guess I'm back to 100%.

I will know the results in a week or so. I see Dr. Martin on Nov. 1st. to get the Dr. eye view on all this.

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...

It is getting stranger... but taking it in stride

So on my last blog I told everyone that all of a sudden I'm being paid a lot of attention to. Dr. offices calling me, scheduling of tests, etc.

Yesterday I got a call, out of the blue, from UCSF that I was scheduled for a bone marrow biopsy. My UCSF oncologist wanted it done right away and so it will be next Thursday morning. Thursday morning!!! UCSF has never done anything this fast before!!! I called the nurse and asked if it was normal or was something going on. All he could tell me was "the Dr. ordered it as soon as we could schedule it... and that is next Thursday". I asked if I needed to confirm it... he said, "No you just need to be here".

I'm use to being the patient that nobody is worried about. The patient who gets to choose, come back in 3,4 or 6 months? The patient who always worries more than the doctors. Not really use to all this unsolicited attention.

Luckily my company, and most importantly my boss, were very supportive. I will be able to go, in fact, he told me to take Friday off and just relax. So... I'm taking this all in stride. I totally understand that this is probably no big thing and I will be back to my normal healthy self real soon. It is just the strange world of having MM... I'm sure all my MM blogger friends can relate...

The body is sick, but thanks to Jesus the soul is alive and well...