A new plan

The attending physician and my oncologist consulted and came up with a treatment plan to prevent more clots. While I am in the hospital, I will go on a higher dose of Lovenox (3 doses, 12 hours apart). I was taking Lovenox after being discharged from the Reston hospital and ended up in the ER 5 days later with another clot, but the doctors think the higher dose will be more effective. After the third dose, they will test my blood for anti-factor Xa. Although it sounds like a weapon used by a Marvel superhero, it is a way to measure blood coagulation. If the results are good, then I can go home on Friday and continue taking Lovenox. If not, then we go back to the drawing board.

I got a big piece of good news yesterday. In addition to the reduced lung inflammation, the radiologist noted that the cancerous nodules are a bit smaller. These are early signs that Tagrisso seems to be working!

I felt much better after hearing this news and having a plan in place. Nonetheless, it is hard to go back to feeling out of breath after walking 10 feet to the bathroom, even while using oxygen. Pulmonary embolisms are no joke. I was telling Leland that I feel like I'm back at square 2, but he reminded me that I'm not because I haven't spent 2 weeks lying in bed. Still, the setbacks are discouraging. 

Leland and Lily took me outside for a while last night with my IV pole and oxygen tank. We visited and watched the sunset with a friend who is also hospitalized here. I also enjoyed visits with several other friends throughout the day. 

Once again, I urge you to pay attention to your body and advocate for yourself. The signs earlier this week were subtle: my heart rate was a bit higher, the walk to campus felt somewhat harder than usual, I needed more oxygen, and even on the higher oxygen my saturation rate was low. I could have waited a couple days to see what happened, but instead I called my oncologist and she recommended the CT scan, which, along with the ultrasound, led to the discovery of the enlarged clots. A friend who visited yesterday relayed how long she had to fight to get her son diagnosed with what turned out to be Crohn's disease -- and how one doctor after another dismissed her concerns and her son's symptoms. 

If in doubt, check it out.