karl&myeloma

Today is Rm 3-16.

As you know, I’ve been taking 40 mg every other day of methylprednisolone instead of 20 mg dexamethasone once per week. (Dexamethasone is known to be the single most powerful steroid in use in oral chemotherapy for cancer at this time.) My alternate consulting physician, James, had suggested the methylprednisolone regimen because he doesn’t like the effects of the dexamethasone. It is known to be less powerful and patients seem to tolerate it better.

I was about 10 days into this regimen of taking the methylprednisolone every other day in the morning with breakfast and last week found that I was getting the jitters in the afternoon and sometimes having trouble sleeping. So I made a telephone consulting appointment with James last Friday evening and explained my situation. He suggested I try two things before I reduced the dose: 1) try taking the methylprednisolone at night before going to bed, or 2) splitting the dose as 24 mg first day, followed by 16 mg the following day. I decided on the latter, and so far, so good.

I’ve also changed one habit in taking the Revlimid. I now take it just before bedtime with the other myeloma drugs (81 mg aspirin to prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), 25 mg amitriptaline for relief of peripheral neuropathy, and the extra calcium James asked me to take).

It seems that the peripheral neuropathy in my feet is better, perhaps at least partly because of the Alpha-Lipoic Acid capsules that I’ve also been taking in the morning along with my other supplements and steroid. I haven’t had many issues of the sharp pains recently, either. One thing strange is that I’ve picked up some peripheral neuropathy in the tip of my ring finger of my left hand. I’ll watch this closely.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for my healing.

Amen.