Tumor Marker Update!! Stray Cat Visualization Working?

Today was what I am now calling a "Z" Day - now when I go in to get my monthly Zoladex in my abdomen (Zoladex shuts down my ovaries), I will also get Zometa intravenously. Zometa makes my bones harder and more difficult for cancer to lodge there - remember that the cancer was in my bone marrow, not on my bones. Zometa keeps it that way.

While I was there, the nurse mentioned that she was going to have to get four vials of blood for various tests - one each for the two tumor markers CA 15-3 and CEA, one for the CBC (blood chemistry - red and white blood cell counts), and one for a CMP (metabolic panel - i.e., calcium, potassium, etc.). I asked if they did the tumor markers last month and they did, so I asked what they were.

The CA 15-3 was 14.5!!! Down from 18 in August! The story of the CA15-3 levels are as follows (below 31 is "normal"):
Sept 2007 - 23
Jan 2008 - 31
Mar 2008 - 36
June 2008 - 23 (started radiation that month)
Aug 2008 - 18
Sept 2008 - 14.5 YAAAAAAY!!!

And, my CEA was 0.5. Normal is below 3.8. My CEA has been either 1.1 or 0.9 - three or four of them since Jan 2008. In September, it was half what it was earlier this year!

HOW COOL IS THAT!!!

When chatting with my oncologist (see that post here), I told him that now that we shut down the "cancer cell factory in the breast area", I could now turn my attention to my bones. He agreed that he felt the cancer cell factory was indeed shut down.

And, I guess it really is! Radiation, visualization, the meds, the herbs, acupuncture, qi gong, meditation, reiki, etc., is working, I tell ya!

Also, for the first time in a long time, my blood counts today were normal! Usually, I am slightly anemic with slightly low red blood cell and hematocrit levels. Well . . . they were in the normal range! My acupuncturist has me taking a Chinese herbal supplement called Gynostemma, which helps to "build blood". It says to take 3 to 5 3 times a day, which I was doing but when I started Xeloda and Tykerb, I started only taking 2 at night so as not to give my system too much to handle. A couple of weeks ago, after an acupuncture treatment in which we are trying to strengthen my blood (and also the bone marrow, which produces blood cells), I started taking 2 of them 2 times a day. Guess it's working, huh?

Not even having to get poked three times today will take away the good feeling associated with that news! (I jinxed the poor nurse today - several months ago, after someone poked me twice and didn't catch a vein, she came in and was able to do it. She said that I shouldn't have said that because she probably wouldn't be able to find a vein. Well, she couldn't. She felt really bad, so another nurse came in and found one. Got the job done.)

A good day, wouldn't you say? : )

I'll say it again, but stronger - it's a great day!!!