New Chemo Protocol

The chemo protocol that KK will be receiving this time around includes Temozolomide and Avastin. It will be administered over the next year.

Temozolomide:
The doctors tested Charlie and confirmed that the tumor had markers that would be sensitive to Temozolomide. Temozolomide, also known as Temodar, is the chemo pill that KK took during radiation. She took 140mg on an empty stomach right before bed with a dose of anti-nausea medicine called Zofran. She tolerated it really well...she didn't experience any nausea and blood counts dropped a bit but not enough to be concerned.

For this round, they are increasing the dosage from 140mg to 220mg. They will increase the dose to 300mg next month if she is able to tolerate 220mg well. KK will take Temozolomide for 5 days followed by 23 days off. The doctors gave me a packet of information with possible side effects, but I wanted to know what they typically see. I was told that KK may feel a little more nauseous than before and she will probably need Zofran in the morning in addition to bedtime. They also said her blood counts will likely drop on week 3, so they will continue monitoring things like red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.

Avastin:
Avastin, also known as Bevacisumab, is the new chemo drug that KK will receive. It is given as an infusion every 2 weeks. The first infusion is given over 90 minutes. If it is tolerated well, the second infusion is given over a period of 60 minutes. Again, if that is tolerated well, the subsequent infusions will be given over a 30 minute period. The hope is that this drug will stop new blood vessels from forming thereby cutting off the cancer's "food supply".

KK received her first infusion yesterday and did pretty well. She was exhausted by the end of the infusion. However, there were multiple reasons why she would be so exhausted, so we cannot blame it on the infusion. KK did wake up at midnight and threw up. I assumed it was due to the Avastin, but the nurse said that they don't usually see vomiting with it. We will give her Zofran with the next infusion just in case.