Arsenic and Old ATRA

On Friday, November 7, we got the word that the Ommaya was ready for use. So Dr. G. came up to Tim's hospital room and put it through its paces. It's certainly a lot easier to get an injection in your scalp than in the base of the spine. Tim will be getting methotrexate injections until the CNS leukemia is gone. We don't know how long that will take.

After the chemotherapy shot, they sent us home. Later that evening was when Dr. G. called with the bone marrow biopsy results. He told Tim that he should start taking ATRA right away. ATRA, all-trans retinoic acid, is a vitamin A derivitive that is a specific treatment for APL. It forces the leukemia cells to mature so that they can be targeted by regular chemotherapy and die. So I drove back to the hospital to pick up all the ATRA they could spare. I will get more today (Monday.) God bless HMO Illinois. ATRA is a VERY expensive drug, but the HMO covers it just like any other prescription. Remind me to blog on healthcare. We have decided opinions on health care reform.

Tim hates the ATRA. It's five pills twice a day. They have to be taken on a full stomach or Tim gets sick. ATRA gives Tim a headache and the hiccups. But just after breakfast and just after dinner, Tim takes the ATRA. Next Monday, Tim will start receiving arsenic again. That requires a two-hour IV infusion. A two hour IV usually translates into three hours at the hospital. That's a lot of time staring at the walls in the Kellogg Center. We just hope that this round of arsenic will go a little smoother than last time and won't last as long.