Dr. Chui (kidney problem)

It wasn't bad driving to and from Portland today. The sun was out and there were a few sprinkles this morning, and no moisture coming home. We got to OHSU after 10. Curt has lost about 5 lbs. (weighs 149.9 lbs.) in 3 weeks and his BP was 124/80. He saw another Resident Doctor first and Curt told her all his problems. One of the biggest concerns is the headaches he is getting. He needs to take Excedrin about every 4 or 5 hours and sometimes takes some Oxycodone. They asked how painful these were compared to before he started the chemo (they seem to be less, but Curt tries to take something when he feels the pain coming on). The other big concern is his weight loss. His sore tongue and cheek, with a lack of chewing, are major factors. He only eats liquids or very soft foods. I have used my new hand blender a few times for him. The numbness in his hands and feet are about the same. We have been having nice weather lately (not much rain and in the 50's), and he has taken several walks. His ear is bothering him again. It feels plugged and sometimes has pain. We have been putting in some drops again, and he thinks it helps. He is going to run out of that pretty soon. Dr. Chui thought Curt looked pretty good in general and his eye is not so bad now. Dr. Chui told Curt to double the antidepressant he is taking. I guess it is good to gradually work into the dose he might need. Because of the pain and Curt's weight loss, Dr. Chui wanted to do one more treatment today and then have a MRI in a couple weeks.
When Curt went in for the treatment, they had trouble again with his Port. They finally took a blood sample from his arm. One good thing is that the red cell count was okay (it was a little low). However, it showed his kidneys were not functioning right to get rid of the BUN (Blood Urea Nitrogen) and CRE (Creatinine). This can be caused by certain medications (including chemotherapy) and dehydration. Curt does need to drink more. So Dr. Chui did not want to proceed with the chemo today and wanted Curt to get an ultrasound of his kidneys after getting 2 big bags of fluids. It took a couple nurses almost 2 hours to finally draw some blood through his Port (they finally put in something to dissolve any obstructions and had to wait for that to work). Then it took at least an hour for each bag of fluid. Our friends, the Huffords, stopped by to visit for a little while. The ultrasound was afterwards in the same building. It was almost 5 o'clock before we got out of there. Dr. Chui wants to see Curt again this Thursday for another blood test, go over the ultrasound, and possibly have the chemotherapy. If this chemotherapy is not working, there is only about one other kind to try, and it has very bad side effects on your skin. So we wait to see what happens next.