What? No Side Effects?

As of last Tuesday, I did not appear to be experiencing any of the known side effects from Vemurafenib.  Because it had been a week since I began the drug study, both Keith and I couldn't help pondering the following questions:

• Does this mean the drug is not working for me?
• Should my dose of the drug be adjusted?
• Am I going to be the statistical outlier who receives the benefits of the drug but exhibits none of the associated problems?

Here are the answers:

• There is no correlation between the presence or onset of symptoms and efficacy.  Some patients have not exhibited side effects for months, others present with side effects immediately.  Some patients experience numerous side effects, others have very few.
• Typically, nothing regarding dosage is changed before the 28th day of treatment.  Everyone starts with the same dose.  Unless there is a major problem,  the dose remains the same.
• Even though I love to swim in the 'overachiever pool' and have already demonstrated that I am not the typical patient with stage 4 metastatic melanoma, it is highly unlikely I will avoid all side effects.

By last Friday, the 'Symptom Samba' began - although it took me a while to recognize what was going on.  I could not seem to get comfortable in bed that night no matter how I arranged the bed pillows.  My left shoulder was aching.  Geez - did I over do it when I worked out at the gym on Thursday?

While having dinner at friend's house on Saturday, the index finger on my left hand was so sore it was driving me crazy.  Heck, I didn't spend the afternoon chopping while making dinner.  I merely showed up with some vegetables to steam.  Did I somehow strain my finger carrying something?

Duh! I was beginning to experience joint & muscle pain.

By Sunday, the swelling set in and I started applying ice packs to minimize the discomfort.  We sure have gotten our money's worth for the 'pea packs' we purchased from CVS last August when I started this journey!  Fortunately, we have become quite adept at utilizing them with ace bandages to hold them in place.

When we saw Dr. Flaherty for my 2 week check up this Tuesday, it was also discerned that the nausea I have been having is related to the Vemurafenib and not a lingering side effect of my last Gamma Knife radiation treatment at the end of January..  The good news is that sucking on crystalized ginger or peppermints helps to alleviate the nauseous feeling.

Pretty soon, I was limping because my left ankle was now part of the joint pain.  At least by this point, I wasn't mistakenly attempting to attribute this to something else.  In the big picture, these are mere discomforts and I have faced much bigger demons than a few aches and pains.

Plus, having Keith around always makes me better - not to mention the pleasure of anticipating Melissa coming home at the end of next week.  It doesn't get much better than that!