Update

Grace and I met with my oncologist Dr. Nestor yesterday afternoon. We decided that I will go on a "maintenance schedule" of just Avastin every three weeks for now. Dr. Nestor thinks that we have achieved "treatment to the best response" - that is, given the good response that I've had to the chemotherapy, more chemotherapy seems likely to have little additional benefit, and not enough benefit to outweigh the cost of making me feel bad (the fatigue would be expected to get worse and worse, and it had already reached the point of unacceptability to me). However, Dr. Nestor did not recommend taking a break from treatment entirely, so I will drop the "FOLFIRI" drug combo but keep the Avastin, which has less side effects. We will continue to monitor my condition via the CEA blood marker, occasional PET scans, and how I am feeling. When the cancer starts spreading again (apparently it's a matter of "when" not "if," barring a miracle - keep those prayers coming!), I will have to decide whether I want to resume the full chemo or not. The "time to progression" (when the cancer starts spreading) is unpredictable.

Dr. Nestor estimates that people typically regain 60-80% of their energy 6-8 weeks after stopping chemo. That matches my experience, in that it's been 5 weeks since my last full chemo, and I am still nowhere near my normal energy level. I am able to do some stuff, but I still spend a fair bit of time just sitting around and resting. Fortunately watching baseball suits my current energy level. I used to find baseball games too slow to sit and watch all the way through, but now their pace and rhythm suit me fine.

Ethan