Last Tuesday I had my 17th chemo. Now I am struggling through another week of severe nausea. Despite a regime of four anti-nausea meds, I could not keep liquids down yesterday, so back to the hospital I went for IV fluids and more anti-emetics. I even threw up in the infusion chair while getting more anti-nausea meds! Still feeling yucky today but liquids are staying down and that's most important. My feet, leg, and hands are exhibiting the side effects of Doxorubicin. It is a hot blistering acidic feeling, different from neuropathy, very unpleasant, but it should diminish after treatment. I tried a new product, Care By Design pain cream, a 1:1 ratio of THC to CBD that has helped the burning feeling, another use for Cannabinoids!
What has kept me going through the past few days was the outpouring of donations to GoFundMe. Thank you, everyone, for believing in me, my campaign to reschedule Cannabis, and the science of this amazing medicine. Michael is working full tilt to have a "fine cut" of the film by Nov. 15th the deadline for SBIFF. You contributions are being put hard to work.
Here is a rambling summary of other happenings: Attending CannMed conference in Pasadena buoyed my spirits, being at a conference with hundreds of Cannabinoid researchers; meeting Prof. Mechoulam, the "Grandfather of Cannabinoid science," and chatting with Dr. Meiri were very life-affirming. After "google stalking" Dr. Meiri for almost a year, reading his papers, giving myself a crash course in Bio-Chemistry so I could almost understand them, I burst into tears when I saw him. He was thrilled to hear I shrank my tumor and we had a lovely talk. He humored me by taking interest in the ridiculous little data set I made of my tumor's response to my cannabinoid formula. I also interviewed many of the leading cannabis clinicians. Thank you to Dr. Joe, Dr. MacIllroy, Dr. Sulak, Dr. Bearman and Mara Gordon for your time and willingness to participate in my little film. And thank you to the amazing McKernan family and employees at Medicinal Genomics; if not for your hosting the first CannMed at Harvard Med School back in 2017, I would not be here. It was Dr. Meiri's talk, uploaded to CannMed's youtube channel, that convinced me this was real. You have extended at least one life! I know that to be true.
Just a few days after CannMed it was back to LA for an appointment with Dr. Bonni Goldstein, another very experienced Cannabis physician. She gave me new and detailed dosing instructions and reiterated that she has many patients who come to her with metastatic disease that stay in remission for years beyond expectations! Since I know my tumor responds, I hold onto that hope.
And last but not least, I gave my first interview on local SB TV.
If you have not seen the trailer yet, here it is again. Watch and pass around. My 47th birthday is next week. And aside from the big wish that this is not my last birthday, I would love to get more views on the tube trailer. As a birthday gift to me, consider forwarding it to anyone who might benefit from watching. A physician, a biochemist, a cancer patient, or the head of the DEA perhaps?
Hugs to all, MK