Hurray for today!

Today, March 23, 2009, marked the first day of Bryon's clinical trial. The trial was conducted at the University Hospital and overseen by Dr. "can't remember the name." He was very nice and informative, but couldn't scare Bryon enough to make him forgo the treatment.

The weather was absolutely brutal, so to save some sleep and stress, Bryon and his wife stayed Sunday night in Salt Lake. The trip the next morning to the hospital was white out conditions, as a winter storm rolled over the state. They made it to their appointment on time, however, right at 7:30 AM.

Meals were provided by the hospital, as well as a bed for Sara to camp out on during the day. Treatment began after a sermon of side effects and and disclaimers. This would be the longest day of the treatment because of all the explanations and tests. The nurses ultimate goal was to have Bryon out by 7:00 PM.

Bryon received several ECG's and gave multiple ounces of blood throughout the day. They confirmed Bryon was anemic before the trial even started and warned him to eat his vegetables. It was not terribly concerning, since they went ahead with the experimental drug and the Carboplatin (chemo) anyway. MPC is what they referred to the trial drug as, and it took 4 hours to be pumped through Bryon's veins. Then, after drawing more blood, they pumped in the Carboplatin. No matter how fast the chemo goes in, Bryon still has a four hour waiting period to make sure he has no ill affects from the MPC. It made for a very long afternoon.

The good news was, during the final assessment, the doctor concluded Bryon handled both drugs extremely well. He said that however Bryon tolerated the drug in the next 24 hours, is probably how it will affect him throughout the rest of the trial. This process will happen two more times, minus the Carbotplatin, and then Bryon will go in for an MRI. They should be able to tell by then if it is working. This is a very exciting time and we hope Bryon's body will tolerate the drugs well enough for him to function. Going back work seems to have lifted his spirits, but he will have to be careful around others as he is more susceptible to illness while on this chemo.