I had dex at the start of the month (March 1-4). This time I had PVCs, which was a new thing for me (as far as dexamethasone is concerned). I’ve had PVCs before, but not so much with dex, and not to this extent. PVCs are premature ventricular contractions. PVCs interrupt the normal heart rhythm and cause an irregular beat. This is often felt as a “missed beat” or a “flip-flop” in the chest. I know what they are, because I’ve had a Holter Monitor in place for 24 hours before to try to diagnose the problem when it first arose some years ago. It’s an uncomfortable and annoying feeling, but the cardiologist called it benign at the time.
I talked to a research nurse at Wake Forest University about the Phase III REVIMID Clinical Trials they’re running. There’s a lot of dex involved, and that scares me. I can handle 4 days a month, but I’m not sure about 12. I’m trying to decide what to do. The reason I am even thinking about it is because of the neuropathy I’m feeling as a result of my months on Thalomid. The nurse did say that the dex doses can be cut down if there are too many side effects.
The other uncertainty about the trial is that there’s a placebo arm. This means that I could get just dex and no Revimid. If my MM were to advance while on this trial, and it turned out I was taking the placebo, I would be given the real drug.
Try taking your Dexamethasone just after breakfast — you will sleep better that way — I took 200mg of Thalidimide for 5 months before they found I had a 13q del — so now I am just starding 4 monts of VAD — I’m being treated in the Hampton Virginia VA Medical Center and the Nashville TN VA Center that is next to Vanderbilt University — Have they tried to havesty your stem cells? Dex is a tough drug — I taken 40mg 44 days since Sept 03 — so I know — you should be checking your blood sugar — I have to inject insulin when I’m on Dex —