Cancer Update Oct30 2025

The scheduled infusion for last Friday got put off until yesterday due to a late blood test. Since I just did a new infusion with a new stack of drugs, I decided a baseline photo shoot is in order.

Here is my lumpy face as of this morning.

No, I'm not mouth hanging open and drooling yet. I was starting to say something to Lorien just as the camera finally took the picture. Auto-everything is annoying.

Those lumps in front of the ear help clog the eustacian tube for some killer earaches. Fortunately, things are working this morning.

Starting to get action on the other side of the area under the jaw as well. Opening my mouth fully is challenging.

During the past week the cancer has been growing like gangbusters. Between growing faster than my skin in the back -- to the point of bleeding -- and growing on either side of my ear for some killer earaches, I gave in and asked for pain killers. Percocet (5mg oxycodone + 325 mg of acetaminophen) was game changing. Significant pain relief without the debilitation from cannabis gummies. I could get things done! But by the last few days even that wasn't getting the job done.

But maybe the new infusion will get the job done. I'm doing a stack of Keytruda and Erbitux. Both are approved to work in conjunction with chemo. Maybe stacking with each other will do the job. Time will tell.

These monoclonal antibodies are so powerful that the immune system needs to be muted while giving the infusion, so I won't know the full effect until the mutes wear out. Before the antibodies I was given an anti nausea drug, prilosec, benadryl, and a steroid (not an anabolic! Something more like prednisone but I didn't catch the name.) All intravenously.

Intravenous benadryl is something else! An incredible high. 0 to Long Island Iced Tea buzz in 15 seconds. I nearly fell asleep.

Anyway, I am out of pain this morning. No need for the percocet. I don't know how much of this is the steroid and benadryl still doing their thing or if the infusion proper is already doing something useful. I suspect the former.