Radiation, chemo, and new drugs, oh my!

Today will be a busy day. The ambulance company has already called to confirm their appointment for 9:45 to take me to radiation. I have 6 more radiation treatments. Then the doctors will re-evaluate my knee and probably suggest more radiation.

I also have chemo today. At least I am pretty sure that I have chemo today. One of the chemo drugs that I take has a strange schedule that does not seem to stick in my brain. I will call the oncologist's office at 9 to make sure that 1) I should come and 2) there's room for me after my radiation appointment.

I may get to take my new drug during my chemo appointment. My oncologist stresses that this drug is not chemotherapy, but it treats cancer. The difference is probably the answer to a test offered in med school. This new drug interrupts the cell growth cycle in cancer cells so that they cannot grow. The drug just got FDA approved for use in treating sarcoma. Unfortunately, because it is a new drug, I need social workers' support in working with my insurance company to get it approved. Otherwise, the cost to me may be $3,000 - $4,000 a month for treatment.

I know that pharmaceutical companies need to make profits, but I cannot comprehend how this drug can cost so much. I would like to see a breakdown of the costs of all my drugs. I haven't received any bills for the chemo for the sarcoma, but bills for breast cancer chemo showed that my insurance was billed $5,000 for just one of the drugs. I think the total bill to my insurance company was around $10,000 per chemo treatment. Insurance pays a different amount and somehow I owed less than $100 for each treatment. It feels like pharmaceutical companies just make up prices knowing that insurance companies are going to make up what they pay. I feel nervous that the new sarcoma drug (which seems perfect for my treatment) will be out of reach. I cannot be too nervous about it, as I will find out for certain within a few hours.

Luckily, with chemo, we will have a good guess of when we will be ready to leave. We can call transportation early, so that we do not have to wait 2 hours for the ambulance to pick us up. I cannot wait to be strong enough to scoot down the stairs on my bottom so that we can drive to treatment. It is the little things in life that are important to appreciate. It is going to blow my mind with joy when I am strong enough to go downstairs standing (at least the first time).