After a little haggling and an initial denial by the insurance company my wife (Cheryl) got the thalidomide approved and the prescription filled yesterday so I started taking it last night.
Thank God for health insurance and Computer Services, Inc. (CSI). We have often said over the past four years we are so thankful that Cheryl went to work for them. There aren't many companies in this world that can claim "good to great" but CSI isn't just good they are great. The support that management and staff have provided has made this journey so much easier. It's too bad more of corporate America can't see the wisdom of an operation like CSI.
So far the only side effect of the thalidomide is probably the price. Without insurance a twenty-eight (28) days supply would have been $3,479.19. Yep, almost $3,500! We had to pay our co-pay of $35. Since the last time I took thalidomide, about two (2) years ago, the price has increased almost $1,500.
Over the next six (6) weeks I will be increasing my daily dosage from 50 mg to 200 mg. By the time I reach the full dosage, if it is like the last time, I will pretty much be an exhausted zombie. That is because thalidomide was originally dispensed as a sleep agent. In the 1950s they discovered that it caused massive deformities in babies whose mother took it to help them sleep.
Interestingly, the reason it created the deformities is the reason it helps with Multiple Myeloma. It stops the growth of blood veins and vessels. Because of this there is less oxygen in the blood to feed the cancer. This in turn, theoretically, helps keep the myeloma from growing as fast, thus prolonging life. Okay, that is a layman's explanation as I understand it. Anyway, I will take the thalidomide as long as I can tolerate it and as long as the doctors think it is working... then to the next step.
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