First Obinutuzumab Infusion: Turn Down For What???

So they hooked up the little clear bag to the top of my IV pole (is that what it’s called?) and connected it to my vein. We started the infusion right at noon, preceded by two pirtobrutinib pills, some benadryl, tylenol (look out, RFK!!), and a cartoonishly large Starbucks coffee that would only look normal in Andre the Giant’s hand. 

And I waited for the reaction, and I scanned my body for flu-like symptoms, and I asked the nurse if I’d be feeling them by now, and….nothing happened. No reaction at all. My body handled it no problem, and the most eventful part of that four hour infusion was how much I urinated. I got it into my head that every time I pee, that’s cancer leaving my body (that's really how it works, by the way), and I was determined to go every 30 minutes (success!). My nurse wanted to monitor my urine (color, amount, etc.), so she gave me these plastic milk jug-looking things and told me to pee in those and leave them in the bathroom - I just kept filling those suckers up.

Lil John

I’m feeling pretty great about how yesterday went. It’s unclear whether or not the fact that I had no reaction when most CLL patients do is any indication that I’ll tolerate or respond to this treatment better than average, but I’m gonna go ahead and tell myself that it is. Of the 80 or so patients who have done this trial before me, more than 80% of them were uMRD6 by the end of the trial. uMRD meaning “under measurable residual disease” and the 6 meaning out of 1 million blood cells. In other words, they test 1 million blood cells and cannot detect a single CLL cell in there. That’s the most sensitive blood test that exists, and I like to think I’ll be a part of the uMRD6 gang by the end of 2026. Also, the leukemia doctors here believe that some patients will be “functionally cured” by this trial, meaning that the disease will exist at some small molecular level, but the patient will never relapse nor require treatment again. Why not me? Sure as hell handled that first obinutuzumab infusion well.

Yesterday’s silky smooth infusion also means a high likelihood that I’ll be discharged some time tomorrow afternoon (Thursday), and the Houston Rockets have a home game against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. Might have to check that out!

Today will be some more pirtobrutinib (I’ll be taking this daily for the rest of the trial), followed by the remaining 900ml infusion of obinutuzumab. Becky will likely be here soon with a Starbucks for every man, woman and child in Texas, and my urine jugs are about to get a workout. The cancer cells in my body are about to have a rough Wednesday.