No More DEX

For over a week I had to take a little dexamethasone (DEX) now and then to manage a severe pain in my back and lower right abdomen.  I don't know for sure why the DEX fixed the pain when Vicodin didn't, but it was magic.  DEX is a powerful anti-inflammatory, so my theory is that something was inflamed and pressing on the spinal cord, and the DEX reduced that inflammation.

If that's what happened, I don't know why the inflammation showed up, or why it went away.  I haven't taken any DEX for three full days now, and I'm glad to be off DEX because it can have serious side effects from long term use.  I may need to take it as part of a future treatment protocol, but not for the current protocol.

I have another appointment at Mayo next week, and a PET scan is scheduled to try to get more information about the possible cause of the inflammation.