Coley's Toxins IV #9 - A better fever but could be higher. A lingering (but very infrequent) cough.

Today we increased dosage again to 0.003ml. The fever was uneventful and predictable. It was somewhat better than the last one. However, it wasn't as high as we'd hoped for. The peak was a tad below the desired 102.5F threshold. So we'll need to increase again next Monday.

Well, so far, it looks like her Coley fevers are becoming quite predictable and boring -- and that's the way we like it. It'll be interesting though to see if we're able to reach the higher temperatures - and to see how how she tolerates them.

Again, the side effects have been quite minimal. The fatigue, increased heart rate, bone aches that occur during the fever all disappear as the fever subsides. And they are very minor to start with.

The only side effect that seems to somewhat linger on after fevers are gone are a slight cough. It's very infrequent -- we're talking maybe 20 coughs over the entire day.

The doctors think this could be due to general inflammation that Coley's induces. The worse case scenario would be the cough is caused by potential lung tumor(s). Our last scan on June 7th showed two tiny 2mm and 3mm nodules that are suspicious. They were too small to biopsy. Sarcomas can grow very fast. Thus, there's always the possibility that if those were tumors, they may have grown large enough to be symptomatic.

Even so, the cough may not be a bad thing. It could signify the vaccine having positive effect on potential tumors. There's a clear correlation between the frequency & intensity of coughs and the fevers. Coughing is more frequent during fevers - and more so during the fever peak. Regardless, let's hope the cough is due to something else.