@jake072: @colleenyoung is correct. I had been sailing along fairly well with Keytruda for my Stage 4 melanoma with only a few speed bumps early on in my treatment…up until nearly the one year mark. The good thing at that time was my one metastatic nodule had resolved, but the bad is for the past six months I’ve been struggling with the effects of immune checkpoint inhibitor colitis including such related reactions as enteropathic arthritis. My activities of daily living have been fundamentally altered. But…I’m here. Years ago this diagnosis would have been a certain death sentence. As you’ve seen, this dreaded disease can rear its ugly head at any time, but how fortunate I feel to benefit from the interventions medicine has to offer. Sure, it’s not fun to take one (or more) medications to offset another but I realize if it wasn’t for Keytruda I’d be a lot worse off now.

While my oncologist has suspended further infusions, the hope is that once I get this current issue under control I can resume what I considered my “safety net”. Like any net, I realize i could lose my footing and fall through at any time. But what gratitude I have learned to express every day, for every moment - even the small joys found within them. I feel fortified with knowledge so that I am make informed decisions for whatever may come next, and hope to be at peace with those decisions.

Do what is best for you, and take some comfort that you are not alone.