Today I had my last chemo session - yeah!
It went ;like most of the other sessions, I had some wonderful people stop by and help pass the time. The nurses were great as usual and all the drugs tht needed to be given to me were. And when we were all done, I loving told the nurses I hope to never have to sit in their little green chairs again.
Before chemo I had my regular meeting with the doctor and learned a few things about the rest of the process. I will be meeting with the radiation oncologist next Monday. After meeting with him I will have a schedule and plan for the radiation therapy. In three months I will be have a CT Scan and meeting with the oncologist to see if the treatments are working. I will be having CT scans every three months for at least two years, maybe three. THen they will drop to every six months. The magic number is five - for making it five years after surgery and treatment with no relapse means that there is a very, very small chance that the cancer will return. I also learned thart because of the stage of my cancer there is at least a 50 percent chance of relapse. We are all hopefully that this stage of the treatment is working.
Overall I am feeling good. Tonight Jennifer and I will celebrate by going out to dinner and see RENT at a local theater. A nice little celebration before the meds wear off and I crash for awhile. Prayers are still appreciated and I will update when I learn more about the radiation.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Slower on the Uptake
Okay, this week I learned something new (I guess it is always good to learn something, right:). What I learned today is that after three sessions of chemo, the body is a bit slower to heal than it was at the beginning.
Normally I am feeling quite good by day 6 or so after chemo, this week I am on day six and I am still wiped out. The body is not doing what I want it to when I want it to, and that is a bit frustrating. So my whine for today is - C'mon body, get over it!
Now I know, in the big picture I am quite blessed with how well things have been going. To only have to worry about needing extra sleep and dealing with hiccups is very minor in all of this, but I guess I was spoiled from the beginning.
Wow - I just said I was spoiled during chemo. I never imagined that as a mindset I would have in my life.
So today I slept a little more, I took a few more breaks, I listened to my body. And all of these are good things. Maybe I am also being told to slow down in other ways as well.
Tomorrow I will be one step closer to being done with this part of the treatment. Today I will celebrate the fact that have this treatment to take care of the disease.
Yes, there are blessings - I just have to keep my eyes open for them.
Normally I am feeling quite good by day 6 or so after chemo, this week I am on day six and I am still wiped out. The body is not doing what I want it to when I want it to, and that is a bit frustrating. So my whine for today is - C'mon body, get over it!
Now I know, in the big picture I am quite blessed with how well things have been going. To only have to worry about needing extra sleep and dealing with hiccups is very minor in all of this, but I guess I was spoiled from the beginning.
Wow - I just said I was spoiled during chemo. I never imagined that as a mindset I would have in my life.
So today I slept a little more, I took a few more breaks, I listened to my body. And all of these are good things. Maybe I am also being told to slow down in other ways as well.
Tomorrow I will be one step closer to being done with this part of the treatment. Today I will celebrate the fact that have this treatment to take care of the disease.
Yes, there are blessings - I just have to keep my eyes open for them.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Chemo session 3 is done!
Well, I am 3/4 of the way done with my chemotherapy. Today was the third session, and it went as well as it has the previous times. I did my blood draw at 8:15 (everything was great again) and then met with the doctor before chemo. He was impressed with how well I have been responding to the chemo and the physical exam he did looked good again. Before he left I asked him about radiation and when I would meet with the radiation oncologist. He said I will me with the other doctor three weeks after I finish chemo, so that would be in mid-August. I was hoping to get the ball rolling earlier than that, but hey, he is the doc!
I also asked about how many session of radiation I will be doing, and he did not even hazard a guess. I have heard anywhere from 4 sessions to 25 sessions. I have learned that those sessions will do done 5 days a week and last about 15 minutes. One person I know who works with this said she thought I would be more around the 25 sessions. I will find out in six weeks.
Part of this is a bummer, because I was hoping to be done with everything by the end of August. Now it looks like I will run into September with some of the treatments. But, if this is what needs to be done to make sure there are no little cancer bugs hanging around, then lets do it right!
If the past two sessions are any guide, then I will be up late tonight because of the steroids. So I will be doing a little reading and writing and see how long the steroids mess with me. I am in the process of putting this whole experience down in book form, so late nights might actually help me get that done.
All for now, more will come later this week.
God Bless
I also asked about how many session of radiation I will be doing, and he did not even hazard a guess. I have heard anywhere from 4 sessions to 25 sessions. I have learned that those sessions will do done 5 days a week and last about 15 minutes. One person I know who works with this said she thought I would be more around the 25 sessions. I will find out in six weeks.
Part of this is a bummer, because I was hoping to be done with everything by the end of August. Now it looks like I will run into September with some of the treatments. But, if this is what needs to be done to make sure there are no little cancer bugs hanging around, then lets do it right!
If the past two sessions are any guide, then I will be up late tonight because of the steroids. So I will be doing a little reading and writing and see how long the steroids mess with me. I am in the process of putting this whole experience down in book form, so late nights might actually help me get that done.
All for now, more will come later this week.
God Bless
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