A plan for chemo

On Monday, Troy and I met with my oncologist for the first time. He is the same doctor who treated my mom many years ago, and she let me know that he is about the nicest person ever. She was right. He is older and called me "peanut" for most of our session, which I thought was adorable. He laid out the plan for my chemo, which caught me off guard. I had been hoping, since my cancer hadn't spread, that maybe I could get away with some easy chemo. That is not going to be the case. I'll have a session every other week for eight weeks, and then weekly sessions for twelve weeks. I will lose my hair 2-3 weeks after my first infusion, which is this Friday! And I won't be done with chemo until January. Dang. That was hard to hear. I've been feeling great, making progress, and it was overwhelming to hear how much longer this battle is going to last. So, what does one do when feeling a little glum? Get a good book, some sunshine, and a good dose of sugar:

 

 

I think I really was feeling blue because losing my hair will make me look like I have cancer. Right now I look pretty normal. But once I am sporting a wig, or head scarf, or whatever I end up choosing to do with my naked head, I will look like the cancer patient I am. You may be wondering why we're doing such aggressive chemo, and it is all because of my age. The doctor explained that if I were 67, instead of 37, we wouldn't be doing any of this. If we chose not to do chemo, I would have about an 85% chance of being cancer-free for the rest of my life. With chemo, we raise the percentage to 95. Only God can do 100%.

 

I was also surprised at the number of medications I have to help control the nausea. I'm glad the bottles all have good instructions because this is also overwhelming:

 

 



I had two different appointments today, and the first was with physical therapy. I really liked the PT and I will see her once a week throughout my reconstruction. Today she spent a lot of time massaging around where the tissue expanders are to make sure that they're moving and aren't getting locked in place with scar tissue. And oh my, it felt so good! My worst pain right now is around my sternum, and that's because the muscles that attach there are really being stretched. So, I have some exercises to help with that and the range of motion in my arms. The PT also let me know that the amount of fluid put in my tissue expanders during surgery was pretty aggressive. That made me feel a little better and not so bad about complaining about it.

 

My second appointment for today was my PET scan. The scan is basically to check for any other cancer cells in my body and to create a baseline should future testing be necessary. One perk of being a cancer patient is good parking. You have to know the special code to enter. It is a pretty big deal:

 

 

The worst part of the PET scan was having to fast for four hours prior to the test. When I arrived I got an IV dose of radioactive sugar pushed into me, and then I went through the scanning tunnel. I was all wrapped up in blankets and had my arms pretty much tied down. And for some reason, as I started to go into the flesh-colored device, all I could think of was this scene from the movie "Patch Adams":

 

 

What in the world is wrong with me?! I couldn't laugh because I was not allowed to move. My mind is so odd sometimes. By the time the scan was done I was absolutely famished and had the worst headache ever. I ate about half a dozen Oreos on the drive home and then ate a gigantic lunch and took a nap. It was nice. And then, a little before 5pm, the oncologist called to let me know that the PET scan confirmed that there is no additional cancer hanging out in my hot little body.

 

People keep asking me what they can do to help. Right now, things are pretty well covered. But don't worry, I'll speak up when something comes up. Since I don't have anything for you to do for me, why don't you do something for yourself? I'll even give you some options:

• If you are a woman, check out your boobs. Right now. While you're reading this. Seriously. Click here for steps on how to do it. If you're between 35-40 see if your insurance will pay for a baseline mammogram and then go get one. If you're over 40 and haven't had a mammogram yet GO GET ONE! You could have cancer growing in you and not even know it. Be proactive; nobody else is going to do it for you.
• If you are a man, you have "man stuff" you can check out. I've seen videos about it. One involved a rugby team. I would post a link but I feel a little awkward doing it. 
• If my spiritual ramblings have piqued your interest in what I believe, let me know. I am happy to chat. If you don't have a church home, find one. Community with other believers is so important. If you want to read a good book that explains the Bible clearly and logically, check out "The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus" by John Cross. You can find it for less than $15 on Amazon.

Tomorrow is my only day this week where I have no doctor's appointments. I am going to go to Farrell's, sleep, read, watch tv, sit outside, and take naps. I am going to watch the hummingbirds in my backyard (I really do get a kick out of them, especially when they fight with each other). And yes, I will consume candy. It will be a great day.