Countdown to Cancer Free

Rest Time

2012-02-29T17:56:00.003-05:00

Maggie and Daddy got right to work on
the fruit basket!

I had a great visit from work friends yesterday. They brought a great card signed by everyone, a movie pass and a fantastic fruit basket. Thanks very much everyone!

I've been done the chemo and radiation for nearly two weeks now and I feel I'm starting to heal nicely. My burn has subsided enough to go to the Montreal Motorcycle show last week and I felt better every day after that. The last three days my burn has been good enough that I've been able to resume cardio activity. I'd like to continue with that as much as possible as exercise is supposed to help my healing.

I'm still napping daily but only for an hour instead of two hours and I don't feel as tired like I just got out of the microwave oven. You know that feeling when you stick your head in the microwave for 15 minutes?

Headaches are another side effect I've been experiencing but I can't complain as they don't last more than 20 minutes and they only hit me every few days. My wife gets them a lot worse and it looks painful.

The days are getting longer and tomorrow marks March 1st. I have an appointment with my surgeon next week and March is my month to rest up for the surgery in April. I know when I have the surgery, that'll really knock me flat on my ass so I'll take every day that I feel 80% and enjoy my time to rest. So far, I've been resting quite a bit.

Burn Is In Control

2012-02-23T21:24:00.000-05:00

Whitney Houston passed away on the weekend. Poor Whitney. Cripes, The Rolling Stones are still alive! The next morning, I was struck with so much diarrhea I couldn't take Kate, our five year old, to her ski lesson. I had to use the ensuite for some of it so I could give Erinn orders and persuade her to get out of bed to take Kate to her lesson. Mission accomplished.

The next night, I had diarrhea even worse. From 10pm to 2am. It's funny when it actually keeps you from going to bed and even worse that I was in physical pain. It was like my lower bowels were on fire. Today, however, I can celebrate three days in a row of no diarrhea. I'll take that.

Diarrhea and fatigue have been my only constant side effect. I'm technically not out of the woods on side effects from either chemo or radiation but I'm feeling pretty confident that I'm in the clear. I stopped taking the chemo pills on my last radiation day six days ago and, aside from the burn irritation, I feel 80% many days so long as I get a 2 hr nap daily. Today I even did cardio which was my first time in over two weeks.

Other side effects that I did not get were mouth sores, dental problems, hair loss, scaly hands and feet, itchy hands and feet, black hands and feet. Yikes. Of course, I'll be on the chemo bottle again after surgery for half a year. That will start in May.

Tomorrow is the Montreal Bike Show. I'm going. Snowstorms are nothing compared to waking up and not having diarrhea.

These are two of my motorcycles and the start of buying brand
new once I graduated from University. Cycle Canada phoned me
today to follow up on some details for an upcoming article on me
these two bikes. Stay tuned. They say the May issue.

Chapter 2 Complete

2012-02-17T13:31:00.002-05:00

When you're done your radiation stint, you ring this bell.
It reminds me of chow time!

I guess I should call Chapter 1 "Hey, You've Got Cancer!"

Today was my last radiation session. What a relief. Five weeks has come and gone and all I have is a wicked ass burn as a souvenir. Oh, and fatigue and diarrhea.

I dropped my dad off at the same hospital today as he had a follow-up from his eye surgery (thanks for loaning me the car, dad) so I was about an hour early for my radiation. To my surprise, they took me early. That's when the diarrhea kicked in.

I told them I'd be five minutes, I made a pit stop then walked into the radiation room. I popped a diarrhea pill in front of them and told them it was just a diet pill. I dropped my pants, got on the table, they spent about five minutes lining me up and then I had to abandon ship as I jumped off the table and ran down the hall asking them to give me four minutes.

I didn't feel so good but I was able to return and endure the last radiation. I've been lucky, my side effects have been minimal. I've only had about six days of diarrhea and, thankfully, not in a row. My bad nausea has been in the early weeks and my fatigue is pretty consistent throughout but a 2 hr nap every day helps that. The burn has been bad but this last week it's been tolerable as I started adding Palmolive dish soap in my Sitz bath. It's tough on dishes but soft on hands. My ass likes it.

The burn isn't pleasant. I've had blistering and broken skin. It hurts. And it'll probably get worse next week but after that, I like to look at it as recovery time and I'll nap every day during that six to eight weeks before surgery and try and give Erinn a break from the kids.

These two girls were the radiation technicians that I dropped my

pants for most often throughout the five weeks. Anne-Marie on the left,

me in the middle and Erinn on the right. Thankfully, Erinn spotted me
going to the washroom right before Radiation #10 and we addressed the
full bladder issue then.

Two days ago at radiation, I was asked into the Supervisor's office. It felt like I was being called into the Principal's office. Robert Brown just wanted feedback. After 20 seconds he said "Oh, you're that guy! We've had two staff meetings about you and I apologize profusely for what we put you through. You should not have had to repeat your CT Scan, we should not have had to tattoo you for nothing then mark you with Sharpies and your first radiation session shouldn't have taken 3 hours. And all with an empty bladder for the first nine sessions!"

He was very nice and clearly not every patient has these problems. I take it that future patients will get the checklist of questions before they get radiated to ensure everything is as it should be.

I have tonight's chemo pills to take and then that's it for the pills. Next week, when I'm feeling more out of the woods, I'll list off some of the more exciting of the ten pages of side effects I could've had.

My Executive Assistant

2012-02-14T19:21:00.000-05:00

It was highly recommended by friends at work that I get someone to accompany me for my cancer appointments. This is helpful as your head isn't quite in the right frame of mind as you're likely finding out some dizzying facts (ie: you have cancer) and what to expect, how to prepare for tests, etc. A second set of ears is always good and someone who can take notes during the appointments is always helpful.

This sort of happened on its own and my wife prepared a calendar, took notes at appointments and had questions prepared when we first discovered I had cancer. I sat there in the doctor's appointments digesting the bad news and unbottoning my pants and bending over a barrel whenever required. My mother is also a retired nurse so she accompanied us to pretty much every doctor's appointment before the radiation and chemo started. Between my mother and wife of 16 years, I was in good shape.

My wife calls herself my Executive Assistant. Pretty funny since she's always made much more money than I have but since we had kids, she hasn't worked in 3 years. This is a part time job in itself and the cancer treatment is nearly a full time job for me if you include the increased 4 hours of sleep I now require every day.

Happy Valentine's Day, Erinn.
The kids ate the Smarties so your cupcake is
decorated with my diarrhea pills.

I've filled out a lot of forms during this ordeal and I've kept a copy of everything. An interesting question that comes up is my past medical history. When was I last in the hospital and for what. This includes tonsil removals when I was ten years old and everything in between. I figured the Ontario Health Card would have a database of all those items. What a laugh! There is no such database. Doctors don't necessarily have copies of reports which they need. For example, nobody has received my MRI report so I had wisely left the hospital with my own CD copy. (And, that appointment came, thanks to my Executive Assistant.) Now we just burn a CD for whatever doctor we're about to see. That's how they've all gotten my MRI results. And they all say thanks. Some other reports, mind you, have made it across to the necessary people. It is just not a given that necessary reports will make it through to the right people.

Another thing to track (thanks Marg!) is medication taken and reactions. Thankfully for me, that's been a rather short list. I hope the list doesn't grow. But, the point is that there is no database of what has worked for the patient and what hasn't worked. It is up to the patient to keep track.

Now that I write this, I just remembered I haven't taken my chemo pills. Oops. My Executive Assistant has the night off.

Four Weeks DONE!!!

2012-02-11T09:54:00.001-05:00

I had my 20th radiation session yesterday and, as I walked in the door, I bumped into my THIRD set of motorcycle instructors who are there for their own cancer. Ian and Celia. Celia has a blood cancer, I believe, that was a problem 10 years ago but she's not too worried about this latest flare-up. So, that's Frank and Helene, Tony and Lynda Hendriks and now Ian and Celia. All these people I've met by accident at the entry to the Cancer Centre in the last four weeks. And, man, I quit teaching in 2009 so I don't even know the new crew.

Almost done going to these places!!!

The burn is bad enough that I don't do cardio now. In fact, that was the only exercise I was doing, although daily, so now I'll do more PlayStation 3 and TV watching.

I have one more week to endure and then I expect the burn will flare up the week after. But, it can't because I want to go to the Montreal Motorcycle Show that weekend so I must be healthy for that!

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes and the burn tips. Freezies, eh? We actually have lots of those even in winter for the kids. "Nope, you can't eat that. Daddy needs it for his ass!!!"

Radiation DOES Burn!

2012-02-08T21:13:00.001-05:00

Well, the burning has begun. On the weekend it was noticeably worse and continues on the worst side of better every day. I only have seven sessions left but I'm told it'll get worse a week or two after my radiation is complete. Ugghh. And probably every day until then.

A few days ago I made a mistake and, because I'd been feeling fine aside from my radiation burn I indulged in a couple of bowls of Raisin Bran, one of my favourite breakfast meals. MISTAKE!!! It was Revenge Of The Pinecones all over again. Ugghhh. I've seen Jack Bauer extract information from people with things at hand like the the plugged in cord from a bedside lamp to find out where the nuclear bomb is but I recommend Raisin Bran and a radiated rectal tumour next time. Far more effective. Just feed them the Raisin Bran then wait 4 to 6 hours. They'll sing like canaries.

Maggie surprises her parents with the delights of an empty cardboard box.
After one week of empty box play, she finally added some toys.

And then, this morning, a similar occurrence. I didn't know why until Erinn pointed out that the raisins I've poured over my oatmeal will do the same thing. D'uhhhh...I'll have to read the pamphlet the Dietician gave us. I think on the Dietician visit, I learned from her and she learned from me. I would've thought a Dietician would know there was caffeine in Diet Colas but, hey, she learned something from me. I learned the difference between soluble and insoluble fibre. Now I will embrace it!

Only seven days of radiation and chemo left. I saw the radiation doctor yesterday and he noted my burn is bad but I'd stay on the same cream I have until it gets worse. They have some other creams I can use but they'll keep them at bay until I need the stronger stuff. Good enough. So long as I know there's something stronger for when the burn increases. Because, he says it will get worse. He told me to get a Sitz basin. I now have one. It, like the pills tray, magically ages you 40 years when you use it.

Hey, on the weekend, I also flirt with diarrhea. So far, the pills they gave me have kept that in check. I'm lucky on that and the queasiness returns but, again, the Gravol-type pills have kept that in check. Funny, if the Gravol-type pills don't cut it, then I have these syringes that I jam deep into my muscle. I didn't ask which one but I should get a book called Self Medication for Dummies.

Three Weeks DONE!!!

2012-02-03T11:34:00.000-05:00

I just had my 15th radiation session this morning so I only have two weeks left (ten sessions). I'm counting off every day.

On Mommy's night out, Daddy and the girls watched Monsters Inc.
Kate put on her favourite Monster costume for the occassion.

I've been feeling good the last few days and even was able to go out for lunch a couple of times with friends. I'm almost walking on eggshells because my immune system is down quite a bit and both kids have been taking turns being sick but, so far, I haven't caught anything.

I'm also doing well with the side effects. I only had one flirtation with diarrhea last weekend but I took pills and that kept things under control. Fingers crossed about the future.

I gave Dr. Kendall, the radiation oncologist, polite feedback last Tuesday when he surprised me about that tidbit of info about the cream. I spoke with him about the full bladder thing and he admitted they failed me on communication. He is pretty concerned about it. When the bladder is full, it pushes things up so that my bowel is moved out of the way of the radiation beam. As that was not the case for my first nine sessions, I am at a much greater risk of diarrhea. All he can do now, he says, is monitor me.

The weekend is also good because I'm not on chemo pillls when I don't get radiation. I met with the chemo doctor on Wednesday and, since all is well, I don't have to see her again until May, a few weeks after my April surgery. I basically have ten days left to stay on this treatment plan without them pulling the plug due to side effects. Fingers crossed!

My Monday to Friday intake of chemo pills.
This pill box allows me to get Senior's Discounts everywhere.

Surprisingly, I'm not on any pills aside from the chemo pills I take after breakfast and after supper. It's actually four identical pills each time just due to the small size of them to meet my recommended quantity. I suppose it would sound better if it was one pill in the morning and one in the afternoon but the pill would have to be big enough for a horse. And, hey, I swallow these.

The pill box has an amazing effect on the person taking them. It's identical to getting behind the wheel of my parents' motorhome last summer--it instantly ages you 40 years!!! I hear 41 is the new 81.

I was worried about weight loss. A friend from work went through Ovarian Cancer all through 2011 and she lost 20 lbs when she didn't really have any weight to lose. I normally weigh 190 lbs when 180 lbs is a trim size for me so I packed on the pounds all through December. It wasn't hard to do with Christmas thrown in there. I haven't really lost any weight or lost any hair yet.

196 lbs at the end of 3 weeks of Radiation and
Chemotherapy. Ready to lose a dozen pounds!
But let's stop there...

Radiation Halfway Point

2012-02-01T09:26:00.003-05:00

In two hours, I will have crossed the halfway point of my radiation. Only 2.4 weeks remaining and I can't wait!

On the weekend, a radiation burn developped to the point of it being extremely uncomfortable by Sunday. On Monday morning, I ran right over to see the nurse after my morning appointment with the gamma rays. Ahh, cream. Sooooooo goooooooood.

Funny, the nurse said I should always have had the cream with me. That's the way I would've preferred but I was specifically told to wait until I burn then make an appointment with the nurse to be told what cream to buy. I came home and told Erinn I must've misunderstood. Erinn says no, we were told exactly that.

Funnier thing yesterday when I saw Dr. Kendall, the radiation oncologist. I told him about the burn and the goodness of the cream. He looked at my burn and said not to put the cream on for my radiation sessions as I had just done because it amplifies the effect of the radiation and I'll be getting too high of a dose. Grrrrrr..... That would've been a good tidbit of info to have when I was told about the cream. Thankfully, I only had one session like that, merely half an hour before seeing the Doctor.

The Road Ahead

2012-01-28T17:43:00.001-05:00

Well, the good news is my daily cardio has been keeping the barfing at bay and yesterday, I just completed my 10th radiation session. Two weeks done! Only three weeks of chemo and radiation left.

I still feel happy about being on the chemo pills instead of that bottle setup. Life is much better and, since I only have radiation Monday to Friday, it means I don't have to take the chemo pills on the weekend. Oddly enough, the bottle was 24/7. Likely due to it's complexity of unhooking and reattaching it.

The road ahead won't be nearly as much fun as this.
Likely no motorcycling for me this spring.

A weird occurrence at radiation yesterday. I finally got a morning appointment but they were about 45 mins late on my 8:20am time slot. One of the radiation girls noticed me leaving the washroom and asked me if I still had a full bladder. Nope. "Well, it's a requirement." What????

I've had 9 sessions of 25 and apparently, I had to have a full bladder to minimize damage to my bowel. Wow. I was really disappointed to find that out now and I thanked the girl for noticing and bringing it up otherwise I would have gone the full 5 weeks without knowing.

It's really too bad because my whole treatment was delayed one week as they didn't like the CT Scans I did in that department. The reason: I didn't have a full bladder. Please tell me! I've done many tests during December as this cancer was fully investigated and I've prepped accordingly. It ain't too hard to drink half a litre of water beforehand.

There's a trick to having a full bladder in the waiting room while your appointment is either on time or half an hour or an hour late. I don't know what the trick is yet but I'll have plenty of opportunity to refine the skill.

Once three more weeks go buy, I rest and, contrary to what I thought, radiation keeps acting on the affect parts. I don't have a surgery date yet but it'll be about 6 to 8 weeks after the last Feb 17th radiation. Once I have surgery in April, I will get a colostomy.

The bad news is, our 2nd opinion consultation happened on Wednesday, Dr. Boushey from the Ottawa General, and the 2nd opinion is the same as the 1st opinion. My colostomy will be permanent. Dr. Boushey also alarmed me by saying that means no heavy lifting. That really bothered me. Images flashed through my head instantly of pulling a dirt bike out of the mud, waterskiing, carrying a canoe and packs on my back, doing weights at the gym. I'll have to research this and maybe the limitations won't be that bad or I can work around it.

This whole cancer thing has been disappointing. I haven't had any "Why me" moments, but disappointment is probably the best way to describe it. I don't drink, smoke or even drink coffee. I've been a vegetarian for 23 years. I exercise and, although I've been 10 lbs overweight for the last 10 years, I've stayed pretty fit. The last two years my cardio has excelled as I changed jobs and fell in love with bicycle commuting daily, rain or shine, from April 1st to late October. The morning pedal included pedalling up a 15 storey hill (I thought it was only 8 stories until a friend measured it). I think it's pretty obvious--bicycle seats cause cancer.

The idea that the colostomy will be permanent adds to the disappointment but I temper that with the fact that at least it's me with the cancer and my wife and kids are okay. I'd much rather have it than them.

After surgery, I will have the PICC line reinstalled and I'll be back on the chemo bottle but it looks like it'll only be for two days of bottle every three weeks. This plan will be refined as we get into May or June but right now I'm told I'll be on chemo for five or six months. That will bring me to November or December 2012. This whole year will be filled up with cancer treatment. I truly hope to be back at work by early December for my 42nd birthday but we'll see what the year brings.

"FIRE ZE LAZER!!!!"

2012-01-24T16:43:00.001-05:00

Radiation Treatment.

I'm undergoing radiation treatment five days a week (Monday to Friday) concurrent with chemotherapy for five weeks. It's actually good news because I was told initially it would be six weeks but the fact is it's five weeks. I've done 1.4 weeks already. I can't wait for the end.

I get my radiation at the Ottawa General Hospital and I have to show up daily for my pre-scheduled appointment. So far, my appointments are all over the map. My dream of having morning sessions and going to work right after fell off the page when I got my first radiation dose after my first chemo. I couldn't get out of bed without feeling like barfing.

The last few days, however, have been better. The queasiness has subsided so I'll take that as a good day.

The Radiation machine and bed that I lie face down on. As soon as I see this bed, I drop my pants. Underwear follows. Dignity is left at the entry door to the hospital.

The radiation appointments have been going well so far, now that I've been properly set up. Before radiation and chemo began, I had a CT scan of my pelvis which, of course, involved hoses and fluids going into some unmentionable part of my body (not the ears) and then the technicians gave me some tattoos as a benchmark on the sides of my ass and on the back of my ass up high. These tattoos are, well, tattoos. They're permanent. Small dots, really. This is required for the technicians to line up the radiation beam so a dose will hit the required area at the desired angles.

Radiation beams come from the middle of this black thingy.

Targetting on my pillow. Insert backside here.

My first session last week was not 15 minutes. It was 3.5 hours. Basically, they weren't happy with the small dots I got tattooed on my ass. In the end, they did it properly and remarked me. They didn't mess around and got out the green Sharpie marker and put new targets on my ass. It's just a Sharpie so they covered them in waterproof tape. Now, they're satisfied with the marks and all is going well. The techs are able to set me up properly and easily once I lower my underwear. The sessions are only taking about 15 minutes each.

New target marks on my backside to replace
small tattoo dots. I'll keep my pants raised
when around the rifle ranges...

I think the radiation is working. In fact, I know it is. I don't know how this stuff was discovered but I like it. I don't feel any burning or any changes for my 3 straight minutes of beam zapping but within about an hour after the treatment, I need to nap. And I sleep like the dead.

One of my problems last year before I knew I had cancer was I was constipated. The constipation started January 2011. Then some bleeding followed. A month or two later I was really agitated with this so I went to an Urgent Care clinic. I was misdiagnosed. I was told I had hemorrhoids. I had to look them up to see what the heck that was.

In the summer that followed, the agitation did not suppress, and, despite blowing my brains out on bran, the constipation only worsened. My wife scheduled a colonoscopy for me.

In November 2011, by some strange turn of events, we had to drive 600 kms to Kitchener to get the goddamned colonoscopy. I'm glad we did. The waiting would soon be over to see why these hemorrhoids were such a pain.

The doctor who performed the scope was very bothered by what he saw and feared cancer.

In the weeks that followed, more testing ensued and then a formal diagnosis. I've been diagnosed with Stage 3 Colorectal Cancer. I've been told I will lose my sphincter muscle and, as a result, my asshole. Hmm...I'm kindof attached to that...

That was around the time the pain started. The Kitchener doctor was suprised I wasn't in pain already but within a week or two, the pain started. I was still constipated but now it was clear as to why---there was a tumour at the exit door and it was blocking the escape. Ain't no one was getting out.

Many times a day I would visit the bathroom and have the smallest of bowel movements. It was painful. It felt like shitting a pine cone. And the pain continued after that the rest of the day until the next attempt. It felt like, well, I just shat a pine cone. That continued until the radiation last week.

I'd say on Day 3 of radiation, I started to have pain-free bowel movements. The next day, I was on the pills and got rid of the bottle and PICC line. Things were good.

I asked the radiation doctor today why the lack of pain and he explained that the tumour likely was shrinking. Likely because he wasn't checking. If it was gone entirely, I was still getting five weeks of radiation to ensure cancer-free as much as possible. 95% of the patients respond best to this dose of radiation for my situation so that's what they're doing.

As the radiation doctor, Dr. Kendall, terms it, they're frying my ass. He was happy that my ass hasn't felt like it's on fire yet but it might in a few days. Great.

I do this for the full five weeks and then I rest for 6 to 8 weeks before surgery. As Dr. Kendall says, in that time, I'm still cooking. Hmm...nice thought. I hope I can walk...

At any rate, I don't know how many doctors died on the way to discovering the radiation treatments but they seem to be working. The dream is miracles will happen during chemo and radiation and the course of surgery in April will be steered towards a sphincter-saving solution.

Book in the Mail

2012-01-22T16:10:00.000-05:00

Hmm...I've just had my daily nap and I feel better. Friday, Saturday and today (Sunday) have been good days. I feel 80% and the queasiness has subsided. A friend of mine who has just recovered from Ovarian Cancer and has returned to work alongside me just as I exited work last week, reminded me to exercise. It helps with the nausea. I did a light cardio stint the last two days and I feel good. Thanks Sarah!

On Friday, I got a book in the mail from a motorcycle friend. Thanks Tony!!

I'M OFF THE BOTTLE!!!

2012-01-19T21:59:00.001-05:00

I like dizziness

My chemo doctor, Dr. Goodwin, had some great news for me. I've been approved for health plan coverage for the chemo pills. She first mentioned this as a possibility at our first meeting in December but I dismissed it as a pipedream when I got the PICC line inserted last Friday. Then, on Monday afternoon came the chemo bottle and I figured that was that.

This was my first appointment without The Wife. Erinn, upon hearing of this, was immediately suspicious. Was I weaseling out of this stupid bottle? Who brought this up? Was I begging to be put on the pills? She made phone calls to the hospital to check up on my story. Her girlfriend, Shannon, a hospital administrator at CHEO (Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario) reacted the same way. Patty cannot be trusted. Erinn was a tech-company accountant and with her girlfriend working in a hospital, I'm badly outclassed. They're pretty much doctors themselves. My recount of what my doctor told me has to be verified if The Wife wasn't there.

Well, no more! I gots me my pills and went to the hospital this morning to have the PICC line and bottle removed. I had to bring the pills as proof so they could remove the line. I felt instantly free. I went home to celebrate with a nap or a shower. The nap won. The shower came after the nap.

Funny thing about napping, I've been doing a lot of it. I woke up in the afternoon to eat some lunch and head back to the hospital for my daily radiation zap. I left feeling good and able to do up the car seatbelt without worrying about pinching my chemo bottle. By the time I got home, I needed to sleep. And I slept like the dead. Erinn woke me for supper but I was groggy all through supper. Back to bed for my third nap of the day. How does one get anything done??? I have no time! Must nap!!

Maggie and Kate at the cottage

It's just as well that the bottle is gone. Last night I was awake and Erinn headed out for a couple of hours to get a break while I looked after the kids. My bottle, being piped into me all the time, was an accident waiting to happen. Maggie (3) and Kate (5) each surprised me by grabbing my waistband bottle bag and hanging off it. I've had to protect my arm where the line goes in cause they like jumping on daddy.

I don't understand how the dollars are compared between the PICC chemo bottle feed and the pills. I'm told by Dr. Goodwin that both work but one is difficult to get coverage for. The PICC line to me seems very expensive. I had the line installed in a hospital. The following day I visited a medical clinic so the line could be inspected and the dressing changed. Three days later the bottle was inserted to the line in a hospital. Accessories given. A courier delivered one box of supplies to our house. The next day, Tuesday, a home care nurse came over to inspect the chemo bottle, change the dressings and follow up with more instructions. It was a one hour visit. As I left for radiation, another courier came to the door and delivered six more boxes of PICC line supplies. Wow. The system works and events, so far, have been well coordinated, but I don't know if all these expenses are considered. Those pills have to be rather expensive to eclipse the true cost of the bottle.

Add the cost of freedom sans bottle---priceless!!!

Cancer Treatment

2012-01-18T14:27:00.002-05:00

My cancer treatment has finally started. After being diagnosed in late November 2011, on January 16, 2012, I finally got hooked up to a permanent chemo flow and radiation zaps five days a week.

The chemo treatment is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This is accomplished by piping it into me on a continuous basis. The chemo itself is a dangerous combination of drugs that kills my veins and will involve a hazmat team if I spill it (except, as the nurses say, I'm the hazmat team).

To run the chemo into me, they've inserted a PICC line (peripherally inserted central catheter line) into the inside of my right bicep and it travels about a foot or so into my body, across my chest to my heart. Technically, it stops about 3 mm shy of my heart. The idea is that the chemicals can travel into my body without destroying the veins. Upon release from this line right at the heart, the chemicals get immediately diluted, sucked up by the heart and distributed throughout my body.

I don't think they need to go everywhere but that's just how blood distribution works. The chemicals are being used now to make the cells more receptive to radiation. That's why I'm on chemo.

I carry a bottle of one week's supply of chemo chemicals on my hip like a less-than-enthusiastic jogger from the Running Room. I wear it everywhere and it interferes with everything. I eat meals with it, I sleep with it, I shower with it without getting it wet. It's a pain in the ass.

Radiation appointments are to be 15 minutes each. My first radiation was right after they hooked me up with the chemo bottle on Monday. It took longer. It took 3.5 hours. They weren't happy with the tattoo alignment marks I received two weeks before (a repeated CT test which ended up delaying my treatment by a whole week). I was worried they'd pull the plug and delay my treatment yet again. I thanked them for their perseverance.

There are many possible side effects with radiation and many with chemo.

One of the big ones is a result of having both chemo and radiation occur at the same time. It's diarrhea. A lethal combination of it. I worry about that one. Sounds like it'll land me in the hospital if it hits hard. Yay!

Right now, the treatment has me very tired and queasy. I haven't thrown up yet but my stomach is often unsettled and I'm sleeping all the time. If I'm awake, I'm groggy. I'm at the hospital daily and I asked both the chemo and radiation people about this fatigue and they each blamed the opposite--chemo said it was the radiation and radiation said it was the chemo. It's probably both.