Chemo & Zomeda Treatment-August 11, 2011

I am so glad this treatment is over!! And it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. Patti, Rob, Robbin and I headed to Chicago August 9th with some things on our agenda. Wednesday we spent all day in Chicago walking lots and doing some real important shopping. You'll have to ask Patti about that!! It was so much fun and we found a new pizza restaurant Pizano's. You must go if you are around one of his restaurants. The next day we got to the hospital for my treatments early in the morning. My blood tests all showed that the markers are still going down. The day we got back home, I wasn't doing to bad. I did find strength to get my emails. It sure didn't last long though. The next day I was flat on my back and ended up staying there until wednesday(today). My muscles and bones were so sore and I couldn't even do much without getting dizzy and having major hot flashing! Yuk! Each day gives me more strength and less pain. Once again I have to say that all the aches and pains I'm going through are worth it. As God is my healer, I find strength in Him everyday. This is a very difficult treatment to go through and without my faith, it couldn't be done!!! Robbin is the best!! He continues to do laundry, clean, cook, and support everything I do. Thank You Robbin!! I thank all of you also for the support, thoughts, and prayers.

CTCA July 18th-20th 2011

July in Chicago is very hot and muggy. When you get warnings for heat index values, you better not go outside. On July 20th Chicago had a record high of 100 with heat index values of 110!!! And we had to be there!?! It was very uncomfortable!! This trip I took one of my BFFs Sherry Winters. She was a great caregiver and kept me on track with my time schedules. We really enjoyed one evening when a friend (my travel agent from CTCA) brought over several quilts for us to looks at. She needed help deciding what should be done with them. Some were finished, some where tops only. It was so much fun to see these quilts that were very old and to hear her stories of where they came from and who made them. Thanks Sherry and Anne for all the fun!! Thank you to Sherry for all the support you always give me. Love you lots!!

This treatment time I had a CT and PT scan the day before my chemo treatment. Both scans went well as I fasted for both which isn't very easy for me to do. I love my coffee first thing in the morning! After finishing, we went back to the hotel and I took a 2.5 hour nap. I've never done that before so this must have wiped me out. The next day we headed to the hospital for a scheduled day. First off was a massage....that was good! Then was the appointment with the nurse, doctor, homeopathic doctor, and nutritionist. My doctor gave me the results from the CT and PT scans...both tests showed significate decrease in cancer activity throughout most regions of my body which means the chemo that I am on is working against my type of cancer. I will have two more treatments then will be off of chemo until the cancer activity starts to increase again. It could be 6 weeks or 6 months. We just don't know. This is the best news I have heard in a long time!!!! After all the suffering from the radiation, TPN drips, and 2 different chemos I have discovered that it is worth all of it!! As I look forward to the next two treatments I can only thank my God who is my healer!!! Without the prayers and support from you that God sees and hears, I just couldn't do all this. My next appointment is August 11th. At that time I will receive the chemo and zomada. My doctor wants this to be given every 3 months. After my final treatment I will return only for scans and blood tests. This will probably be every 2-3 months. That will be so nice! I can concentrate on some things around the house and with my beautiful husband who is always here for everything I need. Thank you Robbin!! With all the support and love from all of you, this is all worth doing. I still believe that I have a purpose on this earth and am always working to find out what that purpose is. Keep the prayers coming in and always know you all are always in our prayers. Thanks to all!!

June 26th & 27th At CTCA

Wow the 3 weeks go by fast! Seems I get to feeling really good and its time to go back for another does of chemo. This is why it is so important that I have quality of life. With the radiation and the first dose of chemo I had no quality. The talk I had with my doctor really helped me understand why I need to go through all that. When we visited with her Monday she told us that my blood cancer indicator markers have dropped significantly. That is why I had to go through all the difficult doses and pain. So as I prepare for my next visit I pray that the markers continue to drop. My next visit is Jul 18-20. This visit I will be having a CT scan and a PT scan. I'm excited to hear and see the results for myself. One thing about this hospital is that if you need to be more involved you can be. I have been in the doctors tiny office that reads these scans and it is amazing!!! He reads these all day long. Not sure I could do that. Anyway, the day after the scans I will see the doctor and she may possibly raise my dose of chemo and give me the zomada along with the chemo. That combination is what made me so sick the first time. So I am very leery of this. My doctor says that she will be able to tell if my body is ready for the higher dose so I have to trust that she will do what is necessary. I will be doing this until the first of October. Then I get a chemo vacation for up to 3 months. That will be so nice!! Today I am feeling like I was hit by a truck. I know it is all the poisons they put in me and that it will quickly go away. Usually on the 4th day after chemo I get really achy, blotted, weak, and just miserable. That lasts for 2 days. It will take about 2 more days after that to get back to normal. I try to push harder and some days it works some days it doesn't. I'm not one for sitting around....seems I have to be doing something productive. I thank all of you for all the prayers and thoughts that come my way. I feel every one of them and know that God is my healer! He is an awesome God!!! Love to all.

June 6, 2011 Trip To CTCA

I really need to get everyone updated with my treatments. As the third day came, after my first new chemo treatment, I got the sickest I have ever been. My muscles where sore and so weak I couldn't walk. Robbin had to get me food and water and do everything for me. Being the independent person that I am, this was so hard to do. But after 5 days, yes 5 days of not being able to walk, I got some energy to get up and do a few things. Robbin has been so good to do everything that needs done and he just keeps going. We made another trip on the 5th of June and I was determined to let the doctors know how much I had suffered with the dose of chemo they gave me. My oncology doctor felt bad but also told me that we have to find a dose that will work. This is the best chemo I can get and she wants me to stay on it. She did lower the dose by 20%. So I had another dose on the 6th but this time she did not give me the zometa. This drug gives me bad muscle aches and with the combination, I'm sure that's why I couldn't walk. I have felt better this time and only have a few muscle aches and weakness. My appetite is not good but I am thinking it will get better soon too. My hope is that I can take this chemo every three weeks with the zometa ever 6-9 weeks. The doctor wants this schedule for 6 months. Then I can have a chemo vacation!! That sounds good!! Just in time for Patti and Rob's wedding in the Dominican Republic. Thanks once again for all the prayers and support!

May 2011 At CTCA

This trip was full of anxiety because 6 weeks ago I started the chemo pill Xeloda again. I had to stop it while on radiation because my immune system was so low that I got thrush in my throat. After the radiation and after I got healed up, I started the chemo pill Xeloda again. The first week wasn't bad but the second week I found myself having all the side effects and became sick from it. The worst was hand and foot syndrome that made my fingertips raw! I was thinking it was time to invest in the band-aid company! My feet are healed and most of my hands or fingers are healed. I only have two open wounds! After being off of that pill for 3 weeks I went to see my doctor and she was ready to put me on a new chemo that goes through my port. The new drug is called Abraxane. I posted a link to the right that explains what this drug is. This afternoon I had my infusion of Zomada, benedril, another mix for nausea and the new chemo Abraxane. I am not having any side effects. The only thing at this time is exhaustion. This new chemo is exciting for me because it is infused. Much less harm to the liver and kidneys. I may have some fatigue and muscle ackes but that is easy to get through. One other thing that has changed is that this has to happen every 3 weeks! Yikes!! I need to prepare mentally for travel every three weeks and one way of doing that is to have hope and pray!! I fly in one day, have treatment the next day and fly home the same day. Time will tell. Please continue to pray. Thank you so much for the support! Love to all!!

Back Home - April 2nd

We got back home the 31st around 9pm and the bed was so comfy!!!! The next morning Robbin got up at 3:30 to get his mom to the hospital for her surgery. Needless to say he was exhausted!! Her surgery went well and was very short. The doctor let her come home that afternoon so Robbin brought her to our home so she could recover here. I'm telling you, I think Robbin is a saint!! I just don't know how he is doing all this. God is certainly on his side!!

I had a great report on Thursday from my radiologist and gastro doctors. They both told me I was healing fast and that I should be back to myself soon. The only reason to go back is to receive my Zometa. This is the bone healer med that goes through the port. My doctor told me to have that every 6 weeks now. Yeah!!! No more once a month trips!! I am still having problems with my port tho. If I can wait until then they will do a dye study to see if there is a leakage. They did an ultra sound and found no blockages so they are sure the pain is coming from the leakage. I've had this port for almost 4 years. They say this is a long time....most need replaced in 2-3 years. At this point I am still taking it easy and healing from all the radiation and zometa. My oncology doctor has started me on a chemo pill Xeloda that I will take 3 in the morning and 3 in the evening for one week, off a week and then the same for a week. I will do this for as long as my body will tolerate them. There are a few side effects but I'm praying they won't effect me. When we arrived at home I was having bad muscle cramps from the Zometa. These lasted the entire day and I slept most of that day. Today I'm feeling much better but still don't have much energy. So I'm resting again. The weather is making me want to get outside and water the flowers coming up. 75-80 today!! Maybe a chair and a good book!!??!!

We have met some great friends in Kenosha and always plan some kind of fun with them while we are there. I have a family away from home! God puts people in your lives for a reason and this one is sure evident!!!! Thanks to my Kenosha family!!

Please keep Robbin and Marian in your prayers as she is healing and Robbin keeps his patients!!!

Appointments after Radiation - March 30, 2011

Wow, what a long month!!!!! Maybe I will start off by telling you about the last few weeks. When I got home from my radiation treatments, I knew there was going to be a few weeks of recovery. The one thing that I really had a problem with was that I couldn't talk. What? No voice???!!! Yes, I know what you men are thinking! HAHAHA Robbin didn't have to listen to me. Oh how quite it was for him!! The first week was hard because I had to get use to carrying a bag around every night for 12 hours. Yes, I slept with it!!! I got to the point where I slept better because of the noise it made. Weird but it gave me a sense of comfort. The second week was the hardest because of the malfunction in the pump which meant I didn't get the nutrition I need for the night. That morning my body felt like it was melting down. Robbin knew he better start getting something done fast. After several phone calls he had me hooked back up to the nutrition drip and had saline solution on the way. By noon or so I was beginning to feel like a person again but it really pushed me back as far as my recovery. My home health nurse came by to check on things and found me in a very weak and dehydrated state. Robbin knew that was happening and had me on the saline solution before the end of the day. From that point on all I could do was rest and take care of the radiation sight. I was not able to swallow anything yet. Seems all I did was rest, put silvandine on my skin and swallow medications. That is how many days went. It was not until the last week in March that I decide it was time to start eating something beside broth. As most of you know Robbin is a great cook and was trying everything he could to see if I could eat. Great support!!! I would try and ouch!!!!! So a couple days later I would try again. It wasn't until March 22nd that I could really eat a meal. A bite of chicken and a spoonful of mashed potatoes. Of course I tried chocolate. No it didn't go down smoothly. So I really am trying to eat more of a bland diet because my stomach is so sensitive to any spices.

March 29th Robbin and I returned to CTCA to see all my doctors. Today was my appointment with the oncologist. One thing I discovered while on the nutrition drip was that my port was painful. So I had an ultra sound done today and there is no blockage. That was good news but I'm still confused as to why it hurts. So tomorrow I will have my other doctors look at it. I will see my radiologist and gastro doctors. They want to make sure I am healing right and my blood levels are where they should be. I feel like that will be a good report also. I really do feel good just run out of energy fast. My body is still healing and as long as I listen to it and get lots of rest I will be back to normal or my normal soon.

I want to thank everyone again for all the thoughts and prayers. You are my reason for high spirits and my need to keep going!!! God has been my great healer and is always giving me strength. I feel Him close all the time!! God Bless You!!

We have to return quickly because Marian, Robbin's mom, fell and will have surgery friday. Please pray that she has a fast recovery.