"Colleen, what did you do this weekend?" Well, on Sunday John and I drove into BI so that I could get my first CT Scan using the femoral port that was put in almost two weeks ago, is still sore and held together with stitches. Exciting stuff, isn't it?
During our early morning drive into the city I called the radiology department to let them know that I was coming and that an IV nurse would have to be paged when I arrived in order to gain IV access through the port; why I did this, even though I knew it would not have the speedy result the oncology department thought it would; because, I was told to, and I figured that it was worth a shot. Point one, me, oncology, zero. As I checked in at the radiology desk I told her my name and showed her my key chain ID tag saying that I had a super port that could be used for scans and needed an IV nurse, she was less than enthusiastic that I just added an extra step to my check in process. So John and I sat in the empty waiting room; him with his delicious, ice cold, refreshing, dunkins iced coffee, and me with my two large bottles of internal liquid highlighters that make you gag, each in a different flavor nonetheless. I know what you're thinking, Colleen, they come in flavors, how bad can they be.... well, they are disgusting. I will give the creator of the berry flavored barium sulfate (the real name for the drinkable highlighter) some credit, it does provoke less of a gag reflex than the "original", which is why I traded in the bottle of original for a second bottle of the berry. So we drank, we waited, we finished drinking, we waited, finally an IV nurse came up to radiology to access the port and after a long conversation about the port and showing her too my handy, dandy ID key chain she admited that she's never seen a port placed where I have it, thanks for the confidence lady! Seeing that the port is so new and I still have the stitches at this point, it's pretty sore, but finally the IV is in, and we're in business. The scan goes normally until they administered the IV scan contrast. Holy Cow! A flood of the crazy warm sensation bursts through my body at record levels. When the scan is over and the tech reentered the room I asked if they used more contrast or pushed it through at a faster pace because I now have a port, she said that the amount and rate they used was standard, but previously, because my veins are so small they might have reduced the force in which it was administered in the past. Good to know. Now that the scan is over, and we have been at BI for just about three hours we have to wait for an IV nurse to come back to radiology in order to remove the IV, a half hour later, we are Finally on our way out of Boston!
Today is Thursday, Result day! This morning we woke up a bit earlier than normal to make our way back into Boston to meet with my oncologist, get blood work and to have the stitches removed (finally!). Drum Roll Please.... Good News!! The tumors that were present in my liver are barely visible, Dr. H said he had to look very closely to see a shadow of what was left of the liver tumors. I asked about the tumors in my spleen and pleura and he happily said that they are stable; I know I should be happy with anything that isn't bigger, but I'd like it if we could have an over all disappearing act.
Although I do have some pretty serious side effects from the Taxol (exhaustion, body pain to the point of not being able to walk, and finger numbness that is increasingly getting worse with each treatment), I will be doing two more treatments of a reduced amount and then getting another CT Scan. From there we will decide whether to take a break from treatments for a while and let my body recoup, or continue with a reduced treatment.
I give myself credit for asking intelligent, important questions. Today I asked a question that I already knew the answer to, but still hope on a daily basis that it is not the case. I asked, if we stop treating for a little while after my next two rounds, will the cancer grow back in full force as it had done last year, or is it still a possibility that it will just disappear and not return? Dr. H, kindly as can be, reminded me that at this point our goal is to keep the cancer under control and give me the best quality of life for as long as possible. Crap! So the rest of my life really is going to revolve around doctor appointments and looking forward to the "good days" of each month. Why did I ask?... we just got such good news.
The blood work showed that my platelets are at a normal level, but my white count is low, so I should be careful of infection, and as always, if I have a fever I should call and come back. Just one more thing... Bring in the surgical nurse! The stitches are removed, although I do have a small opening that hasn't healed yet. With caution and a few days, that should scab over and all will be well!
CHEERS! to the fact that the treatments are still working, enjoy these last few weeks of summer!
Upcoming Appts:
Chemo: Friday, September 3
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Saturday, August 7, 2010
First Chemo with the Femoral Port
It's around 11:30pm and the strong meds that BI gave me are starting to wear off, so forgive me if this gets sloppy.
Well, lets start with the good stuff... Uncle John, Aunt Alma, Aunt Patsy, and Aunt Diane and Uncle Tony Carideo put us up in the Park Plaza hotel. After checking in there we made our way to Flemings Steak House where we had a reservation and gift cards from Auntie Sandi and Big Bill; everything was absolutely phenomenal! If you do get to make your way there, our waiter Tim was Fantastic! I would also like to thank the anonymous person who called in and made a generous donation to our bill, it completely confused us! haha
Alright, again with real life... I suppose I have to start by telling you that the day after surgery, on Tuesday, I began getting a weird heart issue that at times included shortness of breath. I was in contact with my doctors and we agreed that it was safe to wait until today to be physically checked out (if you know me well enough you know this was mostly my decision). Okay, back to today... we went in and discussed the heart thing, an EKG was done, and all came out clear! The port site is still sore from Monday's surgery, the bandage was taken off, blood cleaned up and the needle was put in... what an odd feeling!! My nurse is so amazing she brought us a sample port and explained to us how the entire thing works - wow! what a process! There was an incision made to the left of my right hip, where the actual port was placed; however there was also an incision made in the crease where my leg meets my lower abdomen (this is where the unexpected bleeding came post surgery on Monday). Today as the last chemo was being administered, I noticed blood coming from the port site, so my nurse came in and checked it out. Two of the nurses cleaned it and used new steri-strips to hold the the unhealed part, between the stitches together, and once again all is well! My instructions are to stop "doing stuff that will pull the stitches", and to call if the heart palpitations get worse, I get a fever, etc., etc. Anyways, the interesting part of all of this is that the port, that is places near my hip has tubing that connects to the femoral vein in my leg and then runs all the way up my body, through my circulatory system into my heart! John Michael took some pictures of the port that you will find below.
Upcoming Appointments:
Torso CT Scan: Sunday 8/15/10
Scan Results & Pulling Stitches: Thursday, 8/19/10
Chemo if the plan remains the same: (I pushed it back one week) Friday, 9/3/10
Well, lets start with the good stuff... Uncle John, Aunt Alma, Aunt Patsy, and Aunt Diane and Uncle Tony Carideo put us up in the Park Plaza hotel. After checking in there we made our way to Flemings Steak House where we had a reservation and gift cards from Auntie Sandi and Big Bill; everything was absolutely phenomenal! If you do get to make your way there, our waiter Tim was Fantastic! I would also like to thank the anonymous person who called in and made a generous donation to our bill, it completely confused us! haha
Alright, again with real life... I suppose I have to start by telling you that the day after surgery, on Tuesday, I began getting a weird heart issue that at times included shortness of breath. I was in contact with my doctors and we agreed that it was safe to wait until today to be physically checked out (if you know me well enough you know this was mostly my decision). Okay, back to today... we went in and discussed the heart thing, an EKG was done, and all came out clear! The port site is still sore from Monday's surgery, the bandage was taken off, blood cleaned up and the needle was put in... what an odd feeling!! My nurse is so amazing she brought us a sample port and explained to us how the entire thing works - wow! what a process! There was an incision made to the left of my right hip, where the actual port was placed; however there was also an incision made in the crease where my leg meets my lower abdomen (this is where the unexpected bleeding came post surgery on Monday). Today as the last chemo was being administered, I noticed blood coming from the port site, so my nurse came in and checked it out. Two of the nurses cleaned it and used new steri-strips to hold the the unhealed part, between the stitches together, and once again all is well! My instructions are to stop "doing stuff that will pull the stitches", and to call if the heart palpitations get worse, I get a fever, etc., etc. Anyways, the interesting part of all of this is that the port, that is places near my hip has tubing that connects to the femoral vein in my leg and then runs all the way up my body, through my circulatory system into my heart! John Michael took some pictures of the port that you will find below.
Upcoming Appointments:
Torso CT Scan: Sunday 8/15/10
Scan Results & Pulling Stitches: Thursday, 8/19/10
Chemo if the plan remains the same: (I pushed it back one week) Friday, 9/3/10
Monday, August 2, 2010
Femoral Line Surgery Day
I'm lucky enough this week to start off with surgery on Monday and end with chemo on Friday, oh yes, lucky me!
Today was surgery day, and over all things went well. We got there a half hour early, but still had to wait until 9am to be called in for the surgery prep. There was a little trouble finding a vein for the initial IV, to put the anesthesia through; but with the use of ultra sound machines (on the third try) a good line was placed. After being brought into the OR room, and sliding onto the table, I was out like a light.
A few hours later I woke up in recovery and was told that the surgery went well. The recovery nurse was doing her post-op assessment when her facial expression completely changed and she called for my doctor to be paged, and for the doctor in the room to assist until then. The worry on every ones faces was from bleeding from the incision site; I wouldn't find out later that there was quite a bit of blood. The assisting doctor held pressure until my surgeon arrived, and although the pressure being held to the area would have fixed the issue, my surgeon added a couple more stitches just to be sure, put a dressing on it, and all was well. I was held in recover for a bit longer than normal, but once I was cleared we were on our way home.
I was sore, exhausted and in a bunch of pain... much of that has subsided now, and I'm doing my best to follow the discharge directions of, in summary, "do nothing", which are pretty much my instructions for the next two weeks until the site heals; which I've got to tell you isn't my forte. In two weeks time I will have to go into the office to have the stitches pulled. It is a great relief to know that I will not have to be stuck several times whenever I go in for treatment of a scan! We'll see how this fancy little access line works on Friday, until then, Thank you all for the well wishes.
Upcoming Appointments:
Chemo: Friday, August 6th
CT Torso Scan: Sunday, August 15th
Scan Results/Stitches being pulled: Thursday, August 19th
Chemo: Friday, September 3rd
Today was surgery day, and over all things went well. We got there a half hour early, but still had to wait until 9am to be called in for the surgery prep. There was a little trouble finding a vein for the initial IV, to put the anesthesia through; but with the use of ultra sound machines (on the third try) a good line was placed. After being brought into the OR room, and sliding onto the table, I was out like a light.
A few hours later I woke up in recovery and was told that the surgery went well. The recovery nurse was doing her post-op assessment when her facial expression completely changed and she called for my doctor to be paged, and for the doctor in the room to assist until then. The worry on every ones faces was from bleeding from the incision site; I wouldn't find out later that there was quite a bit of blood. The assisting doctor held pressure until my surgeon arrived, and although the pressure being held to the area would have fixed the issue, my surgeon added a couple more stitches just to be sure, put a dressing on it, and all was well. I was held in recover for a bit longer than normal, but once I was cleared we were on our way home.
I was sore, exhausted and in a bunch of pain... much of that has subsided now, and I'm doing my best to follow the discharge directions of, in summary, "do nothing", which are pretty much my instructions for the next two weeks until the site heals; which I've got to tell you isn't my forte. In two weeks time I will have to go into the office to have the stitches pulled. It is a great relief to know that I will not have to be stuck several times whenever I go in for treatment of a scan! We'll see how this fancy little access line works on Friday, until then, Thank you all for the well wishes.
Upcoming Appointments:
Chemo: Friday, August 6th
CT Torso Scan: Sunday, August 15th
Scan Results/Stitches being pulled: Thursday, August 19th
Chemo: Friday, September 3rd
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