We got back from Seattle around 4:00 tonight. Exhausted as usual. I again, didn't sleep the night before, so I spent the entire day curled up in a chair next to Rick's bed. Boy, I was really helpful to my husband this round. He was just glad to see I was sleeping for a change. Everything went as planned. (Though Rick had an oncology nurse who may have been a "newbie". Everyone has to start somewhere)
I may have mentioned this before, but if not...here goes.... The strangest thing about watching someone administer chemo in a patient is that they have to put on really thick rubber gloves, a protective gown, lay thick paper all around the area they're working in, and if by some chance there is a spill...the haz-mat team gets called out, all the while, they are putting this poison directly into a port on Rick's chest that is hooked up directly into his blood stream. Does this sound rational? Who's bright idea was this? And...whoever they were, I'm forever grateful.
I had an appointment today as well. I told Dr. Eaton (the lung cancer oncologist that Pam thinks is cute) about all my ailments (many which I haven't mentioned to you) My toenails are dropping off. Literally. They tell me it's just a side effect of Tarceva. Oh happy day. What am I suppose to do with my red nail polish. Just paint the skin on my toes? The upside to this disgusting problem is that as long as they just fall off and don't cause discomfort or infection, I can continue taking Tarceva. If I have complications, they'll take me off it until the problem clears up. Oh, the stuff we go through to LIVE! Bring it on~
I've found that I can't lay on my left side for very long. (RED ALERT) My brain was thinking...Left side. Bad lung. I hope it's not something horrible. Then Dr. Eaton informed me that what I was describing sounded like the after effects of my shingles...Oh, yeah. I forgot. I had shingles on the left side a couple of months ago and this pain is in the same location. He said sometimes a main nerve can be so effected that it takes months or even years to clear up. We're doing a new CT scan next month for safety sake. I promise I'm not a hypocondriac, but when you've been given the Stage 4 - incureable label it's hard not to wonder if the next "thing" is going to be the "BIG THING". Who am I kidding? It's already the big thing.
The poor sleep is a thing of the past. I will be faithful with my sleeping pills. I won't worry about becoming attached to them (truthfully, I'm hoping to become addicted to Tarceva). I will follow the doctor's orders. I will be a good patient. I just won't be a patient one.
We got some bad news when we got home from Seattle today. Rick's Uncle Milton had a heart attack this morning. I spoke with his son tonight and they say he's doing well. We're all wishing for him to have a speedy recovery.
I'm tired and I can't think of any reason to stay up. So, I'm calling it a day ~
Dream Big,
Dor
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A 12 year old girl wrote this for her science fair project:
Cancer is a disease that goes back thousands of years. The most famous person in cancer history was Hippocrates who lived in about 400 BC. He named cancer after the Ancient Greek word “carcinos” for crab. He named it “crab” because the tumor body looked like a crab and the tumor spreading looked like crab legs. Also, from 1990 to 1998, doctor Vincent T. DeVita invented the chemotherapy process. He was very important in developing the first successful curative chemotherapy program for a variety of cancers.
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