My sisters, Barbara and Audrey, visited recently. They took Stephanie and me out to eat and spent quality time with us. That time meant everything to us during this difficult period—one you truly can’t imagine. During their stay, they purchased an iPad for me to help me artificially speak words and phrases. Because of it, […]
Monday, I received my third chemo and immunotherapy infusion and two weeks of chemo pills. The nausea and loss of appetite was intense than ever, to be expected at this phase. Flavored oatmeal and cheese grits are what I can tolerate. I expect this to subside some, the third week after chemo, when I can […]
On Thursday, my oncologist shared with me the results of a recent CT scan, which revealed a shrinkage of a lot of the tumors, which was a good sign after only two chemo treatments. In fact, the shrinkage caused the stent which was placed in my esophagus to permit swallowing to drop to my stomach. […]
This past Sunday, I had an MRI brain scan to see if the disease had spread to the brain. I got through the non-contrast scan, but when the strong contrast was injected, I started having trouble breathing, and I hit the kill switch! Once I was out of the tube, I was fine. The non-contrast […]
Happy New Year! On Monday, I had my second infusion, arriving at 10:00 AM and leaving at 4:30 PM. My sodium levels were low, and my pulse rate was high at 120, due to dehydration. Hanging a sodium bag took extra time. I observed how nurses at the infusion center start each patient on their […]
We decided to go to our kids’ homes this year for Christmas, all but one local, and visit with the grandkids. It worked out fine, as opposed to all coming to our Heard Avenue home. It was the first week off chemo pills, and my appetite improved a bit, although by week’s end I lost […]
I had my appointment with the oncologist, Dr. Tidwell, last Thursday, and his feedback was minimal weight loss, and tolerance of chemo was good. Changes in my voice concerned him, and he speculated the tumors enlarge due to immunotherapy, and could be obstructing my voice. The second treatment could shrink tumors, and my voice might […]
It’s Wednesday, and I took my first infusions last Friday, with three chemo pills twice a day since. First impressions – a general malaise comes over you, where you feel worse than the cancer has made you feel, with lack of appetite and diminished energy, the order of the day. You must force yourself to […]
First doses of chemo happened last Friday, 12/6! Arrived at the infusion center at 10:00 AM, and with all the delays and infusion time, we left around 3:45 PM. It wasn’t the nightmare I had expected, and instead it was a well-choreographed experience, where they encouraged you to bring a snack, relax, read a book […]
After a delay so I could enjoy the Thanksgiving weekend, I was supposed to start chemo on Monday, December 1st. The chemo educational class was scheduled for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, where I learned, among other things, I would take one chemo agent by mouth and the rest infused, including an immunotherapy agent, Keytruda.