Sorry I haven’t posted in such a long time. I have found my energy level drastically decreasing. I have also been slacking in photo taking. I am hoping to be able to maintain my postings with photos better in the weeks to come. :)
Wednesday 10/26/11
Today I received the 18th of 35 treatments (exactly half way through treatment). Before I went home they asked that I wait to speak with the doctor. It turns out that my esophagus issues are caused by the fact that radiation is actually catching my esophagus. The doctor has to revise my treatment plan, but this takes time.
So he said we can start my boost treatment early. Boost is where they reduce my radiation field and radiate only my surgery / tumor site. The boost requires a new CT scan and will be ready on Friday. He gave me a choice - I can either take Thursday off and add another day at the end of my treatment or I can have one more treatment that will radiate my throat. I opted to have one more treatment with my existing treatment plan, I am not interested in delaying the end of radiation.
The even crazier part about this is that I now have blue markings on my body from my original (primary) treatment and green marks on my body from my boost (secondary) treatment. This is totally wild - so now with twice the markings to maintain I am pretty confident that I should avoid sweating ... no working out for me right now. I will post pictures of all my markings later (difficult to take photos of myself - I need Matt’s help).
Tuesday 10/25/11
So today I received a very nice surprise. A friend of mine Susan Tan sent me flowers. It was a very thoughtful gift. The flowers are beautiful and this reminds me how lucky I am to be surrounded by such good friends.
Thank you; Susan, Soopang, Karol and Chloe :) ... the flowers are fabulous and exactly what I needed.
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| These flowers smell just as beautiful as they look |
Monday 10/24/11
Today was my 16th treatment and I saw my Radiation Oncologist. Todays’ report was a little different then in the past. I am experiencing the following symptoms:
- Skin Changes - dryness and itchiness (doctor called it Radiation Dermatitis)
- Difficulty Swallowing
About the difficulty swallowing - doctor says this could be caused by one of 2 things; either I am getting sick or my esophagus is getting exposed to radiation. Apparently, each of us has slightly different anatomy and it is possible that my esophagus is a little more on my left side then my right. Because of this possibility he said he will be reviewing my treatment plan and consider the option of revising my current radiation treatment.
In the meantime I was prescribed a compound medication combination of: lidocaine, benadryl and maalox. They call this medication “Magic Mouthwash”. This medicine is strange it is like a very strong chloraseptic spray that makes my entire throat feel numb. Overall it really helped me eat a lot easier.
Our lives are full of lessons ...
Anyone who has talked to me knows that I have been complaining about weight gain. According to my oncologist the average breast cancer patient gains 30 - 40 pounds caused mostly by medication and I have gained 20 (yikes). Prior to being diagnosed and undergoing treatment I always thought that cancer treatment caused weight loss (I was wrong). And throughout treatment I have had a serious challenge fighting the weight gain and maintaining a realistic workout schedule. It is quite possible that the lesson behind having my throat / esophagus radiated is the fact that I need to stop complaining about the weight gain and be happy that my appetite has remained in tact. So I guess for now I will suffer in silence (and maybe learn to accept the fact that I am a chunky monkey). This doesn’t mean I am going to stop working out or watching what I eat - it just means I will complain less about it and instead focus on being thankful for everything I have (including my appetite and extra insulation - after all the winter is coming).
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| This magic mouthwash looks intimidating |
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| By the way the color is pink (as you can tell in this picture of the bottle - this is thick stuff) |
Saturday 10/22/11
This weekend was Ziegfest in Corpus Christi. It was great seeing all the Corpus Christi (Stripes Convenience) people. Everyone there has been so supportive of Matt and I and very encouraging of my treatment. I haven’t seen them since last year - so it was great to catch up with them.
After the Ziegfest we had dinner at Crawdaddys. The meal was spicy and as delicious as always.
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| Matt and I just as the music festival was getting started |
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| This dish is sausage, potatoes, corn and locally caught shrimp (sadly Crawfish aren't in season right now) |
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| Matt and I with our bibs on :) |
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| I asked the waitress for extra bibs (these things would come in handy at home) By the way ... we didn't bring any home |
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| 2 headed goat pictured while we stopped at Prasek's Hillje Smokehouse on the way home on Sunday This is a very cool store / restaurant and I highly recommend stopping in if you are ever in the area |
Friday 10/21/11
Today I had my 15th treatment and things seem to be going well. Except that I have found that I feel nausea and while the doctor explained that this is unlikely caused by the radiation I do find that it is more prevalent after treatment. The doctor advised that I take my anti-nausea medication whenever I feel it coming on. This evening I also started experiencing trouble swallowing my food during dinner. I made it through my meal but I was very uncomfortable and cause for concern.
Wednesday 10/19/11
I was able to exchange the rental car - but let me just say that Enterprise left me with a pretty disappointed feeling. As I felt my blood pressure raise I found myself digging deep to keep my composure. It is clear that at radiation treatment # 13 I am feeling myself grow a little more impatient and short tempered. I am hoping that will improve over time.
This evening Matt and I met Tommy for a run (one lap at the park). It was a good run .. but I did find myself running a lot slower then Matt and Tommy. Running always tires me out and makes me feel better.
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| Self Portrait taken as I waited for Matt and Tommy |
Tuesday 10/18/11
I usually see my Radiation Oncologist on Mondays but he wasn’t in yesterday. So I saw him today after my 12th treatment. My skin is still doing well and while the pain in my breast has increased I am able to manage mostly with Advil.
Matt also dropped off the FJ for repairs. He returned home with the rental which was a white minivan ... I am not kidding Matt brought home a minivan. The minivan smelled like dirty diapers. I called the rental office and asked if there were other options. I was told to come by the next day to exchange the poopy vehicle.
Monday 10/17/11
I get my treatment at Methodist Hospital and this is a very nice facility. The lobby has a piano, fountain and several pieces of art. During today’s visit Matt and I noticed the artists name on one of the sculptures -- picture below :)
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| Need I say more? :) |
Sunday 10/16/11
Today Matt and I went out for a motorcycle ride with a few friends (Troy, Angela and Mark). It was a very relaxed ride to Conroe for breakfast. We picked Mark up at the shop “Houston Super Bikes”. After breakfast we accompanied Mark back to the shop and it was a good thing because during our ride I sprang an oil leak. We left my bike at the shop and I rode back home on the back of Matt’s bike. Honestly, the last time I rode on the back of a bike was about 3 years ago, on the back of Matt’s Harley Davidson Road King. This ride was a lot less terrifying then my last ride, maybe because I was more relaxed or maybe because I was already a little tired and realized that even if something went wrong there was nothing I could do. Either way it was a fun little ride home.
After returning home I decided to rest for a little while before we went out for a run. This much activity in one day reminds me of the old days, when I had more energy. Of course with both of these things I was pretty much cooked. Very relaxed evening afterwards.
Saturday 10/15/11
Today I had my 4th guitar lesson. I am really enjoying it and while I find it quite challenging ... I find that every lesson I am a little closer to playing an entire song.
So my hair is growing .. which is awesome! The strange part of that is that different sections grow at different paces; example, hair on top of my head grows slower then the hair on the back of my head. After several weeks of struggling with odd growth I have decided to get a hair cut. I got a very short version of the hair style I want and over the next few weeks I hope to get closer to the funky mohawk hair style. Will post more mohawk pictures next time (I am just realizing that I have none).
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| Pre-hair cut (Front Photo) |
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| Pre-hair cut (Right Side Photo) |
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| Pre- hair cut (Left Side Photo) |
Friday 10/14/11
Today I had my 10th treatment. Thing seem to be going well. The interesting thing about radiation is that the objective is to continue treatment and progress is gauged by the absence of side effects:
- Skin in tact (no changes)
- High energy (no fatigue)
- Good appetite (no change)
- Same weight (no change)
While I find going to treatment every day very inconvenient - I am starting to feel like I am developing a routine. I like to count the number of treatments and tell people I have completed 10 of 35 and Matt tells me that it is much better to say I am finishing my 2nd of 7 weeks (we agree to disagree).
Stay tuned for more SuperMonkey Adventures,
Nancy
AKA: SuperMonkey
Quote Trifecta:
"It's ok to be fat. So you're fat. Just be fat and shut up about it."
- Roseanne Barr
"Stress spelled backwards is desserts. Coincidence? I think not!"
- Author Unknown
"Never eat more then you can lift."
- Miss Piggy
