I haven't written for awhile for a couple of reasons; first, the kids came home for the month of July and we played and enjoyed each others' company, and, second, I was hit with some misinformation, which kind of through me for a bit of a loop.
After further testing, one of my lymph nodes came back with a small spot of cancer. The nurse called and told me I would have 6 months of chemo followed by radiation and it would be a 9 month process. It was a shock! Not even the doctors had exptected lymph node involvement. So...that was the first time I went into melt down since all this began. I cried for two days and then sucked it up as the kids were arriving home from NYC. As soon as they got home, we left for Denver to visit my brother (it was a good distraction). When we got home from that short vacation, I had my first meeting with the oncologist. I prayed so hard for good news! Well, somehow my prayer was heard, because the nurse had given me misinformation (I lived with the misinformation for 1-1/2 weeks). The doctor recommended only 4 treatments of chemo three weeks apart over a three month period; then the 6 weeks of radiation follow up (which I already knew I had to do). The chemo I am being given is not as bad as some...I will NOT lose my hair, but it may thin out. It sounds so much more doable!!! Yeah!
Next, I got a port put into my chest below the collar bone to receive the chemo. The surgery for the port was a "piece of cake." I was in and out in three hours. My anesthesiologist was the same man...the guy with a "wooden leg by the name of Smith." I think I told him three times that he did a great job in spite of having a wooden leg by the name of Smith (he never has told the name of his other leg--hahaha). The anesthesia was so good it made me feel like dancing naked to loud music on a table full of beautiful dishes & food in the middle of some big celebration--literally--and I even said that out loud. I kept laughing and laughing and laughing...I was so uninhibited that I remarked it was a good thing I wasn't a drinking person because I could be totally out of control. My poor husband kept apologizing for me! But, it did feel really great to just laugh and feel so carefree about all my woes.
Chemo started on August 10th--finishes Oct. 12th and is followed by the radiation. I will be through with everything for the holidays. Thanksgiving will be a little touchy, but by December I will be doing great! Back to total health with the immunities back on track by early February.
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