The story of my cancer journey
Got my latest urine culture back and it appears that I have a new, and different, bladder infection from before. This is not uncommon since I am undergoing chemotherapy and my immune system is weakened, so I am more succeptible to infection.
I will have to wait until my urological oncologist decides what antibiotic I should take for this infection.
A bit of a set back as I was hoping to clear up all bladder infections but I guess I'll just have to wait.
Well, just completed Chemotherapy Cycle 2. Seems as though this session was a wee bit easier on me than Cycle 1. That could mean the adjustments they made to my chemo meds helped, or it could mean that the chemo is working which is slowing or stopping the cancer growth.
I have a little less fatigue this time, but a bit more nausea than before. The fatigue seems to be shorter lived and I get my energy back a bit quicker. The only other, annoying, side effect I am getting is the occassional shaking of my hands, making it a bit tricky to use my hands or lift things.
They say over time, if the Chemo is working, the cancer should stop growing or even shrink in size, which will result in my feeling better as the symptoms from the cancer reduce.
So fingers crossed that the meds are working. :o)
For those of you old enough, you may remember the great prime time soap called "Dallas". I remember watching it as a kid, with my mother on Friday nights. Jamie had never seen it, so a few years back we ordered the entire 12 seasons on DVD. As predicted, we got hooked on the show again. Jamie loved it.
Our most favorite character on that show was the "drunk lush that came from the gutter" Sue Ellen. She was always fiesty with J.R., battled when necessary and drunk when she wasn't battling. The actress who played Sue Ellen was Linda Gray.
You can imagine how excited I was to receive a 6 minute video pep talk from Linda. I just received it today. She talks about my fight with cancer, about Dallas and our favorite lines and scenes, she tells me all about her new house move, and tells me how to go forward in fighting my cancer. She even calls me sweatheart!
It really was a pick me up. To hear from the original Sue Ellen and have her talk to me so personally was so uplififting. I just had to share that news with all of you.
Just a quick update between naps. Chemo Cycle 2 round one went well today. I slept through it completely, and when I woke up they were done. So far, other than fatigue all seems ok. But the side effects from chemo increase over the next 4 to 7 days. All is not quite good though. My bladder infection has seemingly returned, meaning it may have become resistant to the CIPRO I have been taking. The Doctor asked for another urine sample for culture, but the problem with that is, I don't have much urine in my bladder, so will have to collect what I can over the next day or so in order to be able to submit enough for a culture test. That's the update.
All my blood counts have recovered nicely, so Chemo Cycle 2 is a go tomorrow. Next session will be next Thursday, October 19th. Good news overall.
Quick update on the bloodwork done today. My neutrophios, which were way too low for my chemo last week, have gone from .43 to 4.91. This is excellent news and well above the required neutraphil count that would allow for chemotherapy. Some of my other blood markers were a little off, but probably not enough to delay my chemo further. We will have official word on proceeding tomorrow (October 11th) afternoon. Will keep you posted.
