2nd Cancer Post

Just to start off, I will be posting on things besides my cancer updates. I mean, I am living back home with my parents so I am beyond positive my mother will provide me with numerous stories to tell you about and some poetry will follow as well. But on to the update.

I went to the oncologist Tuesday and got the run down of everything. One of the key things that I liked about the whole appointment was that Chemotherapy has come a long way and nausea/vomiting/fatigue is not as common as it use to me. It is still a factor in the treatment but my doctor believes that I wont be physically restricted by it much if at all. I am very happy about that.

There are different stages of the cancer and two different grades as well. I am doing several blood tests, chest x-rays, three CT scans, and a bone marrow biopsy all before next Tuesday to find out the exact stage of the cancer (how far it has progressed). The doctor determined just from my symptoms that I am at at least stage 2 of 5 and that I have several "B" symptoms which means this is the aggressive grade of the disease. But still, looking at good odds.

The treatment actually happens in six cycles, each lasting 21 days. As to how many of those days I will actually be having my treatments, we don't know yet. We have to wait for all the other testing to get in and a port or PICC line to be done. It is basically an IV catheter inserted into the artery in my upper arm, or in my chest by my heart. I am personally leaning towards the arm.

But to be honest, the biggest adjustment of this all has been moving back home. It is by far the biggest mental battle these last few days at least. It's a challenge to go from living your life the way you had envisioned it in a town that had everything you could want, to being back in a small country town and relatively dependent on your parents. HOWEVER, I thought this would be a good time to look at the positive things this move has brought with it. Here are three of them.

1) A tank of gas will last me nearly a full month. Nothing to do, no where to go, saves gas. Always a plus.

2) Access to a full size washer/dryer/dishwasher. If you have ever lived in an apartment, you know what I am talking about. Those things are tiny.

3) Mama's cooking. Nothing beats a home cooked meal, and no home cooked meal is better than my mother's cooking. Especially with my birthday being... tomorrow... huh, I thought I had a few days still. Anyway. She is going to spoil me with my favorite meal and my favorite cake. So big pluses there.


I am currently still getting settled in but hopefully the whole process will be done by next weekend so I can get to my writing, even if it is just rambles to get my thoughts out. Thank you again to everyone for all the messages and emails. They have kept me smiling and moving forward. Thank you. Thank you.