First Neulasta Injection to prevent hospitalization

I got the Neulasta shot today after talking with my med onc. I heard that perhaps Neulasta can lead to leukemia down the road so I wanted to talk to my med onc to see what the current literature was. He said there's no sound evidence of a white blood cell stimulator leading to leukemia, although studies with red blood cell stimulators, like Procrit, eopotein, showed a link. Also, he highly recommended that I take the Neulasta since my neutrophil count reached zero, and it could lead to life-threatening infections. There may be bone pain for a few days, but I can take Advil, Tylenol, or oxycodone, if it gets that bad.

New Wig Pics

Pictures of new wig from Beauty 4U and earrings.

End of Oct pics and Second round of chemo

10-26-08 With my new earrings.

10-28-08

Last Day of Radiation!

With my rad techs, Nellie and Bo

I rang the bell to signify I'm done!

Sam has the foam board that I used for radiation. I placed my head at the bottom with my arms up.

My wig just styled.

My neutrophils were at around 2700 so my chemo was a go for today. Last time I was given anzemet as my anti-nausea drug, but today it was changed to zofran. Marybeth, my nurse, said that it's usually alternated. So the order for administration was the same: taxotere, carboplatin, and herceptin. The dose/kg was the same, too, except for herceptin since the last time it was the loading dose of 80 mg/kg (?) and today it was 60mg/kg. I had one hive on my left arm with the taxotere, but then it went away on its own. Weird. It's strange, but that makes Mom, Sam, and me having hive(s) all within one week, but on different days, probably from different sources. My vein was found very easily! Thank God and those praying for me! One less thing to worry about.

Last Day of Radiation and Wig Fitting

Today I got to ring the bell that signified that I was done with radiation. Sam came with me today and took a picture of me with my radiation techs. I will try to post the pics tomorrow during my second round of chemo. I brought brownies to the techs as a thank you, and people waiting their turn for chemo clapped to celebrate with me. It's great to feel that another part of the cancer treatment is over. I took with me the foam board that I laid down on each time I was irradiated to keep me aligned properly. It'll be one of my show-and-tell pieces.

I was hesitant to go to my image recovery center appointment. I thought that Sandy would want me to shave my hair today, especially with that bald spot in the front, and I have to admit that I'm not ready for that. There's still quite a bit of hair behind my ears with the hat on. You'll see in the pic, although much less than last Friday. It was a relief to receive no pressure from Sandy, and she was able to style the wig with the hair that's left. It was particularly windy today, but I didn't feel like it would blow away. I have 2 bobby pins in the back. I think that I still have to get used to the color myself. I have on the black one that I got recently now at the library.

So the second round of chemo is tomorrow. Although there hasn't been a problem in the past, I hope they find a good vein easily. Today, when the woman drew my blood, she admitted that she used the large holed needle on me because she saw all the previous punctures. I don't think that she needed to use such a big one though. I need people with more experience! I've got excellent veins!! Don't ruin them because I need them for more chemo treatments.

Got some hair hanging on and new wig

On Friday, I went to Party City to check out some of their wigs. I saw a long black one with curls and purple highlights, but I decided to wait. When driving into the strip mall parking lot, I noticed a Beauty 4U store a few stores down. I headed over there, not knowing if they would have wigs or ones that would look OK on me. I was surprised to find that they had a whole wall of wigs displayed on styrofaom heads in the back, and it looked like it was owned by Koreans. I heard the staff speaking Korean on my way to the back.

There were 2 women behind the counter, one at 50 (she told me later) and one in her early to mid-twenties. I told them that I was undergoing chemotherapy, and that my hair is coming out so I needed to find a wig. The older woman didn't know what chemo was so I explained that I had breast cancer and was taking drugs for it. The older woman helped me find 3 wigs that were different than the one that I already bought. I had the pic of the other one in my camera. As we were trying on the wigs in front a large lighted mirror, she told me that she had just had surgery for calcifications found in both breasts, but the doctors said they were benign. She was suppose to have a 6 month follow-up recently, but she's been too scared to go back. Also, I think that she's the store owner and doesn't have health insurance. The outpatient procedure was probably pretty expensive. My insurance covered all my surgeries, but it was definitely over $10,000. I told her that it's imporant to do the follow-up, but also to try to get a second opinion in reading her pathology slides.

By the time I tried on the second wig, I could tell that my hairline was starting to recede, and there was a pile of hair on the table. Before you wear a wig, you have to put a stocking cap on your head. Since my head is so big and still has hair, the cap was sliding off, and every time it did, it took out more hair. I told the nice Korean lady that I was going buy a wig that night and wear it out of the store. I wasn't expecting my hair to be noticeably coming out until the end of the weekend, but now it looked like it wasn't going to last until the next morning. The last wig I chose because even though it was synthetic, the hair moved like my hair. As I swung the styrofoam head back and forth, the hair in the back swung with it. It looked great on me, and I walked out of the store with it on my head.

I felt like it wasn't really just chance that brought me to the store that night. The woman actually ended up saying the exact same thing as my mom to comfort me when I realized my hair was really going, which was, "Don't be sad." I hope she ended up going to the doctor. I intend to bring my mom there and choose another wig. The lady gave me a 10% discount, and the wig was only $40! The other one from Rene of Paris was $400!! She also let me pick some earrings.

On Sat, I had a really long shower. So much hair came out that I was afraid to look in the mirror afterwards. Running my fingers through my hair and seeing hair come out is quite normal for me, but just not that much hair. It didn't cause me to panic because I was prepared to see hair in my fingers. I only yelped when there was a bunch of hair sliding down my chest. I thought it might have been a bug. That only happened once. When I finally looked in the mirror, I realized that I still had a lot of hair left so I just put on one of my comfy hats and went to Target. Sam can tell you that I took a long while, but I found some earrings to accessorize my hat.

On Sunday, I think not as much came out, but there's a noticeable bare spot in the front middle part of my head, probably where the stocking cap pulled the most. Since I see scalp, I'm applying the Vitamin E cream there. There's quite of bit of hair behind both of my ears with the hat on, so not so bad.

It's kinda cold outside today so wearing the hat doesn't seem obvious, especially with my coat on. After radiation treatment today, I went to reschedule my blood work for tomorrow. The woman asked me, "Who is the patient?" instead of saying, " Give me your card." I must look pretty healthy. => Of course, more pics to come.

Lint Roller is My Friend

Well, I'm really shedding now. It's all over my scarf, and my friend is trying to clean it up, although not with much success. I made an appointment with the image recovery store for Tues at 11:30 am for hair cutting, maybe shaving, and wig fitting. I don't know if I'll have any hair left by Tues, but I guess I can wear a hat until then.

I met up with Katie, another breast cancer survivor who is here at Hopkins, and had lunch at the Greene Turtle at Fells Point. She was telling me about how she shaved her head, but her scalp hurt a lot so she used a lint roller on her head. The final hair stubs came out on the roller and left a bald strip on her head. She was a bit traumatized. I'm not sure how to make the experience less traumatic, but it's a bit freaky to see so much hair coming out. I just don't want to see a bald patch on my head. That reminds me. Janet, what happened to your puppy with mange?

Mega bladder

Blog issues again.

anyway, my bladder contained 800 cc of urine. How do I know this? Because since I've been in the hospital, I've been measuring with a container in the toilet. I'm very proud of my generous bladder, and it explains why I go to the bathroom less than most of my friends.

Mom, William, Sam, and I are going to Szechuan House again tonight to celebrate my release (from the hospital, not the one from this morning =>).

I'm Free!

My neutrophil counts last night were 430 so they let me out today with some oral antibiotics. It took a while to pack since so many things accumulated over that past 5 days. I'm free from the iv pole. The first half hour I would look at the iv pole every time I moved. I had my radiation today with the iv in, although the discharge papers were being filed. Then, I waited half an hour in a wheelchair with a mask on for them to take me to my room, even though I was perfectly capable of walking up on my own.
I woke up at 5:30 am and

Pics in Hospital

Sam's watching CNN, our only TV channel. I use the computer in the back to e-mail.

Here's my bed. It's pretty comfortable with 4 pillows and tempurpedic mat!

During the day, I have a nice view of downtown Baltimore. You can see my IV pole next to me.

My IV that's been in since Sat. Chawann did a great job tracking that vein. My right arm gets poked at for blood draws and squeezed with the blood pressure cuff since my left arm is babied after the sentinel node biopsy.









Good news! My neutrophil count is 150! So the zero from yesterday was probably the fluke. Yay! I was switched to oral antibiotics today. The iv is just dripping saline, just in case the oral antibiotics don't work to prevent fever.

I got the postcards from Linda (all 5!) and the package from Bonnie today. Those aloe socks are so soft, I'm wearing them now! Thanks!

I met up with both my medical oncologist and radiation oncologist today. Dr. MedOnc came at 8:30 in the morning, after I e-mailed him at 8:30 last night. He was dressed all in black with something around this neck. He reminded me of a photographer, but he answered all my ques. Dr. MedOnc explained that I'm what's called "hot and low", fever with neutropenia. Studies have shown that Neulasta (G-CSF) will not be much help in getting my neutrophil counts up at this stage so we wait. He assured me that mostly likely I'll be OK for chemo next Wed. Neulasta when used next time will shorten the period of time my neutrophils will be low and also prevent the counts from reaching zero. I explained to him that I didn't know about my wisdom tooth being prone to infection.

My radiation treatment today was delayed from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm because there were some problems with the machine. It being Wed., I had my photos taken and x-rays, too. Only 4 more to go! Dr.RadOnc met me afterwards. I asked him about the effects of radiation on my neutrophils. He told me that white blood cells are mainly made in the hips and spine so the neutrophil production should not be affected by the small area that I'm being irradiated.

After my shower today, Mom was combing my hair, but I was hesitant because I've been seeing more hair around my bed, although not really more than usual. After combing, she seemed a bit sad, and I could hear her picking up my hair while combing. More hair came out in my hands later. Don't get me wrong! There's a lot more left and no spots, but it's the beginning of the temporary end. Not worried though, just deciding when to go to the image recovery store.

Here's the link to the place where I bought my wig:
http://www.imagerecovery.com/store/catalog_full.cfm?section=store&catID=16

Hanging out at Hopkins

My neutrophil count is zero again. What can I say? The doc said that there's a margin of error in counting, and when the norm is 1500-7000, 70 doesn't seem like a lot. I e-mailed my medical oncologist tonight, and he'll be coming by tomorrow morning to answer my questions. He said I should still be able to have chemo next Wed. as scheduled. I was suspecting that the radiation may be affecting the counts, but I know that in reality the radiation is to a small area. I just wonder about the breast bone...

So I spent my day on the internet. I also went down to the first floor where there was more traffic to get the parking tickets. I was moving fairly quickly with my iv pole into the elevator when the pole rammed into the back of the elevator. whoops! Didn't take in the swing factor. It's like having the largest bracelet ever!

As I was going around the hospital, people kept on telling me how healthy I looked even with the mask on. Seriously, I believe I am the healthiest person checked in on this floor. It's just that I need to have the zosyn antibiotic given to me every 4 hours. The swelling around my wisdom tooth is down.

Jeannie and her mom came to visit me and Sam tonight. They drove all the way up from DC after work to take a look around and drop off some Korean dramas--the new agenda for tomorrow =>. Also, Megan from lab stopped by and gave me a Case Studies in Immunology book to read. I found the section on someone with non-functional neutrophils, a condition called chronic granulomatous disease (CGD). Basically, he had severe fungal and bacterial infection in his lungs and was given interferon-gamma, although the mechanism by which interferon-gamma works is not known. Jeannie, Ms. Smartypants, Ok Dr. Smartypants, named the condition before I finished saying non-functional neutrophils. I'm just too impressed. =>

I talked with Jenny An, and we were talking about heart arrythmias. She's been having them and was recommended to go see a doc right away. I actually started having them this year, but maybe once every few weeks. They are short and slightly take your breath away. I was told by my docs not to worry about it--that as you get older, it's more common. There was one nurse though who told me that I wasn't the first breast cancer patient to mention having heart arrythmia before being diagnosed. I just keep it in mind.

Good News about Neutrophil Count

My blood was taken last night, and my absolute neutrophil count is at 76! So much better than zero the day before. I do have to wait until it reaches 500 before I leave the hospital though. So I'm thinking around Wed? No way to know. I had my blood drawn tonight too so we'll see.

I surprised my radiation techs by coming in with an i.v. pole today. It was getting too easy for them to maneuver just the wires for the ABS breathing apparatus and push button hand-held controller while they irradiate me in 5 different positions. Well, I wasn't late for my appointment today! I just got out bed, in the middle of breaskfast (oatmeal), and headed down to the lower level.

I was a bit grouchy this morning because when I got back, the rest of my breakfast was gone. I thought that the nurse or Sam would be keeping an eye on it, but it was whisked away. I'm putting a sign on it tomorrow! Nobody takes my food!! =>

On Friday night, I read Bald in the Land of Big Hair by Joni Rodgers. The author lived in...Texas!! I hope staying up all night reading the book didn't cause my fever. :O The first 4 or so chapters had me cracking up! Joni had a very serious lymphoma, but was able to defy stats through chemo. She wrote that when she would go shopping bald, the cashiers would call her sir. I think that I'm going to be increasing the amount of jewelry that I wear.

Then this one chapter had me bawling because she was writing about the worst time of her chemo and its affect on her children. Fortunately, I'm not taking what she was. I was going to recommend the book to the YSC members, but I think that some members are actually taking the same drug so scratch that.

Sam stayed with me the whole day. We were laughing every time the SNL rap skit of Sarah Palin came on CNN, the only TV channel I have. I'm an innocent moose...BAM, BAM, BAM!! Mom and William came by with Korean seaweed soup.

Happy birthday, Sabrina!! Celebrate it well! Yes, it's possible even without me there. => I'm remembering one of the breast cancer awareness commercials with the song "I wanna be an old woman". How true, eventually!! I always thought that it was interesting that even in college, Janet said that she would love to get those laugh lines around her eyes. She thinks little old women are adorable. hee hee

No Walk For Me, but I'm Keeping Everyone Else Running Around

Due to the admittance to the Weinberg Cancer Center, I was not able to participate in the Komen Race. William had picked up the T-shirts from the registration though since the walk was near his work place. We'll have to take a pic with the shirts even though we didn't go.

Looking at the bulletins boards, I read that chemo can affect your eyesight--blurry vision, dry eyes, even cataracts. Although it may get better after chemo, it's possible it may never be the same. Now, that's one thing the docs did not tell me, and I had to find out on my own.

I'm told to leave "surprises" for my nurses. I left one in the toilet (You can guess what it is) this morning as instructed yesterday, but now that I've had a change in the appearance of said surprise, I must leave more for inspection. Man, it's hard to keep your dignity as a patient! It got me to thinking about how in ancient China, the imperial physicians would check the excretions of the King. Still feels weird.

In the hospital--not too serious

I was admitted into the cancer center yesterday due to neutropenic fever. I actually feel fine now (no fever), but they have me on two antibiotics (Zosyn and vancomycin) and will keep me here until my neutrophil count reaches 500. It was at absolute ZERO yesterday. My fever was at 100.5 to 101.2. I think that there are 2 possible sites of infection. It looks like one of my wisdom teeth wants to make an entrance NOW and is causing major inflammation. The other is my "port of exit (POE)", which is also inflamed. They did a CT of my jaw and upper chest, a chest x-ray, another blood culture, and took urine and stool specimens. Everything's come back normal so far.

I had a reaction to the vancomycin. Usually they give it to you by iv for an hour. About 45 min in, I felt like I was having a hot flash. My head and upper chest became red and hot, and my scalp started icthing like crazy! I was given tylenol, benadryl, and the rate of infusion was lowered. I was talking with Jeannie, and she said I had red man syndrome and needed the vancomycin to be given more slowly. Everything else went smoothly, even the food here is pretty good.

I got a cream for my rash: Sween 24 once a day moisturizing cream (Dimethicone, Coloplast) and another for my POE: Critic-Aid Clear Moisture barrier ointment (petrolatum, Coloplast).I'll definitely be getting the Neulasta the next time around. Right now it looks like the docs are waiting for me to produce them on my own.

Pics as Promised

Chemo Round 1: I get to lounge in a bed! It was crowded elsewhere and warm. The white/gray box was dripping the chemo into my wrist. During the 3 bathroom runs, we just unplugged the contraption from the wall, and mom followed me with it. Sam took the pic with my mom. I was talking to Linda.
Hair Cutting Day: William and Mom come over. I should have brushed my hair for the pic. Kinda scraggly lookin'.

My hair all tied up and resting on the coffee table.












New do: Mom curled it under nicely, but I just run out the door with wet hair for my radiation treatments. =>

Neutropenic, but feeling fine!

Well, the rash behind my knees got worse, and I saw another mild rash on my left wrist so after radiation treatment, I headed to see my chemo nurse. They did some bloodwork, and I am neutropenic. I'm at 30 neutrophils/cubic mm when normally it's 1500-7800. Before chemo, I was at 3740. I feel completely fine though and was given prescriptions for some antibiotics just in case I needed them over the weekend. They also stuck me again to get a blood culture. The nurse was suspecting fungus or yeast, but when I showed my arm to a pediatrician in my lab, he said it looked like an allergic reaction. Now I'll be getting Neulasta, which makes your bones pump out white blood cells, after my next chemo. I honestly thought that she would just give me some skin cream and send me on my way. I got some masks and will be eating all cooked foods.

I'm suppose to stay away from large crowds so I mentioned to my nurse that I'll be attending the Komen walk/run on Sunday. My nurse is actually running as well, but she didn't sign up under the Johns Hopkins Breast Center team. I guess if I feel sick I can try to track her down, among the thousands of people there. => William is on board for the walk. Also, another person from my lab may join us! Only thing is that the news last night said that it will be literally freezing on Sun morning, 34 degrees!

Good Night and Walk Recruit

Last night was a great night. No pain and comfortable rest. I think that I developed a rash behind my knees though. It's not bad though.

I talked to Mom last night, and she will be joining me in the Komen walk/run this Sunday in Huny Valley, MD. I'm going to sign her up today. Hey, William, you wanna come? I'm planning to be there at 7am, but we can meet around 8. At 7, there is a survivor parade. As a survivor, you can wear a brighter pink shirt and have your picture taken. Anyone else want to join us? Let me know, and I'll get you the info.

Radiation Day 6 and Meet with Dr. Rad Onc

Last night was rough. During the day, I feel pretty good, eating much smaller amounts than what I usually eat, but still eating something if I want it. Yesterday, I had 2 pancakes, a piece of cake, mashed potatoes with gravy, small amount of roasted corn chowder, scrambled eggs, a few pieces of fish that Sam made, and 3 slices of roasted chicken. I would say that's a pretty good amount of food considering that I feel like my tongue's starting to swell. Well, for the second night, I had intense abdominal pain. Sam ran out to get the Immodium for diarrhea, but I don't think that it gave me much relief. I just went to bed. I could try going to sleep earlier so that I'd be unconscious when it hits.

When I woke up this morning, I was feeling like my normal self. The radiation went smoothly, and I went to see Dr. RadOnc (radiation oncologist) afterwards. I had my pics taken for the study. I'm getting 270 cGy per radiation treatment, for a total of 4050 cGy. Dr. RadOnc showed me the CT scan, and I could see the clips that were left from the surgery. My heart really does look like it's out of the way with I breathe in. He did a good job.

Sam got me roses yesterday to celebrate one of our many anniversaries. Isn't he sweet? What did I do? I did the laundry. He loves it when I do the laundry. Those of you who have read The Five Languages know why this makes complete sense.

Pancakes for a while

Pancakes are fluffy, and you can stuff peanut butter in them. They're pretty gentle on my stomach it seems so it looks like I'll be sticking with them for a few days at least.

I had some bad cramping last night so I tried to sleep it off. Since I usually don't get cramps, I didn't have anything for them. My scalp is starting to itch, but my hair isn't really coming out more than usual.

A lot of you called last night. Thanks for your well wishes! I just couldn't pick up because of the cramping. I got a chance to talk to Grandma though. She's such a great cheerleader, a lot of experience at 88!

taxotere and radiation doses

Thought I would just write down what I'm getting and how much while I remember:

Taxotere: 75 mg/m^2 range is usually from 60-100 mg/m^2
Radiation: total dose 4050 rads

Schedule for Chemo

If I don't have any delays due to low blood counts or other side effects, I should have my next 5 chemo treatments on the following Wednesdays:

Oct. 29
Nov. 19
Dec. 10
Dec. 31 JHU still open on New Years' Eve!
Jan. 21

Then, I'll be done!

It seems that my nose is starting to run-- could be a Herceptin side effects (cold-like symptoms). It doesn't bother me though.

I had kosher enchiladads for lunch, but I forgot that I shouldn't eat salsa. It's hard to be picky when I'm usually not.

Haircut and no meds

On Saturday, Mom and William came over for the ponytail cutting. I'm behind on my pics. It seems that Sam is uncomfortable with me waving around the ponytail. He just makes a face. Now it's resting on our coffee table.

My hair is chin-length. I think that it makes my neck look longer. Not bad at all. It's just been a while since I've had a bob. I've been rummaging through my earrings for different accents around my head.

Yesterday, I was with Jeannie at the mall and walked slowly. I didn't take any meds yesterday or today, which is encouraging. We were looking at hats and chose a white cable-knit newsboy from Aldo. We even went out to eat pho afterwards. Unfortunately, Jeannie had an emergency she had to attend to in Boston, but it was great she came by.

My fourth radiation treatment was this morning. The techs didn't know that I was going through chemo at the same time, but they noticed the haircut. I don't have any flushing on my face today so I think that previously it must have been from the flu shot.

Walking Helps!

Last night I was suppose to walk with Sam to take out the trash/recycle, but since it was so cold outside, I wanted to walk in gym instead of going across the community to the dump. Poor Sam walked alone in the cold while I started on the treadmill. I realized that the walking subdued that heartburn! I walked for about an hour, more than 2 miles, while watching Deal or No Deal. I was worried that if I got off that I would feel sick again, but I didn't. I took some Ativan before going to sleep to prevent the nausea from coming back. I woke up without any nausea or heartburn. I actually felt normal!

I ate an egg that Sam made. Actually, the second egg he made. The first one he made fried with soy sauce that I find too salty so he make another with little salt and ketchup. What was the movie where the woman found her identity by finally deciding how she likes her eggs? Anyway, at least Sam knows now.

I also had a soup Sam made with young green peas. As scheduled, I took an Anzemet this morning. Some heartburn that comes and goes. I'll take a walk.

William and Mom will be coming over today to the apt. I asked Mom to cut my hair shoulder length so it's close to the wig. My hair isn't falling out more than usual. My scalp seems itchy in the front, but it could be the change in weather.

My face does seem like it's getting a tan. The flushed cheeks may be the radiation on my face? I think that I'll be talking with Dr. RadOnc soon. Off to the haircut!

Just finished reading: My One-Night Stand with Cancer (Tania)

to continue...

blog issues. Anyway, the nausea started last night, and I'm still not feeling so great. I'll probably be popping another anti-nausea med compazine soon in addition to the Anzemet that I took this morning. I keep checking my temperature since I feel warm, but it's only at 98.4 or lower. I'm going to head home soon. Right now I'm using the lab computer. Later...

Third radiation and some nausea

I had my third radiation treatment this morning. It went smoothly, no ncolor changes. I'm a bit flushed with rosy cheeks.

Flu shot

I was also given a flu shot at the same time as chemo. I will have to avoid getting sick while on chemo so I'm not eating any raw/uncooked foods from restaurants. My blood counts will lower in about 7-14 days post chemo. So far, people at work say I don't look sick at all. I ate something a little spicy after the radiation treatment accidentally. I have a little heart burn, but it's OK. Then I had pizza at lab meeting. No nausea! I think I'll head back home to take a walk and rest. It's important to exercise drink lots of water and exercise during chemo to get everything flushing right.

Still Feeling Fine Today

The night before chemo and radiation (Tues night), I only got 3 hours of sleep. I slept from 12am to 3am, but then I couldn't fall back asleep. I just kept on thinking about the upcoming procedures. It may have also been the decadron I was taking. It's a steroid that's suppose to help decrease reaction to the chemo and decease nausea, but it keeps you active! Last night though I had a good night's sleep even with the decadron (dexamethasone).

I'm having partial breast radiation treatment 15 times once a day except Sat. and Sun. I had my second treatment this morning, and it went smoothly. I was even able to take in more air than yesterday so my lungs seem to be expanding. There were five angles for radiation treatment.

With the breathing machine you have a mouthpiece like the cheap scuba gear and then they clamp your nose. It kept on slipping off my nose I guess because of the lotion that I used. So they stuck on some tape before putting on the clamp to secure it. It worked very well.

The chemo went so smoothly I couldn't have had it better! It was crowded yesterday in the waiting room, but when it was my turn to go in, I got to have a bed with a TV and curtained private area. With the blanket and pillows I brought, it was pretty relaxing.

I was given the anti-nausea med Anzemet through the i.v. first. The i.v. tube was uncomfortable at first, but after a few minutes I asked another nurse to adjust the angle. I couldn't even feel it by the end of chemo. I was worried because if the chemo goes outside your vein, you can have cell damage there even though they are not growing fast since the chemo would accumulate.

The first chemo was taxotere, which I could have had a reaction to in the first 15 min. So the nurse watched me carefully then, but I was fine. In 5% of patients, they can get a rash or stop breathing. The carboplatin was next and that went without a problem. If patients get carbo more than 10 times, they can develop a reaction, but since I'm only getting 6 it should be OK with the rest of the treatments. The herceptin was last and could have given me a bad reaction (also 5% chance, but no prob there too. So I just ate grapes, a sandwich, drank water, chewed on ice, and flipped through an American Cancer Society magazine for wigs/hats. Mom helped me travel to the bathroom 3 times in my 5 hours there. Usually, the nurse keeps you there for an hour after you finish chemo, but I looked so well that I could leave early.

Sam, Mom, William, and I went to eat at Schezhuan House in Towson afterwards. I had a good appetite, but I noticed my mouth was a little dry. It could have been the gum I was chewing. I bought some Big Red the night before chemo because I heard the chemo could leave a bad taste in your mouth. We picked up some baking soda and added water to make a rinse. It was salty, but I think that it helped hydrate. With chemo you can get mouth sores or even a fungal thrush so the biotene and baking soda should help with that.

It was a smooth day yesterday. The only time I was really upset was when I heard that Janet's dad passed away. Please keep her in your prayers as well.

Just waiting

I'm in the patient education room before I go in for the chemo. I talked with someone (Medical oncologist's assistant? I have her card.) just before coming here about what to expect from chemo. She said that I should be fine--that with taxotere you don't usually feel nausea and with carboplatin it's mild, if you feel anything. I have 4 different anti-nausea meds so I think that's covered.

I thought the chemo was going to be 6 hours, but now they tell me that taxotere is 1 hr, not 4 hrs unless I have a reaction, carboplatin is 1 hr, and herceptin for the first treatment is 1.5 hr but later it's 0.5 hrs. With the premeds, Sam, Mom, and I will be out of here in 4 hours. Yay! We can eat early afterwards, although we brought bags of food with us. We were going to have a picnic here. I even have pillows and blankets.

I had my first radiation therapy this morning. It was a breeze. I just laid there and used the ABS breathing machine. It took longer than I expected because the radiation was given in at least 4 different positions. I feel great. Only thing is that I have 14 more treatments, and they scheduled them all at 8:45 am. I'm so not a morning person.

Rad Simulation

I just came back from the radiation simulation. My treatment starts tomorrow at 8:45 am. I used the ABS breathing apparatus, but it was different this time. I just breathed in as much air as I could instead of having the machine cut me off. The staff took at least two x-rays. I have more x's on me now, in light blue.

Every time you into a different department, they make you put the gown on different. Open in front, open in the back. Put on two with one open in front, one in back. Now I just put it on and make sure I'm not flashing or mooning anyone.

Retail Therapy

Chemo class was this morning. I was late because the shuttle I took from the satellite parking lot to the hospital stopped twice in the middle of the road. When it braked at a red light, the driver would have to turn off the shuttle to get it going again. So I missed a video, but got a big binder of info on dealing with side effects and what to watch out for.

I met Marybeth my nurse and saw the area I'll be receiving chemo. I would say most of the patients in the waiting room are 60 and above. Instead of having blood drawn at 8:30 am tomorrow, I had it done today and passed by the image recovery center.

I wanted to check if they had the correct colored cap I needed for under my wig, but I ended up buying a whole bunch of products.

I bought another hat, but it's for sleeping and keeping my head warm so it's not cute like the other one. It's really soft though.

I also got:
Bee Pollen Shampoo--supposedly good for stressed hair
http://www.alphabeauty.com/shopping/pricelist.asp?prid=5246&Anasazi-Bee-Pollen-Shampoo,Stressed-&-Lifeless-Hair

Scalp lotion with vitamin E
http://www.iherb.com/ProductDetails.aspx?c=1&pid=3848&at=0 (Hey, it costs less on the website!)

Biotene for mouth moisture and prevention of sores
http://www.biotene.com/products/mouthwash.asp

Now about the hair...

My excuse..My Driver's License

Well, I didn't cut my hair over the weekend. I figured I should change my FL license to the MD one. I wanted to have my picture taken with my real hair. I finally got my license after 2.5 hours and $45. The picture turned out better than the FL one, but still not so great. I forgot that on the MD one, it has your weight. I didn't fudge the number, but looking back I wonder: why didn't I?

Aww...Thanks! and Radiation Info

I was reading your comments on the wig. I'm glad you all approve. It makes me feel better that wig shopping turned out so well. If you come by and visit, I'll show you how it looks like real scalp on top!

So, I got an e-mail from my radiation oncologist yesterday. He's the one designing the radiation treatment and heading the clinical trial I am on.

He wrote: With this new plan [with the breathing apparatus] less than 10% of the heart will receive 200+ rads. That is a very very small dose.

Is this good enough? Dr. RadOnc seems to think so.

So I searched on the web for an idea of what 200 rads is.

1) On breastcancer.org,
rad = centiGray (cGy)
Radiation treatment is given in low doses daily, and the total cumulative dose is calculated.
For breast cancer, each daily session is usually 180-200 rads.

For radiation to the whole breast and/or lymph node areas, the usual total dose is about 4500–5000 centiGrays over 5 weeks. Your doctor may then recommend an additional 1000–2000 centiGrays over 1 week delivered as a boost, targeted to the area where the tumor used to be.

Partial-breast radiation with external beam or internal radiation usually involves a total dose of 3400 centiGrays given over 1 week.

So I guess that 10% of my heart will have had about 1 daily dose of radiation treatment in a 25-day treatment plan.

2) Online book Radiation Toxicity: A Practical Guide

Editors: William Small Jr. and Gayle Woloschak

It only had the section on skin online. I guess I have to get the book to find out the effects on the heart.

"...fields treated with 2 Gy [200 cGy] daily fractionation do not show changes in basal cell density until total doses of 20-25 Gy [2000-2500 cGy] are delivered."

Greater than 45 Gy can cause dry, flaking skin with 2 Gy fractionation

I don't expect the cosmetic results of radiation treatment to be bad. A recent small clinical trial here at Hopkins that combined Adriamycin chemotherapy and partial breast radiation showed that the women tolerated the radiation treatment very well. The one I'm in allows any type of chemo treatment and partial breast radiation. As a part of the trial, the skin changes will be documented so there may pictures of my bust in a journal one day...

Young Survival Coalition

I was talking to Grace last night, and she was trying to link me up with other people who have had cancer. I'm actually getting a lot of support and info from the Young Survival Coalition, which is comprised of mainly women 40 and under who have had breast cancer. There are more of us than you think!

http://www.youngsurvival.org/community/bulletin-board

New Chemotherapy/Radiation Date

The wig isn't cut and styled to my head yet since I still have all my hair. Since I want to donate my hair to Locks of Love before I have chemo, I think that I'll cut my hair this weekend, at least to the nape of my neck. In order to donate your hair, you have to have a minimum of 10 inches. Since it's going to come out anyway, I may as well ship it off to have a wig made for children with cancer.

So, it looks like the chemo date is set for next Wed., Oct 8th. Since I'm enrolled in a clinical trial where radiation is given at the same time as chemo (for the first 3 weeks), I will also be having radiation treatment next Wed. Actual radiation treatment time is 2-3 min. although with the prep and positioning it'll probably be 30 min. Chemo though will take about 6 hours--4 for the taxotere, 1 for carboplatin, and 1 for Herceptin. I guess they are all in different bags.

Sam and my mom will be coming with me. Hopefully, it'll be mostly waiting. Nothing exciting. Beth gave me some books to read. I actually already read one. I got some Korean books for my mom to read from the library.

I'll have my second chemo class next Tues. as well as the simulation for the radiation treatment. I'm ready to get going.

Most of you may have noticed that October is breast cancer awareness month so I've enlisted myself in two fundraising activities.

Lee National Denim Day: I'll be wearing jeans tomorrow!
http://www.denimday.com/team_page.aspx?tid=226673

2008 Komen MD Race for the Cure
Oct. 19th
There's a 1 mile walk or a 5K run. I'm going to see how I feel that day after the chemo to see how I participate.
http://2008rftc.kintera.org/faf/login/partMenu.asp?ievent=262076&lis=1&kntae262076=46DF05CA034C4012B1673E8CB76AC931

This year I'm participating to meet other survivors. It's not to raise funds, but be on the look out next year! =>

The New Look

You may not recognize me on the street! I finally bought the Victoria wig in ginger brown two days ago. I also got the hat at the Image Recovery store. Take a look!