Merry Christmas Everyone!

The big day arrived and left just as quickly. I hope it was a joyous day for everyone.

After opening gifts that Santa brought to our house, we were off to Racine to spend the day with my Mom, sister and her son from Nashville, and my brother and his kids and their families. Lunch was wonderful and I did a really good job at cleaning up the kitchen! Thanks for helping me Linda! It was a fun day and we all enjoyed catching up with each other's lives.

The weather cooperated - until the drive home. When we left Racine, it was just drizzling. By the time we got closer to Madison, the snow was really coming down and the drop in temperature made the highways icy. Not fun. But we made it home safely.

As I stated earlier, I had my first follow-up mammogram in a year on the 18th. The results are guarded. They found two new spots under my incision that warrant another follow-up mammogram in 6 months. Though the doctors say there is nothing to worry about and it is just calcification, that is what they said the first time. I'm not going crazy with concern, but the thought of "round 2" is in the back of my head. Until then, we just continue living.

My next treatment is January 8th. Santa brought new movies so I am excited to watch them on my phone. I saw Dr. Mark on my last treatment day and I can honestly say I am anxious for Dr. Kari to return from maternity leave. He thinks I am nuts with my side effects/concerns but it is obvious he hasn't read my medical file to know that I have complained about the same conditions for some time. I have always been in left field when it came to weird side effects. Just because no one else complains about them, doesn't make them non-existent. It just makes me in a category all by myself. I have been going weekly to Physical Therapy and have been learning new ways to 'find my center of balance'. Sounds kind of hokey. I'll let you know if any of this works.

With Christmas over and all of us 'on vacation' until after the first of January, I am hoping we can take some time to go to our lake home. We haven't been there since early October. It is so peaceful there in the Winter and we have great hills for sledding. We love to walk across the lake and investigate the other side. We keep the place heated and our driveway gets plowed for us. This year I know I won't get a phone call on January 2nd to tell me I have cancer like I got last year.

Here's wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

The holiday season is here!

The holiday season is finally upon us. Are you ready? I hope everyone enjoyed a 'thankful' Thanksgiving. We did. I drove into Racine to pick up my mom and bring her out for a few days. Aruna and I drove her home on that Friday and spent the night. Both of us worked on our "to-do" lists. It's hard to believe I was mulching roses two weeks ago!

The Monday after Thanksgiving I had another treatment. I was really sick suffering from a bad cough but I managed to hide my illness so I wouldn't get bumped from treatment. Once again I sort of broke the rules :) I have been sick for about 3 weeks now. I have been really, really tired and of course not feeling very good. My nose looks like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer!

We survived the first big blizzard of the season with around 17 or so inches of snow. Our landscape was transformed overnight to a Winter Wonderland! The snow was very heavy and packy. The kids had a snow day from school and Aruna played outside most of the day. Almost all of Sun Prairie and Madison were closed for the day. It was the first time in 19 years that the UW-Madison was closed. Scott was unable to get to his office as our street didn't get plowed out until early the next morning. Scott was a little more than livid with the city. In fact, the next day, school's were delayed 2 hours because it was so cold and the side streets weren't plowed yet! Gotta love it.

I am trying to get stuff done for the holidays. The tree is up and the house is decorated. I still have to write our family Christmas letter and send out the cards. Scott is using up all his vacation time - almost 2 weeks worth. He was saving them in case he had to take care of his sick wife - fortunately, I was never bad enough where I needed him to stay home. I must admit it is wierd having him home. I am use to being by myself all day.

This Friday, the 18th, I have another treatment and my first mammogram in a year. I'm sure everything is great. I've put new movies on my iphone to keep myself entertained for the day. Have I told you that you really should get an iphone? They're the coolest!!!!

The kids are fine. Aruna started grumbling about my having cancer and how she didn't like it. Specifically because I had to miss her graduation from 5th grade/Elementary School because I had chemo that day. Of course I am saddened by this, but I reminded her that I am alive and plan on making the next graduation ceremony.

My hair is back and it's curly. I love it! It is a lot of fun. The color is different too - more brown now. Maybe I all ready blogged about this. I don't remember and I'm too lazy to go back and read :) Either way, I am once again having to wash my hair, use product in it AND....get it cut! I had my first hair cut in about a year on December 4th. Per Aruna's instructions, I saved my hair.

I hope all is well with you. I continue to ask you to remember my friend Susan (Cancer Fight) in your prayers and my friend Joan from the UW Cancer clinic. Both are battling their cancers with all their strength.

Friday the 13th

I think this is one of the first Friday the 13th's that I didn't have treatment! I had my last one a week ago on the 6th. My Oncologist finally had a baby boy so I got to see Dr. Mark. I had an 8am lab, 9am doctor and 10am treatment. I was called to see Dr. Mark at 8:15!! A record! I could tell he was stressed. He was impatient with my questions and suggested I only come to appointments with one issue. I don't think so. When you only get to see the doctor every third treatment, I am not going to put "my issues" off. Dr. Mark is just going to have to deal with patient Janet!

Even though the day started off quickly, that's where it ended. I was called for my treatment 15 minutes early but then I got to sit and wait for pharmacy. That was not quite an hour. Knowing that chemo usually is the majority of the day, I settled in and watched a movie on my iphone. I don't mind the waiting. I still find it relaxing and call these days my SPA Days! (I have yet to get a foot rub during treatment!) I saw my convict friend Harry and he looked really good. My friend Joan is still fighting. She has stage four Pancreatic Cancer and is just finishing up another round of chemo. Her tumor has grown but she still looks good. She moves slower but her spunkiness is still there. We pray her upcoming scans are positive.

Saturday and Sunday after treatment I did my usual 12+ hour night sleeps and laid down during the day. I did manage to get outside in the nice weather and finish the gardening. The lawn mowers are put away and the snow blower is ready to go and the garage got cleaned out!!!! (Thank you Scott and Andrei :) )

In my last blog I told you about all the kids we had at Halloween and how we almost ran out of candy. Scott found a huge stash of Andrei's favorites in the closet! I guess we didn't have as many trick or treaters as I once thought.

I have started Physical Therapy for the pain in my lower back and spine. Yesterday was my first appointment. Craig, the Resident PT, said he would have me better in a month. I came home with one exercise to do twice a day. I know the pain will never entirely go away, but I am hoping it will lessen. I don't want to rely on my meds forever.

November is affectionally called "No School November!" It started with a four day weekend over Halloween, Monday the 9th was a day off, Monday the 16th is a day off and then there is the 2 day week of Thanksgiving! Plus Andrei has four days that are only half days because of testing!

If you get a chance, click in on my friend Susan's blog - Cancer Fight and PLEASE remember her in your prayers.

Happy Halloween!

Aruna and I are finally settled in after a very fun night of Trick or Treating! This year, Aruna dressed up as Ozzy Osbourne but all of the neighbors thought she was Yoko Ono except for one! Either way, she pulled it off really well. I walked (or should I say ran) with her and carried the extra bag, the hats and gloves. It was cold with temps in the upper 30's. The neighbors were asking me if I wanted any candy and of course I said "SURE!" After all, I didn't want to be unneighborly. I came home with tons of candy. My costume? For those who knew me, I was the cancer patient with hair. For everyone else, I was "just a Mom". A huge success! Aruna and I are all ready making plans for costumes next year!

We sorted through our candy and Moby has helped himself to a couple of Hershey bars! For a dog, he has quite the sweet tooth. Diver, on the other hand, wasn't as interested.

Scott passed out candy and almost ran out! We bought enough full size candy bars for about 120 kids. We are not quite sure where all the Trick or Treaters came from but they all came to our house. Andrei is hanging out with his friends watching the football games on TV.

The kids are back in school on Monday after a long 4 day weekend for Teacher's Convention. I spent a couple days this past week in Racine helping my Mom with stuff around the house. I called it a mini vacation since it was just me and no kids! It was nice.

Friday, November 6th, I have another chemo treatment and I get to see Dr. Burkhard again. Dr W. is out on maternity leave. I saw Dr. B. 9 months ago when Dr. W was on vacation.

All in all, everything is good. I still hurt some but I try not to think about it. We still haven't name the newest member of our family. Any suggestions for a name for a tarantula? Happy Pumpkin Day!!

Catch-Up Time Again

It's been 23 days since I last updated and a lot has happened. My bone scan came out clean - mostly. The pain in my spine is due to arthritis. My lower back hurts for several reasons. One - I have scoliosis, Two - I am showing degeneration in my discs, and Three - the dreaded word arthritis. My elbow looked normal and no one has a clue as to why I can have so much pain in it. All I know is that old age will not be fun. To help with the pain, I am still taking oxycodone. It makes the pain more bearable. To eliminate the pain, I have to take multiple pills at a time several times a day but I don't like the side effects of the medicine so I settle for less pain instead of no pain. So far I've been ok and my Doctors are good with it.

I had my follow-up appointment with Dr. Richards - Radiation Oncology. My skin looks great and if you look closely enough you can see the 'damage' the radiation did. It looks like a 'light sun tan'. I barely notice it. Unless I have issues, I don't see Dr. R for 9 months - July 13, 2010.

I had another treatment on the 16th. Dr. W wasn't there as she was in "false" labor. Bummer, the 16th was her due date. I talked to Nurse Mary about the pain and she suggested guided imagery. I'll try anything at this point. But this means another new doctor!

This past Monday, the 19th, Andrei took one for the team and messed up his ankle again. His football team was 6-1 this year and it was fun to watch them play. After spending Tuesday morning at Urgent Care, he is back in his boot and crutches until his appointment this Monday with a Foot and Ankle Specialist.

As I mentioned before, I have started substituting again. I have been working quite a bit and it is taking its toll on me. I have to remember that I don't have the energy level I use to have. Lots of long naps lately.

We have a new member in our family. Scott came home with a tarantula the other day. She has not yet been named but Aruna likes Doris. We have no clue where that came from. Instead of being yellow and black and hairy, this one is pink and black and hairy, I thought we could name it Pinky Tuscadaro from the old show Happy Days or name it after the tarantula in the 1997 movie with Tim Allen Jungle2Jungle. She is pretty amazing but needs to find a permanent home other than my kitchen counter!

We're off to the Lake House this weekend to relax. Even though Teacher's Convention is next week and we could have a long weekend, Halloween is more important. The spider is staying home.

19/11 and back to the Glow Farm

Today is Scott's and my 19th Wedding Anniversary. Today also marks 11 years since he and I stood in a Russian Court and legally adopted Andrei and Aruna. It's our Family Day. Our very first family meal together was in Moscow at McDonalds. Aruna, just 7 months old was happy with a bottle. Andrei, 4 years old, had his very first happy meal. I remember his huge smile as he showed us every single french fry before he ate it. 11 years later, Aruna eats the hamburgers and fries and Andrei eats a minimum two big macs and a quarter pounder with cheese. Every year on Family Day we go out for dinner to celebrate. For many years we would go to McDonalds. Now we like to go to other restaurants. I guess we are growing up and the Golden Arches aren't our first choice any more - at least not for Scott and I. Last night the kids voted to go to McD's and we said no!

I am spending my day at the hospital. When I had my last chemo on September 25th, I spoke with Nurse Mary and told her about my back pain - it just won't go away. My left elbow really hurts too. Dr. W came to visit me while I was getting my treatment and she ordered x-rays on my pelvic area and lumbar. She must have seen some cause for concern because today I have a bone scan.

I started at 8:30 at the Glow Farm, better known as Nuclear Medicine, for the radioactive tracer to be injected. (And to think I thought I was never going to visit them again!) It takes 4 hours for the tracer to find it's way to my skeletal system so I am just sitting around, blogging, and looking out the window at the rain. When you think about it, how cool is it to get your skeletal system all glow-in-the-dark just in time for Halloween?! Too bad I will lose all the radioactive substance in the next 2-3 days. Bummer. It would have been a great costume!

I have started substituting for the school district again. I haven't worked since last year. Right now I am helping out every day at an elementary school for 1-1/2 hours (I never said I worked full time!). Usually I will work either a half or full day whenever I am needed. Most of my positions are in Special Education in the Middle Schools but I like to be flexible and help out wherever I can. Substituting is great since I can pick and choose my assignments!

The kids are doing great. Andrei is the star football player - scores the most touchdowns and runs the most yardage. Homecoming is this week and it is fun to watch the excitement. Aruna has joined Art Club at school and is really excited about it. Tomorrow, we all start LOGOS which is basically church school every Wednesday night. The kids always grumble but once they get there and see their friends they forget how much they hate it!

All in all, I am surviving. I'm still really tired and I try to get as much sleep as I can. The weather is changing fast and all of us are doing our best to get both houses ready for snow. Before you know it, the holidays will be here :)

7 days since....

It's been a week since I had my final Radiation treatment. It took 7 weeks to accomplish with machine breakdowns and the Labor Day Holiday, but I survived all 33 of them with flying colors. As of today, you can hardly tell that I underwent treatment. My skin is barely red. I do consider myself very fortunate.

My hair is growing back. It is about an inch long and swirling all over the place. In the front I have some hair that sticks straight up and just won't stay down. We call it my Q-Pee Doll curl. The only bummer about the hair growing back is that it is also growing back on my legs and I have had to start shaving them again. Bummer. Not having to shave your legs is really a positive side effect of cancer :) My eye lashes are coming in wavy too. I am hoping they will straighten out in the near future.

Next Friday, the 25th, I have another chemo treatment. Dr. W. is starting to take blood again to watch my calcium levels. They are elevated and cause for some minor concern.

I been tired lately. I was told the fatigue from Radiation would last for awhile. They weren't kidding. Sometimes after the kids are off to school, I'll go back to bed. My weight is down again but I kind of like it.

That's all I can think of to tell you about today. Aruna and I are off to visit my mom for the weekend. Andrei is going to the Badger Football game tomorrow with his friends and Scott is just going to relax after a long week - but only after he gets his list of things to do done :)

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Since my last update, much has happened. I've had daily radiation treatments number 19 thru 29. I have 4 left and I'm done! Finally an end to something. This is GOOD. I have done exceptionally well with radiation. My skin looks fabulous and the doctors, nurses and techs are all amazed! I guess the diligent applications of Aquaphor paid off. Yeah for me!!! Plus I have 6 new dot tattoos! I wonder what picture would emerge if I connected them!!

My CAT scan didn't find anything. This is GOOD! The nodule on my right lung is nothing to worry about. Of course it is suggested to get a follow-up scan in a year to make sure it doesn't grow. Nothing was found in my pelvic or abdomen area but no one can explain why I hurt so much. This is BAD. They did find something with my bladder but unless I have frequent bladder infections, which I never have had, it is nothing that requires fixing.

My latest echogram showed the size and function of my left ventricle has greatly improved. Dr. W. has decided from now on I will receive follow-up echos instead of getting the MUGA Scans every three months. This means no more visits to the glow farm. My comment regarding my heart was that it should be improved since the blood pressure pills are really working. My pressure averages around 100/64. Any lower and I would drop :) But we all know that will never happen. I have too much spunk for that !! I have a follow-up appointment with Dr. Ewer my Cardiologist in the next 6 weeks or so.

Yesterday I had another chemo treatment. Not many new complaints on my part. I have 2-3 bloody noses every day so Dr. W. ordered some blood work. I guess everything was ok since I didn't hear different. Of course that doesn't stop the blood - this can get UGLY. But like everything else, I just roll with it.

Both kids started school on September 1st. Aruna is in the 6th grade in Middle School and Andrei is a Freshman in High School. I just celebrated a birthday so between that and the new schools, I feel old and this to me is UGLY!

All in all, everything is good. The kids are enjoying school. Andrei thinks High School is cool. Scott and I hope this attitude continues. Andrei is playing football and Aruna is playing Nerf Guns. It all makes me smile. And this is GOOD :)

More Tests

After being blamed for breaking the Radiation Machine, I guess I should be proud of myself since it was down for 5 days! Unfortunately that meant everyone had to go to the hospital for treatment. I didn't mind but I was the only one who felt that way.

So....off to the UW Hospital for treatment in their new Radiotherapy facility. WOW! It is really cool. The ceilings above the treatment table are painted with clouds (I thought that was sort of lame) but then you see the light show! The colors morph from yellow to orange to red to violet to blue to green over this painted sky! It is really awesome!

On Friday the 14th, I endured Radiation treatment once again at the hospital and another chemo treatment. By the time I got home, it was time to pick up Aruna from day camp and set out as a family to Brookfield for a cookout with our friends visiting from North Carolina (Susan at Cancer Fight) and some friends from Gurnee, Ill. It was a long day that ended about 11 pm. Way pass my bedtime. I paid for it all weekend as I slept for most of it. But I am sure the chemo treatment had something to do with my fatigue as well. I know the hot flashes got brutal again and that definitely is a result of the chemo.

Friday the 21st I finally had the CAT Scan on my chest. As you may recall, an "undiagnosed active disease" was found on my lung way back in January. Dr. W. wasn't all that concerned (obviously). I figured as long as insurance was paying, might as well find out what going on. My CAT Scan was changed to include my abdomen and pelvic area as I am experiencing sometimes really bad back and hip pain as well as and in my lower spine. This past Saturday it was so bad I had to break out the heavy duty meds again. No word yet as to the results.

This week is a follow-up Echo Gram on my heart. It is on Thursday at the hospital. Of course, it conflicts with High School Registration for Andrei so Scott is going to handle it for me. Thanks Honey!!! It will be interesting to see what, if any, change there is in my heart function as I am now taking high blood pressure pills (if you recall, I don't have high blood pressure - I just take the pills for it :) )

The fatigue caused by the radiation has caught up with me. I tire easily and need to rest in the afternoon. I don't have much desire to do anything. Other than get Andrei to football practice by 7:30am, Scott helps me get him there too, I mull around the house not getting much of anything accomplished and not really caring. This totally goes against my grain. You could say I am enjoying the 'lazy days of summer' by being lazy.

That's all for now. I think I'll get some sleep!

It's not my fault!

10 minutes before I was to leave for Radiation treatment this morning, Lori, one of my Techs calls and tells me the machine is broken. She said it must have known I was coming !! Ha Ha. Today, my schedule was filled so unless the machine got fixed within an hour or so, radiation wasn't happening. Not long after, another girl calls and tells me the machine is down for the whole day and i should just come in tomorrow at my scheduled time. Ok, no problem. I proceed to get ready to drive to Milwaukee to visit with my friend Susan (Cancer Fight) who is here visiting with her family. Half way into my drive (I feel so independent now that I can drive long distances again!) Lori calls me and tells me the machine is going to be down for two days! I really broke it this time! Ha Ha. So Lori wants me to drive to the UW Hospital tomorrow morning for treatment (I guess they don't want to miss two days in a row) and asks me if this would be a problem - yep. I'm busy in the morning so it has to be in the afternoon. Ok. Got the new appointment set up and life is good. I can once again concentrate on driving and singing with the radio :)

I spent a wonderful afternoon with Susan. We talked the whole time and conversation was never lacking. I wish they didn't live so far away. She looks wonderful and her outlook is amazing. I need to take lessons from her!

Halfway into our visit, my iphone rings. (Have I told you lately how cool an iphone is and that you should get one?) I thought for sure it was one of the kids. Nope. It was Lori again. This time the Radiotherapy people at the hospital can't take me at whatever machine I got scheduled on for whatever reason! Now my appointment is pushed out to 5 pm on a different machine. We'll see what tomorrow brings. Lots of changes can be made before 5 pm!! Afterall, this is the hospital and I know how messed up things can get there!

I'll keep you posted!!

11 down, 22 to go, 33% done

That's what the Radiation treatment numbers look like - 11 treatments completed, 22 more treatments left to go, a third of the way done. (News Flash, there are also 22 days left before school starts. What a coincidence.) So far, it hasn't been too bad, though the Nurses and Radiation Techs have warned me of what will happen to my skin . I'll worry about that when the time comes. But I must admit that I am slathering on the Aquaphor twice a day to hopefully ward off some of the upcoming burns/blisters and all around icky stuff that I am being warned about.

The decision to have the treatment done at the clinic by our house instead going to the University Hospital was a smart one. Everybody is very low key at the clinic, very friendly and the appointments are always on time!!! I am getting spoiled! I wish it was like that in the Cancer Clinic.

Of the 11 treatments, the Radiation machine has only crashed twice on me. I am told this only happens to me and I am jinxing the equipment. I say it is my electric personality that is affecting the machine :) If it happens a third time, I told them we will have to re-think the treatment. This is based on the "three strikes and you're out" theory.

This past weekend Scott's parents from Alabama were here to visit for their 50th Wedding Anniversary! WOW! The visit was too short but it was great to see them again! We celebrated by going out for a wonderful dinner with no kids! A grown-up meal is such a rarity for Scott and I!

My friend Susan (Cancer Fight), her husband Karl and kids are in Brookfield this week visiting her husband's family. Tomorrow, I am driving the hour and change to visit with her. I am sooooo excited to see her.

This Friday is a busy day, I start with an 8:15 Radiation treatment, then I go to the hospital for chemo at 9:45. Hopefully, it won't take all day but I am always prepared to sit there. Then, myself and the rest of my family are headed to Brookfield to visit with Susan and everybody else and enjoy a cook out. It'll be nice to have someone else cook for a change! I really am getting spoiled! :)

Treatment, Treatment and more Treatment

Friday, July 24th, I passed my blood tests, met with Dr. W (who is 7 months pregnant and I didn't know!),and had treatment. Not much going on with Dr. W. She had a Female (bummer) Resident who was fascinated with my heart beat. She listened for what seemed like forever and pressed on my neck the whole time to make sure the blood was pumping. Dr. W. reiterated what Dr. E my Cardiologist said about the heart tests. She told me he researches into chemo-damaged hearts. Guess I got the right doctor.

Treatment was uneventful. I caught up with some of my friends in the waiting room and saw Prisoner Harry (he is my first prisoner friend). Harry is doing well. My tattoo on the back of my neck (can't put it on my head anymore because my hair is growing!) was a guitar. Aruna picked it out and applied it.

After treatment, Aruna, her friend and I headed for the lake house for the weekend. My first real adventure without Scott driving me since last year December. I felt giddy with independence again!

Yesterday I started my new blood pressure pills I didn't know how I would react to them so I delayed starting them until after the weekend. Good decision. They make me tired and it is only day two!

Yesterday I also started my daily radiation treatments. Aruna came with me and got to go into the "Command Center" and watch. She said she got to see my insides (Scott still thinks my heart is part ice and asked her if she saw it) but other than that, she found it boring! Ann and Melodie, the Radiation Technicians, took lots of pictures before the actual treatment. I got more dot Tattoos and at today's treatment I asked them to number them for dot-to-dot. I still don't know how long the treatments are since today they had to take more pictures. The best part of today was Ben, one of the cutie Residents was there. He tied my hospital gown for me when I was done :)

I decided that my treatment countdown is not going to count my sessions. Instead, it is going to countdown the days until school starts! I am growing weary of a house full of teenage boys!

A Day of Tests

Tuesday the 21st I started my day at the University Hospital in the Heart and CardioVascular Center. Unlike the Cancer Clinic, the receptionist/check-in girls don't smile. Today I had my first TTE - short for Transthoracic Echocardiogram - long for Echogram. Until then, I had no idea what the test is all about. It uses high-pitched waves that are sent through a transducer. This device picks up the echos of the sound waves as they bounce off the different parts of your heart. These echos are then turned into moving pictures of your heart. They are really cool to watch as the technician does his job.

Because I scored lower on my third heart MUGA Scan than I did on the first one (which red flagged me for Congestive Heart Failure) this test was done. It checks for abnormal heart sounds (got that), shortness of breath (sometimes have that), irregular heartbeats (got that) and a bunch of other stuff such as: Scott said they wanted to make sure that I do still have a heart and that it isn't all ice. Gotta love the man :)

What my new Cardiologist Dr Ewer was looking at was my ejection fraction rate which is how much blood the heart is pumping during each heartbeat. Because the first round of chemo damages the heart, he wanted to see what my heart was doing. What I find amazing, every time I have a new test done I am asked if I have had it before. The answer is always no. Bummer. The doctors don't have a past test to compare to so they never know what changes have taken place in whatever organ they are looking at.

Anyway, I squeaked by this test as well. Normal rate is 55 and above. I scored 55! (I did much better in school on my tests than I seem to be doing on my medical tests!) Dr. E. said my heart was not under stress and I had two options: 1) start another new med, stop treatment for 3 months for the heart to recover then get a second echo gram and see him. OR 2) start the new med, continue treatment, get a second echogram in 5-6 weeks and see Dr. E in 3 months, unless I do poorly on the second echo. Tough choice - not. I'm going for it and continuing my treatment. No delays for me much less 3 months!

The new med is for high blood pressure. I don't have high blood pressure. Sometimes it is really low! I am curious about the side effects (yes more side effects). I am told I will get light headed and will have a constant dry nagging cough. Great. I will be on this med throughout the course of treatment.

My afternoon was spent at the University Health Clinic by our home, Here I had my CT scan done for my radiation treatments. The best part of this was the two really cute Residents. I had two different scans done - one breathing normally, and one holding my breath. Dr. Richardson, my Radiation Oncologist, will compare the two and come up with a plan for my treatments. After the scans, one of the cuties gave me my four new 'dot' tattoos - he was very good with the needle. Then I had a photo of the side of the breast. Scott didn't even flinch when I came home and told him, quite gleefully, that I had to bare myself in front of two cute Residents!

Friday, the 24th, I am back at the Cancer Clinic for Lab, Dr. W, and hopefully treatment.

Its time for Radiation

Thursday, July 16th, Scott and I met with the Radiation Oncologist, Dr. Richardson at the University Clinic close to our house. ( I decided I did not want to drive to the University Cancer Center every day to have radiation treatments (50 miles round trip) when the clinic is only 8 miles from our house.) Anyway, Dr. R. explained why I have to have radiation and the side effects - both short term and long term (years). (Why does this seem to be a never-ending battle?) An hour later, I signed the consent forms and off I went to scheduling and Scott went back to work.

I have a CT Scan scheduled for the afternoon of Tuesday the 21st at the University Clinic to determine the radiation treatment area . That's after I spend the morning at the University Cancer Clinic for a Echo Gram and a 'heart-to-heart' talk with the Dr. Ewer, Cardiologist. Busy day.

Provided all goes well, I have my chemo treatments starting again on Friday the 24th and Radiation starts Monday the 27th. I have 33 treatments. Monday through Friday. Good Bye August.

Back to the Glow Farm with concerned Results

Last Friday, July 10th, I was back in Nuclear Medicine for my third MUGA heart scan. As you may recall, about three vials of blood are taken out and made radioactive then put back into you. Then this big imaging machine maps out a 3-D picture of your heart - specifically your left ventricle. Very uneventful. Today, Dr. W called with the results. Seems my score was lower than the first MUGA Scan and that one was border line. Because of this, my treatment this Friday is cancelled/postponed. After all the low blood counts and liver counts, it takes my heart to postpone treatment! Oh well. Dr W. is making arrangements for me to have an echo gram and a visit with the Cardiologist as well as rescheduling my treatment for next Friday (maybe). Hopefully none of these new appointments will conflict with my current activity/social calender. OOPS! I don't have that life. It's Andrei and Aruna with the activity/social calendar! Silly me. I'm just the driver.

In the meantime, I deal with new and exciting side effects from the Taxol. My feet hurt and I can't bend my knees as I am experiencing muscle and joint pain. This is a bummer since I have to sleep flat on my back and I am a side sleeper. Sometimes I look like a duck when I walk! Kinda of funny when you think about how a duck walks! The tingling is still there and every now and again it goes nuts on my head. Scott says is it my hair follicles coming back to life since the hair on my head is starting to grow. I am experiencing headaches again but not as severe as they were when treatment started. And last but not least, the hot flashes persist. If I stay outside in the sun where I am not suppose to be, i don't notice them so much! It's a plan.

We were able to get up to the lake house for the Fourth of July holiday. We haven't been there since Memorial Day and our driveway was in full bloom! Pretty yellow flower weeds! A bunch of Round-up later and they were dying. The boys enjoyed ATV'g on the trails and getting very muddy - even Aruna went once and had a huge smile on her face!

All in all, I am having good days. Trying to get my sleep but that is hard with the kids staying up later. Andrei has weight training in the mornings for High School football so I can't really sleep in. Do you believe it?! High School all ready and Aruna starts Middle School. Where did the time go?

Thanks for keeping me in your prayers. Please don't forget to remember my friend Susan (Cancer Fight) in your prayers as well.

Separation Anxiety?

On Friday, June 25th, my day started at 5:45 am. It was 67 degrees outside. By 6:45 am Scott and I were on our way to the UW Madison Hospital for my final #12 treatment of Taxol. By 7:15 am we had arrived at the hospital, had a quick kiss good-bye and I was on my way to the Cancer Clinic. I was checked in by 7:34 am and by request, showed everyone the tattoo on the back of my head. By 8:00 am I was in the Oncology lab having my port accessed and blood taken for the usual weekly tests - white blood counts and liver. By 8:24 I was out of the lab and got comfortable in a rocking chair where I waited for the results of my blood tests and for my treatment. It was 9:10 am and Nurse Suzanne called me for treatment. I passed my blood tests - barely again - and by 10 am Nurse Suzanne had finished administrating the pre-meds before treatment. This is a 20-25 minute process. I then had to wait for 20 minutes because the Pharmacy was now backed up with chemo orders. Usual. 20 minutes is short. There was one treatment that I waited over 2 hours for Pharmacy!

By 10:17 am, the Herceptin infusion had begun. This time I was receiving a full dose of Herceptin (1-1/2 hour infusion) in addition to the final Taxol infusion. I was beginning to feel light headed and had some slight pressure between my eyes. All of this is a reaction from the pre-meds I received. At 10:30 there was a Blue Cart Emergency call in the Breast Center. Not a good thing. Usually I hear at least 3-4 emergency calls. Today I only heard the one.

At 12:06 pm the Herceptin infusion was done. I didn't have any reactions this week. If you recall, last treatment I was experiencing muscle spasms throughout my body. It is 12:30 pm and the final Taxol treatment had begun. The blood pressure cuff had been secured on my right arm. It takes my blood pressure and pulse rate every 15 minutes throughout the treatment. I put all the numbers into my iphone. Numbers I probably will never look at again, but it keeps me occupied. It's now 1:30 and the final Taxol is done. Nurse Suzanne sits and talks to me while she flushes my port and disconnects all the tubes before pulling out the needle. The chemo ward was slow today so Nurse Suzanne had more time to just talk to me. We both enjoyed the different conversations we had with each other throughout the day. I think she was one of the nicest Nurses I had.

It's 1:44 pm and the side effects have begun. Maybe I'll tell you about all the new ones in another blog.


By 2:25 pm, I am outside of the hospital waiting for Scott. He and an employee of his are on campus at a sales call. They pick me up and we are on our way to SONIC Burger for a late lunch. By 3:24 pm, almost 9 hours after leaving the house, I am home.

This is what my Fridays have been like since February. The nurses have been different, the tattoos on the back of my head have been different, but for the most part, the day is the same. I have made many friends in my weekly visits to the Cancer Center - Nurses, check-in girls, other patients and convicts and Prison Guards. I have met people who drive great distances just to be treated at the University Cancer Center. For some, other clinics and doctors have only given them a death sentence. At UW, they have found hope. I have never been shy to say Hi to anyone and ask them how they were feeling and to give them some encouragement and maybe a laugh or two. Sometimes, my new friends just needed someone to listen to them complain. That was me listening to them.


I remember Dr W. suggesting I get counseling because I will be seeing less and less of her as my treatment progresses. I remember looking at her like she was nuts, but politely said I would think about it. I've thought about it. This Friday will be the first Friday where I won't be spending it at the hospital. Will I miss Dr. W.? Will I miss the needles and tubes hanging out of my chest? No. What I will miss is the really good free cookies they have for patients and my friends.

Not to worry, I still have treatments every three weeks until next year May.

11 Taxol's down, ONE TO GO!!!

I actually started this a couple of days ago but decided that shopping with Aruna was more important. Sorry.

Friday, the 19th of June I had my 11th treatment of Taxol. It was not so bad of a day - Left the house at 6:45 am and got home at 3:15. The Taxol treatment was usual. The Herceptin treatment left me with involuntary muscle spasms during the infusion. I mentioned it to the nurse but once again, she didn't really say much.

This week's side effects have been different than last week. This week I can eat. On Tuesday, I just ate and ate. I couldn't get full. Today, Thursday, I am not quite so hungry.

The neuropathy is getting worse. My left arm, hand and fingers all ache and my fingers also are tingly. The feeling has migrated to the right side of my body but so far it is not as noticeable. My right foot will occasionally feel like it is going to sleep so I just stomp it. I don't think it works but it helps to relieve the frustration.

The hot flashes are still there. Sometimes they are really bad and other times not so bad. Because of the 95 degree weather and 78 percent humidity we are having, sometimes it is hard to tell if I am hot flashing or having a good old fashion sweat :)At night I have been experiencing chills. Really cold for a long time (like an hour or more) then really hot. If I could figure out a way to combine the two temperatures, life would be good!


Today I have been fighting headaches. They are tolerable enough to not have to take any meds. Besides, I didn't want to get sleepy and loopy. (There's a combination!)

We are 2 weeks into Summer Vacation and Andrei's commitments with football and basketball have kept both Scott and I busy. Aruna is all ready on the verge of getting bored. Next week Scott took off work and after Andrei is done with weightlifting on Thursday, we are headed for the lake house. This is the first Friday in a long time (12 weeks to be exact) that I haven't had to spend my day at the hospital!!! My goal this year is to get to the lake every major holiday!!! More than that would be nice. It is still a long summer with 2 more months to go before school starts (though as I was running errands today the stores are already stocking Back to School and Autumn merchandise!!!)

Tomorrow is the 12th and final treatment of Taxol. YEAH! I am not sure if I want to celebrate or catch up on my sleep. After that, I start every three weeks. If I haven't mentioned it already, I meet with Dr. Richardson the week of July 13 to discuss the Radiation portion of my treatment.

Thanks to those who continue to send me cards. Yes my positive attitude can be annoying and yes, there is still that one doctor that thinks we have money left over!!!

Has it been two treatments already?

Wow. How times flies. Let's see where I am in the continuing saga. I document everything in my iphone (you really should get one) because I truly have a very bad case of chemo brain. My thoughts leave my head before I get a chance to think them through! It is very frustrating and I hate it. So.. let's see what the iphone tells us. I feel like I am about to look into a crystal ball!
Treatment #9 of Taxol, Friday, June 5th I met a new prisoner friend. He was from Oshkosh and has colon cancer. He is doing well. Treatment was uneventful and after 7 hours I was home. I didn't want to sleep so I worked in garden for and hour or so then got cleaned up for the big night. Andrei has his 8th grade Farewell Dance at school and there was a party before hand that the parents were invited to. Andrei's best friend Mike Vernio was here and the boys got all cleaned up and dressed. I was so proud of them both! They looked so grown-up (can you tell I am a mom who is wondering where the years went?) and handsome!!! WOW! Like little men who want to impress the ladies, we all piled into the fun car and off to the festivities we went. The weather was gorgeous and a perfect night to have the top down on the car.

After this treatment and for the next treatment (Taxol #10 on June 12), I am really, really tired. I didn't think I would get treatment #10. My white blood count was lower than when I was red flagged last time. Because I basically went a week where I didn't eat much and slept most of it, I thought I would get bounced. Much to my surprise, my WBC more than doubled! Go figure. Maybe it is sleep and not hershey candy bars that increase your count. I think I should start a clinical study. I'll email Hershey and see if they will sponsor it : )

Though I am really tired and should sleep, I hate to nap because I always think I should be doing something else, but sometimes I just have to close my eyes. I haven't been eating a lot since I now have stomach issues. I drink a lot of water to make the hunger feeling go away. When I do eat, I end up in the bathroom within the hour. Eating isn't much fun and not worth the after effects. Besides my stomach not liking the food, my taste buds are just about shot. Even water is starting to taste icky. Thank God I can taste ice cream!!! (Thank you Spook and family for the DQ ice cream sandwiches!!!) I'm not losing weight - must be all that water intake. I have been dealing with headaches again that don't seem to want to go away. The hot flashes have been brutal. They come in clusters. Sometimes every 30 minutes and they can last for 5 minutes. Though they are an "inconvenience" they are a sign that my estrogen is dropping. This is good since it is that hormone that has made the cancer so aggressive. No estrogen, no cancer. Works for me. Besides, I think I look pretty good with that 'glow'! even if it is sweat. I have been feeling the sensations of neuropathy more and more. But the tingling feelings are never where I was told they would be. It can be a wierd feeling to have the tinglies migrating around your legs and arms.

Two more treatments of Taxol to go then I start every three weeks for the next 8 or 9 months. Somewhere in there is radiation too. It's hard to believe that I have been in chemo since February and fighting cancer since January. Time flies when you sleep your day away.

Taxol #8 down - 4 to go!!

It's Monday! I'm two days early this week! Going into treatment this past Friday, I was sure my white blood count was going to get me booted. But, low and behold, my levels actually increased! Go figure. I am attributing this miracle to the Hershey candy bars I have been eating. It is in my opinion that chocolate not only tastes yummy (it is one the the few foods I can taste), it clearly has its health benefits!

So...I passed my blood tests again. My WBC and my liver enzymes were all good. Life was good.

This treatment I finally got a room with a view. As I gaze outside the window, finding shapes in the clouds, Nurse Dawn takes my vitals. Then the blood pressure machine starts beeping incessantly. This happened last week too. Only last week no one paid attention to it. What's up you ask? Seems my heart is not beating fast enough. Now, if you all remember, several tests ago it was determined that I did have a heart - it just beat to a different drummer. Friday it decided to beat much slower than it should. Nurse Dawn decides to check with Dr. W since the pre-chemo meds also slow down your heart. I suppose Nurse Dawn didn't want to mess up her day by having me collapse on her! Fear not! Dr. W. orders an EKG so off to Cardiology I go. If someone (and I am not sure who was responsible for this one) would have placed the order for the EKG, I wouldn't have sat there waiting for an hour! Luckily, I block out my entire day on the calendar so I had no place I needed to be:)

The girl who administered the test was able to see my Bigemini on paper. Finally my heart cooperates and does its weird stuff while I am hooked up to the machine. An hour wait, less than 5 minutes on the table, and I can go back to chemo. There I make myself comfortable (in my chair with a view) and wait for Dr. W. to give the go ahead to Nurse Dawn.

Dr. W. wasn't as concerned as Nurse Dawn so I was good to go for treatment. However, the blood pressure machine cuff stayed on my arm for the entire treatment and took my pressure every 10 minutes. Maybe Dr. W was a little concerned. No need to be. My heart eventually started beating faster. Either way, I received my treatment and was home by 1:30.

By now I am pooped and though I had tons of things to accomplish around the house, I laid down and 3 hours or so later, woke up.

Fatigue has definitely become an issue right after treatment and for the weekend. But I guess I deserve to be tired since I don't slow down to take the naps that I should. But I am proud to say my garden is planted and my flower beds all around the house are beautiful. The mulch is spread and the bushes trimmed. And.....yes, I have cut the grass and weed wacked. I am amazing if I do say so myself :) And on that note, I am going to take a nap before I start dinner!

Wednesday again - Treatment #7

It's Wednesday again. Only this time I really thought it was Tuesday. Holiday weekends can mess anybody up. Friday I had my 7th treatment of Taxol and Herceptin. After meeting with Dr. W, my oncologist, my liver enzymes are close to being normal ( I stopped taking Tylenol) but my white blood count is getting dangerously low. Always something. My Neutrophils have taken a complete nose dive in the last 2-1/2 weeks. This is an expected side effect of chemo. Unfortunately, I am unable to benefit from the infamous $3400 injection that Scott gave me during my first round of chemo. Back then I was on a two week chemo cycle and the injection worked on the second week to build up my cells. Now I am on a weekly cycle. The chemo would only kill off the new cells that the injection was helping to make. We have decided to 'wait and see' what this Friday's blood tests show. Dr. W hinted at a series of injections to improve my blood count but she didn't elaborate. To me all it means is more needles - no big deal. The other alternative is to stop treatments until my body can heal itself.

In the meantime, I keep plugging along. I have started to sleep more on the weekends as my energy level is slowing down. But in true Janet style, I continue to get out of bed in the morning and do what needs to be done regardless of how crappy I feel. By Wednesday, I feel more rested. Though I can honestly say that I could go to bed right now (it's 6:15pm) and sleep until tomorrow. I have been fighting off really cold chills since Sunday and I figure that is in part due to my low blood count. (Are chills anything but cold?) I take my temperature just to be on the safe side.

My other side effects of chemo are also becoming more obvious to me. My legs and head are tingling more and more. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, it should be my fingers and toes that are tingling. Throughout this whole ordeal, I have not been like "most people" when it comes to side effects. My headaches are still around and some days I medicate more than others.

This past holiday weekend we spent at the lake house. It was just what the doctor ordered. Even though I slept an awful lot, it was wonderful to be up there again. The last time I was there was on New Years and that was when I received the phone call that I had cancer. This past weekend, I didn't receive any phone calls!!!

Once again I am asking for your prayers for my friend Susan in North Carolina (Cancer Fight). Her cancer is back and has spread to three more organs. Please read her blog (scroll down to the bottom of mine and you will find the link) and leave her a comment that you are thinking of her and remembering her in your prayers. I am sure she will appreciate it and will love to read whatever you have to say. Thank You!

I passed my liver test!!

I realize it is already Wednesday and that some of you are eager to read the latest news. After one week of not taking any OTC meds or Vicoden for pain, my liver enzymes dropped significantly! Just goes to show what all of us do to our organs when we pop those pills for a headache. Makes me thinks twice now.

I was able to receive my 6th chemo this past Friday since my enzymes were lower. I am now officially half way through the Taxol. As usual, Saturday i pooped out late afternoon. I am taking less Dexmethasone now and my energy level has tanked. Fewer steroids, less energy. Sunday I did the same thing. I seem to slowly get my strength back and by Wednesday (today) I am ready to go. What stinks is only having 2 fairly good days a week. I still manage to get everything done around the house and the errands though i will admit I do less shopping now. Scott likes that! There it less "stuff" in the house, I use less gas (always a plus when my car is lucky to get 14 miles to the gallon) and I spend less money!

I still have headaches and the oxycodone my oncologist prescribed me isn't strong enough. In a pinch, I'll take two :) Allergies are the pits but the allergy pills I take cuts down on the bloody noses I am prone to now. My port (which I affectionally refer to as my alien baby as it sticks out of my chest) has been bothersome. The "take your breath away" sensations of pain have returned. I was talking to a woman last Friday while we were both waiting for treatments and she also has the same issues with her port. Now I don't feel alone.

All in all, I keep going. I have my good days and not so good days. Scott and the kids are great and very supportive and that's what gets me out of bed in the morning.

Mid week Taxol Treatment #5

It's Wednesday and rainy. A rather gloomy day but I am in good spirits. Mother's Day in Racine was wonderful on Saturday. It is always nice to go home. Sunday - the real Mother's Day - I spent most of it sleeping. Not a bad day to sleep but when I did wake up I had a house full of teenagers!

Last Friday I had an appointment with Dr. W (my oncologist). Two weeks earlier she started checking my liver. Unfortunately, my liver enzymes are on the rise. After a series of questions regarding Hepatitis A, B and C , vaccines I have had, blood transfusions.... it was decided that I should stop taking all medication for my headaches since acetaminophen can lead to liver problems. This was not an option for me since I still have headaches on a daily basis. So now I am on Oxycodone. My friend Susan (Cancer Fight) is taking them for pain as well. Susan - how do you like them?! All I can say is they give me really weird and quite vivid dreams. During the day I am just a happy, dizzy bald-headed blonde. No wonder people get addicted to this stuff with what it does to you. I am hoping that the change in meds will stabilize my levels. If not, Dr. W. has already warned me I might need to get vaccinated for Hepatitis again and possibly delay chemo for awhile. That would stink since I have already counted the weeks I have left on Taxol and that would mess up my month of July. It's not that I have any plans, except maybe spend some time at the lake house, it's just the idea of having an end in sight and that being taken away from you. No matter what, you do what you have to do and make the best of it.

I am still experiencing hot flashes/night sweats on a fairly normal schedule. I get them every hour or so. How fortunate am I that I can predict when i am going to sweat? They can be brutal and definitely mess up a good nights sleep. I have volunteered to care for a few new born babies who don't sleep the night through since i don't sleep either! Of course, I really don't want a baby in the house but at least the mom gets to smile at the thought of relief! :)

Dr. W and I discussed these hot flashes/night sweats and once again she is baffled why I get them so severely. Since I experienced one in the doctors office, they now know what I am talking about. Though we are going to put me on Effexor before radiation to help control these flashes, I decided I would tough out the remaining Taxol treatments and wait to start the new med. Dr. W would have given them to me but I really didn't want to introduce yet another med with not knowing how they would effect me. She agreed. I am now praying for cold weather and snow!!! Since this is Wisconsin, my prayers may be answered!

Friday is another treatment. Keep your fingers crossed that I pass my blood tests!

Chemo #8 (Taxol/Herceptin #4)

Sorry it has taken me so long to update. As you can see, I have had 8 chemo treatments so far. I have 8 more treatments of Taxol, followed by 7 weeks of daily radiation and then I finish up with a year of Herceptin.

The side effects with Taxol have been somewhat different than with the Adriamycin and Cytoxan. I am still bald but now I am losing my eye lashes. That's ok. It is easier to wash my face at night! I get fatigued sooner and appreciate the fact that I can sleep 12 hours at a stretch on the weekends and take a nap. I still experience headaches but not as severe. The lining of my nose is shot so every time I go to blow it I get blood. Not so good in allergy season. Allergy pills help. The insides of my intestines and stomach are also getting affected and I have meds for that too! The worst part are the brutal hot flashes and night sweats. I have been keeping track of them and they can occur every hour. One day I had in excess of 15!! I feel sorry for Scott who actually chooses to sleep next to me! But then again, his side of the bed is dry. Once I am done with the Taxol, my oncologist is going to put me on Effexor - an anti depressant prescribed just for hot flashes/night sweats. I am hoping I can get on it much sooner.

Taxol can cause tingling in the fingers and toes and muscle/joint pain. These side effects can last years after treatment (Yippee). I have experienced tingling but not not where I am suppose to! Leave it to me to go outside the norm - again. My left arm will tingle and so will my nose - though i think my nose is trying to tell me that I am going to kiss a fool :) My oncologist is stumped. I have yet to have any of the muscle/joint aches and pain but I am sure they will come. Knowing me, I will heavily medicate myself to a happy place!! I have no problem with medicating myself to have a better day!

So far, I have been managing quite well. With treatments every Friday, the weekends can be a little rough but Scott steps up and handles the cooking - or we go out for dinner (always a nice option). By Monday, I am back doing school lunches, laundry and errands. As long as I pace myself, I am good for the week without any need to sleep a day away. However, I do go to bed at 8:30. Now that the weather is changing, I am enjoying myself outside in my flower gardens cleaning them up the for summer. Taxol makes you extremely sensitive to the sun and bright light (I've found that out all ready). As long as I wear a hat and sun screen, I am ok.

We have been very lucky and avoided the last round of colds/flu to go through the schools. My white blood count has tanked so getting sick is not an option. However, my neutrophils are in the "low side of average" so I am still good. I have blood work every Friday so we always know where my blood count is.

Friday I have treatment #9 and I plan on having wonderful Mother's Day weekend. Saturday we are driving to Racine to spend the day with my Mom. What could be better? Nothing in my opinion.

Chemo #6 (Taxol treatment #2)

It's me. Last Friday, April 17, I had my sixth Chemo treatment, my second of 12 treatments of Taxol. It went much better than the first. Scott and I left for the hospital at 7:30 am and finally got home at 4:15pm. Almost 9 hours. Not toooo bad!! I had my usual lab, which I actually got in early for, and I got my infusion bed only 45 minutes late! I thought for sure it would be a quick day. No such luck. I'm not quite sure where the day went. This time it wasn't so bad. The pre-meds (Benedryl and Zantax for allergic reactions) were administrated much slower this time. I still got really lightheaded but at least my head didn't feel like it was going to blow up like last week. I am getting more fluids both before and after treatment to help with headaches. They aren't as bad this time around. Once home, we waiting patiently for our pizza delivery from our friends the McIntoshs'. Mike, Sophie and friend Katie brought over pizza, cookie dough and movies to watch. It was VERY MUCH APPRECIATED! THANK YOU!!!
I made the cookies only to have Andrei eat 90% of them. (He's growing - again :))

Saturday was a great day and Scott and I spent it running errands in my fun car. (Julie, I am glad Matt likes my fun car. It was fun to see him so giddy! Perhaps when the weather warms, we'll put the top down and show him what that car can really do besides look good! OH! and it is a great idea to car pool for track meets!) OK. back to my story. Scott and I both took a nap when we got home. The kids didn't feel like dinner out so we stayed in and laid low. Sunday, Monday and Tuesday I didn't have as much energy though I was still able to get a few things done - laundry mostly. Monday was a sad day for us as we had to put our Cat Cigar to sleep.

Today, Wednesday, I am back at my normal energy level. It helps to have the sun shining! Ran some errands and visited my friends at church. THANK YOU LAURA AND JEANINE for my beautiful new head scarf! Thank you for thinking about me. In fact, Thank You to everyone who has been thinking about me lately. I treasure the beautiful cards I have been receiving and the e-mails from more long lost family!

Friday I have Chemo #7. Only 10 more treatments to go of Taxol. Every Friday. I think it will be close to July when this round of treatment is done and I start the next. One day at a time.

In the meantime, I need another tattoo on the back of my head and I need to find a pair of purple flip flops! (Thanks for the idea Roxanne!!!) Of course, if I can't find a pair, I can always paint my toes purple :)

Catch-Up

It's Janet. So much has happened I thought I would bring everyone up to speed. Because of all the headaches I was getting, Dr. W decided I should have a MRI on my head. My brain is there, though not as smart as it once was, it is healthy. Good news. March 27th was the LAST OF THE FIRST as Scott called it. That treatment really hit me with fatigue and headaches. So...as instructed, I drank water until I sprouted gills. After that treatment, Dr. W. wanted my heart checked again to see what, if any, damage the chemo has done. I was off to the glow farm again. Result, more good news. My numbers actually increased which just goes to show that not all tests are perfect. This past Friday, April 10th, I had my first Taxol/Herceptin treatments. 12 hours before treatment I had to take 5 pills (steroids for allergic reaction) and again 6 hours before treatment. Thanks to Scott for setting the alarm to 4 am to wake me up! The treatment day was 10 hours long. Before treatment they give you Benadryl and Zantac into your IV to ward off allergic reactions. WOW! I am assuming it was the Benadryl that localized between my eyes and created much pressure and pain before dispensing itself through my head. Luckily, it only lasted for about 5 minutes then sporadically off and on to a lesser degree. The Herceptin was given first. Thank Heavens! I was told you have to stick around for an hour after infusion to make sure everything is ok! It was already a long day - another hour and I would have felt like going out to dinner with the nurses! After the Herceptin came the Taxol. By the end of treatment I was tired and my port felt like a sunburn though it looked fine. As usual, the Saturday after treatment, Scott and i spent the day running around and enjoying ourselves. On Easter Sunday I was exhausted. Lucky for me the Easter Bunny did all the work! I slept most of the day fighting off chills. Monday came I was still fatigued and very light headed so I spent most of the day sleeping. It is usually not a good sign to see stars in the bright of day! Tuesday I finally faced the world at 10 am and actually watched TV in bed until 2pm. It was kinda of nice! Today, Wednesday, (Happy Tax Day) I finally feel like myself again and am trying to catch up on laundry before Friday's treatment. I am hoping that I don't continue to have only 3 good days a week. It could be a long Summer if that's the case.

Happy Easter

With the kids on Spring Break this week, it has been rather leisurely around here. I am on day 10 of the last round of the chemo combination of Adriamycin and Cytoxan. The fatigue caught up with me right away after treatment. When I got home form Chemo, I slept for the most part from 2pm that Friday to 10 am on Saturday morning. Then Saturday night I got another 12-13 hours of sleep. The cummulative effect definitely caught up with me! For the most part, it has been a good two weeks. I asked for more fluids during treatment and they helped the headaches.(It also caused my eyes to drain when I laid down! Too funny) I have been trying to stay hydrated and this does ward off the severe headaches I was experiencing. It is really difficult to continue to drink water when you're not thirsty - but you do what you have to do. My energy level has returned and I am going about my day-to-day life. I run the errands, clean the house and figure out what to make for dinner. Sometimes I'll sneak in a nap or read a magazine. All in all, I am doing well.

SpongeBob is no longer on the back of my head. After he disappeared, Aruna gave me an Easter Bunny tattoo, then two Butterflies. I have been searching the stores for more tattoos but can't find any. Where do you get them? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

This Good Friday before Easter, I start my next cycle of chemo. I have 12 straight weeks of Taxol with Herceptin combined. Though my IV port acts up on occasion, I am very thankful I have it. I don't think my veins could have handled the treatments.
I have been reading the side effects of Taxol - achy bones and joints, tingling in the fingers and toes... I am praying that I experience minimal side effects otherwise it could be a very long 12 weeks.

Andrei is walking without crutches or his boot - slowly I might add . Monday he goes back for more x-rays. We'll find out then what the plan of attack is.

One of Scott and my links on this blog is to another Blog "Cancer Fight". Just scroll down to the bottom of our blog page and you see the link. A dear friend of ours in North Carolina is facing her own battle with cancer and has just gotten news that it has returned. We asked that you pray for our friend Susan so that she may also find the strength needed to become cancer free. Thank you.

As always, thanks for keeping tabs on me. Happy Easter to everyone!!! Hope the Easter Bunny visits your house :)

Last of the First

If only I were referring to a baseball game... but I digress. Hi it's Scott. Janet had her last A/C chemo on Friday. The cumulative effect of the chemo is catching up with Janet a bit and she is more tired than normal. She had more fluids during the procedure itself (which interestingly caused her eyes to water if she leaned to the side a few hours after treatment) also seems to have helped the headaches. As usual Janet was and is up and around trying to lead as normal a life as she can.

Somehow though normal now includes a Sponge Bob tattoo on the back of her head. Interesting, and somewhat thankfully not permanent - but hey, who am I to talk.

Anyway, Janet is doing well and is very thankful for the messages she receives daily from well wishers. They really do mean a lot to her.

Trying to be even remotely as strong and stubborn as his mom, Andrei has started to put weight on his ankle and is generally getting around a lot better. Just in time for spring chores!

So in general, the infirmary known as the Slaughter household is doing well and we will keep you posted as Janet begins Taxol in a few weeks.

Chemo #3, Day 7

It's Janet. Wow what a treatment and what a weekend. I think I hit a record time for my treatment. We left the house around 9:45am ad got home around 6:10 pm. The doctor changed my pre-chemo meds to see if that would help the headaches I get. This week I still have the on-going headaches though not as severe. I am definitely more tired and more nausea feeling so now I just take more meds for those issues and I take more naps. I learned how careful you have to be with cutting yourself too. A simple papercut wouldn't stop bleeding and I went through 2 bandaids! How the body changes! All in all, my spirits are good, I'm tired and little more icky feeling. But thanks to modern medicine, I have a fluffy pillow and good meds to take : )

Our house was quite the infirmary this weekend. On Saturday, Andrei blew out his ankle during the Basketball tournament. His ligament is so swollen they aren't sure whether any other damage was done. Through x-rays we found out the other side of his ankle has a fracture. So after he and I spent 4 hours at the Urgent Care on Saturday, Andrei came home with his foot in a boot and crutches and in lots and lots of pain. Monday, Scott and I took him to see Orthopedics and had the other ankle x-rayed. Afterall, this was the ankle he has been complaining about - just not he one he injured. That ankle is also sort of messed up and he has a brace for that foot. Poor Andrei. He is getting along with the crutches and we have had to move lot of stuff around the house so he get around easier. This coming Monday, he has another appointment with orthopedics. At this time it will probably be decided if an MRI is necessary, physical therapy is needed....... What next? Oh! I know!! Aruna's eye is swollen and bothering her immensely. So far, we have managed her without a trip to the doctor. But I am not holding my breath.

I know some of you are still having issues with leaving comments. You can always e-mail me at jrwslaughter@verizon.net. I love hearing from everyone. Tell me some of your woes - misery loves company. Besides, it really can be a good laugh as it seems to put everything into perspective and makes you realize just how much energy you waste on stuff you can't control.

Happy Spring to Everyone.

Day 13 after Chemo #2

It's Janet
I didn't realize how long since our last blog. We got new carpet in the house so I have been working on putting everything back in order.

Looking back on my medical logs for the past 2 weeks since treatment, it seems I have an equal amount of good days and bad days. I still suffer from headaches and fatigue about 4 days after treatment and it usually lasts for 6-7 days. Usually, rest is about the only thing that helps the headaches. I am lucky where only one of my days is spent sleeping. I head for the couch after the kids are at school and take a very long nap. I am then good for dinner and evening and then off to bed again. Otherwise, as long as I take naps during the day when I feel tired and my head hurts, I am able to function. I am still preparing dinners and taking care of the house and family and Scott and the kids are big helpers!

My IV port (which I am now affectionately calling my alien baby) still bugs me. I no longer have the sharp pains but it does get achy and quite bothersome. I had x-rays taken of it at chemo #2 because of the pain. Everyone was very concern as to why I was having so much trouble. The x-rays showed that the placement was fine and the 12 plus inches of catheter was ok too. It is just really big and it protrudes just under my collar bone. Either way, the hospital staff is clueless about the port. The nurses chalked it up to the healing process. We'll see what the doctor says tomorrow.

Just like the last cycle, I dropped lots of weight the first week after treatment and then managed to put it all back on the next week! This is great since it is really hard to swallow for that first week. Another issue for the doctor.

Tomorrow is treatment #3. Of course, it is another Friday the 13th. I am getting my back pack filled with goodies to eat and drink and my iphone will be charged so I can play games, watch a movie, or read the book I downloaded.(Have I told you how cool the iphone is? You really need to get one!!) I am hoping my day at the hospital will not be too long. But it really doesn't matter. It's not so bad sitting there. Can be kind of relaxing if you want it to be. I come home really tired, with a terrible headache and I just go to bed. Saturday, though, I am full of energy and ready to go!!!

Oh!! A couple of more things! Did I tell you?! Thursday February 26, when Scott and I had to go to the hospital, Scott treated me to lunch at none other than SONIC!!!!! I had the burger of my narcotic dreams and fries. It was really, really good!!!

Also, now that I am bald, and quite pretty, lots of you have been curious as to what I look like under the hats. Eventually, we get photos uploaded so everyone can see me - plus take a vote on the wigs. My head is really tender so haven't been wearing the wigs yet. In the meantime, I'll take my hat off to show you if you really want to see. It doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I am rather proud of my nicely shaped head.

Tomorrow is treatment #3. I'm sure Scott will be the next blogger sometime this weekend.

Can't win all the battles...

Hi, it's Scott. Well Janet lost her first battle today - the hair battle. Actually she started losing the battle a few days ago, but in true Janet fashion stubbornly refused to give in. With some pomp (and very little circumstance) we (I) shaved Janet's head in the kitchen with help from Andrei, Aruna and Tyler Butler from next door. Tyler and Aruna served admirably as photographers while I manned the Wahl with Andrei as director and emotional support. This was immediately followed by the trying on of new hair. First Janet tried on both wigs she got at UW Hospital, followed in short order by the pink and black, the rainbow and the purple.

Janet has decided some sort of online voting is in order as to which she should sport first. So as soon as we figure that out we'll let you know.

Janet had her second chemo on Friday. It was long (very, very long - like 7 hours long) but uneventful. They did quite a bit of checking of her port as it is still giving her some issues. Everyone decided it was ok so they moved on with the treatment. Things went well for the remainder of Friday and Saturday. The headaches returned on Sunday morning otherwise Janet is doing very well.

As always, thanks for all the prayers, cards and support.

Week 2 - Update

It's Janet again. I thought an update for all my fans was in order. I had my first chemo treatment Friday the 13th, which was 10 days ago. As I look back in my journal to remember my week, all in all it was pretty good. I was tired on Friday after the treatment but it is hard to say if that was from the treatment itself, the meds they give you to prevent allergic reactions and nausea, or just the fact that we had to spend 5 hours at the hospital for a two hour treatment. I developed my first of what would seem to be a lot of really bad headaches. I have since discovered that only the hard-core prescriptions meds will handle them and even they don't totally eliminate the pain. My first day after (Saturday) was good too but Scott and I learned that before he gives me the $3200 injection, it really needs to be brought to room temperature. Ouch! Live and learn.

Tuesday, day 4, my IV port was giving me severe pain. It has been hard to move my arm since the surgery but now it really hurts. More meds for pain. I really hit the wall on Wednesday (day 5). I took the kids to school and promptly hit the couch when I got home. After a very sound 5 hour morning nap, I got up and was able to get a few things done around the house and still managed to volunteer in the Church nursery that night while the kids attended Church school. Thursday, day 6, I was still fatigued but not as badly. A two hour nap in the morning and one in the afternoon did the trick. I have still been experiencing bad headaches and my port still sends pain. I am sure the meds have something to do with my being tired but I will take that over the headaches and port pain. I have lost 6 pounds this week. It is hard to eat when you are not hungry. By Thursday, though, my appetite was coming back and I decided to eat whenever and whatever I wanted. By Friday, I was eating dinner around 3 in the afternoon and then eating again. I still haven't put the weight back on, but at least I am not dropping it as fast. Friday night my head started to itch uncontrollably. Scott says it is the attack of the hair follicles. Ha Ha. I told him he was nuts since I have decided to grow my hair long.

This past weekend was low key. Saturday Scott and I went out shopping in the snow storm and we all went to church Saturday night. Like we always do, we went out for dinner afterward and came home for family movie night. Sunday was Andrei's final basketball games before tournaments. They finished 16-1. WOW! We are so proud. He played well and has really grown in to a great team player.

Today, Monday, is day 10. I am happy to say that I didn't wake up with a headache and my port is tolerable. Andrei leaves for a school trip to Washington DC tonight (3:30am) so I am doing laundry. I am starting to increase my water intake for Friday's treatment. They want you to drink at least 1/2 gallon a day - preferably 3/4 gallon. Easier said than done. Aruna says I am going to grow gills. I will be a fish with long hair. :)

I am really enjoying the cards that just seem to keep coming! From the fuzzy ducks (long lost cousin!!!) to the beautiful sentiments, I find it amazing that there are so many people that care. Thank you. I hope you will continue to keep up with our family's journey for the next 14 months. I will be very excited to let everyone know how my hair is doing!

Favorite Color

It's Janet. If you read the comments on my last entry (Day 3 after Chemo #1), I was asked my favorite color. I can honestly say this has been one of the most difficult questions for me. I don't really have one color that is my favorite. I have stood in my closet looking at my clothes. I am ashamed to say there is a lot of scuba diving and Super Hero T-shirts. Mostly gray. Nothing that says "turn around and take a second look at me as I walk by!" (well, at least not in a good way) Needless to say, there was not a lot of inspiration to be had in my closet. Just don't tell the Fashion Police that I am in violation of any sort of style!

So....I pondered this question all weekend. I would go to sleep and wake up with this question on my mind. I finally made a decision. I decided to let my kids decide! (I'm so smart:)) I asked them both what their favorite color is. Andrei likes sky blue and Aruna likes red. Mix them together and you get some shade of purple (I think). Since this family is fighting cancer together, I thought my favorite color should be one which represents all of us. (Scott likes blue, too). So there you have it. My new favorite color. Some shade of purple.

Day three after chemo #1

It's Janet
So far so good. I can honestly say that I am responding well to the treatments without many side effects. I have experienced bad headaches which I am treating with ice packs and muscle relaxants They both seem to help. My IV Port is a different story. Seems the nerve endings are trying to reconnect and they really hurt when they try - it actually takes my breath away - and not in a good way. The only thing that has helped me there is ice packs and limited mobility of my right arm. Difficult when you are right handed - but hey! another skill to learn - being a lefty :)

I have been blessed and have not had any nausea or vomiting or fatigue out of the ordinary - yet. YEAH!! Sometimes it is hard to swallow but then I eat slower and cut my food into smaller pieces. Seems to help though the food gets colder faster! My weight is staying where it should - though I really wanted to lose some. I have not had any fevers, chills and basically doing great.

Just thought you would like an update.

Thanks for all the cards and e-mails. I am loving them! Keep them coming. It adds laughter to my usual boring day of laundry!

(Robin: I do deserve to be treated like the Goddess I am!!! Love it:) )

1 down 55 to go

Yesterday was the first Chemo treatment. Scott and I arrived at the hospital at 10 am as instructed and proceeded to get weighed in and the vitals checked. Then I produced a two page list of questions to go over with the resident and Dr. W (Dr. Wisinski Oncology). This was about the most humorous part of our day.

Scott's turn to blog: So Janet pulls out her list of questions ( on one hand good, on the other hand do we really need to know Dr. W's favorite baseball team - ok I made that up, but really, two pages of questions?). We were in rare form which most residents can't seem to figure out. Janet asked about medications for side effects. The Resident says they will provide different medications depending on the side effect. Scott asks if he can prescribe Rogaine. Janet laughs, resident looks puzzled but begins to crack a smile. In trying to keep this family friendly, I won't get into Janet's response to "could you be pregnant?". It did have both the resident and Dr. W. laughing, followed by me saying something about the possiblity of Janet seeing the Schwann's food guy so maybe we should do the quick pregnancy test - that got us all laughing out loud. Laughter is way fun, but obviously not something they are used to in this particular department.

We then got a good understanding for hurry up and wait. Everything has to be ordered (like they didn't know we were coming or something) and like the bakery it is first come first served. I think we were 274 and they were calling 12. They told us to go grab lunch - Janet suggest Sonic, imagine that. Anyway we had lunch and went back up to see they were calling 250 (ok I'm kidding but any waiting beyond the fact the the procedure itself takes 2 hours is rough). After about another 20 minutes in the waiting area they called Janet's name. For reference we got there at 10 am, it is now 1 pm and we haven't seen one procedure.

Janet's turn: We were escorted to a room about 7 feet by 8 feet. If they could have crammed any more stuff in this space it would have been a miracle. I was seated into a not so comfortable recliner that Scott, being in the furniture business promptly said was junk. He got the better seat - a fold up wooden chair! The room didn't have a door but a fancy curtain that reminded me of the Wizard of Oz scene "Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!" The first round of drugs (Adriamiocin) had to be manually injected into the IV tube over 20 minutes. There were two syringes of this drug thus 40-50 minutes for this drug. It was red - and yes it comes out of your body orange to red color. It is suppose to and is a good sign that my liver is filtering the medicine. This wasn't so bad. I had an unlimited supply of cherry popsicles to such on and ice cream if I wanted. They like to keep your mouth cold to help keep the mouth sores at bay. I had two cherry popsicles then as Aruna affectionally calls it, I got brain freeze. The second drug (Cytoxin) was just pumped into the IV tube by a machine. This one took about 30 minutes. After that was done, I still had to finish the Saline solution - another 30 minutes. After that, my port was flushed clean, the needle was removed, and a teenie tiny round bandage was applied. Now we are off to pharmacy.

Scott's turn: So before this gets to War and Pease like length, there were only a couple of interesting things here before we left. First, because Janet insists on hyphenating her last name which makes it like 75 letters so the label system melted down. All they could put on the perscription bottles was Janet. We decided to have them use Slaughter so they have something other than Janet - cute, but not real practical in a hospital pharmacy. The second thing was the shot to help with her white cell count. Here is my pitch for healthcare for everyone. You know how you get a little print out that says how much you saved by using your store coupon card or coupons? Well we got one of those for each of the prescriptions Janet had to get (5 total). Each came with a little print out telling us how much we saved. Well the copay on the shot (one shot, one time, one dose) was $40. Our savings was $3,180.45. What the hell does someone do if they have no or crappy insurance? Sorry, you get to have low white cell counts. Hope you don't get sick. Our current system, while good, needs some serious looking at.

We did a little shopping before we got home. Andrei had a sleepover so Janet cleaned the kids bathroom.

It is Saturday now and Janet feels fine. In fact you could almost say she feels normal which is a huge blessing. She missed Andrei's basketball game this morning. She should stay away more often. He scored a season high 22 points, blocked like 6 shots, stole a bunch of passes and was in general a monster on the court (and for those who know Andrei it was monster player, not monster hot head the refs and opposition can't stand being on the court with).

Till next time...

Janet's Treatment Decision

Well...after much thought and discussion, I have decided to not participate in the Clinical Research Trial. Though the medicines were the same, just different doses at different times, I didn't think it was fair to my family to add 4-6 more weeks of chemo onto the already staggering 14 months. With their support, treatment #1 is Friday the 13th. Wish me luck! Janet

I plead the 5th!

Hey. It's Janet. I wanted to let everyone know that I don't remember anything I said or did before, during or after the IV port surgery! Personally, I think all this Sonic Burger talk is made up just to make fun of me:) In any case, a Sonic Burger does sound tastey and I do love them :)

Did you know there is a Sonic in Madison?

Janet was safely in her outpatient room at 10:15 a.m. as she was told to be. She quickly started into a movie, which is my cue to head out so she can safely flirt with any hotties at the end of her bed. We texted back and fourth just before she went in for her procedure.

One thing we learned at the last post surgery follow up was that Dr. B had no idea what a Magic 8 Ball was. Janet and I were asked some sort of deep thought provoking question during that visit that made Janet consult the Magic 8 Ball application on her iPhone (has she told you how great they are?) for guidance. This of course got a chuckle from the 3rd year resident but a puzzled look from Dr. B. She had no idea what a Magic 8 Ball was (or why in the heck we would turn to something like that for help answering a question - of course it made Janet and I laugh which is mostly all that matters).

So Janet being Janet, she bought a Magic 8 Ball for Dr. Beckman which she loved. She is going to keep it on her desk (I can only imagine how embellished the story might become over time, might be fun to become an urban legend). They got started late (not because of the 8 Ball) so I had time to be late, which I was, getting back about 1:45. At 2 p.m. the entire crew (Janet, 2 nurses, Dr. B and a resident) came back to the room. Everyone was laughing - good sign. Everyone was laughing at Janet - better sign as now I will have something to tease her about until the end of time.

Seems in recovery Janet could not stop talking about Sonic Burger. We have a Sonic here in Madison (technically Middleton, but close enough) and Janet is very excited about it. We try to stop at a Sonic on our way to or from on our trips down South, so the thought of one closer than 6 hours away makes the commercials easier to take. So for what ever reason this was on her anesthesia filled mind much to the entertainment of the room. As she was getting back to the room, the resident asked Janet if she knew how many times she had asked him if he knew there was a Sonic in town. She gleefully said no and with a laugh he said this was time 3. Janet went on to ask anyone she saw for the next half hour or so if they knew we had a Sonic. Funny thing was she wasn't particularly hungry, just seemed to want to talk about Sonic. Ah the wonders of the human mind on narcotics...

It is Sunday now and Janet has been out and about a bit over the past two days. She has more discomfort after this surgery than she did after the last. She has ended up taking Vicodin to help take some of the edge off the pain. The port is under her skin below her collar bone and is a pretty visible bump - no wonder she hurts it looks like she has had about half a golf ball implanted. I am still very proud of the way she is going through this entire adventure - head up, smile on and quick to laugh at whatever happens to hit us as funny at the moment. I can highly suggest laughter, it really is the best medicine.

Our heartfelt thanks go out to all of you taking the time to read this, pray, call, send a card or note - really everything each of you has done. Each of you in one way or another has brightened what could otherwise be a very difficult time for Janet and we truly appreciate it.

Surgery #2

Wouldn't you know it, but as soon as I posted the MUGA Scan Test,(trip #2 to the Glow Farm), the out-patient surgery nurse calls. Tomorrow, Friday 2/6, I have a 12:15 surgery date with Dr. Beckman. I decided to get an IV Port implanted in my chest. I highly doubt my vein would withstand 14 months of weekly infusions. Another scar.

I have to be at the hospital at 10:15 am. They tell me surgery is scheduled for 1 hour and 15 minutes with 2 hour recovery. Seems like a long time. Either way, I have given Scott the permission to dump and run and pick me up at 3:30. Business as usual.

I have been busy today reformatting movies on my laptop so I can transfer them to my iphone and watch them tomorrow. (Have I told you that the iphone is the best ever and all of you should really get one :) ?) However, if I don't finish my movies, the nurse told me the room I am assigned to has a TV and DVD player in it! I must be special to get such a posh room! I wonder if this is because I have been their best customer lately?

I have been receiving wonderful cards and beautiful flowers. Thank you to everyone. All of your support and prayers are deeply appreciated!

Back to the Glow Farm - MUGA Test

It's Janet.
Tuesday, 2/3, I was back at Nuclear Medicine for another visit. This time they were checking my heart. Instead of directly injecting the radioactive substance into me like my last visit, they withdrew blood, mixed it with the radioactive stuff, and then reinjected the blood into me. Not so bad. Then they took pictures. It was really cool to see your own heart beating on the computer screen. Good news for me, I passed the test. This means that my heart can withstand the chemo treatments. I had the same young lady as last time and she informed me that I might have to visit her again throughout treatment. Always good to know that the doctors want to make sure your heart can handle the medicines! Next it is off to surgery #2 for an IV port.

Happy Birthday

Hey - It's Scott this time.  Yesterday was my birthday and also Janet's follow up with her surgeon and our first meeting with her oncologist.  As Janet said in the last entry the surgery went very well - so has her recovery.  She was out and about pretty quickly (she went to one of Andrei's basketball games on Sunday and was out running errands on Monday).  The incisions are healing nicely and Janet has great movement in her arms and shoulder with very little discomfort (she hasn't taken any pain medication - she must have some hockey player in there somewhere).

I can't say we weren't prepared to hear what we heard yesterday, it just kind of hit hard.  The tumor itself was a grade 3 and her cancer is stage 1.  Janet is HER2 positive which she'll (or me if I can catch up on my medical terminology quick) blog about in detail later (probably better than I could anyway).  The net is HER2 positive means to improve the chances of not seeing a recurrence of the cancer she should have chemotherapy.  We knew that was coming - what we didn't plan for was that the regimen they are proposing will take up to 14 months.

14 months!?!  Wasn't it just a month ago this thing popped up?  Didn't we have x-rays, ultrasounds, a biopsy and surgery like 10 minutes ago?  Shouldn't it be about over?

Well, it's not and seems it won't be for - well - 14 months or so.  The first question we had was to walk now or have chemo.  The decision to have chemo decreases substantially the chances of the cancer coming back (from like 30% down to 14%).  The other question is whether or not to join a study being done on an alternative chemo treatment (different meds and believe it or not a little longer period of time).

Janet has decided to continue treatment which means an additional test and another surgery to insert a port for the chemo.  She has not made a decision on the study.

I am sure we will post again this weekend with the details of treatment etc. but for the moment I wanted to make sure everyone was up to speed with what happened on Thursday.  Good news, bad news.  Good news, they got all the cancer and it appears not to have spread through the lymphatic system.  Bad news, we'll both celebrate birthdays before the treatments are over.  Better news - we have great support from all of you.  Your thoughts, prayers and messages have meant more than we can say - thank you.

Happy Pathology/Successful Surgery!

Today Dr. Beckman called with the pathology report. The tumor size is 2 cm (fairly impressive growth for 6 months but, in my opinion, still small :)), it is estrogen positive (that's good), progesterone negative (that's good), the lymph nodes were clear and so were the margins they took from around the tumor. However, the HER2/neu is amplified (probably not so good). 

HER2/neu is an oncogene which is a gene that causes or promotes unrestrained cell growth. This in turns makes normal cells abnormal - or converts them into a tumor cell. Patients with this may be more likely to have a recurrence.  There are some research studies that suggest this gene to be resistant to certain anticancer drugs - but - it is being research. 

Since I never played a doctor on TV, I only know what I have researched myself on the web. Whatever did we do before the web?

Thursday Scott and I are meeting with the Medical Oncologist and with Dr. Beckman. Then we will find out more about the cancer and the next step towards treatment.

As Dr. Beckman said, the surgery was a success!!!

Weekend Retreat :) after Surgery

It's me. Janet. Yesterday, my SPA Day, went well though I never did get to finish my movie - too many interruptions! Today I got out of bed around 8:30 and started my Weekend Retreat! Since I couldn't remember the Doctor's discharge instructions, I had to refer to the 3-ring binder they gave me at my pre-op appointment. It contains everything you ever need to know about breast cancer and its treatment. It's pretty cool.  I was most interested in whether or not I could take a shower. By now I  had a really  bad case of bed head and  I needed to do something about it! After some brief discussion, Scott decided I could take a shower and I was happy. 

Today has been a relatively quiet day. Because I opted for a nap when Scott and I  got home yesterday afternoon, it has messed with my sleeping patterns so today I had to take a nap! I spent the afternoon on the couch, visited with  my  neighbor friend, and just did nothing!  

Tonight is family movie night and Andrei's basketball coach dropped off a DVD with some snacks for us! Thank You!!! 

Scott went for take-out food for dinner. McDonalds. Yes I do like their hamburgers and it was really tasty.   Just what the Doctor ordered :)           

I am doing quite well. I have not had to take any pain medication.  I feel a little stiff at times but nothing that an ice pack doesn't take care of. My first official day of recovery has gone well.

Oh....I finally got to finish my Bruce Willis movie - he got the bad guy :)

 

The First Big Day

Well today was the first of what I will guess will be a number of big days.  Janet and I got to the hospital at 6:45 as instructed, checked in, went to radiology as instructed and were promptly told we were an hour early.  Thanks to check in person in radiology making a few phone calls, she tracked down that we were really supposed to be in outpatient surgery.  So back downstairs we headed.  We checked in, got situated in the outpatient surgery room and began the wait.  Janet was taken up to radiology (the glow farm) so she could have the dye put in for surgery.  She excused me (per the last post) so I bailed for a couple of hours.  I got back to find her watching "Live Free or Die Hard" on her iPhone.

At about 11:15 the doctor came in and said she was ready to go.  At 11:30 they took her off to surgery.  The pager went off around 2:00 which kind of startled me because I was still sitting in the same spot - the room.  A trip to the nurses station later they told me to go back to the room that Dr. Beckman would be in to see me in a bit which she did.

So the good part.  The surgery went very well.  She was able to remove the tumor, the margins and two nodes.  The pathology results for the two nodes came back negative and there was no need for drainage.  We hope to have the final pathology on the tumor, margins and lymph nodes by mid week.  Janet's follow up with Dr. Beckman and her oncologist is on Thursday.  I am sure we get get more information then (like staging etc.) because for now this is all we have.

We left the hospital around 4:00 and are now home where Janet is resting comfortably (she opted for the bed instead of her first choice of the coach as to not be bothered by the dogs).  We are very thankful for all the thoughts, prayers and kind messages we have gotten over the past few weeks.  We understand we are at the beginning of a journey - we are very thankful to have great friends and family like you to help us down the path.