Well I have made it through the third round of Chemo You all know what this means?.... We are half way through!!!! I am very excited about this if you couldn't tell? ;)
We Started out this round of Chemo on a Monday and also met with my Dr Gregory Litton. Dr Litton evaluated the tumor and even though I had not felt like it was shrinking much he stated he feels that it has some which was great news!
Dr Litton decided that we will evaluate the size to see actual shrinking if there is any with an MRI that I will get on Monday May 14th. I will then meet with my Surgical Oncologist Dr Steve Scott on Thursday May 17th to evaluate for removal of the tumor, or possible radiation before hand to possibly shrink it further.
After surgery they will evaluate the tumor to see how much of the cancer is in fact dead and evaluate if more Chemo is needed or possibly just radiation.
The possibility that we may not need further Chemo was very exciting to me as this last round I would have to say was my hardest. My spirits were a little more down then I like them to be which was frustrating. I had a lot of confusion with this last round as far as being unable to focus and think clearly, as well as having dreams and then not being sure if they had actually happened or not. They did advise us that this was a normal side effect however I think that was one of the biggest things that added to the frustration I felt throughout this las round was the confusion. I was also a lot sicker this round although thanks to anti-nausea medications I did not have any issues with vomiting which again was a blessing!
I have been very fatigued and sleeping a lot, this is because I am as the nurse put it "Very Anemic" and eventually will have to get a blood transfusion I think this also is one of the reasons why this last round was so hard on me. The Anemia makes me cold all the time and super tiered getting from the bed to the living room couch is a big trip for me which I find oddly humorous.
This last round of Chemo has left me tasting even less which is a little frustrating I find myself feeling like the Pirates of the Caribbean character Barbossa who just wanted to taste his apple :)
During Chemo week all I ate was Sonic tater tots and KFC Mash Potatoes however these things no longer had any flavor after the last day of Chemo. I also lost the flavor of Cheeses that I was enjoying so much before. I do still enjoy most natural juices and have been having a lot of these in slushy form or over Shaved Ice.
I was so grateful to have the company of my Mom on Tuesdays Chemo day and My sister Christie on Wednesday on Thursday. Its so awesome to have such supportive family not only with taking me but by praying for me, and spoiling me in other little ways that show me that they care! I am so grateful for them all as well as my friends! You all help carry me through this you really do!
On Cinco De Mayo my Mom came and got me while Mike was working a side job and I hung out at her house all day which was a nice outing. Because I am very low on energy right now I relaxed in her bed while she did some deep cleaning and we just visited which was very nice.
A good friend had given me a Saved Ice machine and we decided to be festive and try adding a little flavor to the ice with some Virgin Margarita Mix to my delight It did have a slight flavor that I could taste!!!!
We also got some Hard shell Tacos from Taco Time and though there was no flavor from anything inside the Taco I enjoyed the crunchy texture of the Taco and discovered that if I put the very hottest sauce on the taco it helped get rid of the funky Chemo taste in my mouth that I have. This was very funny to all of us as we enjoyed our Tacos and I drenched mine in at least 3 packets of Fire sauce because normally I did not care for spicy things at all. With the loss of taste in my mouth the flavor did not feel hot at all, although I could tell it was because my nose started running :) My parents laughed so hard when I tried the texture of a crispy cinnamon bite covered in hot sauce ( it wasn't bad, not as good as the crunchy taco of which I had 3!)
The salt water rinses have been very helpful I think in preventing the sores they say you get in your mouth during Chemo because I have not gotten any yet and rinse several times a day but as we go along they help less and less with the bad Chemo flavor.
I will keep you all updated once I meet with my Surgical Oncologist next week on how they plan to proceed with treatment. To be honest I am hoping they will decide on surgery to removed the tumor because though I am grateful to be halfway done with Chemo after this last round I would really be grateful to be done and not be that sick again.
I appreciate you all taking the time to read my blog and your constant prayers and positive thoughts I am SO grateful for! I hope you all have a wonderful, safe week! XOXO
