Yesterday was my third radiation treatment. I also got my first dose of the medicine to protect the saliva glands. Fortunately this medicine works each time you get it and lasts about 24 hours in your system. Each time you take it you get some protection for that treatment. If you miss a treatment it doesn't undo the protection from the previous treatments.
Yesterday I was able to get a feeling for what is meant by fatigue and not being able to sleep. Fortunately I was able to take some over the counter sleep medicine and that seemed to do the trick. You wouldn't think that you would need help sleeping when you are fatigued but in this case I did. One of the tricks to the treatment is going to be understanding when to do what. A friend of ours that went through cancer treatment a few years ago gave me some great advice, "Don't be a hero". Or to put another way better living through chemistry.
Today I am going to try to add some coffee or tea back into the equation. I have started drinking ginger tea as that helps with indigestion but unfortunately it doesn't have any caffeine. I did start to reduce my caffeine intake over the last few weeks but I still would like to work in that morning cup of something caffeinated. Its hard to tell how much of the fatigue feeling is caused by the treatments (Most I would think) and what could be helped by adding in some caffeine. I will probably start with Tea. Hopefully my espresso machine will understand. :-)
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Day Two: More like what I expected
Day two is better than yesterday. According the the medical oncologist I shouldn't have shown much reaction until today. I guess my body was just itching to get to the fight sooner. Today is a better day. I am definitely fatigued and trying to take it easy but the nausea and pain went away and hasn't come back. Now I am what one Internet site referred to as "stomach aware". That means I can eat and drink without a problem but I am aware of my stomach if that makes any sense. Right now I am focusing on drinking water whenever I can. One of the big things with Cisplatin is to flush it from your system. They say I should drink a minimum of 64 ounces a day.
One plus of technology today is wireless access and remote connectivity. Fortunately my home network is more along the lines of a corporate one so I have been able to accomplish some actual work today. Its funny but now that I have started treatments and am on a regular schedule I feel a bit more calm. (Except for next week when I get the PEG tube installed! Yuck on that one.) Every morning I go for radiation treatment at 10:00. I should be back home by 11:00. That will let me get into a bit of a routine. I have also been stepping back from volunteer activities so that I can focus more time on keeping myself well, my family and work.
One plus of technology today is wireless access and remote connectivity. Fortunately my home network is more along the lines of a corporate one so I have been able to accomplish some actual work today. Its funny but now that I have started treatments and am on a regular schedule I feel a bit more calm. (Except for next week when I get the PEG tube installed! Yuck on that one.) Every morning I go for radiation treatment at 10:00. I should be back home by 11:00. That will let me get into a bit of a routine. I have also been stepping back from volunteer activities so that I can focus more time on keeping myself well, my family and work.
A Three Hurricane Evening
I got home yesterday somewhere around 1:30 in the afternoon. Keeping with the idea of small meals and drinking lots of water I had something to eat. At this point I was feeling fine but a bit tired. Around 3:00 I decided to take a nap. At 4:00 PM I woke up and that was when the fun started. It felt like I had been on a drinking binge without the benefit of drinking. Nausea, cold sweats, stomach cramps... the whole nine yards.
So I went downstairs and crashed on the couch. Sue tried to call the medical oncologist but could only get voice mail. Fortunately the nurses at the hospital gave me their number as well so she called there. They were able to get through and have the nurses from the oncologists office call. They said to take the drugs the radiation people had given me for nausea with the shots for protecting the saliva glands. That had some effect but no much. Sue called again but only got voice mail so she put a call into the doctors service. After about a half hour he called back and said he would call in a prescription to the local pharmacy. Of course that took even more time and in all it took about 3 hours to get the other prescription. Its some sort of steroid that helps the other medication. Between the two it seemed to get under control though I am still "stomach aware" as one web site put it.
The doctor was a bit surprised by the quick reaction to the Cisplatin. I guess normally this type of stuff doesn't turn up until the next day. Who knows, maybe that means it is working faster. So this morning I am off to another radiation treatment. Hopefully the effects of the Cisplatin will fade over the next two days.
So what is the hurricane reference about? I wanted to come up with a way to communicate how the side effects feel without getting into all the gory details so I devised the hurricane reference chart. A hurricane is a drink they serve in New Orleans that has about 4 shots of rum in it and a grain alcohol spritzer. In my youth a friend of mine and I at a sporting event consumed 4 of these. Needless to say we were not fit for much the next day. This wasn't has bad as that but it was up there.
So I went downstairs and crashed on the couch. Sue tried to call the medical oncologist but could only get voice mail. Fortunately the nurses at the hospital gave me their number as well so she called there. They were able to get through and have the nurses from the oncologists office call. They said to take the drugs the radiation people had given me for nausea with the shots for protecting the saliva glands. That had some effect but no much. Sue called again but only got voice mail so she put a call into the doctors service. After about a half hour he called back and said he would call in a prescription to the local pharmacy. Of course that took even more time and in all it took about 3 hours to get the other prescription. Its some sort of steroid that helps the other medication. Between the two it seemed to get under control though I am still "stomach aware" as one web site put it.
The doctor was a bit surprised by the quick reaction to the Cisplatin. I guess normally this type of stuff doesn't turn up until the next day. Who knows, maybe that means it is working faster. So this morning I am off to another radiation treatment. Hopefully the effects of the Cisplatin will fade over the next two days.
So what is the hurricane reference about? I wanted to come up with a way to communicate how the side effects feel without getting into all the gory details so I devised the hurricane reference chart. A hurricane is a drink they serve in New Orleans that has about 4 shots of rum in it and a grain alcohol spritzer. In my youth a friend of mine and I at a sporting event consumed 4 of these. Needless to say we were not fit for much the next day. This wasn't has bad as that but it was up there.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
The battle is joined: Operation Overlord Commences
OK, that might be a bit melodramatic but bonus points to anyone that knows what Operation Overlord means without looking it up.
So at 8:00 this morning I showed up at the hospital to check in. It took just a few minutes and they sent me back to the oncology area. The oncology room at the hospital is very nice. They got me situated in what is essentially a lounge chair. The first thing they did was give me the menu for breakfast and lunch. I had scrambled eggs and bacon with hot chocolate for breakfast.
But before breakfast came they had to put in the IV. (Have I mentioned that I have a needle phobia yet?) Anyway once that was in they hooked me up to a liter (I think) of saline. The key thing with the main chemo drug I am getting is that it can do nasty things to your kidneys (along with the many other side effects.) so to help mitigate you have to drink fluids, lots of fluids. Before they give you the main drug you have to urinate 500 ML. (Not all at once but total.) Fortunately I started drinking lots a few days before. Nothing starts until that quota is met. I brought my notebook with me and started watching the movie Rudy. The original plan was to watch the extended edition of the Lord Of The Rings for each of the three main treatments. With radiation scheduled for 10:00 I thought it would be a bit disruptive so Rudy made more sense.
Radiation called a bit early so off I went. Right before I then I hit the 500ml goal so when I came back the other drugs would start. Radiation went quickly. I walked right in, stowed my stuff in the locker and got bolted down to the table. They are doing 7 different angles with the radiation. Once they got me into position the machine moved down to the right and started there. From then on the table I was on would move a bit and the main unit would rotate a bit more towards the right. Then stop and shoot twice with the radiation. After that it would move to the next location. I didn't time it but I think it was somewhere around 20 minutes. Tomorrow I will pay more attention. Today they didn't give me the shots for the salivary glands. The thought was that I had enough going on without that as well.
Then it was back to the chemo unit to start the drugs. The first thing they put in was a anti nausea medicine. After that it was diuretic. I can attest that the diuretic works great. They also had me take the anti nausea medicine the medical oncologist prescribed. That took about an hour and then it was onto the big drug. So at around 11:25 or so they hooked up the Cisplatin. That took an hour to go in. While the Cisplatin was going in lunch came. I got the roast pork tenderloin with stuffing and gravy and tapioca for desert. To drink I had coffee and apple juice.
After the Cisplatin was done they flushed the IV with more saline, took the IV out and I was done. That's it. All together it took about 5 hours from check in and that included the radiation treatment.
At this point I have to say that the people in the oncology unit at the hospital were great. They took the time to explain what was going on and never seemed rushed at all. I also have to say that the people at the radiation facility are also great to deal with. Starting treatment is a bit stressful and having friendly patient medical professionals as part of the team goes a long way to easing any anxiety I may have had getting treatment.
Now its time to go home. (Yes, I was writing this while hooked up to the IV) They have done their job and its my turn to do my job. My job is eating lots of small meals, drinking at least 64 ounces of clear fluids a day and resting when I need it. Actually that sounds sort of like what I do now. :-)
I will post something the next day or two to let you know how things are going.
So at 8:00 this morning I showed up at the hospital to check in. It took just a few minutes and they sent me back to the oncology area. The oncology room at the hospital is very nice. They got me situated in what is essentially a lounge chair. The first thing they did was give me the menu for breakfast and lunch. I had scrambled eggs and bacon with hot chocolate for breakfast.
But before breakfast came they had to put in the IV. (Have I mentioned that I have a needle phobia yet?) Anyway once that was in they hooked me up to a liter (I think) of saline. The key thing with the main chemo drug I am getting is that it can do nasty things to your kidneys (along with the many other side effects.) so to help mitigate you have to drink fluids, lots of fluids. Before they give you the main drug you have to urinate 500 ML. (Not all at once but total.) Fortunately I started drinking lots a few days before. Nothing starts until that quota is met. I brought my notebook with me and started watching the movie Rudy. The original plan was to watch the extended edition of the Lord Of The Rings for each of the three main treatments. With radiation scheduled for 10:00 I thought it would be a bit disruptive so Rudy made more sense.
Radiation called a bit early so off I went. Right before I then I hit the 500ml goal so when I came back the other drugs would start. Radiation went quickly. I walked right in, stowed my stuff in the locker and got bolted down to the table. They are doing 7 different angles with the radiation. Once they got me into position the machine moved down to the right and started there. From then on the table I was on would move a bit and the main unit would rotate a bit more towards the right. Then stop and shoot twice with the radiation. After that it would move to the next location. I didn't time it but I think it was somewhere around 20 minutes. Tomorrow I will pay more attention. Today they didn't give me the shots for the salivary glands. The thought was that I had enough going on without that as well.
Then it was back to the chemo unit to start the drugs. The first thing they put in was a anti nausea medicine. After that it was diuretic. I can attest that the diuretic works great. They also had me take the anti nausea medicine the medical oncologist prescribed. That took about an hour and then it was onto the big drug. So at around 11:25 or so they hooked up the Cisplatin. That took an hour to go in. While the Cisplatin was going in lunch came. I got the roast pork tenderloin with stuffing and gravy and tapioca for desert. To drink I had coffee and apple juice.
After the Cisplatin was done they flushed the IV with more saline, took the IV out and I was done. That's it. All together it took about 5 hours from check in and that included the radiation treatment.
At this point I have to say that the people in the oncology unit at the hospital were great. They took the time to explain what was going on and never seemed rushed at all. I also have to say that the people at the radiation facility are also great to deal with. Starting treatment is a bit stressful and having friendly patient medical professionals as part of the team goes a long way to easing any anxiety I may have had getting treatment.
Now its time to go home. (Yes, I was writing this while hooked up to the IV) They have done their job and its my turn to do my job. My job is eating lots of small meals, drinking at least 64 ounces of clear fluids a day and resting when I need it. Actually that sounds sort of like what I do now. :-)
I will post something the next day or two to let you know how things are going.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Dress Rehearsal
Today was the dry run through the radiation machine. Its actually pretty simple. I need to get there a few minutes before my appointment. When I get there I go back to a waiting area near the entrance to the room the machine is in. They have lockers there to put things in. Fortunately they are big enough to contain a laptop computer if I bring one.
When they take you into the room with the machine they put you on the table and position your shoulders under these braces. Then they put the mask on and attach that to the table. It takes a minute or two to get everything positioned and tightened up. After that they leave the room and operate the machine remotely. In my case because it is the head and neck area that is being targeted I don't need to change into a gown or anything. Also once the table is up in position it is the machine that will be moving around me to target the radiation beams. Once the machine is done the unhook me, lower the table and I am finished. All in its pretty straight forward.
For tomorrow because I am getting chemo therapy as well they will not use the drug that protects the saliva glands. That drug can also cause nausea and they don't want to hit me with too much at once.
For tomorrow I will check into the hospital at 8:00 in the morning. The first part of chemo is giving me fluids to hydrate me. The radiation treatment is scheduled for 10:00 AM so they will unhook me from the IV and bring me over to the radiation treatment area. Fortunately they are on the same floor and just a 1-2 minute walk away. After the radiation treatment its back to the chemo room. I did check out the chemo area at the hospital. Each station has a separate arm chair and appeared to be separated by a partial wall. I spoke to one person there and they said that they do have TVs as well. It appears to be a lot more convenient to have my chemo treatments there when I have radiation scheduled as well. I may ask if I can have the other two chemo treatments scheduled there while I am having radiation. The only reason I am there tomorrow is that the medical oncologist office is full up tomorrow.
Now all of the prep work is completed and tomorrow is when we start to attack the cancer. I am not looking forward to the treatments but I am glad to finally get going. The sooner I start the sooner I am done.
When they take you into the room with the machine they put you on the table and position your shoulders under these braces. Then they put the mask on and attach that to the table. It takes a minute or two to get everything positioned and tightened up. After that they leave the room and operate the machine remotely. In my case because it is the head and neck area that is being targeted I don't need to change into a gown or anything. Also once the table is up in position it is the machine that will be moving around me to target the radiation beams. Once the machine is done the unhook me, lower the table and I am finished. All in its pretty straight forward.
For tomorrow because I am getting chemo therapy as well they will not use the drug that protects the saliva glands. That drug can also cause nausea and they don't want to hit me with too much at once.
For tomorrow I will check into the hospital at 8:00 in the morning. The first part of chemo is giving me fluids to hydrate me. The radiation treatment is scheduled for 10:00 AM so they will unhook me from the IV and bring me over to the radiation treatment area. Fortunately they are on the same floor and just a 1-2 minute walk away. After the radiation treatment its back to the chemo room. I did check out the chemo area at the hospital. Each station has a separate arm chair and appeared to be separated by a partial wall. I spoke to one person there and they said that they do have TVs as well. It appears to be a lot more convenient to have my chemo treatments there when I have radiation scheduled as well. I may ask if I can have the other two chemo treatments scheduled there while I am having radiation. The only reason I am there tomorrow is that the medical oncologist office is full up tomorrow.
Now all of the prep work is completed and tomorrow is when we start to attack the cancer. I am not looking forward to the treatments but I am glad to finally get going. The sooner I start the sooner I am done.
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