Phew! Long day today!
I picked mom up early this morning. She was not feeling great. Tired and nauseous.
We were at the Infusion Center by 8:30am. They immediately got her IV hooked up, but her veins weren't great because she was a little dehydrated, so they had to put it right in the crook of her arm. Which meant she had to keep her arm straight the entire time. They started out by taking her blood and then giving her some Saline, Steroids and Anti-Nausea medicine.
A nurse came to speak to her about participating in a clinical trial. This trial is more of a research trial. It will help them determine how different therapies work for different people and the effects it has on them. Hopefully they can use this research to come up with better, more effective treatments. Pretty much the only thing she has to do to participate in the trial is give a few vials of blood at the beginning of each Chemo cycle. She decided to participate, in the hopes that better treatments can be developed.
Next they gave her a drug called Carboplantin. She will get this once each cycle. Everything was going along great at this point. No adverse reactions and she actually had perked up quite a bit and ate some lunch. Next, they switched her to a drug called Etopside. She will get this everyday she has chemo. After a few minutes, she noticed that her arm hurt a little and we noticed that it was quite swollen. Turns out that her vein blew, therefore fluid was leaking directly into her arm.
They quickly took the IV out of that arm, placed it in the other arm and hooked her back up to the Etopside. They elevated her poor swollen arm and thankfully the swelling subsided quickly and there wasn't any residual pain. The nurses did discuss with her getting a port. Her veins are pretty narrow and Chemotherapy has the tendency to make them worse. The downside is that she would have to have general anesthesia again to have it implanted. It's a quick surgical procedure (about half an hour) done outpatient. The upside is that she wouldn't have to be stuck repeatedly for IV's and blood draws. It would also allow her to have both her arms free while she receives treatment.
So finally about 2:30pm, six hours after we got there, chemo was done for the day! They gave her some anti nausea drugs to take home with her and we headed home.
She was a trooper the entire time and actually looked great. She had some color in her face and felt pretty good and was not coughing the entire time. When we left the hospital she actually commented that she was starving. My sweet friend Elaine brought her (and my family too) a spaghetti dinner and she had two helpings of that. So Day One ended pretty well.
Everyone at the Infusion Center was so nice. The staff were incredible and attentive. I swear they never stopped moving - checking on the patients, checking IV bags, checking blood work and answering questions.
The other patients all seemed to have the routine down and would say hello and check up on each other. The chairs for the patients in the Infusion Center are recliners and many patients get comfy and go to sleep. A blanket is a must there - it's freezing in there! I had a scarf and a cardigan on and was still a little chilly!
To sum it all up, Mom said "That was not bad at all. Nothing like I thought it would be!"
Tomorrow MRI and Chemo again.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Meeting the Doctors
Today was a busy day, with lots of information to digest.
(A lot of technical info in this post so I don't have to repeat all the info 50 times for the family)
We started out by meeting mom's oncologist Dr C. We immediately liked him. He has a very warm personality, is very patient and explained everything. We especially liked that he was very familiar with her medical record and already had a plan in place.
He described the cancer as a soft tissue mass of the mediastinum. It it mostly wrapped around her windpipe. He said that 99% of the time, this cancer comes from smoking. Ironic since she quit smoking about 25 years ago!
They are in the process of scheduling a few more tests, a PET scan and an MRI of the brain. But while we are waiting for the tests, they are going to go ahead and start her Chemotherapy treatments on Monday.
Chemo will consist of Carboplantin and Etopside along with IV fluids to keep her hydrated and anti nausea medicine. Each cycle will consist of Chemo on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Monday will be a long day. Approximately 5 hours. Tuesday and Wednesday will be about an hour and a half. On Thursday she will go in for a shot of Neulasta. This helps stimulate the growth of healthy white blood cells in the bone marrow. Then she gets two weeks off, and repeat the cycle again. She will more than likely do six cycles.
Expected side effects are hair loss (usually starting around the third week), nausea, loss of appetite, and weight loss. There are a slew of other side effects that are possible, but these are the ones that he most commonly sees in his patients. She will be donating a lot of blood to infusion center nurses who will be testing it all the time to see what might be cropping up.
Next we saw the Radiologist Dr. D. Just like Dr C, we liked him immediately also. He showed mom the MRI of her throat and lungs. It seems amazing she can breathe at all when you look at the film. The mass is approximately 7cm from front to back and 6 1/2 cm from side to side.
Radiation will start after her first cycle of Chemo. She has an appointment set up to go back in, and go over her treatment plan and do mapping. This is where they decide exactly where the radiation is going to go. Radiation is a very targeted treatment vs chemo that goes through the entire body. Then she will have the first treatment at the end of the month. Radiation treatments will be Monday through Friday for six weeks in a row. This will only take about half an hour in the office. Approximately 10 minutes of low dose radiation. This is supposed to help her tolerate the treatment better than if she just received one great big dose. He doesn't expect too many side effects right away other than a sunburn like reaction on her skin. The further along the treatment gets, she may have trouble swallowing and a sore throat. Usually all side effects go away approximately two weeks after treatment is completed.
The treatment may change if the MRI of the brain shows that the cancer has spread there. If the MRI of the brain is clear, she will have radiation to her brain approximately a month after all her cycles of chemotherapy are done. This is done as a preventative measure.
So, I think that's everything. Obviously it was a lot of information to take in, but it's nice to have a plan in place. She actually said she was excited to start the chemotherapy so that she can hopefully get some relief from the coughing, wheezing and difficulty breathing.
I will try and update here as much as possible, as it is hard for her to talk on the phone a lot. If I left anything out, feel free to email me and ask.
If you google this type of cancer you will find a lot of negative information. Her doctors are being very optimistic and we are choosing to focus on the positive. I would ask all of you to please do the same.
Keep the prayers, good karma and positive thoughts coming our way!
Clair
(A lot of technical info in this post so I don't have to repeat all the info 50 times for the family)
We started out by meeting mom's oncologist Dr C. We immediately liked him. He has a very warm personality, is very patient and explained everything. We especially liked that he was very familiar with her medical record and already had a plan in place.
He described the cancer as a soft tissue mass of the mediastinum. It it mostly wrapped around her windpipe. He said that 99% of the time, this cancer comes from smoking. Ironic since she quit smoking about 25 years ago!
They are in the process of scheduling a few more tests, a PET scan and an MRI of the brain. But while we are waiting for the tests, they are going to go ahead and start her Chemotherapy treatments on Monday.
Chemo will consist of Carboplantin and Etopside along with IV fluids to keep her hydrated and anti nausea medicine. Each cycle will consist of Chemo on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Monday will be a long day. Approximately 5 hours. Tuesday and Wednesday will be about an hour and a half. On Thursday she will go in for a shot of Neulasta. This helps stimulate the growth of healthy white blood cells in the bone marrow. Then she gets two weeks off, and repeat the cycle again. She will more than likely do six cycles.
Expected side effects are hair loss (usually starting around the third week), nausea, loss of appetite, and weight loss. There are a slew of other side effects that are possible, but these are the ones that he most commonly sees in his patients. She will be donating a lot of blood to infusion center nurses who will be testing it all the time to see what might be cropping up.
Next we saw the Radiologist Dr. D. Just like Dr C, we liked him immediately also. He showed mom the MRI of her throat and lungs. It seems amazing she can breathe at all when you look at the film. The mass is approximately 7cm from front to back and 6 1/2 cm from side to side.
Radiation will start after her first cycle of Chemo. She has an appointment set up to go back in, and go over her treatment plan and do mapping. This is where they decide exactly where the radiation is going to go. Radiation is a very targeted treatment vs chemo that goes through the entire body. Then she will have the first treatment at the end of the month. Radiation treatments will be Monday through Friday for six weeks in a row. This will only take about half an hour in the office. Approximately 10 minutes of low dose radiation. This is supposed to help her tolerate the treatment better than if she just received one great big dose. He doesn't expect too many side effects right away other than a sunburn like reaction on her skin. The further along the treatment gets, she may have trouble swallowing and a sore throat. Usually all side effects go away approximately two weeks after treatment is completed.
The treatment may change if the MRI of the brain shows that the cancer has spread there. If the MRI of the brain is clear, she will have radiation to her brain approximately a month after all her cycles of chemotherapy are done. This is done as a preventative measure.
So, I think that's everything. Obviously it was a lot of information to take in, but it's nice to have a plan in place. She actually said she was excited to start the chemotherapy so that she can hopefully get some relief from the coughing, wheezing and difficulty breathing.
I will try and update here as much as possible, as it is hard for her to talk on the phone a lot. If I left anything out, feel free to email me and ask.
If you google this type of cancer you will find a lot of negative information. Her doctors are being very optimistic and we are choosing to focus on the positive. I would ask all of you to please do the same.
Keep the prayers, good karma and positive thoughts coming our way!
Clair
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
The "C" Word
Unfortunately I don't have a witty way to start this post. I have been sitting here for 5 minutes starring at the blinking cursor and I really need to get to bed soon, so I guess I had just better dive in.
Mom has been sick with a horrendous cough since Thanksgiving. At first we thought she had the same crud everyone else seemed to have. But she got worse. The doctor thought she had severe asthma. She had asthma as a child so this explanation seemed to make sense. Asthma treatments weren't working so then the doctor started investigating more. At this point she could barely walk or talk without wheezing and is constantly exhausted. After an MRI detected some swollen lymph nodes in her throat and some nodules behind her breastbone, she had a biopsy. The word Lymphoma was tossed around.
Last Thursday, April 5th, she spoke with the doctor over the phone. He told her the pathology result showed small cell lung cancer. Even though we knew cancer was a possibility, I can't describe what a shock hearing those results was. The doctor didn't give much information at that point and said he would see her on Tuesday for a post op appointment.
Yesterday we went to the doctor. He confirmed what he had already told her over the phone and let her know that the next steps would be to see an Oncologist and a Radiologist. Surgery is not an option for this type of cancer and Chemotherapy is that standard course of treatment. It will most likely be coupled with radiation. She will also have some other diagnostic tests to see if the cancer has spread anywhere else. The doctor said he is hopeful that the chemotherapy will shrink the tumors that are pressing against her trachea and then she will be able to breathe a lot better.
So tomorrow we are off to the radiologist and oncologist to see what the plan is. Prayers, positive thoughts and any good karma you can throw our way are greatly appreciated!
Mom has been sick with a horrendous cough since Thanksgiving. At first we thought she had the same crud everyone else seemed to have. But she got worse. The doctor thought she had severe asthma. She had asthma as a child so this explanation seemed to make sense. Asthma treatments weren't working so then the doctor started investigating more. At this point she could barely walk or talk without wheezing and is constantly exhausted. After an MRI detected some swollen lymph nodes in her throat and some nodules behind her breastbone, she had a biopsy. The word Lymphoma was tossed around.
Last Thursday, April 5th, she spoke with the doctor over the phone. He told her the pathology result showed small cell lung cancer. Even though we knew cancer was a possibility, I can't describe what a shock hearing those results was. The doctor didn't give much information at that point and said he would see her on Tuesday for a post op appointment.
Yesterday we went to the doctor. He confirmed what he had already told her over the phone and let her know that the next steps would be to see an Oncologist and a Radiologist. Surgery is not an option for this type of cancer and Chemotherapy is that standard course of treatment. It will most likely be coupled with radiation. She will also have some other diagnostic tests to see if the cancer has spread anywhere else. The doctor said he is hopeful that the chemotherapy will shrink the tumors that are pressing against her trachea and then she will be able to breathe a lot better.
So tomorrow we are off to the radiologist and oncologist to see what the plan is. Prayers, positive thoughts and any good karma you can throw our way are greatly appreciated!
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Our house is nearly done!
Chris was in Jacksonville last week so he swung by the house for a little peek.
It's fun to see the changes that have been made in the week since we've been gone!
Chris will be back in Jacksonville again at the end of the month. Hopefully they will have installed the kitchen and he can take some more pictures of the inside.
It's fun to see the changes that have been made in the week since we've been gone!
Sold! To us! (Well sorta, we haven't closed or anything yet)
The sod is down!
They added the Ledgestone to the bottom of the house. Love the color and the way it looks.
The staircase has been put in and the carpet laid down. Love the staircase! Much better than the temporary pipe railing they rigged up.
Chris will be back in Jacksonville again at the end of the month. Hopefully they will have installed the kitchen and he can take some more pictures of the inside.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
House Hunting
So, several months ago, Chris' company Network Solutions was bought out by Web.com Unfortunately the company decided to shut down the offices here in the St Louis area. Fortunately, they offered Chris a promotion. However, this also meant we would need to relocate our family to Jacksonville. So, when the kids finish the school year, we're off to sunny Florida.
We looked at six gazillion homes on the internet. We even put in an offer on a great house in a great location that we hadn't even seen. There was multiple offers and ours wasn't accepted. It seemed like no sooner did I let the agent know we were interested in a house, that house would be under contract. We weren't gelling with our agent. I was started to thing we were going to have to live in a tent.
With a new agent, and a list of homes to go see, off we all went to Florida in search of a new home.
Wow! I never knew house hunting could be so completely exhausting!
We looked at so many houses I could barely keep them straight. One house was great but it was a short sale and we need a firm move in date. Another great house, this one a bank foreclosure, had horrible stains all over the carpet, another home didn't have enough natural light, the next house smelled like dog. We considered new builds but the first one we looked at had tiny bedrooms. The second one was out of our price range.
We finally checked out a different community that was still in the school district we want the kids to attend. Immediately all of us loved the house but at this point we still had some other houses to look at. The next day we spend most of the day looking at houses that were beautiful but we weren't getting the same vibe as we did before. We went back to the house again to get a second look and we immediately felt like this was the right choice. So we went in and signed the papers. Our fabulous agent got the builder to throw in a whole bunch of extras too. We didn't have enough time to have our home built from scratch so we opted for a home that was already in the process of being built. It should be ready at the end of April.
So even though it was exhausting, we did it! We have a home to move to now.
Thank goodness. I am not a camper!
We looked at six gazillion homes on the internet. We even put in an offer on a great house in a great location that we hadn't even seen. There was multiple offers and ours wasn't accepted. It seemed like no sooner did I let the agent know we were interested in a house, that house would be under contract. We weren't gelling with our agent. I was started to thing we were going to have to live in a tent.
With a new agent, and a list of homes to go see, off we all went to Florida in search of a new home.
Wow! I never knew house hunting could be so completely exhausting!
We looked at so many houses I could barely keep them straight. One house was great but it was a short sale and we need a firm move in date. Another great house, this one a bank foreclosure, had horrible stains all over the carpet, another home didn't have enough natural light, the next house smelled like dog. We considered new builds but the first one we looked at had tiny bedrooms. The second one was out of our price range.
We finally checked out a different community that was still in the school district we want the kids to attend. Immediately all of us loved the house but at this point we still had some other houses to look at. The next day we spend most of the day looking at houses that were beautiful but we weren't getting the same vibe as we did before. We went back to the house again to get a second look and we immediately felt like this was the right choice. So we went in and signed the papers. Our fabulous agent got the builder to throw in a whole bunch of extras too. We didn't have enough time to have our home built from scratch so we opted for a home that was already in the process of being built. It should be ready at the end of April.
So even though it was exhausting, we did it! We have a home to move to now.
Thank goodness. I am not a camper!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Not a kitten anymore!
When Sarafina was just a little baby kitty, she discovered she could jump onto the stool, then onto the counter, then up onto the fridge and then on the top of the upper cabinets. One of the vents for the heater is up there, and whenever she would get cold, she would make her way up there and settle into the wicker basket by the vent.
Despite how much bigger she has gotten, she still likes to squeeze into that little basket.
Despite how much bigger she has gotten, she still likes to squeeze into that little basket.
She's a kitten at heart. Especially when there is heat involved!
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