It's been awhile since my last post. I don't know what to write on my blog and I didn't want to bore you with my daily activities. I guess no news is good news.
Like I said before I've been having good days for two weeks and it has been a blast. I definitely took advantage of these days and kept myself busy. I was out of the house doing errands, took the kids to Fantasy Fair (that was a bad idea because the place was filled to the rafters!), took the kids to a birthday party, had lunch or dinner with some very close friends, cleaned the house, worked out, etc. Yup I was busy alright.
By late yesterday afternoon I felt really tired. I guess it's my body's way of telling me to slow down and to take it easy before my chemo. So I went to bed right after dinner. I was knocked out as soon as my head touched the pillow. I was really tired. Then I woke up around midnight with some mild chest pains and was sweating a lot. That scared me a little bit so I got up, checked my temperature and blood pressure. Both were normal but my BP reading was higher than usual (120/90). The chest pain went away after awhile, maybe it was acid reflux or heartburn. I hope.
So I'm all set for my chemo tomorrow. Last Friday we went to the hospital for my regular bloodwork and met the oncologist. Like before, the results of my blood tests were good, Dr. R (the top honcho at the oncology clinic and he was on call last Friday) said one of my blood count was barely lower than usual but he still gave me the thumbs up to proceed with the chemo tomorrow (March 23).
Tomorrow will be my fourth chemo (out of six). It will also be the second phase of the chemo treatment. They will give me Taxotere, it's the T in the FEC/T protocol. Dr. R told us that bone pain will be one of the major side effects of this medication. They prescribed a stronger Tylenol to help with the pain. Dr. R said nausea/vomitting will not be present during the second phase of the chemo. However I just read the sheet they gave us about the medication, nausea and vomitting are some of the common side effects of Taxotere. Hmmm. I was actually looking forward to NOT having nausea and vomit since Dr. R mentioned it to us, now I'm not too sure anymore.
Another major side effect is hair loss starting two-three weeks after my treatment(including scalp hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, etc). I'm already bald so there's nothing new there. But losing the eyebrows and eyelashes? That's a scary thought.
Eye tearing is another side effect, I'm not entirely sure what this is but if it means watery eyes, then I've had it for at least a couple of weeks now. At first I thought it was reaction to my eye make-up or mascarra but I bought new ones and the watery eyes is still there. I reported this to the nurse but I was told it was normal with chemo. So now I always carry tissue papers to wipe the tears of my eyes. It bothers me a little bit but I can live with it. It's temporary.
I told Dr. R I don't know what to expect with the second phase of the treatment but he told me to look at it in a positive way how it is helping my body. He also said I'm halfway there and it'll be done before I know it. Based on my medical records and blood tests, Dr. R said I'm doing well. Dr. R also warned me that I have to take the one particular medication the night before the chemo, if I don't they will cancel the chemo and postpone it for another week. Now I just have to remember to take it tonight.
By this time tomorrow, chemo number 4 is over and who knows how my body will react to it. Hopefully not as bad as the first three. I'll keep you posted.
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