May 17, 2012 Beginning of Round #6…and the gloves are off...

May 17, 2012 Beginning of Round #6…and the gloves are off…

After beating the Chemo demons in round #5, I was off to tackle round #6 by going through a marathon chemo treatment by sitting in the chemo chair for 6 hours (with a few bio breaks to break it up a bit).  I was well prepared with a book to read, having my handy dandy iPad with me so that I could keep myself occupied with the plethora of activities it is capable of and, of course, one of my many crocheting projects.

The routine works like this:

• First 10 min: Review with the nurse how the previous round went and if there are any concerns to be addressed
• Next 5 min: Access my Power Port and ensure all is still working fine (ie testing that blood still flows freely through the catheter so that the infusion is successful)
• About 30 Min: Prep the tubing and my body with some saline solution
• One Hour: Herceptin infusion (Herceptin – the antibody from the gods that will attack the over expressed protein cells that would have been a definite nasty in terms of recurrence and mortality if it has not been invented and approved for regular treatment).  This is the second injection that continues the Search and Destroy mission that was started with the last treatment – This Search and Destroy mission will last for one year or 17 treatments and I am very happy to support this mission for sure!  The next time the time for infusion will be reduced to a ½ hour, but there will still be a ½ hour of observation.
• 30 min: Observation to ensure I have no significant reaction to the Hercepton – I am proud to say that I did not have any reaction last time or this time so the Search and Destroy mission can continue without interference:o)
• 30 min: Premedication in preparation for Paclitaxal treatment – a steroid and strong antihistamine (Benadryl) are infused to prevent potential infusion reactions that seem to be a regular occurrence with Paclitaxal treatments.  I am very happy to have this proactive treatment, but the Benadryl really makes me drowsy and makes my legs become restless.  This time I had a good snooze in the chair.  I think the snooze helped me get through the restlessness this time.  The effects peter out over the evening and are definitely gone by the next day – so very manageable all in all.
• 3 hours: Paclitaxal (TAXOL) infusion:  This is the aches and pain chemo treatment that got me the first 2-7 days with the last treatment.  After being berated by my oncologist a few days before this round began, I have agreed to start the Gabapentin medication before the treatment started this time so that I might minimize the aches and pains that I had the first time and increase my “normal” time.  After the first 7 days, I really did feel very normal, had quite a bit of energy and did not have to live with any of the “other worldliness” and mild nausea that was present from the first four rounds of the previous chemo drugs.  So if I can minimize the aches and pains stage of this chemo drug, I should have a pretty good time of it for the balance of this round and the next two rounds.  Of course I still have my friend Neupogen on my side to ensure my white blood cell count stays at a healthy level to help me fight any nasty bacteria that comes my way as I battle through each of the next rounds of chemo – thanks goodness for Neupogen!

It is now May 18^th, the day after treatment and so far so good.  The real test will probably start tomorrow – day 2.  I am feeling good and ready for whatever comes in the next few days.

Wish me luck and we’ll catch up at the end of this round to see who the winner is (my bets are on Carmela Cancer Babe:o)).