A lot going on

On Monday the 25th, I saw Dr. K, the next day, I saw the nurse, on Wed, I saw the radiation oncologist, and yesterday, I saw the plastic surgeon in Portland. The end result is that there are a couple of smaller tumors growing under my left arm, near the armpit. So we did a planning session today and will start Radiation to both the brain and the arm on Monday. I have 8 more sessions of whole brain radiation and 15 more sessions of the arm. I am about ha
Way done with whole brain radiation.

30 days after radiation, I will have another brain MRI and probably a CT scan and can hopefully get on a clinical trial for the TDM-1 trial. But it is in Stockton, California and I would have to go every three weeks. That is what Dr. K is hoping for. Or I could start another kind of treatment here, like a Taxane. But we will cross that bridge when we come to it.

The tumor in my chest is growing, but as the wound care nurse said, it would probably be huge by now so it is good that I had the bulk of it taken out five weeks ago.

In the meantime, I am taking lots of drugs for side effects. Zofran for nausea (but maybe I can taper that off as the antibiotics gets out of my system), steroids for swelling in the brain which helps with headaches and nausea, dilaudid for pain (due to the growing tumors in my arm and increased swelling), Valium for anxiety and sleep, and Ibuprofen, I. Addition to Chinese herbs and supplements.

I am back to not sleeping, get weepy from the pain (controlled now with the Dilaudid), I am a little nauseous, but eating a lot and often helps with that. My appetite is picking up but it is a lot of little meals and I don't eat much. I am not very good company. I am gonna get through these next few weeks. I think next week will be the worst. Or maybe it was this week as I find the right combo of meds to control the side effects. I do think the steroids keep me from being so weepy and the pain meds help too.

It looks like my summer is shot. At least my dad, brother, and friend are building the deck. So I guess we concentrate on the back yard. I can't sit for long in a restaurant, so I am at home or at my appointments.

I am not posting much on the blog or on Facebook because my arms hurt. Maybe now that I take Dilaudid, I can post more again.

Also say Happy Birthday to my son today .. . He turns 11! Wow!

Oh god. Nausea

I still had nausea through the evening and night and this morning. I've been taking zofran pretty regularly and mom and dad got ginger root at the store yesterday and I've had ginger tea twice - a friend of mine sent me some recipes for it - of a way to prepare it. My acupuncture also suggested it, so I figure it was time I tried it. I think it's helping.

But the only medication I had last night was the anti-seizure med - no Tylenol, no Tykerb, no antibiotic. I did take the antibiotic this morning, but will ask the surgeon if there is a gentler one I can be on.

I think since the nausea is continuing that there must be some swelling in my brain. The docs want me to take a steroid for it, but steroids delay healing.

The antibiotic is healing the wounds - and keeping infection at bay - but it gives me nausea.

Tykerb can help protect my brain, but may contribute to the nausea.

I also haven't taken my Chinese herbs last night or today.

My acupuncturist said that I am probably still detoxifying from all the chemicals in my system from the surgeries plus the meds I take. So, my system is overloaded.

I feel like I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't. None of the choices (Tykerb can help prevent brain mets, but can cause nausea; Tylenol helps with pain in my shoulder but probably doesn't help the nausea; some of my Chinese herbs can help my immune system and fight cancer, but I'm afraid I'm giving my body too much so I'm not taking them; antibiotics appear to be helping heal the wounds in my armpit but gives me nausea; WBR can kill any stray cancer cells in my brain but can lead to swelling and nausea) are appetizing (pun intended).

I don't know what to do.

I sorta feel like I need to detoxify my body right now - which to me means to take the minimal amount of chemicals and get over the nausea and get the surgical drugs out of my system - before I do anything else. Then begin adding things again next week, after I'm off the antibiotics. The only two things I don't want to take away are the anti-seizure medication and the antibiotic.

There's a part of me - because of how I've reacted to the WBR with nausea (which may be due ot the meds but maybe not) - is to refuse WBR for yet a few more weeks. I know that increases my chances that a tumor can start growing but I also think that once I get off the antibiotic, I can take Tykerb. I was doing okay with the anti-seizure med, the Tykerb, and Tylenol.

What to do?

Hit a Breaking Point - Will Take a Break

After my radiation treatment yesterday, and after taking my antibiotic, Tykerb, and the anti-seizure medication, I ended up with nausea last night. I finally took Zofran about midnight, then at breakfast and then right before lunch. I am able to eat now, but I am frankly overwhelmed.

I called the radiation oncologist and in the end, she agreed that I am overwhelmed and need a break, although it is against her better judgment.

Of all the side effects, I can't handle nausea. I just can't. She said that Keflex, the antiobiotic, is notorious for nausea. But I told her about my wound care appointment today - the four smaller areas (of about 1cm each) that hadn't been healing and two spots that had opened up recently - have actually healed in the last week. Since Thursday, I've been on antibiotics. The largest is now 0.8cm x 0.5cm where it was 1cm. Only one area s slightly raised; the others look like there is some skin tissue forming. The largest area has healed in about 1cm in width on the anterior side - about the same in the posterior side (about 4cm long, but 1cm wide on the anterior side and 2cm on the posterior side).

So, this is an argument that those four little areas were actually areas of infection so the antibiotic is probably helping. In case that is really the case, we don't want to shorten my course of the antibiotic.

Also, the radiation oncologist said for the nausea, they would want me to take the steroids again. I really really don't want to do that. She then said that the steroids would delay healing wounds. I now have three major open wounds - the armpit, the skin graft site, and the chest. So, she agreed that now would not be the time to start steroids again.

I also decreased the dose of the antibiotic (from 3 per day to 2) and also didn't take Tykerb this morning. I want to start with as clean a plate as possible so now it's just the antiobiotic and the anti-seizure medication that I'm on. Once I'm over the nausea - and the diarrhea (will start Probiotic for that), I plan to start Tykerb again, hopefully by later this week for its protective effect on my brain. If I get nausea again, then I know it's the medication combination that's doing it.

I will have an appointment to talk to the radiation oncologist again on Monday - so now I can just spend the next few days recovering from the latest surgery and the medications.

Three surgeries in six weeks is a lot. Cancer treatments on top of that is a lot. I reached my breaking point and need a break and to give my body a chance to recover.

Not sure when I may start radiation again, but if and when I do I will find out if radiation causes it. If not, I will know that that the nausea I feel is a result of still trying to get all the medications from surgery and the antibiotic and such out of my system.

A break will allow me to sort that out some more.

I'm strong. But not that strong. A break is a welcome respite.