Chemo went well today. Christy came and sat with me and Vic watched Courtney.
The nurses and Onc put on funny hats and two of them were dressed as nuns to sing me a graduation song. It was an original song - something about a specific side effct - diarrhea. It was pretty funny.
We went to Lowe's and Costco afterwards. Now I'm crashing . . . never had this immense need to sleep.
More tomorrow (hopefully) with pics.
Thank you all for your support and prayers!
~Renee
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
BINGO!
Vic has a B-9 tumor called Schwannoma. Benign! Yeah!!!!!!
He hasn't talked to his doctor yet, but we believe it will need to be removed. We don't anticipate having the surgery until after January 1st. How does Vic know it's benign? It really helps to work in the pathology department where the biopsy was performed. He just found the resident who read the slides, who was willing to tell him the results.
This will give us time to replenish our Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). Luckily, my open enrollment for insurance and the FSA ends December 12th. Vic's been tasked to figure out how much money we will need to pay for this surgery. That's hard to do!
Thank goodness for my health insurance. We picked up the medications for this round of chemo. Cost would have been $640. . . .we paid $34.
Stress is high as I have a couple of projects to wrap up at work before the next chemo. Last week was a three day week due to the holiday and this week is 2.5 days due to the biopsy yesterday. I'll get it done, but I will be so happy not to have to plan my life around chemo and the "feel good" days. I'm sure my co-workers will be happy too!
He hasn't talked to his doctor yet, but we believe it will need to be removed. We don't anticipate having the surgery until after January 1st. How does Vic know it's benign? It really helps to work in the pathology department where the biopsy was performed. He just found the resident who read the slides, who was willing to tell him the results.
This will give us time to replenish our Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). Luckily, my open enrollment for insurance and the FSA ends December 12th. Vic's been tasked to figure out how much money we will need to pay for this surgery. That's hard to do!
Thank goodness for my health insurance. We picked up the medications for this round of chemo. Cost would have been $640. . . .we paid $34.
Stress is high as I have a couple of projects to wrap up at work before the next chemo. Last week was a three day week due to the holiday and this week is 2.5 days due to the biopsy yesterday. I'll get it done, but I will be so happy not to have to plan my life around chemo and the "feel good" days. I'm sure my co-workers will be happy too!
Daughter Christy is joining me at chemo on Thursday - she wants to see what it's all about. Grandpa Vic will have Courtney Jean (age 5) while Christy is with me. I suggested that the two of them go clothes and shoe shopping. For some reason, he didn't think that was a good idea.
Talk to you in a couple of days!
Waiting Game (again)
Vic's procedure went well yesterday, no problems with the actual biopsy procedure. Now we wait for the results.
It was a long day, in fact, Vic asked to leave early. He had enough. Doctors wanted him to have 4 hours bedrest after the procedure. Why? I'm not sure. But after Vic woke up from his Percocet induced nap, he said enough, buzzed for the nurse and got dressed.
What a sweet nurse, too! She asked me if I had breast cancer. Then she asked what kind, "The 2nd most aggressive". "Oh, not Inflammatory Breast Cancer"? No, thank God and it was found at Stage 1.
Nurse Challie went on to say that her girlfriend had IBC, but her doctor told her it wast nothing. A year later, the skin was still thick and tender, so the friend went back to the doctor. It was at Stage IV - a stage none of us want - and she died a short while later. Ladies! Listen to your bodies. Insist that your doctor do a test or procedure. If s/he won't, go to a second doctor. This isn't a time to be afraid of hurting your doctor's feelings by going to another doctor!
Nurse Challie looked at me square in the eyes and said, "Stage 1?! Oh, your time on earth is not finished. . .there are more great things for you to do. Why do people that are so sweet and those that would be great friends get cancer?" It was just the thing I needed to hear.
We talked about radiation a bit and my concern that it really isn't necessary - will do more harm in the long run. This was all while she is removing Vic's IV and checking his body parts. "What's one more month of a short doctor visit to ensure that a rogue cancer cell isn't still there to cause havoc? You've been through the worse - surgery and chemo."
Whew! That's all I can say . . . God putting a voice of reason in front of me?
We should know by Wednesday the results of Vic's biopsy.
Best of luck to my cyber cancer sisters, Sue, during her first chemo today and Sharon on her next chemo on Thursday! Many prayers and thoughts are being sent your way.
~Renee
It was a long day, in fact, Vic asked to leave early. He had enough. Doctors wanted him to have 4 hours bedrest after the procedure. Why? I'm not sure. But after Vic woke up from his Percocet induced nap, he said enough, buzzed for the nurse and got dressed.
What a sweet nurse, too! She asked me if I had breast cancer. Then she asked what kind, "The 2nd most aggressive". "Oh, not Inflammatory Breast Cancer"? No, thank God and it was found at Stage 1.
Nurse Challie went on to say that her girlfriend had IBC, but her doctor told her it wast nothing. A year later, the skin was still thick and tender, so the friend went back to the doctor. It was at Stage IV - a stage none of us want - and she died a short while later. Ladies! Listen to your bodies. Insist that your doctor do a test or procedure. If s/he won't, go to a second doctor. This isn't a time to be afraid of hurting your doctor's feelings by going to another doctor!
Nurse Challie looked at me square in the eyes and said, "Stage 1?! Oh, your time on earth is not finished. . .there are more great things for you to do. Why do people that are so sweet and those that would be great friends get cancer?" It was just the thing I needed to hear.
We talked about radiation a bit and my concern that it really isn't necessary - will do more harm in the long run. This was all while she is removing Vic's IV and checking his body parts. "What's one more month of a short doctor visit to ensure that a rogue cancer cell isn't still there to cause havoc? You've been through the worse - surgery and chemo."
Whew! That's all I can say . . . God putting a voice of reason in front of me?
We should know by Wednesday the results of Vic's biopsy.
Best of luck to my cyber cancer sisters, Sue, during her first chemo today and Sharon on her next chemo on Thursday! Many prayers and thoughts are being sent your way.
~Renee
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