Well its all determined now. Met with the specialist on Friday afternoon and they gave me the layout of the plan and whats going to happen. I’ll be receiving the EP Chemotherapy protocol. The drugs are Cisplastin (the P drug) and Etoposide (the E drug). Its going to be 3 cycles of 21 days each. The first three days are in hospital receiving the drugs, then a few days after checking results then home for rest of the 21 days then repeat, and repeat again, and I’ve been told possible repeat again.
Will be digging out the baseball caps I have somewhere as I’m going to need them. That should be an interesting look. As someone at work pointed out a silver lining, don’t need to shave! And on the silver lining topic I also get my teeth cleaned by the hospital as they need to be really healthy to prevent infection! And I was overdue a clean as well.
Just loading the last of the music and TV programs for viewing whilst sitting around waiting. I should be able to write to this long from the phone so will see how it goes. Later
Thats what it is called here. I think in the UK it was called the plan of attack. Today its talk to the oncologist and find out what they have in store for me. I already have nausea and the last meal I kept down was Thursday lunch
Last Monday the future was all looking fairly simple, then on Tuesday it was back to upside down, Wednesday was decision time and then it was simple again. We go off and get some extra treatment and then resume life again. Having made that choice a level of secerenity was possible, now I’m starting to get the real details of it all and quite frankly I don’t have to wait for the chemo induced nausea as I’ve got it already!
When something like this is staring you straight in the eyes you starting searching for the strength to stare right back. Unbeknown to me and surprisingly it is my mothers religous faith that is helping provide this strengh. I’m not going to be running off to confession and taking communion anytime soon, but that belief that there is something more, blended with a few bits and pieces from my travels is very comforting when your all alone in the night.
I should have known it wasn’t going to be over. Just back from the doctors (both of them) and am completely confused as to what to do next. Well not totally, one is that I managed to pop on an entire kilo since my last visit to my routine doctor. One could say with all the sleeping and christmas festivities thats not bad, so its diet and gym calling.
The urology doctor is not quite so cut and dried. Yes you did have cancer and now here are the options.
1. We do nothing but you have to blood test, chest x-ray and CT scan every 3 months for the next 2 years (the golden period its called here!). If the cancer takes hold in either the other testicle or lymp node then they ‘salvage’ the situation – his words, not mine.
2. We either have radication or chemo (and I think the preference they have here is Chemo). This will reduce the chances of it occuring.
So the choices are mine to make. This doctor has a preference of ‘Watchful, waiting’ as they call it. This is also a ‘new’ protocol for treatment and I need to find out what the jury currently thinks. I don’t like the idea of just leaving the thing to grow and risking more surgury. Family history is that cancer has killed some of us.
No choices made yet – so I guess the stout lady is just warming up!! d
I’m on the countdown to the first blood test to see if the cancer was all removed and had not decided to take a little wander to other locales. Unfortunately as the days countdown the tension mounts up, I realised this morning coming to work that I’m terrified that it will be a bad result and I’ll have to have chemo-therapy. Currently I cannot even confirm a ski-ing holiday in two weeks time. I’m really starting to resent life having to be put on hold like this. Okay some would say just book it, do it, don’t let it rule your life. I’ll take a wild guess and say those would people who haven’t had cancer.
Its not the cost of possibly having to cancel, its letting people down who are also going on the trip. Anyway one component of my life that has resumed in full force. Meetings so gotta go.
After a wonderful holiday with my family in some not so seasonal weather I am back in the massive smoke and on my way back to work after a month away. I wonder if they still need me?
