Dear friends,
I'm happy! It's so wonderful to feel this way, so I had to write and tell you -- I'm happy. Right now, not thinking about the past weeks or what's coming up, it feels so good to just sit here and savor this moment. To think about Andre and Mira, all of you, my friends, my family, to take in the world, even to know that there are some cancer cells wandering about in me, but really who gives a shit, because I'm happy! :)
I'm so glad that I made the decision to take this week off and not go back to treatment even though I could have forced myself to. I observed Andre after we returned from the last treatment and even though it went alright (God knows, we have such dire comparisons that it doesn't take much to be able to make that statement!), he was exhausted. He had neck pains and was lethargic, and I felt so bad for him. So, when I was trying to decide if I should go back, I thought to myself, "Andre really needs a break." And on the heels of that thought, I heard something say, "Imagine how you feel then -- you're the one getting the chemo." And the decision was made, and it was the right one. My blood values came back from the lab today and they are all great, so now I can even say that the data supports that conclusion. Though really, who cares ...'cos I'm happy!
I can't stop saying that! It's almost strange to feel happy again and to remember the days of emptiness and sadness that were. Those moments feel so crushingly real, their heaviness feels like the weight of truth compared to this lightness and freedom of joy. And I know those moments will be back. But right now, this feeling of happiness assures me that I can handle them, secretly even hope that they might not come back. Joy really is a seductive friend without whom we could not go through life. I guess what I should remember is that while Joy seems inevitably wrong about her optimism, Gloom is too in its pessimism. And that's the saving grace.
Ah well, enough maudlin philosophizing. Isn't it great to be happy? I really don't care to think too much. When I'm in the grip of sadness and emptiness, I do a lot of thinking and writing in my head. I think that it's brilliant writing that would bring the warmest approbation from Henrik Ibsen or Fyodor Dostoevsky. As Marcia says, though, that's until one puts it down on paper. Then the words have a habit of looking at me with sneers and uplifted eyebrows, as though astonished that I would choose to place them together at the same soiree. Perhaps I should learn to write with my eyes shut, like the Cat in the Hat.
Dear friends, I want to thank you for all the love, thoughts, and words you have sent my way. They are so uplifting, and I need them in my dark moments. I lean on them, remembering how they carried me through those horrible months of January to March. Some of you know that when I was diagnosed, I decided not to tell my parents – my father was scheduled to undergo heart stent surgeries and it just seemed that it would be too much to throw at them. Unfortunately, that was also when the tumors in the lung made my voice raspy and short of breath and I was in so much pain, I knew that it would be hard to hide behind the phone. So, I chose not to call my parents at all for 2 months, a decision that was horrible for them and miserable for me. They both suspected that something was up and it was my dear brother who had to keep my secret and support me and them through it all. (My brother is amazing!) That was a hard time, when I felt so cut off from my family --- the love that all of you gave so generously and spontaneously to me was what supported me through that time. You became my family then, holding the space for me as I cried in pain for my mom and dad. I am so glad those days are behind me. In March, after my father had recovered from his surgeries, I told my parents in a very hysterical phone conversation what was happening. And though I know it's awful for them, it's been such a relief for me to be able to talk to them, to lean on them and know that they are there for me. They can't come and be with us because my father is still recovering and air travel is not advisable (especially the long journey from India here), but just talking to them on the phone gives me so much relief. It's funny ... we don't outgrow our parents. One of things that I was told when I was so depressed was to think of living to see Mira graduate or get married. Try as I might, I couldn't bring those pictures up, but what I could tell myself each time I cried for my mom was that I needed to live so that I could be there for Mira if and when she needed me.
Mira herself is so wonderful. I feel so blessed to have her -- after I return from treatment, she seems to understand that she can't make too many demands on me. She amuses herself but comes to check on me occasionally. Once I turn the corner, she takes the cue from me and hangs out more with me. It's such a joy to see her and even when I feel depressed, I am awed by her strength and maturity. I wish I had as much maturity! I am so grateful to the families who take her in and care for her when we go to L.A. We are always so protective of our children, wanting to keep them safe from anything that might hurt them. I had to let that go after my first diagnosis in 2006, and I learned to have faith that Mira had inside her the strength to handle what life sent her way. But she was so much younger then, and when I recovered, I could hope that she would forget the entire experience. Now, I tell myself that this is an experience that will form her into the person she is going to be. It is not an experience I would have chosen for her, but it is not given to parents to choose the experiences that form their children, else this world would be a different place. What I am truly grateful for is how this experience is bringing her in contact with so many people who are so loving and kind, friends who are family and give her love and care like her parents. What a wonderful lesson it is for her to learn that the world is full of loving people. It is certainly the lesson that I have learned from this experience .... and for that, I am so grateful to all of you.
We leave for L.A. on Monday again and I hope that the rest and this happy feeling are preludes to a round that will go smoothly. But if not, I'll have Andre read this entry to me on Wednesday to remind me that the fog has lifted before and will again.
With love,
Radhika.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Andre: Mel's ultimate hike
Our friend Melanie Chu from the CSUSM library is training for a 26 mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail to raise money for children's cancer research.
This is a very worthwhile cause and if you want to support her, then you can read more about it on her Ultimate Hike page.
This is a very worthwhile cause and if you want to support her, then you can read more about it on her Ultimate Hike page.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Andre: MTX 6
We are back again from MTX 6 (July 19-21).
The first bit of good news is that Radhika has not needed ANY pain meds for 3 weeks. Dr. Forscher was very happy about that when he saw her on 7/19, since it shows that the cancer on her spine is shrinking better than any scan could. The strength in her right hand is close to normal again, and Forscher joked that he would need to be more careful now, because she has enough strength to hit him. Both Dr. Forscher and his nurse Susan think that Radhika has a good chance of pushing this cancer into remission. In fact just the day before they had a visit by somebody who had metastatic osteosarcoma 10 years ago and is doing fine now, and Susan sees no reason why Radhika can't be like that.
For us this means we can now fully focus on making the remaining side effects subside. Even though we had a good run-up to the treatment (the week before was quite carefree, and after her accupuncture appointment on 7/18 we saw "Cars 2" in Horton plaza with Mira) some work remains to be done on that front, especially with anticipatory nausea. Unfortunately Radhika started getting queasy already on the drive up from San Marcos on 7/19 and she was nauseous as soon as we got to Cedars at 3PM and vomited before they even gave her the chemo. On top of the unpleasantness of this experience the acidity also really burned her throat. Fortunately she was able to fall asleep during the MTX itself, and as soon as it finished I told the nurse to give her Benedryl + Reglan, the combination that always knocks her out. She slept so soundly that we took her to the car in a wheelchair around midnight, somehow I got her up the stairs at the apartment, and then she slept until almost noon the next day. After the nurse visit that day she actually felt well enough for us to finally stroll around Beverly center (a mall just across from Cedars) and eat a baked potato.
We hydrated Radhika for a full 2000ml on 7/20 and on 7/21 even though the pump ran until midnight on 7/20. Having our own hydration pump really takes the pressure off of Radhika to drink so much to flush out the MTX, and she was able to clear the MTX after just 36 hours (typically it takes 48-72 hours) so that we were able to drive home on 7/21. The next morning Mira rejoined us from her stay at the Abreu's: Thanks again to Beth, Joe, Jillian and Hailey for all the fun and swimming.
Right now we are planning to get ready for the next round. It was supposed to start today, but already on Sunday Radhika decided that she didn't feel quite up to it and so we postponed it until next week Monday, 7/25. Radhika was supposed to have a two week break after that round, but we decided that a break of one week before and one week after would be better for her. Also, since 8/24 is the date when Mira's school starts again, we decided to move the MTX that was supposed to begin that day to Monday of the week after. Here are the new starting dates
The first bit of good news is that Radhika has not needed ANY pain meds for 3 weeks. Dr. Forscher was very happy about that when he saw her on 7/19, since it shows that the cancer on her spine is shrinking better than any scan could. The strength in her right hand is close to normal again, and Forscher joked that he would need to be more careful now, because she has enough strength to hit him. Both Dr. Forscher and his nurse Susan think that Radhika has a good chance of pushing this cancer into remission. In fact just the day before they had a visit by somebody who had metastatic osteosarcoma 10 years ago and is doing fine now, and Susan sees no reason why Radhika can't be like that.
For us this means we can now fully focus on making the remaining side effects subside. Even though we had a good run-up to the treatment (the week before was quite carefree, and after her accupuncture appointment on 7/18 we saw "Cars 2" in Horton plaza with Mira) some work remains to be done on that front, especially with anticipatory nausea. Unfortunately Radhika started getting queasy already on the drive up from San Marcos on 7/19 and she was nauseous as soon as we got to Cedars at 3PM and vomited before they even gave her the chemo. On top of the unpleasantness of this experience the acidity also really burned her throat. Fortunately she was able to fall asleep during the MTX itself, and as soon as it finished I told the nurse to give her Benedryl + Reglan, the combination that always knocks her out. She slept so soundly that we took her to the car in a wheelchair around midnight, somehow I got her up the stairs at the apartment, and then she slept until almost noon the next day. After the nurse visit that day she actually felt well enough for us to finally stroll around Beverly center (a mall just across from Cedars) and eat a baked potato.
We hydrated Radhika for a full 2000ml on 7/20 and on 7/21 even though the pump ran until midnight on 7/20. Having our own hydration pump really takes the pressure off of Radhika to drink so much to flush out the MTX, and she was able to clear the MTX after just 36 hours (typically it takes 48-72 hours) so that we were able to drive home on 7/21. The next morning Mira rejoined us from her stay at the Abreu's: Thanks again to Beth, Joe, Jillian and Hailey for all the fun and swimming.
Right now we are planning to get ready for the next round. It was supposed to start today, but already on Sunday Radhika decided that she didn't feel quite up to it and so we postponed it until next week Monday, 7/25. Radhika was supposed to have a two week break after that round, but we decided that a break of one week before and one week after would be better for her. Also, since 8/24 is the date when Mira's school starts again, we decided to move the MTX that was supposed to begin that day to Monday of the week after. Here are the new starting dates
- MTX 7: 1:30PM Monday 8/1
- MTX 8: 2:30PM Monday 8/15
- MTX 9: 1:30PM Monday 8/29
- sensible food, a few supplements to support the GI tract, massage, accupuncture, foot detox and a colonic in preparation
- Ativan to help with the anticipatory nausea (as suggested by Susan)
- Bendryl+Reglan as soon as she gets into Cedars and right after the MTX to make her sleep through the treatment -- hopefully this will allow us to skip the decadron, a steroid she currently gets for nausea that may contribute to the depression she experiences the days following treatments
- 2000ml hydration each on the 2 days after MTX to flush it out again
Monday, July 11, 2011
Andre: Email notifications
Since we post so irregularly on the blog I enabled a feature that could be helpful to some of you. If you want to receive an email notification when a blog entry is posted, then enter your email address in the window above, click on submit, and follow the directions.
Andre: ADR+CSP
I was planning to write this update a lot sooner, but often I find myself mentally exhausted after coming back from LA following a treatment. Moreover, sometimes the first few days back home are at least as tough for me as being in LA, because the rebuilding after a round has its own set of challenges.
We left Wednesday 6/22 just before noon for our apartment, had lunch there and went to Cedars at 3PM for our scheduled 23 hour stay. After the labs and premeds Radhika received Cisplatin from 5-9PM, and then was continuously hydrated until 2PM the next day, since CSP can damage the kidneys and they want to make sure that nothing goes wrong. Around 2PM on 6/23 Radhika was then hooked up to the ADR fanny pack pump for infusion that was going to last the next 48 hours, and then we could go back to our apartment for the next 24 hours. Even though we got one of the nice rooms at Cedars (room 6 with a private bathroom) we were glad to be back in the apartment and take showers. Radhika spent a lot of time sleeping (as is usual for her during chemo), I cooked/read/swept the apartment, and we also watched around 20 hours of the great queen Deokman (having these DVD's is a great distraction that makes the round go faster.) We went back for labs on Friday 6/24 and Saturday 6/25, and on 6/25 she finished the ADR around 2PM without much incident.
As I wrote in my last blog, we had orginally hoped to go home on Friday already, because we didn't know the ADR would run over 48 hours. Apparently ADR is typically administered over 4 hours, just like CSP, but ADR can create real big issues with nausea, so that Forscher decided to stretch the ADR over 48 hours, since the nausea has been a consistent challenge for Radhika during chemo. That decision was fine with me, except that we only found out when we arrived on Wednesday (even though I had even called in on Tuesday to verify the schedule.) Communicating these things is not one of their strengths, as much as I like Forscher and Susan, and I honestly don't understand this, since they have been working together for years. One problem this created was the Neulasta shot Radhika was supposed to receive 24-48 hours after the end of ADR. Forscher's staff Pauline tried as hard as she could to get the shot scheduled for Monday in San Diego, but in the end it was just too short notice to get the insurance, pharmacy and nursing all lined up, which is EXACTLY what happened after the first round of ADR as well. At least now things are lined up so next time Radhika can get her Neulasta in San Diego, barring last minute scheduling issues. So we ended up staying another day in LA to take the Neulasta shot at 2PM on Sunday 6/26 (which gave me a chance to mop and pack up in the morning) and we left straight from Cedars to go back home that afternoon.
At this stage I have to give thanks to Bianca and Matthew for taking care of Mira much longer than we had anticipated. They said that since they have two kids Mira's age (Pablo went to Preschool with Mira, and Sinqi is just a year younger) this was not a big deal for them, but it was great comfort for me to know that Mira was well taken care off. Radhika was pretty much out of it when we were driving back on Sunday (she had received some IV anti-nausea meds for the journey, and we were hydrating her as well on the drive) so we had decided that it would be best if she would stay with Bianca and Matthew until Monday. Of course Mira was really excited that she got to stay "yet another day", because there is nothing more boring than being at home with two tired parents.
Radhika's recovery started off as expected: she went straight to bed on Sunday once we got home, and then on Monday it was nausea, fatigue, depression and a lot of acidity in the stomach. Tuesday was more hanging in there, waiting for it all to pass, and I was thankful that Linda Holt was able to stay for the day with Radhika, so that I could putter around the house and do some shopping. On Wednesday 6/29 Radhika's depression had mostly lifted (which is always a big relief), but nurse Laura who came for the dressing change and taking labs said that Radhika needed more hydration, since she didn't look well. I thought that a few more days of hydration would be the end of the round for us, since Radhika's labs came out OK: White blood cells at 6.6, which is in the range for a healthy person, and only her hemoglobin had dropped a bit, but that was low for her all along anyway.
Unfortunately, things didn't work out that way, because the fatigue didn't lift and the acidity kept getting worse, turning into regular vomiting on Friday. I called the nurses at Cedars that night and their advice, one of which was sit sleeping up, helped get us through the night. It was great that Mira had play dates set up (Thursday with Jillian Abreu and Pablo+Sinqi; Friday next door with Jacquelina; and then on Saturday Marie Thomas took her out) because she really didn't need to see this. However, when things didn't look like they were improving and Radhika started to develop a low grade fever I drove with her to Cedars on Saturday 7/2 afternoon. We had planned to drive back the same night, so on short notice we left Mira with Joe and Julie, the best neighbors anyone could hope! When we got to Cedars they took labs (all her blood counts were way low with the White's at a rock bottom of 1.0), started Radhika off on IV antinausea and antibiotics, and decided that it would be best for her to stay for observation (we again got a nice room with bathroom, since it was a slow night at Cedars), and a blood transfusion (her first after 4 months of treatment) the next morning. Mira was excited about yet another sleep over, even though she was a bit scared by the unplanned nature of this one.
Although Radhika was reluctant to go at first, the visit to Cedars did turn things around, and we were able to drive back again on Sunday 7/3. The IV antibiotics made the fever go away, and helped decrease the acidity as did the Zantac. Strangely enough the oral antibiotic she had to take at home increased her acidity every time she took them. Her labs on Wednesday 7/6 showed that her hemoglobin is back to normal (thanks to the transfusion), and that the Neulasta kicked the White's back up to 2.5 (apparently it is normal for them to bottom out 7-10 days after the end of a round, but that valley would be much larger without the Neulasta.) Most importantly her fatigue was slowly going away and the nausea stopped. Her platelets have dropped to 40 on 7/6 from 140 just 7 days earlier (most healthy adults are in the 150-400 range), but platelet transfusions are typically not given until it drops down to 15. Since platelets should renew themselves every 7 days or so that probably makes sense.
The biggest concerns remaining were the acidity and the low white count. Apart from the meds we made some changes to her diet to help with the acidity: fewer hard to digest vegetables, more soft foods, such as the vanilla flavored "Boost Plus" protein shake recommended by one of the nurses as it tastes OK and has a lot of calories, which was important since Radhika had also lost 6 pounds in the week she was at home. Radhika's diet remains a real moving target, since what she can eat and what is good for her keeps changing, with the only constant being that she should not have spicy/garlicy foods. For the white count the only thing we could do was wait and try to keep Radhika home, and away from infection. That also meant we moved Mira from Joe+Julie's back to Bianca's (Matthew was out of town) on Sunday 7/3, and she spent the 4th of July there too, and we only picked her up again on Tuesday 7/5 afternoon.
Things have by now normalized again for Radhika, and she can eat more or less everything again since yesterday without having to worry about acidity, even though we still try to be cautious. The dark mood that came back again this past week has also lifted. One positive development is that Radhika has not been taking pain medication (oral or a patch) for 6 days now, and yet she has no pain sensation. This is a great sign for the effectiveness of the chemo therapy, and it should also greatly reduce any constipation issues, so that there is also no more need for a laxative as of now. She also found a good colon hydrotherapist, Dona King, whose treatments have helped her get through the last round without any intestinal problems, other than the acidity, which is the side effect Radhika is focusing her efforts on now. Even on that front there are good news, since Ruth was able to recommend an accupuncturist who specializes on cancer patients, Christine Adamo: Radhika had two treatments from her already, and she believes that it is really helping her; there will also be treatments this week Tuesday and Friday to get Radhika ready again for the next round.
This brings us to the schedule for the next few rounds, everything of course being subject to change, since mouth sores or low lab results can always result in the schedule being pushed back : MTX 6 will start next week (Mo 7/18 or Tu 7/19), MTX 7 the week after (We 7/27), then there is 2 week break and MTX 8 (Mo 8/15), followed by MTX 9 (We 8/24). That last one we may have to reschedule somehow, because that day turns out to be Mira's first day of school. The week after MTX 9 would then be the looong Ifosfamide treatment (we need to stay 7+ days in LA), so that that will probably be only in September, but definitely not before the start of school for Mira. We will have to figure something out with Mira for the IFEX, but it seems so far away right now. At any rate Mira will stay the 3+ nights of MTX 6 with her friend from "way back" in Preschool, Jillian Abreu, and we are currently working on the plan for after that.
We left Wednesday 6/22 just before noon for our apartment, had lunch there and went to Cedars at 3PM for our scheduled 23 hour stay. After the labs and premeds Radhika received Cisplatin from 5-9PM, and then was continuously hydrated until 2PM the next day, since CSP can damage the kidneys and they want to make sure that nothing goes wrong. Around 2PM on 6/23 Radhika was then hooked up to the ADR fanny pack pump for infusion that was going to last the next 48 hours, and then we could go back to our apartment for the next 24 hours. Even though we got one of the nice rooms at Cedars (room 6 with a private bathroom) we were glad to be back in the apartment and take showers. Radhika spent a lot of time sleeping (as is usual for her during chemo), I cooked/read/swept the apartment, and we also watched around 20 hours of the great queen Deokman (having these DVD's is a great distraction that makes the round go faster.) We went back for labs on Friday 6/24 and Saturday 6/25, and on 6/25 she finished the ADR around 2PM without much incident.
As I wrote in my last blog, we had orginally hoped to go home on Friday already, because we didn't know the ADR would run over 48 hours. Apparently ADR is typically administered over 4 hours, just like CSP, but ADR can create real big issues with nausea, so that Forscher decided to stretch the ADR over 48 hours, since the nausea has been a consistent challenge for Radhika during chemo. That decision was fine with me, except that we only found out when we arrived on Wednesday (even though I had even called in on Tuesday to verify the schedule.) Communicating these things is not one of their strengths, as much as I like Forscher and Susan, and I honestly don't understand this, since they have been working together for years. One problem this created was the Neulasta shot Radhika was supposed to receive 24-48 hours after the end of ADR. Forscher's staff Pauline tried as hard as she could to get the shot scheduled for Monday in San Diego, but in the end it was just too short notice to get the insurance, pharmacy and nursing all lined up, which is EXACTLY what happened after the first round of ADR as well. At least now things are lined up so next time Radhika can get her Neulasta in San Diego, barring last minute scheduling issues. So we ended up staying another day in LA to take the Neulasta shot at 2PM on Sunday 6/26 (which gave me a chance to mop and pack up in the morning) and we left straight from Cedars to go back home that afternoon.
At this stage I have to give thanks to Bianca and Matthew for taking care of Mira much longer than we had anticipated. They said that since they have two kids Mira's age (Pablo went to Preschool with Mira, and Sinqi is just a year younger) this was not a big deal for them, but it was great comfort for me to know that Mira was well taken care off. Radhika was pretty much out of it when we were driving back on Sunday (she had received some IV anti-nausea meds for the journey, and we were hydrating her as well on the drive) so we had decided that it would be best if she would stay with Bianca and Matthew until Monday. Of course Mira was really excited that she got to stay "yet another day", because there is nothing more boring than being at home with two tired parents.
Radhika's recovery started off as expected: she went straight to bed on Sunday once we got home, and then on Monday it was nausea, fatigue, depression and a lot of acidity in the stomach. Tuesday was more hanging in there, waiting for it all to pass, and I was thankful that Linda Holt was able to stay for the day with Radhika, so that I could putter around the house and do some shopping. On Wednesday 6/29 Radhika's depression had mostly lifted (which is always a big relief), but nurse Laura who came for the dressing change and taking labs said that Radhika needed more hydration, since she didn't look well. I thought that a few more days of hydration would be the end of the round for us, since Radhika's labs came out OK: White blood cells at 6.6, which is in the range for a healthy person, and only her hemoglobin had dropped a bit, but that was low for her all along anyway.
Unfortunately, things didn't work out that way, because the fatigue didn't lift and the acidity kept getting worse, turning into regular vomiting on Friday. I called the nurses at Cedars that night and their advice, one of which was sit sleeping up, helped get us through the night. It was great that Mira had play dates set up (Thursday with Jillian Abreu and Pablo+Sinqi; Friday next door with Jacquelina; and then on Saturday Marie Thomas took her out) because she really didn't need to see this. However, when things didn't look like they were improving and Radhika started to develop a low grade fever I drove with her to Cedars on Saturday 7/2 afternoon. We had planned to drive back the same night, so on short notice we left Mira with Joe and Julie, the best neighbors anyone could hope! When we got to Cedars they took labs (all her blood counts were way low with the White's at a rock bottom of 1.0), started Radhika off on IV antinausea and antibiotics, and decided that it would be best for her to stay for observation (we again got a nice room with bathroom, since it was a slow night at Cedars), and a blood transfusion (her first after 4 months of treatment) the next morning. Mira was excited about yet another sleep over, even though she was a bit scared by the unplanned nature of this one.
Although Radhika was reluctant to go at first, the visit to Cedars did turn things around, and we were able to drive back again on Sunday 7/3. The IV antibiotics made the fever go away, and helped decrease the acidity as did the Zantac. Strangely enough the oral antibiotic she had to take at home increased her acidity every time she took them. Her labs on Wednesday 7/6 showed that her hemoglobin is back to normal (thanks to the transfusion), and that the Neulasta kicked the White's back up to 2.5 (apparently it is normal for them to bottom out 7-10 days after the end of a round, but that valley would be much larger without the Neulasta.) Most importantly her fatigue was slowly going away and the nausea stopped. Her platelets have dropped to 40 on 7/6 from 140 just 7 days earlier (most healthy adults are in the 150-400 range), but platelet transfusions are typically not given until it drops down to 15. Since platelets should renew themselves every 7 days or so that probably makes sense.
The biggest concerns remaining were the acidity and the low white count. Apart from the meds we made some changes to her diet to help with the acidity: fewer hard to digest vegetables, more soft foods, such as the vanilla flavored "Boost Plus" protein shake recommended by one of the nurses as it tastes OK and has a lot of calories, which was important since Radhika had also lost 6 pounds in the week she was at home. Radhika's diet remains a real moving target, since what she can eat and what is good for her keeps changing, with the only constant being that she should not have spicy/garlicy foods. For the white count the only thing we could do was wait and try to keep Radhika home, and away from infection. That also meant we moved Mira from Joe+Julie's back to Bianca's (Matthew was out of town) on Sunday 7/3, and she spent the 4th of July there too, and we only picked her up again on Tuesday 7/5 afternoon.
Things have by now normalized again for Radhika, and she can eat more or less everything again since yesterday without having to worry about acidity, even though we still try to be cautious. The dark mood that came back again this past week has also lifted. One positive development is that Radhika has not been taking pain medication (oral or a patch) for 6 days now, and yet she has no pain sensation. This is a great sign for the effectiveness of the chemo therapy, and it should also greatly reduce any constipation issues, so that there is also no more need for a laxative as of now. She also found a good colon hydrotherapist, Dona King, whose treatments have helped her get through the last round without any intestinal problems, other than the acidity, which is the side effect Radhika is focusing her efforts on now. Even on that front there are good news, since Ruth was able to recommend an accupuncturist who specializes on cancer patients, Christine Adamo: Radhika had two treatments from her already, and she believes that it is really helping her; there will also be treatments this week Tuesday and Friday to get Radhika ready again for the next round.
This brings us to the schedule for the next few rounds, everything of course being subject to change, since mouth sores or low lab results can always result in the schedule being pushed back : MTX 6 will start next week (Mo 7/18 or Tu 7/19), MTX 7 the week after (We 7/27), then there is 2 week break and MTX 8 (Mo 8/15), followed by MTX 9 (We 8/24). That last one we may have to reschedule somehow, because that day turns out to be Mira's first day of school. The week after MTX 9 would then be the looong Ifosfamide treatment (we need to stay 7+ days in LA), so that that will probably be only in September, but definitely not before the start of school for Mira. We will have to figure something out with Mira for the IFEX, but it seems so far away right now. At any rate Mira will stay the 3+ nights of MTX 6 with her friend from "way back" in Preschool, Jillian Abreu, and we are currently working on the plan for after that.
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