9# omehC

Chemo #9 was Thursday, February 7th. It was delayed a day so I could take care of some family business. Well no, to have some appointments. My doctor wanted me to see a respirologist about my lung problems and this respirologist wanted me to do some tests since, apparently, tests are fun and should be done with as much frequency as possible regardless of the fact that you just did the same test 2 weeks ago. All in the name of fun.

So I did another pulmonary function test, another chest x-ray and a CT scan of my chest. Then I met with the respirologist and he came to the conclusion from my tests that I have bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. But not too bad. One part of my PFT is quite a bit lower than it was at the beginning of chemo and there's some "mist" in my CT scan. So I no longer get Bleomycin for chemo, just AVD - no B.

So that's all fine and dandy, but then I found out that my doctor wanted to put me on a new drug called Prednisone which is being used to fix the damage that's been done. I didn't know much about this drug, then I found some information and if you like side effects, get this drug. Wow.

So I had chemo on thursday and everything went fine. Nothing very noteworthy. The top vein of choice was being a little stubborn so we resorted to my right hand. No fun.

I started my Prednisone the next day (yesterday). I'm on 60 mg of it for 3 weeks and then I start getting tapered off (dose reduced gradually over time) becuase you can get some crazy withdrawl if they just cut you off. Drugs are just great, eh? I take 30 mg (6 pills) with breakfast and 30 mg with lunch.

Prednisone is a steroid and it can make you really hungry so you eat all the time and weight gain is a pretty common side effect, as far as I know. Also, it makes you retain water so you get puffy, especially in the face. Who can resist a fat puffy bald girl? Tell me, who? I'm not excited about these side effects and I'm trying to avoid them (eating only when it's time to eat and reducing sodium like you wouldn't believe [sodium helps you retain water])

I wasn't too concerned about the other side effects, one of which is mood swings. I figured I'd ignore that if it happened. Then yesterday afternoon, about 2 hours after I took my 2nd dose, I was on the phone with a friend and just started crying for no reason whatsoever. I cried on and off for a couple hours. It was really weird since nothing triggered it and I couldn't get myself to stop. I probably freaked him out more than myself though. It was really unlike me since usually if I feel crappy (which isn't all that often), I can at least get myself off the phone and somewhere alone before I let all hell break loose. But not this time. Weird.

So, all in all, I am not a fan of Prednisone. There's gotta be a better way to fix these things. I didn't have the same problem today but I feel like I'm walking on glass, waiting for something (nothing?) to set me off.

In other news, I shaved my head entirely. I got bored one night and decided it had to be done. Four days later I'm sporting some nice stubble. You can't see it though, only feel it. But I look like a million bucks, regardless. As usual, no?

I'm not sure if it's the addition of Prednisone or the removal of Bleomycin but the nausea has been treating me quite nicely this time around. At least something is being nice. I'm gonna tell myself it's the prednisone just becuase it might as well have one positive feature. Aside from that whole "making sure your lungs work for the rest of your life" thing. It's a vicious cycle. The chemo fixes the cancer but ruins my lungs. The prednisone fixes my lungs but screws my head up (among many many other things). Why can't they just smack me upside the head and say "that's better, now she works!" and let me carry on.

Aside from that, side effects have been fine. I went to Vermont last weekend and snowboarded a bit. Very nice. I do enjoy doing that. Energy levels are fine. I remember reading right after I was diagnosed that chemo can make you so tired you should put a chair halfway up the stairs so you can rest. I run up the stairs as much as I can and say "in your face" when I get to the top. It's the small things, right?

My CT Scan is booked for February 28th. Everybody hope for 6 cycles and no more. If that's the case, we've got one month and 11 days to go. But let's not get our hopes up. Too. Late.

So that's chemo #9. Just when you think you're home free, they kick you in the knee caps. Isn't that always the way.... But if I can get up the stairs without resting, I can keep running with no knee caps. Well no, that's impossible...
I'll figure it out.