Chemo - Round 5 - Good News!

Chemo went without a hitch yesterday, no problems.

Met with the doctor. We checked my cancer markers and the one that came back went from 600 (!) DOWN to 381!!!!!!!!!! Dr. Silver was so excited about that, as were we! With only one round of chemo, the cancer marker went down by almost half! That's outstanding! The other 2 cancer markers were still outstanding, I will call next week to get those results. So things seem to be going in the right direction! My next appointment with the doctor is August 7th.

Also found out that I am anemic, which explains the fatigue and exhaustion I had last week. To counteract my low red blood cell count, I will be getting a shot of Erythropoietin, or "Epo". This will increase the amount of hemoglobin in the blood, allowing more oxygen to get to my cells. This will help. So, now I'm blood doping! LMAO I guess as long as I don't compete in the Tour de France, or other endurance sports, I should be legal! I don't foresee myself biking or swimming the English Channel anytime soon, so I'm safe! Look out Lance Armstrong, I'm coming for ya!

So I was hanging out waiting to get my blood taken and I got to talking to this very nice woman. She has ovarian cancer and she calls it "the gift that keeps on giving". She has ovarian cancer, then had a stroke, and now has brain tumors. What struck me about her was her continuous positive attitude! How amazing. I love talking to people like her, I admire people like that and strive to be like that. And it also keeps me centered. There are many amazing people out there. Keep fighting sisters!

Ordered my wig yesterday, so I should be getting it in about 10 days. I'll probably wear it for special occasions where hair is required! LMAO But I am really enjoying wearing scarves, I love not having to worry about what my hair looks like! And they come in thousands of different colors! And the little hair that's left on my head is softer, so it's not pinching me anymore. But I really really look like a cancer patient now! Thom told me I look like a cancer patient because I am one!! LMAO Nah, I'm just a person with cancer. Just like a person with diabetes.

Speaking of which, I've gotten questions about how long the chemo treatments will last. We are treating this cancer as a chronic illness, like diabetes, and like diabetics, they have to take insulin indefinitely to control the diabetes. I will have to take chemo indefinitely to control the cancer. That's the best way to explain it. Three weeks on, one week off x hopefully infinity! I can handle that. If it'll keep me alive, I'm all over that. So what if I'll never have hair again, bah, who cares?! Small price to pay.