Great Surprises
Sometimes it’s a perfect stranger or strangers with the best timing with a surprise. I had a really bad week this week mentally and emotionally.
I came home today from work to a box with drawings of 2 service dogs, an American flag, and the word hope with some first names. Opening the box I found that it was a care package with several handmade things and some to pass the time while going through treatment. I don’t know who submitted my name to this organization Phils Friends but they took a lot of thought into what they put in my box making it personal. The blanket has dogs on it in a camo pattern, the hat is a hand-made crochet hat, a journal book, some toothpaste and the ever needed took brush, lotion tissues, cards, and sudoku are just a few of the items in this amazing care package.
Whoever submitted my name Thank you very much and Phils Friends thank you for the amazing care package.
New day new numbers
Just 2 more to go. My tumor markers have gone down another 29%, this is the blood drawn on Saturday when I went in for treatment. I haven’t gotten numbers from mid-week yet so there is still some more projected movement. The bad news is my liver numbers have gotten worse, and are in the red. We are working on a plan but right now nothing is concrete yet. We must be careful about what we do to not nullify the case study. People ask how I’m doing, and the hardest thing to cope with is the lack of energy still there are parts of the days that I’m fine then WHAM I hit the proverbial wall and go down for a couple of hours or 12.
Numbers game
When you think about Cancer you think about the chemo, the radiation, the sickness. This is how people think about it and visualize it. I’ve been through it so many times now I see all of that but I see it as the Doctors and Nurses see it. It’s nothing but a numbers game. You have good numbers and bad numbers. Kinda like a sports event. The stats RBC, WBC, Tumor counts, Liver enzyme levels, Kidney function, HR, BP, Temperature, Milliliters per hour, Toxicity levels…
How much can the body withstand If WBC and RBC go too low, the Liver is too high it’s game over and points to the Cancer instead of the patient.
My numbers?
WBC and RBC are in the green.
Liver Enzymes are on the high side, causing some issues.
Kidneys still in the green
Tumor Markers? We have had 2 checks recently the first one was taken on Saturday before my third treatment counts were reduced by 15%. The second was taken on Thursday and those showed an additional 12%.
As this game goes Jason is up 2 points to 1.
Quiet Week
I’ve been quiet this week. I listened to my body a bit more, took the needed time off, did not push it, and slept most of Wednesday. This last weekend was relaxing I spent time with friends and slept a lot.
The elephant in the room is that the only numbers that are going down are the wrong numbers so far my tumor counts have not budged. They’ve not gone up but neither have they gone down. Liver numbers though??? Those are all well just ……. getting a bit worse with each go. The positive is my tumor numbers didn’t go up any, what so ever since I started; this is huge.
It’s the holiday weekend coming up my dance card is full. The plus side of it is I get another day to relax after treatment.
Side Effects- continued
Adding to yesterday’s list of side effects, we can add a total lack of energy. Today it felt like I’d worked out too hard the day before. Not the muscle weariness, but that bone tiredness with heavy arms, heavy legs. I’m wide awake, not sleepy or anything like that. Just tired…
I expected to feel this last week around Thursday or Friday. Feeling this way going into this week is a bit worrisome. Hoping that it passes quickly because the next dance ticket is this Saturday.
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