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Unfortunately things are going downhill

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Comments

  • zarovka
    zarovka Member Posts: 2,959
    edited July 2017

    Thanks guys. Home watching soccer with family. Life is good.

    >Z<

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    Good morning ladies. Hope all of you are having a wonderful day. I went back to the cancer center yesterday. I really didn't think he would let me have chemo yet. But surprisingly, he did. I was in so much pain when I got there. MO was not happy at all about that. He said they were going to give me dilaudid and stop that at least for a little bit. Man, was that sweet, all the pain disappeared and I was not the least bit sleepy. I was like, can I have that every day. He did up the pain meds again, he is trying hard to control it, but it seems impossible. They did say that they thought chemo was helping to control the pain and by missing last week had made it worse. I think there is some truth in that cause I do feel much better this morning. I did have another reaction to carbo yesterday but it wasn't as bad as the first time. Two Benadryl took care of it. My labs looked pretty good yesterday and my blood counts were back up, so the transfusion last week was a success. It would be nice if they would stay up, but a couple weeks of chemo will knock them back down. My chest X-ray looked good, so thankfully the antibiotic knocked my pneumonia right out. Hooray for that. So I do believe we must live one day at a time, and today is a good day. I feel so much better than I have and am thankful for that. I believe today will be a pool day. Hooray. I hope everyone has a fantastic day. Enjoy the moment ladies, prayers for each one of you.

    Z, I do hope you are feeling better, you are always so upbeat, that it is disheartening to hear that something is wrong. I hope today is a good day for you. Hugs.

  • Freya
    Freya Member Posts: 329
    edited July 2017

    Hi Kandy, enjoy your good day, they are precious. Smile

  • micmel
    micmel Member Posts: 10,057
    edited July 2017

    Kandy~clapping hands for your good day. The pool sounds lovely. Although if I should show up , everyone would be wondering who let the animal out of the zoo??? But at least my hair is growing back! Hugs to you, I hope this is the first of many good days for you ! ~M~

  • sadiesservant
    sadiesservant Member Posts: 1,875
    edited July 2017

    Glad to hear today is a better day Kandy. While I am new to Stage IV, I'm quickly learning that we need to enjoy those good days. Enjoy!

  • rpoole1962
    rpoole1962 Member Posts: 386
    edited July 2017

    Kandy, I only had 1 unit of blood yesterday and fell better today. My oncology transfusion room does have drinks and snacks, but they usually don't hold me that long. I thought I was going to get blood at oncology office, but after meeting with my MO, I had to go to the hospital to receive blood. I got a private room with a comfy bed and a TV! It was not a bad experience at all!

    Z. thanks for the prayers! I am sorry to hear you fell off your bike and are in pain. Please don't let this debilitate your spirit! I always look forward to your upbeat posts and they give me strength!! I understand crying watching your children and probably thinking sad thoughts. I never had children and my nephew and are are extremely close. At his high school graduation this past May, as soon as the band starting the walk music, I was crying like a Baby! Also why I was devastated I had to leave his college orientation before it even got started!! Cancer stole that from me too and now I'm mad and have come out fighting!!! Hope you feel better soon!

    Shetland, I also had a fever after a Doxil infusion and my MO said go to the ER. My white blood cells were very high and they never figured out what was wrong. I had taken tylenol and by the time I got to the ER my fever was gone. They did a nasal culture on me in one nostril only because that was some of the worst pain I have ever had. I would not let them do the second nostril. Did your hurt? Glad you made the wise decision and went to the ER!

    Beatmon, my Mo told me not to take iron because cancer loves iron. I have a bottle of a very low dose and she said I could take it temporarily.

    Lita, When my HMG and RBC were low last Friday, I spent the weekend eating steak and spinach. It is high in iron, but didn't help right away since they dropped lower by Monday. I am now starting back on my strawberry and spinach smoothies. Something I should be doing anyway.

    dab823, I had my blood transfusion yesterday and already can tell I feel better!! It really was scary and my heart was really pounding, so thats why I made decision to call ambulance.

    Thanks everyone for the well wishes!

    Robin





  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    Robin, I'm glad the transfusion went well. Like I said, I was so nervous the first time, but the second time I really looked forward to it. I felt better by the time they were done. Hang in there. Enjoy the moment.

  • rpoole1962
    rpoole1962 Member Posts: 386
    edited July 2017

    Kandy, I'm happy to hear you are feel so good! The pool sounds wonderful!! I am just learning how much anxiety a temporary stop in treatment can cause! My platelets are 50,000 and MO said they should be 100,000 in order to do chemo. And I learned that the blood transfusion will not help platelets. So now Im concerned about how long it will be to continue. Did you have low platelets on this combo?

    I hope your day was awesome!!!

    Robin

  • Nan812
    Nan812 Member Posts: 224
    edited July 2017

    a good option for iron is molasses....you would be surprised at how much of your RDA a archway dark molasses cookie has ,the iron in the cookies was easier on my system than supplements......so i read somewhere that one table spoon of molasses has as much iron as 3oz of red meat....i'll take cookies, maybe made with litas' canna-butter ....lol

  • Beatmon
    Beatmon Member Posts: 617
    edited July 2017

    If iron is not completely exhausted, oral iron is an option. But for most it is not a welcomed pill due to stomach upsets and constipation.

    Unfortunately on chemo, it is more than likely the cause. There is no harm in asking to have ferritin and iron checked though

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    Robin, so far I have not had any trouble with my platelets. I just have trouble with my hemoglobin. It falls very quickly after chemo, making me feel exhausted. It seems like it is pulling it down quicker, the longer I'm on it. I'm not sure what MO will decide to do. I can't imagine him letting me get 2 units of blood every couple weeks. When they give me blood it barely brings it into normal range, so first chemo after the transfusion has already brought it below normal. I'm wondering why he don't give me 3 units, to at least have a little extra time there. I sure hope they get yours figured out. Praying for each and everyone of you. Enjoy the moment.

  • micmel
    micmel Member Posts: 10,057
    edited July 2017

    Kandy~ popping into say hello, I am sending prayers and hoping that your strength and getting to the pool becomes a regular thing. The darn fatigue is what gets me. I'd probably be in the deep end floating face down napping. Always feel like sleeping. If we didn't have so much television. I'd probably be talking to flies, this cancer shit will bring on the men with the white coats!!!!! I pray for you every night. All of us warriors. Strapping up for another days battle. Hugs to you! ~M~

  • bigbhome
    bigbhome Member Posts: 721
    edited July 2017

    So happy for your good day Kandy! Enjoy every minute! The pool sounds great! I hope to use ours after yoga today.

    Hugs and prayers

    C

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    I'm still feeling pretty good today, maybe a little more tired but still doable. I'm watching Harper this morning, I haven't seen him in over 2 weeks, the longest I've ever went seeing him. I've missed him so much, but I was way too sick to be with him. I was thrilled when my DD walked in with him this morning. It's amazing how you immediately think they have grown, lol. He has been awesome this morning, such a sweet little fella. Tomorrow TarheelMichelle is supposed to come to relax at the pool with me. I'm so looking forward to it. Hope everyone has a good day. Enjoy the moment.

  • zarovka
    zarovka Member Posts: 2,959
    edited July 2017

    Woohoo. Here's to two good days in a row.

    >Z<

  • rpoole1962
    rpoole1962 Member Posts: 386
    edited July 2017

    Kandy, I'm sorry to hear your counts are already going low this quick. You would think he would order 3 units to give you some to spare. I don't understand why my MO didn't order a platelet transfusion. I am going to ask for one if it's not up on Tuesday bc it will mark 3 weeks with no chemo. My MO is also stopping Gemzar and we are going to do weekly Carbo. We will watch TM's weekly and if they start rising, then we will add back Gemzar but at a lower dose and maybe just one week. I hope they can figure your situation out to.

    I will have to say the transfusion has given me an incredible amount of energy. I have been going strong all day and have not had this much energy in a very long time. I thought I should make the most of it bc I know it will not last!! :(

    Enjoy the pool!

    Robin

  • artistatheart
    artistatheart Member Posts: 1,437
    edited July 2017

    Z, I remember last summer when I fell and badly sprained my wrist so I could not ride my bike or a lot of other things I enjoy like doing art. My moral went straight down the tubes and my mind got to wandering the dark spots too. I'm so sorry this happened to you as you are just so active I know how hard it is for you. Speedy healing!

    Have a great time in that pool and with Harper Kandy1

    Robin, I'm so glad you are feeling good today.

    micmil, If they let the animal out of the zoo just get out there and ROAR!

  • zarovka
    zarovka Member Posts: 2,959
    edited July 2017

    Thank you artist. I am surprised how happy I am lying around.

    >Z<

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    So yesterday TarheelMichelle came to visit with me and have some R&R at the pool. We had a wonderful afternoon, just chilling out. I hope everyone is doing well. Enjoy the moment.

    image

  • micmel
    micmel Member Posts: 10,057
    edited July 2017

    enjoy lovely ladies!!! Lovely pool days. Take in every second hugs ~M~

  • divinemrsm
    divinemrsm Member Posts: 6,621
    edited July 2017

    Tarheel, you are the best! Great photo of the two of you Kandy, and your pool looks so summery and inviting with the blue water, flowers and fence

  • tarheelmichelle
    tarheelmichelle Member Posts: 248
    edited July 2017

    It was such a beautiful environment. My jaw dropped at Kandy's colorful petunias and other annuals in dozens of containers on her multi-level deck surrounding her pool. I felt so blessed to be at her home.

    Kandy, you are a special lady and I wish I could have brought a posse of your friends with me. A Kandy Klan? A Kandy Krewe? No matter the name, we love you!

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    Thanks to everyone. Today was chemo day. First, I had labs drawn. The nurse told me I had an extreme jump on my liver functions. She was calling MO to see if we were going to even do chemo. So with some debate, we continued on. This is very concerning to me that the liver functions are now elevated. Does that mean I'm already failing this combo? I am off chemo next week, then I start another cycle, 3 weeks, then he will scan. I sure wish I could catch a break, but it seems like it's just one thing after another. Keep praying ladies, I'm praying for each of you. Enjoy the moment

  • micmel
    micmel Member Posts: 10,057
    edited July 2017

    keeping you in prayer Kandy! Hope everything stables out with your chemo and that you are feeling as best as you possibly can, even though it's chemo day. I am so sick of all of this as well. Hugs ~M~

  • rpoole1962
    rpoole1962 Member Posts: 386
    edited July 2017

    Kandy, rising liver enzymes does not mean you are failing chemo. My liver enzymes have been perfect but went up on Afinitor and then came back down to normal once I stopped. They also rose after just one treatment of Carbo/Gemzar. The Gemzar is the culprit for rising liver enzymes. Just keep a close watch and It they go too high, you may have to skip a week. My MO is checking my tumor markers weekly. Did you get them done today?

    Praying for a great scan with amazing results!!! Your break is just around the corner!!

    Hugs,

    Robin

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    Robin, he does my tumor markers every 4 weeks. I just had them 2 weeks ago, they had jumped up 60 points. They are still over 1000. Take care.

  • Falconer
    Falconer Member Posts: 801
    edited July 2017
    Kandy,
    I follow TarheelMichelle's A Closer Look on Facebook, and it was a lovely thing to see you two there together. What beautiful bonds are made here on these boards. ❤️
  • artistatheart
    artistatheart Member Posts: 1,437
    edited July 2017

    Kandy, damn liver enzymes....I had that problem with Ibrance. I wonder if they can lower the dose or change the frequency to get them back down?

  • Mominator
    Mominator Member Posts: 1,173
    edited July 2017

    Lovely photo of two lovely ladies. I'm so glad you got some pool time together.

  • Kandy
    Kandy Member Posts: 424
    edited July 2017

    So, 37 years ago today I married the love of my life. We skipped down to the beach for a few days to celebrate. We were here 37 years ago too. It's amazing how fast that time has gone. Hope all of you are doing well. Enjoy the moment.

    image

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