My Husband, My Life, My Love, My Family, My Cancer
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Fantastic news Karen, Mara in your pocket for scan results.
I've a ct scan on Monday and an appointment with the orthopaedic surgeon on the same day to see what can be done with this fracture in my arm.
Sending big hugs to everyone who is struggling. 🌺
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Rosie~I am really sorry about your friend. Cancer sucks so badly there are no words. Just listen if you can. Be there for her. Just showing up is support. I’m so very sorry for this couple. Makes me sad hits you right in the heart.
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Mara - how nice that your old neighbor made it home! Nearly 10 miles today - nothing short of amazing! In your pocket tomorrow.
Karen - yay for stable!
Rosie - sorry for your friend's dx. I hope the 2nd opinion gives a better outlook. I recently had a friend whose chief complaint was heartburn- which he delayed seeking medical attention. He passed 2 wks after his dx of esophageal cancer with liver/lung mets.
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Still in PA enjoying my family, especially my DS Rhonda. I love her more than words can express. She is my person. Her support has meant so much to me, and I've had such a great time the last two weeks.
I'm anxious to know how much progression I have, and hoping the new drug regimen is working. I am not having any big side affects from the Cytoxan and Methotrexate, so I'm really happy about that. I have a PET scan scheduled on Nov. 5 when I get back so I'll know a bit better where I stand.
The one big issue I am having right now is chemo brain. I don't know if it's the current drugs or those I took in the past, but it is really bad. You can tell me something and 10 mins. later I'm pacing around trying to remember what you told me. Kind of scary.
Anyway, I'll be flying home on Sunday, and I know it'll be a very sad day.
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On a brighter note, I can’t remember (see what I mean?) if I told you all that we rescued a dog before I left to come to PA. His name was Morkie, but we call him Murphy. Morkie the Yorkie just didn’t work! He’s the one on the left. Teddi is the one with the bone in his mouth
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Rosie- So sorry about your friend. Cancer truly is cruel. Heart disease, kidney disease, lung disease are all bad, but cancer seems so much more evil.
Booboo- The doggies are so cute. I am a cat person, but a small dog like that is just so precious. Just look at those expressions.
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Oh my god Laurie, cute dogs, sorry that Morkie did not work out but glad you had a nice visit. I am glad you are not having side effects on these drugs, may they be effective for you.
I have my results appointment this afternoon, still crossing my fingers and toes. I am glad I did that ridiculous walking yesterday because I slept like the dead even with some scanxiety. Not going to walk so much today, do not want to kill my feet. Take a day or two and evaluate if I want a long walk. My feet are surprisingly not sore today though will still take advil to be cautious since there is walking to the hospital and it will be interesting there since I am going to a different part of the hospital. We will see how it goes. Just follow the signs would be my guess. Will leave about 10 mins earlier to be on the safe side.
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Booboo- The picture is priceless. I'm sure Morkie won't have any problems finding his forever home. Anytime we have to leave our loved ones is very sad. Enjoy the rest of your visit.
Rosie- I am so sorry about your friends diagnosis. In one way or another cancer effects everyone's lives.
Mara- in my thoughts for today's appointment. Keep us posted!
Was anyone effected by the weather system down in the Texas area. Just saw something on the weather news.
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Rosie sorry to hear about your friend. I understand about not knowing what to say but at least you know what NOT to say. And as Mel said just listen hug be supportive don’t disappear.
Mara your walking is amazing. I have so much pain in my hips and back that even standing and short walking around the house hurts. I push myself more with the grandkids living here now but when I finally lay down on a heating pad it’s heaven. Pocket duty for today.
Booboo Teddy bear wants you all to himself. Well you got to see Mormon and spend some time. So happy you got to go see your sister and enjoy the foliage. Are you still going to Texas? They had JetBlue fares for $31 until Friday. I may go see my mom and daughter in NY.Mel sorry about the cold. Hopefully it’s not to taxing on your breathing.
Kitty I hope your arm is on the mend.
Waving hello to all
Tany
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BooBoo - love the pic of your dogs! So cute!! I agree, Murphy is a better name; he even looks like a Murphy. I hope you get great results at your appointment and that your new treatment is working beautifully.
Karen - I love your great news! Hooray; very happy to hear.
Mara - I love your cross-town hike for a little chocolate. That's a great step- count. I have a fitbit, and I am a little obsessive about step-count, miles and calories burned. It's fun, though.
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LivingIVlife, a tornado warning for us in NW Houston yesterday, some high winds and scattered free debris but nothing unusual for Texas. I’m in the circle but nothing touched down here.
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Yes, the walk across town for a chocolate bar was a bit out there but overall good, still not sore from the walk. Today, only walking to the hospital for results and going to Costco this even so steps will be more around 8000 by the time I get across the hospital, it is all the way on the other side of the place. Leaving a bit early so I can register and then will go there through the inside of the hospital. Wish me luck, I am not great at finding different parts of the hospital.
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mara: good luck on finding your way around the hospital. "Follow the purple line' "Go to the Green Zone" --- I still get lost. Good luck and best wishes on the results. It is 10:00 here so it is 1:00 p.m. there?
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Thanks for the responses about my friends' very bad news. You're right that being there and listening is what I can do. We live about an hour away from each other and usually meet for lunch or dinner about once a month. We had a dinner planned the day he went to the ER and was first told of the stomach tumors. SeeQ, I think they thought of indigestion at first, similar to your friend. I'm afraid he may go fast too.Mara, Hoping your news is good,
Booboo, I love your dogs too! We have no pets at our house but do enjoy our kids' dogs when we see them, even the young pit bull (Oyster) who is full of energy and scary strong. DIL had a rescue pit bull (Martina) before she met DS, and she's very timid. Most likely abused before being adopted by DIL. Our other kids' dogs are much calmer and/or smaller. I thought this was a cute pic of Oyster. It’s more an extreme closeup than his real size, lol.
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Thanks for the responses to my friends' very bad news. You're right that being there and listening is what I can do. We live about an hour away from each other and usually meet for lunch IR dinner once a month. We had plans to meet the day they went to the ER and first learned of tumors in his stomach. SeeQ, similar to your friend, they were thinking indigestion or stomach bug. I'm afraid he may go fast too.
Mara, Hoping for good news for you.
Booboo, I love your dogs too! We don't have pets of our own but do enjoy our kids' pets when we see them. DS and DIL have two pit bulls who are as different from each other as can be. The older one (Martina) was rescued by DIL before she met DS and is very timid, most likely from abuse in her younger years. The young one (Oyster-they kept his name) came to them as a puppy is full of energy and scary strong. I thought this was a cute pic of Oyster. He's not really huge, more the camera angle, lol.
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Friends,
So sorry. What I meant was that Murphy’s name WAS Morkie but is now Murphy. I made it sound like we took Morkie back. Nope. He’s with us, and I can’t wait to see him on Sunday when I get home.
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what cute pups in the timeline! how nice
I'm having a slow day - didn't sleep well which is really unusual for me & then had a lie in, then have been puttering around doing some chores but so slowly that I feel nothing is getting done. I was folding laundry while listening to an audio book & half way through I lay back down in bed. Just no gas in the tank today.
I need to perk up as I have an outing planned - I'm going to go to Ikea tonight. We're hoping it won't be too busy & if it is then of course we will bail. We live close to one & normally I'd go every few months to update & replace stuff & I haven't been in like 2 yrs....
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Hi friends - been a few crazy days but spent all day Tuesday at cancer center for scans and thankfully they were stable. My MO has me scan every six months since I've been stable. Still makes you worry about what can sneak in. Was supposed to have my first in person visit w/MO since pandemic but she got a horrible cold from her 5 year old (thank you school). So we had our visit by phone today while I drove the 90 minutes to get my Xgeva injection. So she was pleased with my being stable and asked if I had any concerns since everything was going well. I don't know if any of you go over your results like I do, but I noticed some of my labs were way off and they were not the ones we normally look at. My MCV and RDW SD were really elevated so of course I do some internet searching to see what the tests are. Come to find out high levels are indicative of macrocytic anemia. Causes are due to low B12 or alcoholism. I'm not an alcoholic and eat meat or fish every day which is high in B12. So my MO thought my labs were likely due to Ibrance, but then I told her I had many of the symptoms of this anemia. They still had some of my blood from my labs on Tuesday and she had them run a B12 test. Guess who is severely anemic??? Now that's an easy fix but I'm thinking why did I have to bring the test discrepancies to my docs attention. Isn't that why we go to them for care? Thankfully I can advocate for myself but what about those folks who can't? Wonder how many medical problems slip through the cracks……
Mel - feel better.
Booboo - ❤️ those pups
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Oh thank goodness Laurie!
Okay, my MRI scan was not good but not totally bad either. There are enhancements that have all grown since July which worried me. My RO says that they still cannot say for sure it is cancer so another MRI in January with added spectography and profusion that should show better information. She likes that my brain is still not swollen but she cannot rule out more mets. All of the enhancement is still in the original tumour site which is good but we will continue scanning every 3 months. In the mean time, I will not worry anymore unless symptoms come up.
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loving the doggie pics ladies. I love dogs so much. Hope we as a bunch are having an ok day at least.
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Mara,
I know you were worried about these scans, so I'm sure you are happy to have them behind you. I hope when you scan next, things will have cleared up and it will not be anything serious. Good luck.
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Mara- yes these scans are behind you and up and onwards you go. If the enhancements are in the same tumor then this is some good news although not what anybody wants to hear. Keep up with the walking taking deep breaths of this wonderful fall air.
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Hello ladies! Just wanted to drop by the living room for a bit. Got some Halloween chocolates to share.
Karen and Golden - How wonderful that everything is stable! I’m so happy for you both. Golden, so sorry about having to call out inconsistencies that your doctor should’ve caught
Rosie, I am so sorry about your friend. We all know how difficult it is to react to that kind of news, but I’m sure just having you there to support will mean the world to them.
Boo, your doggies are so cute! So sorry about the chemo brain, I totally understand! Mine has been getting worse as well. It’s frustrating and embarrassing. I hope things get better for you and I’m glad you’ve been enjoying your travels.
Moth, wishing you some energy for IKEA!
Mara, so glad you’ve got your scans and results behind you. Wishing you some peace until your next scan.
Mel. I hope you’re feeling better!
I’ve been just reading this week as it’s been kind of difficult for me. I started to get a lot of pain in my right ribs under my “foob” (fake boob). Monday night the pain was at an 8. Thankfully I had one leftover oxycodone from awhile back since all I’ve been doing for pain is regular Tylenol. That helped me sleep a bit. Tuesday I messaged my MO and had my first appointment with my new palliative care doctor. She recommended oxycodone IR for short term relief and oxycodone ER for long term pain management. I agreed to it since I needed some relief but now I’m super hesitant about the long term regimen. I tried both yesterday and had only a minor relief. Today I went to work so I only took Tylenol and I was still at a 5+. Finally home so I took a short term. Hopefully it’ll kick in soon.
I’m just not sure I want to be on long term opioids just yet. I’m hoping to talk to the palliative care doctor tomorrow and see if there’s something else I can try. Any thoughts or recommendations?
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Mara - glad your scans are done and explained, although still somewhat inconclusive but not wring your hands for the next few months. All your walking will kick the worry to the curb and hopefully you will be at peace.
Katy - your palliative doc ordering those meds gave me an idea to ask my pain management doc about more long acting pain relief. Hope you find something that works. I have regular ocycodone and hydrocodone which I try to avoid but maybe extended release would work better. Nothing like constipation from Ibrance AND pain meds.
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Rosie, Oyster is precious. I have a lot of respect for people who rescue, so good job to your DIL and DS.
Mara, I hope your results are good. Thinking of you.
Hi Tanya…pretty cold up here, so I’ve gotta admit I’m looking forward to the nice warm sunshine!
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Rosie- Cute pic of Oyster.
Goldens- Woohoo for stable scans. I get the lab story. I break down all my test results and look up any that are abnormal to see what it can mean. It is scary that our docs - MO or PCP or whoever - is so busy something can get missed. I too wonder about patients that do not look at results but just take their docs word that all is ok. Scary.
Mara- I hated to read your post about your MRI results. I know you will try not to worry the next 3 months, but know that will be hard to do. I pray that all will be ok next scan. Hug from here.
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Just a quick pop in tonight, been a busy day.
Goldens, congrats on stable🎉
Mara, I’m sorry the results weren’t better but I agree not too bad. Nothing that requires action is usually good enough for me, at least for a while.
Loving the pup pics too. Monkey just came downstairs for the 1st time, we’ve been gradually opening doors as she gets comfortable with different rooms. Have to keep our bedroom closed though, as she stayed under the bed all day and I don’t want her too anti-social.
Have a good night everyone.
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Thanks everyone, I will do my best not to worry that I am progressing. I will keep walking and be grateful for my current physical health.
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mara, I'm taking it as good that your onco isn't too worried right now. I'm glad you're maintaining a positive outlook on this. Let them do any worrying if necessary.
I did manage to get to Ikea and now I'm pooped. We went through almost the whole store (& it's not a small one - at the time it was built, it was the 5th largest Ikea in the world) We have a number of ideas now to ponder & I got some of their vegan gelatin free gummy candies as a treat... plus dh bought a bunch of the vegan meatballs for the freezer.
Good night now
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I agree Mara… we’ll take no action!!!! Keep walking my sweet girl.
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