Chemotherapy, Second Cycle, Day one
The two weeks rest after the first chemo cycle were much needed, today sees me back at the Dimblby Cancer Care Unite for the beginning of my second cycle.
I'm quite exited about this after having experienced such a positive result from the first cycle i.e. one tumor undetectable to touch and one shrunk in size by half.
First things first though, a blood test, and an hour wait for the results to get the 'go ahead'. Pathology have had a system crash so the hour wait, is an hour wait. It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't for the chap sitting next to me in the waiting room is playing a game on his mobile phone, with the sound on full volume. I move away from him as far as I can. After half an hour - 45 minutes I can't stand it any longer. I'm just about to ask him to turn the sound down, or better 'off' altogether when he stops of his own accord. It's staggering to think how a grown man can have the sensibility and common courtesy of a teenage girl on a bus. Both he and I are called in at the same time and end up in the same suite, just my luck. Turns out he was 'as good as gold' for the rest of the day.
The unit is much busier than it was on my first visit three weeks ago, I'm seated in Zone B this time, with spectacular views north with the London Eye and St Paul's on the horizon. Although somewhat hampered by the inclement whether.
My blood test results are in now, "1.4". ( 1.4, what ? I don't know, and forget to have explained ) the automatic therapy acceptance level is 1.5. As 1.4 is only just below the cut of point I should be OK for treatment 'but' only with one of my doctors approval. We get it, as expected, but better safe than sorry.
The 1.4 is a measure of white blood cells, they 'are depleted' as expected and by an amount that is to be expected too. The concern is that as they are curtail to fighting infections, I'm now more susceptible than usual and have to take extra precautions accordingly, no mixing with the general "riff-raff" or plebs etc. Oncology have a plan to help deal with this, but they don't share it with me, yet !
Sister Mimi Salvador ( who was 'very' smily ) hooks me up to start with, she's almost finished giving my PICC Line and arm a full clean & service before I realized that the nurse that did my blood test only an hour before had done that all too, I kept quiet and went home twice as clean.
 |
| nice and clean and shiny |
The second cycle will be identical to the first, so no unexpected suppresses expected there, foolish me.
Jo has been too poorly her self to be able to come with me this time, as this is repeat of the first cycle I'm fine with this, i'll miss her company of course, but at last she wont be getting board with me so quickly.
Instead I get a visit from my good friend Paul Rogers, and we spend a few hours laughing and joking around, the time flies by. Pauls' a highly accomplished designer and he takes the opportunity to give my camera a thorough work out.
Nurse Charlotte, comes to change my I.V. bags over and Paul starts to get up to leave so she can get on with it. "No ! No !" I tell him, watch this, Charlotte with have the I.V. swapped as quick as a Formula One team can change car tires, that amused her and actually I think she managed the swop over a little quicker.
At the end of the day Nurse Charlotte gives me me big goodie bag of anti sickness drugs etc to take home,exactly as last time, and then says " hang on i'll just go get you your injection too...
WHAT INJECTION ?
"Didn't someone tell you about the injection that 'you'll' need to give your self tomorrow"
NO !
"Oh it's no problem, here it is, you clean the skin with a wipe, pinch a lump of tummy between your fingers, pop the cap of the syringe, push the needle in, push the plunger all the way down, you'll here a click and just pull the needle out again, all done, easy".
( my first thought was, ARE YOU MAD WOMAN ! )
She goes through the whole process with me a couple more times, and tells me that "if I like I could always get the District Nurse to do it for me, or even my G.P.". I decide to do it my self, if a 7 year old can give them self a shot of insulin then I should be able to do this too. It will be a "learning experience"...
It's a shot of '6 mg of Neulasta', which will help boost my bone marrows ability to produce white blood cells and hopefully restore my ability to fight infections, but i'll still avoid mixing with the Oi-poloy!
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