Chemo Round 6

While getting blood work Fred & Dr. H had a chat, and this is why I love my oncologist. I need for them to have a relationship. And the truth is, we both had a relationship with him through caring for my dad. So while it's been strange literally walking in my dad's footsteps, getting chemo from the same chair he once sat. It's also refreshing being truly comfortable with my oncologist from day one. 

During their conversation, Fred had apparently expressed our concern with Dr. S and the MRI debacle. And Dr. H was quick to put me at ease. "I would tell you if I didn't think he was a good fit, but he is your surgeon." The relief was immediate. 

Going forward chemo is changing. We were in fight mode, throwing everything I could physically manage to shrink the lesion, and now we are in maintenance mode. Instead of being knocked out for a week+, Dr. H wants to get it down to three days. So new treatment is FOLFOX with a biologic (and I can't remember the name)...it's the one that hinders growth of new blood vessels to feed any cancer lesions. And we will reevaluate after 12 rounds. Yes, I expected this. Many people with stage IV continue with maintenance chemo. 

With surgery around the corner, and because chemo causes blood levels to drop, Dr. H wants chemo to stop three weeks prior. Meaning #6 will be my last round, and it will pick back up four weeks after surgery. He doesn't want me drinking colonoscopy "fun juice" while on chemo, so trying to squeeze that in the week before surgery. 

My blood levels were still a little off from the intestinal virus, so Dr. H let me decide if I felt strong enough for this round. While I still felt a little weak, I was okay to push forward knowing it would be easier than previous rounds. 

I struggled through this round a little bit, but nothing like previous rounds. The infusion only took three hours. (Previous rounds took six-seven hours, depending on what side effects decided to show up.) A little nausea, a lot of fatigue, but by day five I felt well enough to get out of the house. For the first time since March, I'm able to enjoy every weekend. Holy moly I can manage this chemo! Especially knowing it will be even easier when my blood levels improve. 

By the way, I struggled with that intestinal virus for three weeks. That thing completely knocked me out! This virus is something healthy people recover from in 2-5 days. Having a weakened immune system is no joke!