MyCancerBlog

Today started out a fairly decent day…went through my radiation appointment, met with Dr. Greenberg who thought my progress was good overall & expected the pain to continue to subside as the radiation continues the final 2+ weeks.  I then went to my appointment with Dr. Stone (Chemo doctor) & he also thought my progress was fine.

I was a bit concerned when I asked what the remainder of this process is going to be, he told me that they’ll operate regardless after waiting 4-6 weeks after my current treatments ended in 2 weeks.  Then I will have to continue chemo at a reduced dose for 4 months afterwards!  I understand why, but I firmly think that this chemo is what’s causing me to be lethargic, etc.

After my chemo I worked for a couple of hours & then headed to visit with Mom at the hospital in Lewisville.  She’s doing a bit better & they moved her from her PCU room to a “regular” room (re: ridiculously small!).  She still slept most of the afternoon as I worked.  I was just there to spend time with her & be with her as she needed.

When I got home, I was incredibly exhausted.  It’s the 2nd day that I had spent with Mom that I really hadn’t gotten much rest. I think it’s catching up to me.  Hopefully tomorrow will be her last day in the hospital & then I can get back to my usual routine with more rest.

A friend from church made dinner for us & dropped it off around 6:30 p.m.  Dawnette was helping me rest by rubbing my feet.  Sure enough, I dozed off for about an hour & a half.  While I appreciate my lovely wife, I awoke to pink painted toe-nails…SOOOO nice of her!

I had the dinner that Amy made for us (VERY good) & then we watched a few more episodes of The Incredible Hulk & then went up to bed.

It’s been a LONG day…but one of the better ones…

Mondays are always difficult.  Today wasn’t so bad.  While I got to bed late last night (couldn’t sleep), as the alarm went off I hit the snooze button on my cell phone several times (this is a common morning ritual).

I did the usual morning routine … got ready, fed the animals & made some coffee.  I went for my 14th radiation treatment & then had a visit with my chemotherapy doctor, Dr. Stone for a 2-week checkup.  He indicated that things appeared to be on schedule (though we’ve never clearly outlined what that schedule is) & I don’t have to meet with him for another 2 weeks.  He also indicated that we’d be removing the pick-line on April 5th.

After heading home, I got onto my usual Monday morning work conference calls.  I then dozed for about an hour & quickly left the house to get a hair cut & then head to Medical Center of Lewisville to see my mother who is still in the hospital now for nearly a week (Mom is currently under treatment for breast cancer).  She was admitted to the hospital nearly a week ago for low blood pressure, but is still there as they’re apparently having issues.

Anyhow, I just went up to be with her for the afternoon…she was in & out the whole time, but I just wanted to be there for her in case she needed anything or just to talk.  Given I had to sit the entire time, I didn’t do too bad…especially considering I didn’t take any extra pain pills with me, nor did I bring any ice packs.

I stayed about 4-5 hours & then headed home to be with Dawnette for the evening.  We did our usual chores & made a quick dinner (left-overs) & then watched a couple of episodes from The Incredible Hulk TV series from the early 80’s.

Over-all, a better day.  Not too overbearing from a pain perspective, I keep praying the pain will continue to diminish as the chemo & radiation continues.

OK, 2 weeks down, 3 1/2 to go.

The chemo/radiation combo continues to knock me for a loop…I’m exhausted, all day, every day.

Gonna keep it short today…I’m exhausted.  Gonna go get some rest.

Pain: 9

One week into this now…

No reduction in pain as of yet, though I was told that wouldn’t come until about half-way in.  The chemo/radiation combo continues to make me incredibly tired…exhausted all the time.  I’ve got to be careful not to push myself too hard, or it makes it even worse.  If I’ve learned one thing thus far, it’s that…

Had my radiation this morning & also had my fist update with Dr. Stone (chemo).  I also had my chemo pack changed out / replaced & pick line cleaned & the valve replaced.  That was interesting…the nurses alcohol wiped the area & it was a bit painful.  This is going to happen weekly she told me.

The rest of the day was a mix of work & sleep.

Pain: 9

Had my 2nd radiation treatment this morning…I was about 15 minutes late as I overslept. The nurse ( ) gave me the Nth degree about my appointment time & how they come in early to accommodate us, etc.  I did only what I could do & apologize profusely…but wow!  Really?

Afterwards, I had my first chemo appointment.  I guess I’ll be doing this weekly & it will consist of checking in, getting blood work done (drawing blood) & then waiting to be called for my appointment with Dr. Stone & then taking care of my chemo pack.

Since this was my first appointment, I briefly met with Dr. Stone after getting placed on the scale (down to 262 pounds!) & being placed into a waiting room.  As I said, it was brief…more just “how are you”, here’s what to expect, etc.

Then back to the waiting room for the chemo room.  Once I got called in, she double-checked my pick-line area of my left arm & saline injected me to make sure the pick-line was working properly (cold!!!!).  She added some sort of connector & then attached a small hose that was connected to a beige device which has my chemo (Florouracil in a saline solution).  She had me wait till it kicked off for the first time & then told me I could leave.  I was there for maybe an hour…that’s it.  5 1/2 more week to go!

The rest of the day was work as usual.  I keep being told that the chemo & radiation would make me tired, but nothing so far!

My first day was filled with a bit of trepidation.  Wasn’t really sure what to expect…kinda nervous to be honest.  I know I probably shouldn’t have been, but for some reason, I was.

The radiation was pathetically easy…hop on the table face down, drop my drawers, the nurses line me up & the machine whirs & whines & 15 or so minutes later, I’m done.  Poretty easy.  Didn’t really feel anything during or after the radiation treatment to be honest.  That was from 10:30 a.m. – 11 a.m.

After wards, I lollygagged around a bit as my appointment for the pick line was not until 12:30 p.m.  This is what I was really a bit more nervous about as I’ve never been to the hospital since I’ve been born (no major broken bones or illnesses) and again, I just didn’t know what to expect.  I ended up meeting Dawnette for her lunch & walking over to the pick line appointment early (12 noon or so).

They got me in at 1p.m. on the dot when my appointment was.  I asked them what arm the pick-line goes in & they said my right.  I asked them if it HAD to go in my right & they said it was their preference.  I then asked if it was an issue going into my left arm.  They were a bit perturbed & asked why, and I told them that I’ve given up pretty much everything with this stupid bout of cancer and the only thing I wasn’t willing to give up was my Thursday bowling with William Giger, Chris Bardee & James Apple…for some reason that gave the doctors a good chuckle & they agreed to do my left arm.

Surprisingly, it took all of 15 minutes…took them longer to prep me than it did to get the pick-line in & everything!  I’ll upload a picture when I get a chance.  Anyhow, the pick-line will get me ready for my chemo appointment tomorrow.

I’m a bit tired right now (radiation?), so I’m done for the day…

Pain: 10

So, 2 weeks have gone by since I found out I had cancer & after calling & speaking with insurance & the doctors’ office (pathetic that I had to do the calling to get this jump-started, isn’t it?!?!?!), we found out that I will start treatments next Wednesday for radiation & that I have to get a pick-line put in that day as well for the chemo-therapy.

Frustrated at the delays, but glad now to at least have direction moving forward!

No changes in pain or anything else…still icing down daily, taking the morphine & hydrocodone.

Pain: 10

I had my PET Scan this morning…had to drink some fluids to “light” me up internally for the PET scan, but it was pretty minor compared to the crap I had to drink for my CT scan at Medical Center of Plano (thank God!).

The PET scan took a couple hours (appointment, prep work & actual Scan, etc.). Plus it was EARLY (6am)…have I mentioned before that I am NOT a morning person?!?!?!  Pretty trivial though to be honest, so it wasn’t a big deal.  Apparently the PET scan is more in-depth than the CT scan & will give them a better look at the cancer & the tissue surrounding, etc.

Like I said, all in all, it was pretty minor & over with.  I continue to work as I have been, trying not to let this mess affect me, plus it helps take my mind off of things.

Still waiting to hear from insurance & when I will start the chemo & radiation treatments, etc.

Pain: 10

So today I had to go into North Texas Oncology for “Radiation Planning”…what that broke down to was them taking a CT scan they also gave me 3 tattoos on my lower back to “mark” where they need to line up the radiation treatments.  All were pretty simple.  All in all, I was there for about an hour or so…

Other than that, no changes, no updates…just the same old waiting game, dealing with the pain the best I can, etc.

I have to go in for my PET scan on Wednesday (2 days) so I’ll follow up with another post around that time frame…

Pain: 10

I was diagnosed with Rectal Cancer on February 10, 2012.  It wasn’t a complete surprise.  I had joked with my wife Dawnette a couple months earlier that I had a dream that the pain I was going through was actually cancer.  Kinda interesting when you fast-forward to today.

Let me be up front…this is going to be pretty blunt & as descriptive as possible, so if you are squeemish, you might want to hit the back button on your browser at this point.

For some background, since roughly May 2011 I started experiencing some pain…because of the location, symptoms, etc. I figured it was hemorrhoids.  I don’t get them often, but you just do the usual Preparation-H & a week or so later you’re good to go.  This was a bit different though, the pain seemed a bit more intense.

After trying the Preparation-H for a couple weeks, I eventually went to the doctor in August (yes, it’s called procrastination).  My GP gave me the latex glove treatment & told me I had hemorrhoids.  After giving me a couple of prescriptions, she told me to check back with her in 30-60 days.

During this time, the pain kept getting worse…more intense and accompanied by bleeding.  Not just the usual blood-tinged stool, but it started literally dripping blood.  Bowel movements became increasingly painful as well.  The stool wasn’t hard…it was fairly soft, but it was still painful nonetheless.

After 60+ days of no relief, I figured I would try some herbal remedies.  I ordered some Mayinglong Musk Hemorrhoids Ointment Cream from Amazon.com & that seemed to alleviate the pain, at least temporarily…perhaps “sooth” the pain might be a better explanation.  I also started using “wet-wipes” that I saturated with Witch Hazel.  That had a slight soothing effect as well.  Remember, we thought we were treating hemorrhoids.  I also purchased some Horse Chestnuts (don’t ask, I have NO idea) & Butcher’s Broom (again, don’t ask…it said it would work, so I was up to trying just about anything).

By this point, I had also started doing HOT baths with epsom salt…this also seemed to provide temporary pain relief….and then there were the ice packs…sitting on an ice pack tended to sooth what we thought were swollen hemorrhoids.

Dawnette & I went to New York to visit with family, go to the City (we went & saw Wicked on Broadway), etc.  On the way back (literally the day before we left), I came down with some sort of facial skin rash of some sort.  I thought we could wait it out, but the cream we bought before heading to the airport to get back to Dallas did nothing.  So on the way home, we stopped at the Frisco Urgent Care facility.  They gave me some steroidal cream & then gave me an additional prescription for my hemorrhoids.

A month went by & I had enough…I went back to my GP & had a follow-up visit, explaining to her that the bleeding wasn’t the usual blood-tinged stool, but rather, dripping blood.  She also was surprised that I was still in the severe pain I was in, so she set me up with a visit to an oncologist.

I met with Dr. B & got the white glove treatment & he too thought it was hemorrhoids, though was concerned with the bleeding & pain.  He set me up with a colonoscopy for January 31st, 2012.

When the day came, I was a bit nervous/apprehensive, but we got there at 7:30 a.m. for the 8:30 a.m. appointment.  They got me in pretty quick…and the procedure seemed to be over in no time.

As I was awakening from the anesthesia, I remember they brought Dawnette to me in my little cubby they had wheeled me to.  Dr. Burleson told me that the result of the colonoscopy was that I didn’t have hemorrhoids, but it was rectal cancer.

To be honest, all this time I had been more-so frustrated with myself as I thought I was simply being a wuss for not being able to handle the pain from stupid hemorrhoids.  At least I knew I wasn’t being a wuss…it was something a heck of a lot more severe than just hemorrhoids!

He then told me  that the cancer itself was 3 1/2 – 4″ in size (6-8+ centimeters)…the problem is that the rectum is only 4-6 inches in size itself, so my cancer is over half the size of my rectum!  Well, that explains the ridiculous pain I am in!