I have been meaning to write this for a while so here we go. I never dreamt that I would be going through this in my 20s. Going through this I have heard numerous stories of Fijians who are either battling cancer, some have won the battle (props to you!) and unfortunately some have succumb to it. I think I was more unprepared when I had it because as a child growing up back home I was never around anyone who had it. The people who passed away that I knew was either because of old age and something else other than cancer. I really did not know what to expect and how to deal with it. I think we need to be more aware and educated about it for our own benefit.
I can remember back then the mentality I had. I was young and healthy, there was no way I could have cancer. I can say now that was naive and ignorant on my part.
There's numerous types of cancer. Go here if you want to read up on it: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/alphalist
What is cancer?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cancer
So come to find out I had history in my family of cancer in my family. More recently my Mom's younger sister passed away last August (on my birthday:o( ) of leukemia which is cancer of the blood.
Knowledge is power.
If you know there's history in your family don't sit back and hope that it will not happen to you. If its in your family, you have a 50% chance. Get the appropriate testings done. It is always good to be ahead of the game.
Ladies if you are 40 and over, start getting those mammograms underway. Read more about it here: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/detection/mammograms
For women under 40 its still a battle for the insurance to cover but I have heard of cases where they covered it because the patient had family history of cancer.
They also have genetic testing that you could do specifically to find out if you have the breast cancer gene. Read about it here: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/BRCA
You need to be pro-active for yourself. They have studies showing environmental factors that bring about cancers. So you don't only have to have family history to have cancer. Just catching things early always makes a big difference in treatment and your survival.
Here's my story:
Late October 2007 I discovered a lump, my sister set me up for an appointment where I got the biopsy. I was 24 when I was first diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer. The type of cancer was Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC). It was malignant. The lump measured about 5cm across. I had a lumpectomy to remove the lump. They also checked my lymph nodes and it was all clear. Started with chemo therapy 2 weeks later and started radiation a few months into chemotherapy. It was such a tough time for us but we made it by the grace of God. I am glad it did break us back then. Let me tell you having faith in God is so vital. Don't tell me otherwise, I have been through too much to believe that. Life went on after that.
July 10th 2010 I was back in the hospital because of a tumor to my eye. Had radiation and started chemo. A certain hospital is San Jose told me I had only 6 months to 12 months to live and I have Stage 4....Its going to be a year in the next 2 weeks baby and I am still here!!!! No we are not going down without a fight!! Thank you Lord for getting me through!! Family and friends are a vital support system.
Transferred to Stanford in September. Got an aggressive treatment plan after the review of the new scans. Did chemo therapy, lost my hair and my eyebrows..:o) Had surgery in Jan 2011. Next surgery was in March 2011. Started chemo again a week after surgery. Hair grew back- thank you Jesus! I just need eyebrows to catch up..:o) I am so blessed to have great doctors and great care! With all the tiredness and things that come with it, it can be so difficult to be thankful. But I am very thankful to be still here.
It is physically, emotionally and mentally draining to go through this but what is the price on your life and good health? Life and good health are priceless and should not be taken for granted. I want to stay around to see my nephews and nieces grow up and make some of our life long dreams come true.
Get checked and be pro-active!! There is so many resources out there. Also check out the American Cancer Society: http://www.cancer.org/ They have a lot of useful information.
If this has helped even one person, I have met my goal.
Have a great day!
God bless.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Here's To Good Health
Top of the morning to yah! Let me see...I am happy to be alive this morning and I am enjoying a moment of being cool, calm and collected...lol!
I really miss just being normal. You know temperatures not exceeding 100F and no chills in the middle of the day. Everyone is trying to cool down because of the heat and I need the heater on. I spent a day with Mom last week. While she was sewing I was sitting in the recliner with two blankets totally covered (yes even my head) lol! and I was still shivering. I slept it off within about 2 hours I started getting warm again so I took the blanket down to my chin and then finally got rid of it when I was warner. By the evening I was on a hotflash rampage. Mom wanted the door closed because it was getting cooler and I wanted it open, you guessed it...I was hot! Such is my life with all this medications I am on.
I do miss a lot of things that I used to take for granted. Some more than others. Its like a guessing game sometimes ;o) I am a quick learner! lol! I think in my case it was harder for my accept that this was out of my hands. I could not change it or just simply turn away from it. I know God is still faithful and He will see me through this.
Oh how about this...just be spontaneous and just going wherever you want to go. I miss that:o) or just trying out new things just for the heck of it....lol! I miss a lot of things but I know this is all for me to get better. I do understand that.
Things I will not miss are as follows: fatigue, having a sucky immune system, nausea, stomach issues, headaches, being a catcher of all flus and virus (lol!) blood transfusions, chemo, surgeries, doctors visits, blood tests, shots, hospital stays, ER visits, scans, x-rays, taking pills, sleepless nights, hotflashes, chills, fevers, hair loss, nail and skin changes, running nose, coughs, chest pain, bone pain..... (even I was surprised how long the list went...lol!)
Good health is my first priority. Good health is so priceless. Just ask me and any other sick person. If you have good health do not take it for granted and think that it will never happen to you. With cancer cases you can never be completely be out of the woods. Your care providers have an invisible leash on yah..lol! but for your own good and their experimentation (yes you are a guinea pig)..lol! I am looking forward to what the future will bring. I really am :o)
Have a good one!
Friday, June 24, 2011
HAPPY FRIDAY
I was discharged from Stanford Hospital at about 6pm. I went in the night before because of a fever. I was in the ER and had to wear mask so that I don't catch anything. Knowing me I just love to catch it all!....lol! I don't discriminate...hahaha! Come one, come all...okay I am killing this...lol! So anyway the visit to the ER was okay.
I like to people watch. So while we were sitting in the waiting room there was a bunch of college boys sitting in the corner just so engrossed in whatever they were doing. Two were on the internet, one was reading and the other one was playing games on his phone. Facing them was this one young girl, I think she was waiting for someone. Dressed in workout clothes and was on her phone doing some things but now and again she would sneak a peek at these guys.Then she would get up and walk around and then look at these guys and then she would come back and sit down...lol! It was just so hilarious because I think she wanted to be noticed but the guys were just too busy to look her way! Of course I would elbow Sau...lol! At the ER they have these windows in the hallway that you could look into the ER waiting room. She walks out of the ER waiting room and walks by the window and looks into the window by where the guys were but no one was paying attention. Poor thing..lol!
So they admitted me, my nurse was Richard. Just so flamboyant and all over the place. He said he used to be an oncology nurse. So he was going to get my port in the first try. And he did. He said they needed blood from my veins. I never used to have a problem with that until my veins decided to disappear from time to time. It has become a hide-n-go seek game whenever we do that. Only special people can locate my veins..lol! First try he got it, so I gotta give it to him. He walks his talk!
Stayed in the ER for about 5hours. Transferred at about 6am to my room. You really can't get enough rest in the hospital. You are constantly being woken up to take pills, take vitals, do tests, go for x-rays....So I am always glad to come home. I am not gonna lie...I always ask on the first day when I am going to go home...yes that bad. As soon as I get discharge papers you best believe my tail will be out of there in 15minutes flat...Dressed and packed and fastwalking down that hallway to the parking lot..lol!
My stay was not so bad I was just restless and tired and they had me on so much fluid that I was going every hour to the bathroom till this morning. So I barely slept. So happy to be home and waking up this morning in my own bed. Hoping this weekend is a little more relaxing with less drama and no visits to the ER.
HAPPY WEEKEND!!!
I like to people watch. So while we were sitting in the waiting room there was a bunch of college boys sitting in the corner just so engrossed in whatever they were doing. Two were on the internet, one was reading and the other one was playing games on his phone. Facing them was this one young girl, I think she was waiting for someone. Dressed in workout clothes and was on her phone doing some things but now and again she would sneak a peek at these guys.Then she would get up and walk around and then look at these guys and then she would come back and sit down...lol! It was just so hilarious because I think she wanted to be noticed but the guys were just too busy to look her way! Of course I would elbow Sau...lol! At the ER they have these windows in the hallway that you could look into the ER waiting room. She walks out of the ER waiting room and walks by the window and looks into the window by where the guys were but no one was paying attention. Poor thing..lol!
So they admitted me, my nurse was Richard. Just so flamboyant and all over the place. He said he used to be an oncology nurse. So he was going to get my port in the first try. And he did. He said they needed blood from my veins. I never used to have a problem with that until my veins decided to disappear from time to time. It has become a hide-n-go seek game whenever we do that. Only special people can locate my veins..lol! First try he got it, so I gotta give it to him. He walks his talk!
Stayed in the ER for about 5hours. Transferred at about 6am to my room. You really can't get enough rest in the hospital. You are constantly being woken up to take pills, take vitals, do tests, go for x-rays....So I am always glad to come home. I am not gonna lie...I always ask on the first day when I am going to go home...yes that bad. As soon as I get discharge papers you best believe my tail will be out of there in 15minutes flat...Dressed and packed and fastwalking down that hallway to the parking lot..lol!
My stay was not so bad I was just restless and tired and they had me on so much fluid that I was going every hour to the bathroom till this morning. So I barely slept. So happy to be home and waking up this morning in my own bed. Hoping this weekend is a little more relaxing with less drama and no visits to the ER.
HAPPY WEEKEND!!!
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Accessing my Mediport
This is what the nurses do to blood draws and administer chemotherapy. I have had mine since 2007 and its a trooper...lol! I absolutely dislike needles but since this is a normal routine I have had to suck it up like a big girl...lol! Don't mind the double chin it was a souvenir left behind from 6 months of taking steroids...lol!
It is now 9.54PM and my temperature is back at 101.8. I called the oncologist on call giving him a bright and shining report and that it was just a spike in my temperature. He was not buying it all so off I go to the ER and then admission for a few days...hmmmmm...just a day in my exciting life :o) Geez I just got released this past Monday, I think they miss me over there :o) Just had dinner and about to pack and leave.
See yah later alligator~~~ :o) (I know I can be dorky..lol!)
xoxo
Friday, June 17, 2011
Update
So yesterday was uneventful. Went for my appointments. Saw the radiation oncologist. We went through my records. Since I have Le Fraumeni Syndrome http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/li-fraumeni-syndrome I am not supposed to be getting any form of radiation unless that is my last and only option. So we have a tentative treatment plan in place. We got to review my brain MRI. Saw the 2 spots. They are still at 3mm so no need to worry about it right now. Getting new scans in 3 weeks to see if it has grown and we will decide on treatment then. I was going to start bawling...lol! it was a moment where I was wishing they would leave so I could just pull myself together. Proud to say I kept myself together ALL DAY...lol! yay me! Sometimes it does get too much and I start to wonder will this ever be over.
Met with my oncologist after to see how I was fairing. Well CT scans had shown that the nodes in the lungs had increased in size. From 11mm to 16mm. But she assured me that we need to give it time since I have just started on my treatment 3 months ago. We had shrunk those suckers before with Taxotere, Germicide and Tamoxifen. I lost my hair on this one. It was a little rough. But we got through it by the grace of God.
My new treatment includes Herceptin, Zolodex, Zomeda and I take Arimedex daily. Herceptin to take care of the breast cancer, Zolodex to stop the ovaries (thus the early menopause) and Zomeda to strengthen the bones since they had discovered new bone lesions. This treatment is a little easier to handle compared to the last one. At least I thought so..lol! Oh my how wrong was I..lol! I had done Herceptin before and never had any complications. So I went in not dreading anything at all...my nurse started me on saline and then put me on Herceptin....I reacted with bad chills (rigors) bp dropping and O2 stat dropping...they had rapid response team in my room and my husband and sister were told to go wait outside. I can't lie I was nervous and I thought I was going to kick the bucket...lol! Little sister was a mess and panicking and husband was getting there...but thank God that drama came to an end...lol! But I am happy to tell you that my system is behaving thus far and here's to hoping it stays that way:o)
My regiment was changed last week.
Wk 1: Herceptin (1wk dose)
Wk 2: Herceptin (3wk dose), Zomeda and Zolodex and then a break for 21 days;o) I heart my breaks..lol!
I took this out of my CT Scan report. Did this scan 3/11/2011:
IMPRESSION:
1.OVERALL WORSENING OF METASTATIC DISEASE, WITH INCREASING SIZE AND
NUMBER OF THE MULTIPLE BILATERAL PULMONARY NODULES AND AT LEAST ONE
NEW BONE LESION.
2.POSTSURGICAL CHANGES IN THE LEFT CHEST WALL WITH DECREASED
LOCULATED LEFT PLEURAL EFFUSION.
My song: Whose report will you believe? So taking it one day at a time. This is not over yet but it will be soon. Believing in that!!
Met with my oncologist after to see how I was fairing. Well CT scans had shown that the nodes in the lungs had increased in size. From 11mm to 16mm. But she assured me that we need to give it time since I have just started on my treatment 3 months ago. We had shrunk those suckers before with Taxotere, Germicide and Tamoxifen. I lost my hair on this one. It was a little rough. But we got through it by the grace of God.
My new treatment includes Herceptin, Zolodex, Zomeda and I take Arimedex daily. Herceptin to take care of the breast cancer, Zolodex to stop the ovaries (thus the early menopause) and Zomeda to strengthen the bones since they had discovered new bone lesions. This treatment is a little easier to handle compared to the last one. At least I thought so..lol! Oh my how wrong was I..lol! I had done Herceptin before and never had any complications. So I went in not dreading anything at all...my nurse started me on saline and then put me on Herceptin....I reacted with bad chills (rigors) bp dropping and O2 stat dropping...they had rapid response team in my room and my husband and sister were told to go wait outside. I can't lie I was nervous and I thought I was going to kick the bucket...lol! Little sister was a mess and panicking and husband was getting there...but thank God that drama came to an end...lol! But I am happy to tell you that my system is behaving thus far and here's to hoping it stays that way:o)
My regiment was changed last week.
Wk 1: Herceptin (1wk dose)
Wk 2: Herceptin (3wk dose), Zomeda and Zolodex and then a break for 21 days;o) I heart my breaks..lol!
I took this out of my CT Scan report. Did this scan 3/11/2011:
IMPRESSION:
1.OVERALL WORSENING OF METASTATIC DISEASE, WITH INCREASING SIZE AND
NUMBER OF THE MULTIPLE BILATERAL PULMONARY NODULES AND AT LEAST ONE
NEW BONE LESION.
2.POSTSURGICAL CHANGES IN THE LEFT CHEST WALL WITH DECREASED
LOCULATED LEFT PLEURAL EFFUSION.
My song: Whose report will you believe? So taking it one day at a time. This is not over yet but it will be soon. Believing in that!!
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Top of the morning to yah!
Good morning all! I know it has been a while since I have posted in my blog...I know I suck at being a blogger..lol! No need to tell me...the first step is admitting the problem :o) Last week I was just feeling kind of bleh...I felt so tired...wait fatigue would be the better word. It was like going through the first few months of chemo again. I totally hated disliked it but I am managing now. So I have been taking my vitamin pills faithfully....did I mention I just love (NOT) taking any type of pills. I still have yet to try Sis Tasha's miracle green powder.
I am taking Centrum Ultra Women and Caltrate also forhorses women....geez this pills are seriously for horses..they are huge and I feel like taking one everyday is like playing russian roulette with my precious life (don't read too much into that..I am just being dramatic) But on a brighter note my pill count has decreased dramatically. Thank you Jesus! Whew! So here are my weapons of assault:
Clindmycin (I will tell you why later) for infection side effect: diarrhea
Centrum (horse pills) for Vitamins side effect: constipation
Caltrate (horse pills) for Vit D and Calcium side effect: constipation
Anastrozole (for breast cancer side effect: hot flashes)
Odensetron (for nausea side effects: dizzy, sleepyness, drowsiness and constipation)
Oxycodone (for pain side effect: constipation)
Kadian (aka morphine for extended pain relief side effect: constipation)
*This morning I skipped pain meds....I am not in pain*
That's my line up for now. Can you believe I wrote all those without looking at the labels (ok I peeked at the vitamin bottles)...hmmm I should work at the pharmacy after this is done...whaddayathunk?!
Like I said I absolutely dislike taking pills. It came just about the time I started with the cancer treatment. I would scare myself silly reading the side effects and then justify not taking it. It throws your system into a loop...one word BENEFIBER...will be your bosom buddy..'nuff said....I rest my case.
So today I am highly excited...for no apparent reason...I have infusion (the word my oncologist uses for milder medicines...hhhmm still pondering that one) today in about 2 hours...goshdarn it I wanted to do something else...since my health depends on it, I can't cancel. As a great patient you best believe even if my life did not depend on it I will stillnot go *smiles* yup they adore me there..lol!
Let me explain myself and those of you who have been through this will understand where I am coming from. When you see the doctors so many times you do get tired of it...so I do play the cat and mouse with my doctor's office sometimes...I do get tired and to top it off is when you have a feeling it will be bad news when they call you in.
But I am back in good behavior and so today I am going to suck it up, go to my appointment and take this infusion like a grown women.*I feel I should have background music playing for that earth shattering statement* salute please...I kid I kid..lol!
Have a good one! God bless.
I am taking Centrum Ultra Women and Caltrate also for
Clindmycin (I will tell you why later) for infection side effect: diarrhea
Centrum (horse pills) for Vitamins side effect: constipation
Caltrate (horse pills) for Vit D and Calcium side effect: constipation
Anastrozole (for breast cancer side effect: hot flashes)
Odensetron (for nausea side effects: dizzy, sleepyness, drowsiness and constipation)
Oxycodone (for pain side effect: constipation)
Kadian (aka morphine for extended pain relief side effect: constipation)
*This morning I skipped pain meds....I am not in pain*
That's my line up for now. Can you believe I wrote all those without looking at the labels (ok I peeked at the vitamin bottles)...hmmm I should work at the pharmacy after this is done...whaddayathunk?!
Like I said I absolutely dislike taking pills. It came just about the time I started with the cancer treatment. I would scare myself silly reading the side effects and then justify not taking it. It throws your system into a loop...one word BENEFIBER...will be your bosom buddy..'nuff said....I rest my case.
So today I am highly excited...for no apparent reason...I have infusion (the word my oncologist uses for milder medicines...hhhmm still pondering that one) today in about 2 hours...goshdarn it I wanted to do something else...since my health depends on it, I can't cancel. As a great patient you best believe even if my life did not depend on it I will still
Let me explain myself and those of you who have been through this will understand where I am coming from. When you see the doctors so many times you do get tired of it...so I do play the cat and mouse with my doctor's office sometimes...I do get tired and to top it off is when you have a feeling it will be bad news when they call you in.
But I am back in good behavior and so today I am going to suck it up, go to my appointment and take this infusion like a grown women.*I feel I should have background music playing for that earth shattering statement* salute please...I kid I kid..lol!
Have a good one! God bless.
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