September 25, 2012 - checkup & radiation treatments

September 25 -  I had a check up with my oncologist on Monday along with completing my 13th radiation treatment.

My checkup with Dr. Tim went well.  We discussed several aspects of my continued care such as hormone therapy and future checkups. I had noticed a small bump/nodule in the armpit of the right arm where they took 23 lymph nodes.  He thinks this is due to scar tissue associated with my operation.  He thought an ultrasound should be done to rule out anything else so that was done on Monday also.  Dr. Tim called me later in the day and indicated it was a small fluid filled cyst which sometimes happens after surgery.  At this point there is no worry for recurrent cancer.  He indicated to just watch it and if it got bigger they sometimes have to remove or drain the fluid.  I'm still dealing with hot flashes and neuropathy in my left foot and we are trying to decide if another medication my help both of these along with helping me sleep.  (gabapentin)

On Monday I completed my 13th radiation treatment of 25, so I'm about half way through these!  I've developed a light to moderate "sunburn" on my chest, which is very itchy!!  They say this will get worse as the treatments continue...awesome:(

I'm trying to do my exercises every day to stretch my back and to work my arms so that I do not get lymph edema.  I have to remember to not work my right arm so much or lift heavy objects as this can increase the chances of developing lymph edema.  So far that is helping.  I don't have a lot of energy but trying to stay as active as possible.  Fall is in the air so would be a great time to get outdoors for little walks.  Enjoy!!!

September 14, 2012 - Update on radiation treatments

September 14 - well, I have 7 radiation txs under my belt thus far.  I've had some mild side effects such as increased hot flashes and waking up again in the middle of the night and not being able to get back to sleep.  This is a bummer because I sure do like my sleep!
When I met with the nurse at Desk R she suggested several lotions and creams to start using in the radiated area of my body.  Radiation thins the skin and she indicated by the 15 or so tx my skin would start turning red as if I had a light sunburn.  By the 25th tx, sometimes peoples skin will be red as if they"ve gotten a real bad sunburn and will sometime cause blistering of the skin.  During the last 10 txs I will be meeting with the nurse on a daily basis following my tx to access my skin issues, if there are any.  As of right now there aren't any...but keep your fingers crossed that it stays that way!!

You know, since I've been diagnosed with cancer I have heard of so many others that have been newly diagnosed with various forms of cancer.  I'm not sure why or how cancer ever came about but we need to find a way to stop it.!  So if I could put a plea out there...please show your support to elimate this awful disease in whatever way you can!  Participate in a walk/run to support your cause of choice, donate to the Eagles cancer telethon, along with various other ways.  All of our involvement will make a difference!  As I've said before...cancer truly sucks!

September 5, 2012 - 50th birthday & 1st radiation treatment

September 5th - if you don't already know I CELEBRATED my 50th birthday on 9/5.  My sneaky little family decided to plan a little secret get-together instead of taking me to Outback for a delicious steak.  The plan that I knew was that we were going to Glynners for a drink and to say " hi" to Missy (one of the waitresses there), then on to Outback by 6:30 pm to get my birthday steak, then back to our house for DQ cake.  Now doesn't that sound like a nice low key 50th?!?!?  

Well, it didn't actually work out that way. We did make it to Glynners but to my surprise there were several of my family and Don's family members there and many co-workers, friends and old friends that I haven't seen in a while.  Wow, was I surprised!!  It was so good to see everyone! And it surely was a great 50th birthday...thank you all for taking the time to spend it with me!!!  A special thanks to all the sneaky people (you know who you are and payback is HE-double toothpicks!!!!) for making my day great!  Thanks to Bill for bringing Ben over to see me earlier that day.   Wished you could have stayed to see everyone!!  As I said last night 50 is great!!!!!

Today, 9/6, was my first radiation treatment. I went to Desk R in the Charlton building of Mayo Clinic with a little apprehension.  I was not sure if radiation was going to noticabley cause immediate hurt or pain to me or what since it was my first treatment.  The two techs were very nice and explained everything they were doing.  They took a couple of X-rays and radiated me a few times and I was there maybe only 20 minutes or so.  So far it was painless but I did go home and take a few hour nap...I'm not sure if it was the treatment or from all the excitement from last night.  They did say tiredness is one of the symptoms of radiation txs (treatments).  This was the first of 25 txs so here we go!  I'm on the downhill path of my cancer treatments/surgery journey and I'm looking forward to feeling a whole lot better in about a month or so when txs are completed.   I really do not want anymore surprises in regards to my health!  So here's to my health!!!!