Honor your intuition! Went to MD Anderson today for an oncology consult. Isabella spent the time in the nursery and Teri went with me into my appointment. To quote Teri "it was pleasant and informative"...while I know the oncologist I have been seeing is tops in the field, it just felt right at MD Anderson. Instead of a "chemo corral" with several other women and no room for my caregiver to hang with me, MD Anderson has individual rooms and room for my caregiver. Much more aesthetically pleasing environment!
There are also so many other amenities offered: free childcare, acupuncture, meditations, other wellness modalities, support groups for caregivers (that would be Teri) and so much more.
On top of all that, the protocol they use is much less toxic. It is a bit longer, but more "body friendly"...I like that idea. That isn't to say there aren't side effects, but that longterm it is less toxic.
So, chemo will begin on November 30th at MD Anderson. There is two parts to the protocol: 1) Abraxane once a week for 12 weeks, and 2) cocktail of FEC (Fluorouracil, Epirubicin, Cytoxan) every 3 weeks for 4 cycles. That means 6 months of chemo.
All for now...Namaste!
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Chemo
Because of the problems I have had with yeast infections along my incision (thank you antibiotics and diabetes!) my chemo won't start until Dec. 1 to give me more healing time. The added plus is that I won't be feeling like crap for my birthday!
I have also decided to get a second opinion for my chemo and have an appointment on the 18th with MD Anderson. There are a lot of positives about going there for chemo. On the downside, it is further from home and I will have to pay for parking. Anyway...I also just want to make sure that the course of chemo my current oncologist is recommending is indeed the best. (Oh, my insurance won't pay for any part of the clinical trial so I won't be participating. It is amazing anyone is able to participate.)
Have been going through some withdrawal issues with the medication I have been on. Besides the vicodin, I was also taking a nerve pain med...that is the one giving me the issues. Rather ticked me off because nothing was said about withdrawals. Thankfully, the vicodin has helped mitigate them; however, I also am going to need to ween off of the vicodin as well. Have I mentioned I don't like drugs?
I went wild day before yesterday and scrubbed my kitchen floor. When I say scrubbed, this means I was on hands and knees. Let's just say that my pecs were SORE yesterday. Looks like I am going to need to work out and build up the muscles.
Namaste!
I have also decided to get a second opinion for my chemo and have an appointment on the 18th with MD Anderson. There are a lot of positives about going there for chemo. On the downside, it is further from home and I will have to pay for parking. Anyway...I also just want to make sure that the course of chemo my current oncologist is recommending is indeed the best. (Oh, my insurance won't pay for any part of the clinical trial so I won't be participating. It is amazing anyone is able to participate.)
Have been going through some withdrawal issues with the medication I have been on. Besides the vicodin, I was also taking a nerve pain med...that is the one giving me the issues. Rather ticked me off because nothing was said about withdrawals. Thankfully, the vicodin has helped mitigate them; however, I also am going to need to ween off of the vicodin as well. Have I mentioned I don't like drugs?
I went wild day before yesterday and scrubbed my kitchen floor. When I say scrubbed, this means I was on hands and knees. Let's just say that my pecs were SORE yesterday. Looks like I am going to need to work out and build up the muscles.
Namaste!
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