I know it's been a while since I updated, but during this cycle of chemotherapy I have felt just fine. It's been thoroughly uneventful which, I suppose, is the ideal situation. I now have no hair and no beard, but that will grow back at some point. Anyway, happy Christmas to one and all whatever you are doing, and I shall keep you posted with health related developments after the festive season.
Thursday, 24 December 2009
Wednesday, 2 December 2009
Chemotherapy
I had originally planned to write this post about a week ago but I'll come to the reason for the delay later on. Anyway, I've had my first course of chemo and the first three days of it were as an in patient and pretty intense. The chemo itself wasn't too bad as I didn't suffer any sickness or anything during the treatment. The worst thing turned out to be the trapped wind I managed to get from being hooked up to a drip and pumped with fluids for two and a half days solid. I hadn't expected trapped wind, and it was the sort that makes you feel like someone is sticking knives into your chest, rather than just needing a good fart. I eventually solved the problem in the night with the world's biggest belch - I kid you not, it was ridiculous!
So I started to feel better by Sunday afternoon, apart from the tiredness which tends to come in waves and all of a sudden sleep is the only option. They'd shifted my next chemo appointment forward a few days to bring it back in line with clinics and things, so I was back in Cheltenham on Tuesday for 'day 8' of my treatment. One small bag of toxic stuff later and I was back home munching on a chicken doner kebab (I felt the need for a treat).
The headache started just before bedtime, a real pounding migraine type affair. I had a night of frustrating non sleep and Wednesday began as Tuesday had ended. On Wednesday we had been booked in for swine flu and seasonal flu jabs, so we had those and expected to feel off colour for 24 hours or so. By night time I was feverish and beginning to get concerned but decided to ride out the 24 hours to see if it would ease off. Thursday was spent alternating between freezing and sweating, so early on Friday morning I took the bull by the horns and phoned the chemotherapy helpline offered by Cheltenham hospital. They advised me to come in straight away for a blood test, which I did. The results of the blood test showed that my white blood cell count was ZERO, which means no immune system of any description consequently no method of fighting any sort of infection. Seems I had bypassed all the other side effects and gone straight for the worst one.
I was duly admitted, and due to my highly vulnerable nature I had to have a private room away from sources of infection, a room which included my own bathroom, flatscreen tv and dvd player (paid for by charitable donations). So whilst I felt dreadful, I did at least have some way of combating the usual monotony of a hospital stay. It's a good job they kept me in, as that night my temperature went up to 38.9 degrees and I blacked out, collapsing to the floor and taking loads of stuff down with me, luckily I escaped any serious injury suffering only a bruised bum and a pulled muscle. So they've pumped me full of a wide range antibiotics and fluids for a few days, and by Monday my white cell count had moved off the floor. By Tuesday I had recovered enough to be allowed home after my 'day 15' chemo. I'm still a bit fragile, but at least my body works a bit better. As an aside, we all know that cancer and weight loss are always associated - I lost just over a stone in 11 days, and I was eating.
So now I have a week to be at home, during which time I will hopefully build up some more strength and mentally prepare myself for the next 3 week cycle which begins the middle of next week.
So I started to feel better by Sunday afternoon, apart from the tiredness which tends to come in waves and all of a sudden sleep is the only option. They'd shifted my next chemo appointment forward a few days to bring it back in line with clinics and things, so I was back in Cheltenham on Tuesday for 'day 8' of my treatment. One small bag of toxic stuff later and I was back home munching on a chicken doner kebab (I felt the need for a treat).
The headache started just before bedtime, a real pounding migraine type affair. I had a night of frustrating non sleep and Wednesday began as Tuesday had ended. On Wednesday we had been booked in for swine flu and seasonal flu jabs, so we had those and expected to feel off colour for 24 hours or so. By night time I was feverish and beginning to get concerned but decided to ride out the 24 hours to see if it would ease off. Thursday was spent alternating between freezing and sweating, so early on Friday morning I took the bull by the horns and phoned the chemotherapy helpline offered by Cheltenham hospital. They advised me to come in straight away for a blood test, which I did. The results of the blood test showed that my white blood cell count was ZERO, which means no immune system of any description consequently no method of fighting any sort of infection. Seems I had bypassed all the other side effects and gone straight for the worst one.
I was duly admitted, and due to my highly vulnerable nature I had to have a private room away from sources of infection, a room which included my own bathroom, flatscreen tv and dvd player (paid for by charitable donations). So whilst I felt dreadful, I did at least have some way of combating the usual monotony of a hospital stay. It's a good job they kept me in, as that night my temperature went up to 38.9 degrees and I blacked out, collapsing to the floor and taking loads of stuff down with me, luckily I escaped any serious injury suffering only a bruised bum and a pulled muscle. So they've pumped me full of a wide range antibiotics and fluids for a few days, and by Monday my white cell count had moved off the floor. By Tuesday I had recovered enough to be allowed home after my 'day 15' chemo. I'm still a bit fragile, but at least my body works a bit better. As an aside, we all know that cancer and weight loss are always associated - I lost just over a stone in 11 days, and I was eating.
So now I have a week to be at home, during which time I will hopefully build up some more strength and mentally prepare myself for the next 3 week cycle which begins the middle of next week.
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