My brain is racing all the time

After the visit to Dr. Katz my mind is all over the place. It is all I can think about. When I wake up, when I go to sleep and numerous times throughout the day is thinking about my cancer and what my next step should be.
I am very worried because I am starting to feel something in my right lower back again. It was the same, to a lesser extent, as what I had in August 2010....when all of this started.
Dr. Katz told me I have 2 options. RPLND surgery or monitor. As the tumor is 4.3 cm then the urologist all think that I need the RPLND. If it was smaller than 3cm then it would be better to monitor it. So I have told myself I need this surgery and I will get it done. Now the question is, who does it? I have done a lot of reading on the web and have got on a great website, thanks for finding it Jennifer!, called tc-cancer.com which wraps my head around RPLND surgery and who does it. Dr. Foster in Indianapolis is my number 1 guy. He works with Dr. Einhorn who worked very closely to Lance Armstrong. Dr. Foster has been doing this type of surgery for many years and, from what I have read, knows his stuff. Dr. Katz suggested I talk to an excellent Dr. in St. Louis, Dr. Kibel. This doctor hasn't been doing it as long and I he is my 2nd pick right now. St. Louis is closer and easier for Jen's family and added cost, but I'm not going to let logistics make my mind up. I simply want the best of the best.... and in my mind that is Dr. Foster.
I see Dr. Travis on Tuesday (there is a storm coming through that is supposed to hit Monday night. I hope this doesn't cancel Dr. Travis appointment) and will make sure I get a referral to go see Dr. Foster ASAP. With my back hurting, I feel I need to work quickly on this.

News & my hair is coming back!

So I got a call today that I am to see Dr. Katz in Little Rock on Friday 28th. I have to go an pick up the images from Dr. Travis' office this Friday when I have a checkup from him.

Hair is coming in thick and fast

So as you can see from the picture I just took, my hair is coming in fairly well. It is so soft, I can't believe it. haha. So funny considering my hair is usually so course. I am looking forward to see how it looks in another month.
My rash is still around, after 6 weeks. So I decided I was going to try and get rid of it. I went to see Dr. Travis yesterday and they referred my to Dr. Hull, a local dermatologist. Yes, yet another doctor. The list continues to grow. They took a biopsy of it to send to UAMS (University of Arkansas Medical School) in Little Rock. They are thinking that is it folliculitis which is an inflammation of the hair follicles. The lab tests should show which bacteria or fungus is causing the infection. I hope to get it all done soon.
We are expecting snow overnight, so maybe I get that much needed rest..... we will see.

Waiting.....

It was a holiday for me today. No school. Which was great. Needed it because with the first indoor track & field meet all day Saturday it just felt like I didn't get much of a weekend.
I did get a call from Dr. Travis' nurse & she said she will Chase up a response from Dr. Katz as they hadn't heard anything from him in a week. I'm hoping I get the chance to talk to him. I'll definitely hear something tomorrow.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

No news is good news.... I guess.

I have only heard back from the nurse @ Dr. Travis's office to tell me she sent a note to Dr. Katz (UAMS, Little Rock, AR) and Dr. Greene (Lakeland Regional Cancer Center).Nothing back as of yet, but I hope one gets back with some positive news on surgery. Dr. Katz is a urologic oncologist specializing in laparoscopic and robotic surgery. So he might be able to do the surgery without cutting me from tip to toe. I'll be excited to speak to him personally about the surgery. Supposedly Dr. Travis nurse told me that he reviews all the notes on the patient and then makes an assessment as to whether it is a viable surgical procedure. Then he asks to speak to the patient. He does surgery Mon-Thurs, then takes patients Fridays. Maybe I'll hear something tomorrow.

Some latest pictures while I wait for surgery date

While I wait for a surgery date I am simply happy to be here and am able to play around with my son. Here are a few of the pictures we have taken over the past few weeks (the bottom two are from tonight). Lachlan makes all the worry disappear. Tonight when I was giving him a bath he started to say "uh oh" when I dropped his plastic peas in a pod in the bath. When he picked them up & put them in his mouth, I grabbed them with my teeth and he thought it was hilarious. Then I'd drop them in the water again and the cycle would continue. You could see he was learning how to speak and learn the game. Amazing!

 This picture to the left is funny, not only because  of Lachlan crushing my chest, but because he has a diaper full for poo, his 3rd for the afternoon. And it smelled horrible. Luckily this was BEFORE the bath :-)
The last picture is of my hair growing back! Not sure if it will be the same curly think hair I am accustomed to, or if it will be something different. I guess we will wait and see.

Tomorrow I am hoping to hear back from Dr. Travis' nurse with an appointment to see Dr. Katz in Little Rock, AR. I am eager to hear what he has to say about my future surgery.

Another Chapter is starting

The image on the right is one of a series of pictures from the last CAT scan I had. I went through it with my urologist Friday. You can see the spine and then the white round object is the aorta, to the left of that, round gray object, is the vena cava. I outlined the tumor in red. It is about just under 3cm across and it starts just under then right renal artery and continues to the split into the Iliac artery (see image below scan). The urologist wants to operate to get the tumor out, kind of the next step after all the chemo. It will be a very extensive surgery that may last up to 8 hours. It involves a cut from the sternum to about 3in below the belly button. Removing the intestines to clearly work on extracting the tumor. Then it's a long road to recovery. I am getting a 2nd opinion this week from a Dr. in Little Rock, Ar. Should be interesting what he says.

I will be continuing the progress of the Dr. meetings and surgery through this blog. I'm looking at it as Round 2. Chemo being Round 1.
Never knew that surgery would be a part of the process but I guess with cancer you can never know and it can always change. I have learnt a lot from this experience and will be a better person for it.
Thanks for the continued prayers and positive energy you are all giving me.
I WILL beat this.

Haven't posted in a while

I have been doing alright these past few weeks. A little tired at times and people telling me I look drained and 'sick', but I have felt decent enough to do things normally (for the most part). I am not looking forward to work, but I am looking forward to start a normal routine in the week.
I will have to have surgery to remove the tumor, but not too sure when that will take place. I am guessing in January. I have an appointment to see Dr. Travis next week that should clarify it.
Christmas was good with Jen's family and I missed talking to my family on Christmas day for the first time in many years. Made me sad, but it was busy and the times just didn't happen for us. We spoke on the 27th through Skype.
New Years is ahead and I am hoping for a better year in 2011 than in 2010. Cancer is a part of my life now and I'm becoming used to the fact that I have it. I hope it goes away in 2011.

Starting to come around

I'm starting to feel a little better these days. I guess it takes a few days to get out of my system. My stomach area feels very bloated and full all the time. I felt this during the last cycle and its another things that goes away after about a week. The rash on my back still hasn't gone away but I see the Dr. Friday so that will be good for him to see it. Looking forward to a cancer free Christmas!

Not a good weekend

After a solid week in the chair getting treatment I felt my body going south on Thursday night and all day Friday. I was hoping that the weekend would bring me back to life considering that I didn't have to actually take the chemo medications, but that wasn't the case. I got worse throughout the weekend. I don't really remember it much at all. I simply laid on the couch and was a zombie. I felt the worst I have in a long time and probably since that first week. I got my Neulasta (boost WBC) shot on Saturday morning and then I got a bad rash all over my mid section. Jennifer took great care of me, but I couldn't even play with Lachlan at all. I was simply watching my family move around me and couldn't participate. I slept a little Sunday arvo and got to bed early Sunday night. Of course I woke up @ 6am wanting to eat. Thats another thing. I have gained too much weight during these last few months and I'm disgusted in that. I have put my energy into getting better and I have found that it means I eat more. Then I don't burn it off and it accumulates. I know I will get it off but it will take a long time. I also thought what was life without knowing that I had a tumor, or cancer? Will I always be thinking about the tumor inside of me? Will it hold me back from pushing beyond the comfort zone? I was so used to pushing myself to the highest limit when  I was younger, but will that change now that I have this holding me back? I'm not too sure. It has been a rough weekend and today I'm trying to get better. I just got back from a 25 min walk with Dot. Nice and easy. To get some fresh air into my lungs as I have been couped up in the house for too long.
The rash is getting better, but the last thing I want is another IV in my arm pumping me with antihistamines. My veins are shot.

Finished!

After a long day in the chemo chair and just feeling like rubbish I finally got that blasted IV out of my arm. I think it stopped working as soon as the last drop of Cisplatin went in. I think it wanted out just as badly as I wanted it out. So after a movie and some lunch (beef soup & chicken nuggets - I know a weird combo) I am  waiting for Jennifer to come home with Lachlan. His first full week of the new day care is done today also. Just a full day of celebrations. Yesterday I couldn't believe how much his hair has grown and how much he changes. Although I am around the house during treatments I am very much out of it and miss holding Lachlan and playing with him. The week goes by and he has changed before my eyes. A little disappointed that I miss that time with him during these weeks. I have to make up for it during my good weeks. Which there should be a lot of nowadays!
I am thankful for all those nurses that looked after me during my time at Highlands Oncology. They really did a great job. Now for my Neulasta shot tomorrow to boost my WBC this week. I am hoping to be back teaching by the end of the week as long as I feel up for it.

Hump Day - Round 3

Ok, so its very quite in the clinic this morning. I get here early so I can out early & have more of the day to do anything or nothing. Today I woke up a little nauseated, but I slept well. I needed a new IV put in today as my other one decided to play up on me yesterday & harden yet another vein.
The clinic is looking very Christmasy with decorations all over the place, even on the IV poles!

Day 2 - Round 3

Today went by pretty well with limited worries from any side effects. I woke up early, got there a little late, but Marsha had my seat all ready for me. You see I always pick the electric recliner so I just have to press a button and I go up or down. There is only one in the 40 or so chairs in the clinic. I have only missed out on it once in the 12 times I have been to chemotherapy. Marsha now secures it for me! She's the best nurse.
My vein did decide to harden up on me and I had to get the IV taken out. I hope tomorrow's IV is a good one and stays in until Friday's last treatment.
Feeling good and strong today.

Day 1 of Round 3 complete

Finished my first day of my, hopefully, final round today. I felt decent all day, with a slight headache after treatment. I drank about 2L of Gatorade and 1L of water and + the Lasik medication = pee a lot. I actually went 3 times in about 20 minutes, no less, and an old guy next to said " Don't drink and drive". Took me awhile to turn around and laugh, but these are the kinds of people in there next to me. (I later spoke to him and he had cancer up near his shoulder/neck area which they got rid of, then it came back in his brain, which they got rid of,m and now it has returned to its original spot - he's been dealing with cancer for too long). I also saw my 'smoker
 buddy again today. I sat in my favorite white mechanical lazy boy chair which, lucky for me, was on the side of the room to 'Smoker Joe'.
Better get to bed now, Day 2 starts bright and early.

Thanksgiving & tomorrow

We all had a great time @ Thanksgiving dinner at MawMaws in Fort Smith. It was Lachlan's first one and he had a blast with his US cousins. The picture left is when Auntie JuJu and I took him out on a walk. It was about 32F (0C) when we went out so he had to bundle up.

So tomorrow is my last week of chemotherapy treatments. Dr. Travis has said that I have this one, they give me another scan and then I should be all done. I like the sound of that! I am a little nervous about getting into the chemo again. I have had about 4 weeks off of it and really started to feel good. Now I take another couple of steps back. I know this is the last round though and it will be a great Christmas when I can finally say 'I am cancer free'.

As always I will post every day throughout treatment.

Thanksgiving @ the Haasers

Gearing up for Thanksgiving dinner the the in laws. It's always a big meal with a big crowd. I am thankful of my family both here in US and back home is Australia.
On the cancer front, I have been feeling fantastic energy wise lately, but today my tumor area is just feeling tight and there. Noticeablely felt. But like Jennifer said it could be anything, not necessarily the tumor being active. Anyway, time to forget about it. Last treatment week starts this Monday. Not looking forward to it.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5