I forgot to post this a few days ago. Right now I'm in cycle four and an update on that will be soon.
Since my last update I have finished my third cycle of treatment, and also had a CT scan. The results of the CT scan were good. There was no evidence of disease. I was nervous with this one especially since my last nodule showed up on the scan following my last surgery. The odds of that happening were probably much less than last year because I'm actively fighting it with treatment.
As for the chemo I'm still struggling with taking it. I threw up more times this cycle than the last, but luckily still didn't throw up the chemo. I did much better with the nausea throughout the day, but the nausea at treatment time was just as bad if not worse than cycle two. For nausea I would definitely recommend taking Marinol because it worked much better for me than Zofran/Compazine. The only negative is that it made me tired. It will be a challenge taking it while I work, but I'd rather feel tired than nauseous. I felt minimal nausea throughout the day on days one through three, but on days four and five I had some nausea which I think was caused by heartburn. The chemo can cause that. I felt back to normal on day eight just like the last two cycles.
I had an oncology appointment last week, and we discussed strategies to deal with the nausea. For the heartburn, I could try Zantac, but I'm going to try the Healios again. The Healios will hopefully get to the root of the problem by allowing my digestive tract to heal more effectively rather than just treat the symptoms with Zantac. For the anticipatory nausea I'm going to continue taking the Ativan an hour before the chemo. I'm also going to try a Lidocaine mouthwash to numb my taste buds. I've been mixing the chemo with cranberry juice, but this cycle I'm mixing it with different drinks. People on Facebook have had success with mixing with cola. There was some disagreement on there about whether you can mix it with anything other than cranberry juice, and I thought the same, but my oncologist in Richmond and my care team in Cleveland both agreed its ok to take it with cola. I went out and purchased a few different sodas to try with it this cycle. Hopefully, I'll find one that works. I planned on switching to IV, but my oncologist convinced me to try it one more time.
I completed this cycle in Pennsylvania because I was visiting family for Thanksgiving. I really would have liked to feel better, and also do better with taking the medicine when I was home. It was most unfortunate to wake up to myself throwing up on the first night of the cycle. It was the biggest mess I have ever made vomiting. It was all over the back of my door since that is as far as I made it. That pretty much set the tone for the cycle. I didn't want to make my family worry about me taking the meds, but I think I made them worry more. Other than the treatment, it was a great time seeing everyone for Thanksgiving. I'm looking forward to being back in a few weeks for Christmas.
Cycle Four starts this Wednesday.
Three Cycles Down, Five To Go!
