FCKuCANCER.

ok, so tuesday was round one of my new chemotherapy regimen: tchp

• taxotere / docetaxel
• carboplatin / paraplatin
• herceptin / trastuzumab
• perjeta / pertuzumab

chemo day was a looong one. the last time i went through this, my infusion regimen changed almost immediately because i was re-staged and had to do radiation to my vertebrae so i only had one true infusion day of two chemo meds. they were not pretty, but they were not four. i also didn’t take good pics because it was a heavy day, and i was processing and thought i would have plenty of time to document the next round(s). this time i took notes for you guys. so yeah, don’t say i’ve never given you anything!

my village for the day was daddy (our official chauffeur), momma & auntie lois. we got to the hospital around 6:30 am, my appt was at 7. listen. they do not open the door to infusion until 7. and i get it completely. its depressing how busy it is. they have already expanded once since i started this journey and there are already further expansion plans in the works. so, yeah, fckUcancer.

once we got called back they applied freezing spray on my port inlet and hooked me up to the hose. think outside water faucet. i hope you appreciate these highly technical terms. it was most likely 8 am when the first set of meds were ready to administer. these were the premeds if you will: i took two tylenol with apple juice, while a steroid and benedryl were dripped to me through the port with something else that i cant remember the name. there were three small bags dripping at once. i developed hiccups which was odd, but they went away once the first bag emptied.

premed drips lasted about an hour. then it was time for the targeted therapies. I am told, the first doses are higher/longer than subsequent doses. first up: herceptin. this one took about an hour and a half. the perjeta came next around 10:30 ish. at noon it was time for the chemo chemo. taxotere was first. this is when i pulled out the cold therapy mittens and booties. and the nurses pulled out the iv stand hood.

i know i mentioned this the last time but i didn’t get good pics back then. chemo meds arrive in an outer ziplock bag with various warning messages on them. this stood out to me because last time the two meds i had were wrapped significantly different. one yellow and one red: think skull and cross bones and such. and the red one’s iv stand hood was dramatically long to shield staff from accidental leaks/spills. like ummm why is this going in my body long. this time, both meds were delivered in yellow bags. the taxotere iv hood was dark but it just covered the bag and did not go to the floor like the red devil’s did.

i don’t think ive really mentioned it, but neuropathy is a pretty big possible side effect of some chemo regimens, this one included. it is tingling of the fingers and toes and can get to be pretty uncomfortable. same with mouth sores and hair loss. for all three cases, cold therapy can help to reduce the discomfort. apparently chemo meds do not like to be cold. if you keep the area cold, the chemo kinda doesn’t infiltrate the area as well as it regularly would. so, people wear cold caps, do ice baths for feet and hands and also down ice chips regularly before, during and after treatment.

full disclosure 1 : i did not do a deep dive on cold therapy options. i was wayyyy more hellbent on finding an upgraded bidet solution. i ordered cold therapy mittens and booties monday while i was at the oncologist office after my prechemo lab work. the booties arrived at my house at like 4 in the morning tuesday, so they were not frozen during my session but they were cold and i did have them on blocks of ice.

full disclosure 2: i have felt some tingling, so yeah when people tell you to get them, get them. i will be better about this going forward and have ordered another set of inserts so i can swap them out more frequently during treatment.

the cold cap options aren’t all that great. the one i would like to try isn’t available to me and the one that is, seems labor intensive so i’m just gonna let the Lord do to my scalp what He pleases. if the hair doesnt come back, i’ll be a cute baldy.

the last chemo med, carboplatin was administered around 2:15 and finished around 3ish. i think we left infusion around 3:30, so yeah, it was a full day.

throughout the day, different staff came in to talk to me. the pharmacist came in and gave full walkthrough of all of the meds before treatment began and answered any questions we had. the social worker also came by and talked about the programs methodist offers for patients & caregivers and left a few handouts and calendars. i also ordered and ate a full meal during the day and we watched movies to help pass the time.

all in all it was a very long day and i was tired af. i’ve had appointments like every day this week again so i’m hoping to get some rest soon. today is friday, and it’s the first day that i don’t have to be at the hospital for something this week so i’m gonna do my best to get some work done today.

toodles.