Cycle 6 - Termine!! More about Radiation and Blood Transfusion #2

I know, I know... my last post was a while ago.  I've had a lot of people asking how I am doing because I haven't updated my blog, well folks, here's your update :o)

On February 10th I had my planning session for radiation.  It was really interesting.  They made a mold of my body/arm using this chemical compound that is liquid but then foams up and around whatever it is placed next too.  We had to do this process twice, because the first time they couldn't get the whole image of my outstretched arm in the CT scan.  Once they made the mold, they marked on my arm and body, using a laser to show a straight line.  When I came home I looked like I had been attacked by a sharpie marker ;o)  They also tattooed small dots into my skin to show where the lasers should penetrate the tissue.  So now, I have 4 more small black tattoos.  The mold they made I will lay in every time for radiation to make sure that I'm in the same position every time, pretty neat, huh?  This Friday, February 24, I go in for a practice run. I guess they'll line me up using the images they took last time and make sure everything will go smoothly for my first treatment on Monday February 27. 

Last week I completed cycle 6 (almost half way there), and in the middle of it all I had to get another blood transfusion.  Familiar faces joined me as I sat everyday receiving poison in my veins.  Mom/Julian came on Monday, Diane on Tuesday, Dad on Wednesday, Justin on Thursday and Sean joined me for his first time on Friday.  It wasn't that hard of a week, except that the transfusion kept me up late Wednesday night, so I was basically worthless on Thursday and Friday.

Wednesday I went straight from Chemo to the hospital to receive my second blood transfusion.  Although the experience was so much better, it still took a long time to get the blood up to me in order to start the transfusion.  Way to go Blood Bank..... So, my mom, who works at the hospital, came and stayed with me, but once Justin got into town, she went to home to bed and he stayed with me until I was finished, at 1245am.  Then there was a bit of miscommunication and we had to wait a bit before I could actually leave.  See, since I was to get chemo the next morning, my port was to be kept 'accessed,' meaning the lines should remain open.  Well, I guess some retards used their accessed port one time for recreational drugs and therefore the hospital needed written verification from my Dr (at 100am) to leave my port accessed.  I understand the safety concern, so I patiently waited for the Dr on call at the office to call the nurse and give the 'go ahead.'  Last time I received a transfusion, I wasn't receiving chemo, so they deaccessed my port.... little things to know for next time....

When I was told I was going to need another transfusion so soon, I was really upset.  It had only been 3 weeks since the last one and I had only been through 1 round of chemo since then.  I can only hope that this isn't a repeat occurrence every 3 weeks. But sadly, I should be more realistic and know that I will be receiving multiple transfusions throughout this process. 

This past weekend Sean and I went to Charlottesville and got to see our niece, Madison, Kevin and Kristi who were in town from their new home in New Jersey.  Madison is getting so big, last time I saw her was when she was first born, in October, Before Cancer (BC).  I wasn't allowed to see her at Christmas because she had just been vaccinated and I'm not supposed to be around children who have recently received their shots.  So it was neat to see all the changes, I hope it's not another 4 months before we see her again.  I'm not sure who has less hair at this point, me or her, we def have a competition going, and I think she might win :o)  We also went down to Richmond to the wedding venue and to talk to hotels about a room block for our guests.  Currently our venue is undergoing renovation of part of the dance floor and deck, it looks AMAZING!  I'm excited that we'll have more room to boogie down.  It's just over 3 months away now, yay!! 

Well folks, besides the radiation trial run, this week is full of shots and blood draws. I'm in isolation now since my counts were so low today.  Sean continues to give me the shots on the weekends after my long week, and I'm so thankful that he is willing to do so! He's becoming a pro, getting better with everyone he does!

I'll blog again after the next cycle and my first week of radiation!