Well, here I am. It has been a wonderful, delightful, and sunny holiday weekend. But the fasting starts in a few hours in preparation for my surgery tomorrow. Another morning, once again NPO, another surgery. I say it so easily these days, yet until this past March, i.e. until two and a half months ago, I had never had surgery that required anything more than local anesthesia. Yet in the two and a half months since that first surgery that diagnosed me as having TNBC, I have undergone three surgeries already, with the fourth one coming up tomorrow morning. Funny how fast things can change. What is even weirder is that I am nowhere near as nervous about this fourth surgery than the first one. I suppose I'm sort of getting used to all the surgery stuff, and not dreading the unknown any more as I did before they cut me up the first time.
This time they will be implanting what I hope will be my new friend: a chemo port. Hopefully, this little device -- despite the additional scars it will add to my already marked body -- will free me of all those painful needle sticks and all the digging around in my veins that invariably results in bruised arms and/or hands. Yeah, the back of my right hand is one of the few places where they have been finding usable veins recently. And the digging in there is even less fun than the digging elsewhere...especially with the memory of the numb fingers from the anesthesia for the mastectomy still fresh in my memory! Ah, so much fun...but soon that should be over.
And once that port is in -- let the party begin! I really, really want to get started with the chemo so that the last, stray cells of that nasty cancer can be eliminated. So cocktail hour, here I come.
Actually, I am also thinking about taking part in two chemotherapy-related research studies. As a researcher myself, it seems to be fitting to aid science as a research subject for once. One of the studies investigates anti-nausea drug cocktails (more cocktails, yay!), while the other one looks as preventing bone pain from the Neulasta shot I will receive after each round of treatment. Since neither study will involve any additional needle sticks or blood draws, but only a few questionnaires, I think I will give my informed consent. Somehow it makes me feel as though it makes me more useful than I have been to society recently. Plus, it's always neat to be part of a research project. Ok, I admit it -- I am a geek! You're on to me, so what? So sue me -- or live long and prosper!
1 comment:
Here's hoping your surgery goes well. And well done on the study participation. Data is valuable.
Finally, as one geek to another: you *will* live long and prosper. "Good luck".
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