Dear friends & family,
My first day of Camp Chemo was pretty breezy, and while I can't say that I would have chosen this camp of my own free will, the people are pretty nice, and they give you a fairly comfortable chair to use during your stay. There is a kitchenette, a TV that was unfortunately turned on during the last hour (now I can watch my stories), and wifi. Plus the added benefit of starting treatment that will get rid of this cancer.
Thank you for all of your thoughtful texts, Snapchats, FB messages, etc. It definitely helped brighten this big day by knowing you are supporting me. 😍
My morning began very smoothly, always a plus:
Since it was my first day, I was informed that it would take a little longer, so they could assess whether or not I have allergies to one of the drugs called Taxol (I do not). I met the two nurses (Sofia and Jennifer), met with Researcher S., met with the Physicians's Assistant (PA) J., and another woman whose name I cannot remember but brought me a tablet with some surveys that I needed to complete for participation in the clinical trial.
I also had some additional blood drawn for mystery reasons (also part of the clinical trial, and is just a fact of life. The nurses don't know what it is for, either), my vitals checked, and completed a biopsychosocial assessment (just a Likert scale of how I am doing in terms of well-being, quality of life, anxiety, depression, pain, etc.). I feel mostly great, in case you are wondering.
Researcher S. stopped by to ask if I had brought my anti-nausea medications, and to say that I should not try to push through feelings of nausea or pain. She added, "Not that I think that you are one of those people," which shows that she does not know me at all, or is a great psychological device for getting "those people" to agree that they will not try to push through and will in fact take those medications when the need arises.
I got to use my Power Port for the first time! We began with a saline solution, then 30 minutes of the Pembro (immunotherapy drug) OR placebo saline solution LET US ALL TAKE A MOMENT TO HOPE/PRAY/SEND GOOD VIBES THAT IT IS THE PEMBRO THANK YOU, some "pre-meds" that included Benadryl and steroids in preparation for the Taxol, which was administered in a ramping-up fashion taking a little over an hour that we will not need to do in future appointments given that I am not allergic, and capping it off with Carbo for 30 minutes and one final saline solution flush.
This is a double-blind study, so I will never know whether or not I am one of the lucky recipients. It is a 2:1 chance that I will, though, so I have some okay odds.
Three or four hours later, I am feeling mostly normal. I had a snooze with Jax, one of the kitties I live with, on my stomach (Benadryl is the culprit for fatigue here), I took the dog (Toby) for a walk in this most gorgeous fall weather, and now it is time for dinner. I am told that it may be tougher on day three or four, so we will cross that bridge when we get there.
My first day of Camp Chemo was pretty breezy, and while I can't say that I would have chosen this camp of my own free will, the people are pretty nice, and they give you a fairly comfortable chair to use during your stay. There is a kitchenette, a TV that was unfortunately turned on during the last hour (now I can watch my stories), and wifi. Plus the added benefit of starting treatment that will get rid of this cancer.
Thank you for all of your thoughtful texts, Snapchats, FB messages, etc. It definitely helped brighten this big day by knowing you are supporting me. 😍
My morning began very smoothly, always a plus:
- Good night's sleep ✅
- Wake up on first alarm ✅
- Shower/get ready ✅
- Light breakfast (my standard warm water with lemon, smoothie, matcha tea) ✅
- Remembered to apply lidocaine cream to Power Port location ✅
- Only slightly overpacked my backpack with comfort items, laptop, books, and magazines ✅
- Arrive on time, with five minutes to spare ✅
Since it was my first day, I was informed that it would take a little longer, so they could assess whether or not I have allergies to one of the drugs called Taxol (I do not). I met the two nurses (Sofia and Jennifer), met with Researcher S., met with the Physicians's Assistant (PA) J., and another woman whose name I cannot remember but brought me a tablet with some surveys that I needed to complete for participation in the clinical trial.
I also had some additional blood drawn for mystery reasons (also part of the clinical trial, and is just a fact of life. The nurses don't know what it is for, either), my vitals checked, and completed a biopsychosocial assessment (just a Likert scale of how I am doing in terms of well-being, quality of life, anxiety, depression, pain, etc.). I feel mostly great, in case you are wondering.
Researcher S. stopped by to ask if I had brought my anti-nausea medications, and to say that I should not try to push through feelings of nausea or pain. She added, "Not that I think that you are one of those people," which shows that she does not know me at all, or is a great psychological device for getting "those people" to agree that they will not try to push through and will in fact take those medications when the need arises.
I got to use my Power Port for the first time! We began with a saline solution, then 30 minutes of the Pembro (immunotherapy drug) OR placebo saline solution LET US ALL TAKE A MOMENT TO HOPE/PRAY/SEND GOOD VIBES THAT IT IS THE PEMBRO THANK YOU, some "pre-meds" that included Benadryl and steroids in preparation for the Taxol, which was administered in a ramping-up fashion taking a little over an hour that we will not need to do in future appointments given that I am not allergic, and capping it off with Carbo for 30 minutes and one final saline solution flush.
This is a double-blind study, so I will never know whether or not I am one of the lucky recipients. It is a 2:1 chance that I will, though, so I have some okay odds.
Three or four hours later, I am feeling mostly normal. I had a snooze with Jax, one of the kitties I live with, on my stomach (Benadryl is the culprit for fatigue here), I took the dog (Toby) for a walk in this most gorgeous fall weather, and now it is time for dinner. I am told that it may be tougher on day three or four, so we will cross that bridge when we get there.
Here is a picture of Jax and me taken a few weeks ago. He loves to snuggle. Ignore my bedhead.
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