Today Rich and I met with the surgical oncologist in Hamilton to talk about surgery plans and a date. She was able to tell us that the surgery date will be July 13. This is our second time meeting with her and we are always impressed with her. She is great at explaining things and is very confident and knowledgeable. In some ways I am glad that I had chemotherapy first as it has given me time to get used to the whole surgery idea. Even driving to Hamilton today we felt like it was "old hat" and that seeing a surgical oncologist was not even that scary! It is part of our 'new normal' I guess.
Thanks for following along with us.

Today was just a 1/2 day at the chemo clinic for the Herceptin treatment. Things went fairly smoothly, and basically I'm not feeling a whole lot different. Although- it is only 7:30 and I am fighting to stay awake long enough to say good night to the kids! I am getting used to functioning through fatigue. We are going to Hamilton on Friday to meet with the surgeon, so we hope to have a bit of a plan at that point. The kids have had a busy week with class trips and this weekend the girls have their dance recital. Rich and I are also hoping to go to the Niagara region on Saturday and meet up with friends (who are on a bike tour) for dinner. I am very glad that this is on a 'good weekend', and we're looking forward to a bit of a getaway.
Hope everyone is doing well.

Even though I thought I was prepared for the days after chemo, they still take me by surprise. And even though I know it is short term, when I'm in the middle of these days I feel as if they are never going to end. But, each day does get a bit better and today I am already feeling 'tolerable' (I'm also not as grumpy...). The nice surprise was that this chemo treatment did not affect my legs and feet as much. The down side was my throat, neck and back were very sore - and of course the nausea and general feeling of the flu. But I did stay on top of the tylenol this time and I think it did help.
We had a quiet weekend, and Rich spent alot of time cleaning up the yard. The girls went with friends to Woodstock for a GEMS walk-a-thon and Andrew spent Saturday with a neighbour boy finding frogs in a pond. You should have seen him when he came home- you could just make out the whites of his eyes he was that dirty. But he had fun!

It was a very long day in the chemo clinic today. My mom and I got there at about 8:00 this morning and I was home again at 5:00. There was a mix up in the doctor scheduling so there was no doctor until 9 ish and then he had to write and sign all the orders for treatment. So everybody was a bit behind. It is a long day to sit there attached to an IV pole. You really can't even take a walk, just to the bathroom. But I did watch alot of daytime TV! Regis and Kelly, Ellen, Rachael Ray.... we all know the order by now! The last 4 hours of treatment is the chemo and for that I have been having my hands in "cold mitts" or ice packs the nurses provide so that the chemo doesn't go to my hands/finger nails. The idea is that the cold will help keep my nails at bit healthier. It feels good however it is hard to read with your hands tied up and afternoon TV is not that great!

On of the neat things today was that I sat beside a nice lady who is a little older than me, but is going through the same thing. So we had a little 'support session' for a bit, and then she got to go home. But it helped to break up a long day! She knows another breast cancer patient our age who is looking into starting a support group for 'younger patients' in Guelph, which would be great because the closest right now is Cambridge. So that may interesting.

Rich was able to take the day off today and help out at track and field at the school and watch the kids do some of their events. I was so glad he was able to be there for them, they all had a great day. Lots of stories!

I'm feeling a bit more prepared for what the next few days will entail- I did talk to the covering doctor a bit about the side effects and he suggested to take the nerve pain pill everyday through the whole 2 week session. This may make it more effective. He also suggested Percocet for the pain, but I'm now sure I want to do that just yet. It may make me loopy, and I already feel loopy enough!
Hope everyone is having a good day and enjoying spring.

Hello everyone- not a whole lot new this week, although I am glad to report that the leg and foot pain is pretty much gone. I'm starting to feel like I can do a few things again which is great. Unfortunately I am not sleeping as well this week and I feel as though I am fighting a cold (yet again). So still kind of low key around here! Rich has been travelling a bit for work and as of today, the worst of it is over. It is always nice to have him close to home doing normal work hours. We hope everyone has a nice long weekend!

Well, I have to admit the following days after this chemo/Taxol treatment were a little rough. It started out OK on Thursday, but by Thursday night my feet hurt so bad I wasn't sure how I was going to get up the stairs to bed! By Friday my back, legs and feet were very achy and throbbing. I spent most of the day on the couch. Saturday was not a whole lot better. I am taking something for the nerve pain, but by Saturday night I was pretty sure it wasn't working! But, thankfully, today it is easing off a bit. I think the most frustrating part was that the nausea was minimal, but now I was hurting so bad I still couldn't do anything!
I think the last couple of days have been a little harder on the kids as well. They really could tell I was not functioning and out of commission. Rich has been great though and has kept them busy and is taking care of everybody.
Despite all this I had a wonderful Mother's day with breakfast in bed and received very special handmade cards and gifts from the kids. I've also been blessed with a very special mother and mother-in-law who have been a great support through all this. It truly makes things easier when you are surrounded by people who love you and care for you.
Happy Mother's Day!

Finished treatment #5!

Today was the first treatment(of 4) of Taxol and even though it took longer to administer, it was easier to tolerate. I think that is was not as nauseating and not so uncomfortable. For the first 4 treatments part of the drug had to be 'pushed' into the vein and it would make me feel agitated and it would feel like my head was going to pop off! So this one today wasn't as uncomfortable. It will be interesting to see what the side effects will be like and how different this may be from the first 4 treatments.

One of the general side effects of chemo that am experiencing is hand swelling and finger nail pain. My nails are starting to discolour a bit and feel like they may separate from the nail bed (I know, very gross). The nurse today said they don't look as bad as other patients she has seen (somehow that made me feel a bit better). She did give me cold ice packs for my hands and nails during treatment to avoid the chemo going to my hands. I don't think it was too effective though because they weren't that cold and she spent more time putting the ice packs back in the fridge. I think I may bring my own ice packs next time!

I have next Wednesday off (yeah!) and then the following Wednesday I have Taxol #2 and my first herceptin. So they told me to expect a very long day (about 8 hours). The good part (there
has to has to be a good part) was that I get a free lunch from the cafe and they make good food. I am always happy to see good food-even during chemo!

I will keep you posted as to how this week goes. Bye for now.