1 can of cancer whoop ass opened; 3 to go!

On Monday I took a class to prepare for beginning chemo and it was really helpful. She went over the chemo drugs, what they do and what side effects I might expect. With a few exceptions I found all the information very useful. I could have done without knowing that Taxotere is a mustard gas derivative but not much I can do about it now! I do like knowing what’s going to happen, it really makes everything a little less scary. The main side effects of the drugs I’m going to get are hair loss, nausea, and fatigue. The nurse assured me that the nausea is quite well controlled with the new anti-nausea meds they give and most people don’t even throw up anymore. The hair loss I’m not too concerned about, there are options there. Fortunately I’ve never been a vain person so I think I can deal. The fatigue though has me a little worried. She explained that it’s worse than any tired you’ve ever felt and it can make doing even simple daily things a chore. I don’t want to feel this way, the worst thing I can imagine is not feeling like myself. So I have resolved to take advantage of everyone’s kind offers to help. If you call me and ask how you can help, I will certainly try to come up with something specific! I’ll try to conserve my energy to avoid missing work and to have a little fun once in a while too!

Today was my first chemo treatment and it really wasn’t too bad. My friend Sally came with me and really made the 3 1/2 hours go by quickly. I don’t get to spend enough time with her and we had quite a few laughs, I think we even entertained the nurse a few times! In the chemo class I learned that I shouldn’t feel any different leaving than I felt going in and that was true. So far the chemo hasn’t made me feel nauseous although I’m a little drowsy from the Benedryl they put in my IV to help counteract any allergic reaction I might have. She told me that I might expect 1 to 2 days of feeling okay, then the nausea and possible fatigue would set in, the fatigue really kicking in during week 2 after the treatment.

I’m hoping to make it to work tomorrow after I go in for my $3000 shot. Yes, you read that correctly! No wonder there hasn’t been a cure for cancer…why cure it when you can charge that much for the drugs used to treat it??