That line from Top Gun rings true today. I have joined the ranks of people who have intentionally let their doctors poison them. Yea! Treatment has started, and then came to an abrupt halt. I’ll fill in that portion later.
Last night I made a list of stuff that I would need for treatment today. I was prepared to be there all day, as I was told. I had my laptop from work, several DVD’s, portable hard drive with more movies, ipod, magazines, books, my chemo blanket…I was set. We loaded up and left a tad late and showed up more than a tad late, but 15 minutes was not a big deal to them.Â
We were called back quickly and had our own little treatment room. It was little, but it did work. It would have been nice if Debbi had a desk to work at, so she used two stools instead. I did not have the token examination table or hospital bed. I had a barcalounger! It was even vinyl coated too! I wonder how many vinyls had to die to make that chair. The nurse introduced herself and we watched a VHS movie about chemo. The movie was made in 1998, but it seemed more like 1978. While the movie was extremely dry, I did glean a couple more nuggets about chemo, especially the side effects. Nausea, vomiting, and hair loss are the biggies. I already knew about those. I also learned that I could have mouth sores and patriotic pee. Yes, my pee could be red or blue if not the normal clear. How exciting is that? I think I can handle red, not to sure about the blue.
After the video the nurse accessed my medi-port, a Bard Access Systems PowerPort (product endorsement), and the fun began. I was first given a pre-med to help with nausea along with a saline bag to help keep me hydrated. This was followed by a bad of orange Kool-Aid colored poison….ur…medicine. This was Doxorubicin. This is the drug that can damage the heart and the reason I had the echo cardiogram at MD Anderson. I did not look, but it appeared to be about a 500ml bag, and it was infused in 30 minutes. The next drug was a direct injection into the catheter, 2ml. The next was another bag infused in about 30 minutes. I was done. What? This was supposed to be an all day affair.
The first thing I did was call Buff and tell her to not bring lunch. I was afraid she was already on the way, but she was up a ladder instead. I didn’t ask. We made plans to meet her for lunch after left. I met with my doctor’s nurse, a dietitian, the pharmacist, a rabbi, two priests, one nun, and probably some others that I have forgotten. We finally left about 1:00 or so. I did not really look.
The reason for our early departure was our old friend insurance. They did not approve the rituxan in my regimen. <rant><bold>THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU PUT ACCOUNTANTS IN CHARGE OF HEALTH CARE!</bold></rant>
The first dose of rituxan takes a long time. Some people are allergic to it, so they administer it very slowly. That is why this was an all day affair. Well, we got to go home early and that is good too, I just don’t like the reason.
We had a great lunch with Buff at Cafe Express. (yet another product placement) We hit CVS (another?) to pick up my meds and headed home. I did learn that one of my chemo drugs was in pill form. I took that first dose when I got home and took a nap. I guess I needed it. I got up after an hour and a half and was dizzy. I am doing better now, but I can feel that all is not normal in me. But, then again, what is normal?
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