4 down, 2 more to go

Chemotherapy: take 4

It feels a bit like groundhog day by now. I wake up after a bad night sleep, feeling anxious and slightly scared, get ready, take a cab and arrive at The Harley Street Clinic for one more consultation with my oncologist. She goes through all side effects and medication, talks to me about how to best manage the side effects and about the new drug I am taking now, Taxotere. She answers my questions, always in a very positive way, making me feel confident and calm. I then go to the chemotherapy day unit, where I choose my chair, the one on the corner, by the window. S. sits next to me, like always, keeping me company while reading and listening to the radio that is playing softly in the room. The nurses greet us in a very nice way as usual and once again they go through the side effects of the Taxotere and explain how my treatment is going to be that day.

The results of the blood tests done the previous day show that my blood counts are within acceptable limits, meaning that the treatment can go ahead as planned. The nurse gives me the anti-sickness pill one hour before treatment starts. He checks my temperature, blood pressure and weight. By the way I’ve put on 1,5 kilos since last treatment which is great because I wasn’t supposed to lose more than 5 kilos and I had already lost 6. The nurses were a bit concerned about my weight loss. With Taxotere I may put on weight because of the steroids I have to take, but hopefully I will manage to stay the same, I will for sure make an effort not to turn into a fat whale. My self-esteem is already at its worse, soon I will have to hide all the mirrors in the house.

The drug is administered via the port-a-cath that I have now on my chest. It is so much better this way, it is faster and less painful. The only pain I felt was when the needle was inserted, and then when it was removed. I wish I had the port since the first day. It is a bit weird though to have something underneath your skin, with a tube in your vein, but I try not to think about it much.

While the infusion is given, I read, chat a bit, and enjoy the reflexology. It is in general a very relaxing day, despite all the stress that comes with it.

In the meantime, the pharmacist comes along with the list of medication I have to take at home, and the usual big bag full of medicines plus the Neulasta injection that I dislike but learned to give to myself to avoid one more trip to the clinic. Once again, she explains what to take and when and answers my questions.

Before removing the needle, the nurse flushes the port-a-cath to ensure it is open and unobstructed.

By 1pm I was already at home, feeling tired and slightly sickish, but nothing too bad. I had a proper dinner and went early to bed.

Today I had a reasonably good day. I just feel extremely tired and slightly nauseous, nothing I am not used to by now. S. stayed at home to keep me company. Having someone around makes me feel calmer. And it is nice to have someone to re-fill my glass of water and give me little kisses.

With the Taxotere I may experience the following side effects:
•Low white blood cell count (increases risk of infections)
•Low red blood cell count (anaemia)
•Fluid retention with weight gain, swelling of the ankles or abdominal area (great, just what I needed, I will turn into a bald big fat whale!)
•Peripheral neuropathy (numbness in fingers and toes)
•Nausea
•Diarrhoea
•Mouth sores
•Hair loss (too late, almost all is gone by now!)
•Fatigue and weakness
•Nail changes (nails may fall off)
•Vomiting
•Muscle, bone and joint pain
•Low platelet count (increases risk of bleeding)
•Allergic reactions (rash, flushing, fever, lowered blood pressure)
•Infusion site reactions